IMac G5 startup

I have an iMac G5 running OS X 10.3.9. Why do I get a small box with a globe in the middle and then
a small folder with an alternation ? and finder icon in the middle during startup?

If it eventually starts up normally, check the setting in the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences. If not, repair the internal drive or install a new OS on it.
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Hi, having trouble with my iMac on startup. Background screen appears, but no icons,

Having trouble with my iMac- on startup, the background screen appears, but no icons. The spinning beach ball appears for quite a long while, then when the icons finally come up, when I open a finder window, the only icons to appear are the Network and Macintosh HD icons. I've tried to repair disk permissions: this came up with heaps of errors, which it then fixed, but the original problem remains.
Any suggestions on how to fix this?
thanks

Please read this whole message before doing anything.
This procedure is a test, not a solution. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.
Step 1
The purpose of this step is to determine whether the problem is localized to your user account.
Enable guest logins and log in as Guest. For instructions, launch the System Preferences application, select Help from the menu bar, and enter “Set up a guest account” (without the quotes) in the search box. Same problem(s)?
After testing, log out of the guest account and, in your own account, disable it if you wish. Any files you created in the guest account will be deleted automatically when you log out of it.
Note: If you’ve activated “Find My Mac” or FileVault in Mac OS X 10.7 or later, then you can’t enable the Guest account. Create a new account in which to test, and delete it, including its home folder, after testing.
Step 2
The purpose of this step is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party system modifications that load automatically at startup or login.
Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Boot in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. The instructions provided by Apple are as follows:
Be sure your Mac is shut down.
Press the power button.
Immediately after you hear the startup tone, hold the Shift key. The Shift key should be held as soon as possible after the startup tone, but not before the tone.
Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple icon and the progress indicator (looks like a spinning gear).
Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including wireless networking on certain Macs.
The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
Same problem(s) in safe mode?
After testing, reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of steps 1 and 2.

Using external drive with iMac as startup

I have an iMac that the hard drive is failing thus I purchased an external drive to use as a startup up drive connected to the iMac. How reliable is this setup and what are the cons/pros in operating this way?

Assuming you bought a FW800 drive the performance should be OK, not as good as your old internal HD but useable. If you bought a USB drive the performance is going to be very slow. As far as reliability it should be fine assuming you bought a decent quality HD. However why not just get the internal HD replaced? If you decide to move forward with the external HD after you install OS X onto it don't forget to make sure it's set as your Startup drive in System Preferences.

24" iMac having startup issues

I thought I would post here in an effort to try and see if there is anything else I can do before heading to an Apple Store tomorrow. I own a 24" iMac, which I got in the fall 2006. A few weeks ago, this problem first occurred. The computer started up and the chime sounded then it got to a gray screen with an Apple logo and a spinning wheel below it. Then the spinning wheel would freeze. Then the screen would go black. I don't quite remember how I got the computer working again after the first time this happened (probably one of the solutions below), but I did and now the same problem has occurred today and I cannot figure out any way to fix it.
Solutions I have tried today:
1) Unplugged AC adapter and let computer alone for 30 secs and then plugged in and restarted. Nothing changed. Computer froze as describe above.
2) Unplugged all the peripherals and restarted. Nothing changed. Computer froze as describe above.
3) I reset the SMC by removing the SO-DIMM modules and reinstalled them. Nothing changed. Computer froze as describe above.
4) I reset the PRAM and NVRAM by holding command option P R. Nothing changed. Computer froze as describe above.
5) I tried booting from the OSX Install disk. It would not do so. Computer froze as describe above. Computer froze as describe above.
6) I tried starting up holding C and it actually gave me the option of selecting the hard drive. But then it froze as described above.
So far, I plugged in a firewire cable and am using my MacBook to backup files so I can access the computer and its various files via this FireWire Target Mode.
Does anybody have any further suggestions before I take it in to an Apple Store?
24" iMac Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Add me to the list on of startup problems with my 24" iMac. First off the computer seemed to be slowing up and some of my icons were disappearing.....labels were still there but not the icon. Then I tried installing the 10.4.9 upgrade. Big mistake.......it wouldn't completely install even when I used the standalone installation. Kept getting errors and the try again message.
So after all of this, the computer would not boot up from the hard drive or from the install DVD. Fortunately, I have a external startup drive and eventually I was able to get the computer to startup from that drive. From there I was able to startup from the install CD DVD. I tried to repair Disk but it failed because of an error and I am now doing an install and archive while I write this. Keeping my fingers crossed.
This is my second iMac that I have had startup problems. With my last iMac, it was the hard drive......Apple replaced it and the computer works fine.(my wife is now using that computer) It was during my problems then that I learned it is helpful to have an external startup drive. I operated that iMac from the external startup drive a couple of months before I took it in for repair.
Oh boy, the first install DVD just finished and it won't eject and now I have the message "there were errors installing the software" Try again.
Complete frustration...........I will try the installation once more and then probably a clean install if that doesn't work.
iMac G5, G4 Powerbook
iMac G5, G4 Powerbook Mac OS X (10.4.8)
iMac G5, G4 Powerbook
iMac G5, G4 Powerbook
iMac G5, G4 Powerbook

Problems upgrading to Panther on imac getting startup disk error -2

Hello all, I recently got a used imac(400Mhz, CD, 10gb hdd, firewire, OS9.1) but unable to install Panther. It keeps giving me an error that Startup could not start from CD(-2). I've searched Apple support and Google but haven't found any good answers. I've made sure that firmware 4.1.9 is installed. Thanks in advance for any help.

Can you boot any other Mac from that CD?

Imac G5 startup problem

Need a little help here. My imac G5,20" (wireless keyboard and mouse) will not start up properly. No chime and no image on monitor but I can hear the hard drive and after 30 seconds or so the fan gets very loud. Any help would be appreciated!

Hi, Mike, and welcome to Apple Discussions!
Sorry you're experiencing problems. About the only things you can do are first remove all peripherals, printers, external drives from your iMac - if that helps plug them back in one by one until you can ID which is causing the problem. Also if you have bought additional RAM try removing it as well.
If that's not it try connecting a wired keyboard and mouse.
Then, with the wired mouse and keyboard, try booting into "Safe" mode - as you turn the machine on press & hold the "S" key until you see the Apple logo. If it starts in Safe mode chances are the problem is a program or software that is loading automatically on startup.
Finally try booting from your Apple CD: if you can insert the CD when the machine is on, even if you have nothing on the screen; shut it down again and restart pressing and holding the "C" key.
If none of this works it's off to Apple for service I'm afraid.

Getting new iMac, use startup clone to clean drive?

I am trying to prepare for a new iMac, and wonder if I am able to use my CCC drive as startup drive and erase the Macintosh HD? I have the Time Machine on a separate drive and CCC on another drive. Is this recommended, if not would like to hear any other options.
Thanks,
Don

You have to remember that PPC applictions still worked under Snow Leopard, but haven't been supported since Lion, so you may have some issues if you have any of those.
Also, using Setup Assistant at the beginning of the setup of the new Mac is much easier as it will port over your user account. If you use Migration Assistant later, you will have already set up an account, so that will create a second one and you'll need to sort it out manually with the duplicate folders, etc.
And, you can use Time Machine for that, but I can't help with that as I choose not to use it at all.

Can't get my Imac to startup from the hard drive...

I'm trying to update an old tray loaded Imac G3. I've put a new hard drive and new ram in the machine. I initiallized the disk and installed OS 9.2 from an official Apple CD. I selected my main drive as my startup disk but when I restart, it gives me the old face on the blinking folder. I ran disk utility to see if the disk was damaged and everything came out fine. I wiped the disk clean and reinstalled but still the same problem. Any guesses... I'm stumped. One other thing, when I'm booted from the OS 9 CD, is it normal for me to get errors that says the startup disk is locked?
Imac G3 Mac OS 9.2.x Tray loaded CD ROM

Hi, braddo -
Welcome to Apple's Discussions.
One other thing, when I'm booted from the OS 9 CD, is it normal for me to get errors that says the startup disk is locked?
Yes.
When you boot to a CD, the CD is the startup disk. Since a CD like that can not be written to (which is one of its advantages), it is, in effect, a locked disk. Hence the message.
An old tray loader iMac is probably an original Bondi 233MHz machine, or a later 5-Flavors 266MHz or 333MHz model. Those models are subject to the 8GB restriction as described in this Apple KBase article -
Article #25249 - Gray or White Screen After Hard Drive Upgrade
If the new hard drive is 8GB or larger, it will need to be partitioned such that the first partition is a bit less than 8GB (7.7GB is a safe size), and all OS's installed on that partition.
The installer on all OS 9 Install CDs will not check for compliance with that requirement (the installers on OSX install CDs will check for it).

IMac slow startups but really slow shutdowns.

Had a problem with slow startups and shutdowns which continued to get worse. Stumbled onto resolution. Shutdowns and startups continued to slow down. Found in Activity Monitor that HP scheduler kept running. computer log showed several "halt" at shutdown. Went into Accounts-Login Tab- Found 3 HP programs which loaded when I had a HP printer driver update. They should have uninstalled after the driver update but continued to run. Deleting the HP files from this tab did not cause any problems with my printer. My iMac is back to its normal "fast" startups and shutdowns. Anyone with a HP printer may want to look here if they are having problems.

This forum is certainly not the best one to ask about the operating system behavior !
Would be a good idea to go to :
http://discussions.apple.com/category.jspa?categoryID=263
Yvan KOENIG (VALLAURIS, France) lundi 3 janvier 2011 18:55:32

IMac G4 startup

Every time I startup my iMac G4, I get a message stating "the Helper Preferences has a wrong version number. I replace the file. OK " I hit ok and the computer is ready to go. How do I get rid of this message or correct whatever is wrong
iMac G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

It would be helpful to know what is causing the message; and maybe if you
look into the System Profiler's system log files, you can see what part of
the logs show the related error and maybe know what software is causing it.
If the message were related to the Help Viewer, for example, there are
known ways to deal with it. But a "helper" could be any one of a few things
and not necessarily easily found without more of a clue.
There may be a .plist file pertaining to the application or whatever it is you
are getting the message from, and sometimes you can trash the correct
one and the system will make a new one. If the problem is fixed by doing
so, you then empty trash to get rid of the old .plist relating to the app.
And, there is a user list of items that will be active on start, and you can
edit them; if an item on startup is corrupt and you move it from the list,
the message may also stop appearing. I'd have to know alot more about
what you have running in your machine, and if you do any routine system
maintenance (and what/how it is done) before any more second guessing.
If the issue is really with the Help Viewer, which can have known issues
in a few rare circumstances, see: Troubleshooting Help Viewer

20 inch imac wont startup or re-install OS

hi folks
i had been off work for 4 weeks due to a knee op and on my return i was informed my 20 inch imac wont start up.
it chimes then the grey apple appears, but the circular bar at the bottom just keeps ticking away, nothing at all, even left it for 15 minutes.
So i tried the command option PR, second chime went fine, then the same thing.
So i launched from the install CD, this gave me the option to reinstall my OS and archive the old one, retaining all my user settings, i opted for this and it failed to install twice, saying i should retry the installation.
any ideas?
i am contemplating using it as a T target disc and grabbing my necessary files then re-formatting.

hopefully they mean expedite rather than escalate? but who knows with apple support!
Basically I wondered the same as you, what if we only had one mac????
I guess i would be mac-less and they would resolve things, i think it is under warranty still.
T mode is achieved by pressing T upon startup, this turns your mac into an accessible hard drive via firewire, you are in T (transfer i think) mode once the firewire logo floats around the screen and this enabled me to grab everything essential and stick it on my MBpro.
T mode is also an option when first installing, and transfers everything over from an old or alternate mac, internet connnections, applications, network settings, the lot, it is absolute genius compared to the old mac days!
If your machine is stil under warranty then the least they can do is replace it if they cannot fix it!!!!

2006 iMAC-on startup I get a white screen with a file folder with ? in the middle, what can I do?

White screen with file folder symbol (? in middle) that flashes, what is the problem? How can I fix it?

Do you have a recent backup of your iMac? If not, then, you can proceed with the following with caution.
DO NOT FORMAT YOUR HARD DRIVE AT ANY STAGE.
Startup your iMac from the original DVDs.
Launch Disk Utility and run Verify Disk.
Repair Disk if advised to.
If Disk Utility cannot Repair your disk, and you don't have a recent backup, you can try DiskWarrior to rebuild your disk and retrieve your data.
Report back after running Disk Utility if you have no joy.

IMac with Startup tones issue - 3 short + 3 long + 3 short

Hello,
I recently acquired a 24" iMac (early 2009)model from a friend; it had been working perfectly when he had it but once I transported it to my place and set it up, its not properly booting up. The problems is:
1- On startup while the screen is still off, it gives 3 short tones, 3 long, 3 short tones, and then goes silent.
2- Then it seems like its trying to access an expected media in the DVD drive.
3- After a short while, it finally starts up but with a progress bar below the Apple icon.
4- On completion of the progress bar, it shuts down and then behaviour goes back to step #1. This loops continuously till I force it to shutdown.
I haven't been able to find anything in the support area here about 3 short, 3 long, and 3 short tone sequence. The only reference is to 3 long, 3 short, 3 long tone sequence (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2538?viewlocale=en_US), or http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2372353&tstart=0.
So far I have done the following:
1- Reset the RAM modules - no effect
2- Used the Firmware Restoration CD 1.7 & 1.8 - No effect
3- Reset PMU - no effect
4- Upgraded from Leopard to Snow Leopard - no effect
However, when I reset the PRAM, this is the only way for the machine to start up properly. And once it does, it works fine, but on restart/or starting after shutdown it exhibits the same behaviour.
If one of the RAM modules had done bad, I would recoken that it wouldn't be able to start up at all (as per reset PRAM technique). So what could this be?
Luckily the machine is under AppleCare but haven't had the chance to call them up (due to working hours clash). So just want to see if this issue can be user fixed or is a hardware issue which would require a visit to an Apple store (quite a bit away here in UK).
Many thanks!

3 long tones, 3 short tones, 3 long tones Firmware restoration from CD in process. See About the Firmware Restoration CD (Intel-based Macs) for more details.
from here http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2538?viewlocale=en_US
Also seems the only update available for the 9,1 imac is related to the ATI Radeon HD 4850 Video card. Do you have this card?
See here http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1237 and here http://support.apple.com/downloads/iMac_EFI_Firmware_Update_14
This update fixes intermittent system freeze issues for iMac computers with ATI Radeon HD 4850 graphics and fixes wake-from-sleep issues in Boot Camp.
Loading the 1.7 and 1.8 firmware does not seem a wise idea.. 1.7 is for the 4,1 and 4,2 imacs, and 1.8 is for the Mac Pro (Early 2009) 4,1 and Xserve (Early 2009) 3,1
Also this symptom has been reported as linked to faulty RAM refer here http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2372353&tstart=0
Edited by: Richdave

IMAC G5 Startup Issue

Hi, Wonder if someone can point me in the right direction or advise a fix. I have a iMAC G5 that on startup I get a flashing Globe Icon with a ? and will not perform the startup unless I insert the Install disk upon power up.
Any ideas?
Much appreciated
Pjmcdee

The startup disk needs to be reassigned to the internal HD (the globe means the machine was set to netboot) so boot up holding down the "Option" key and then choose the internal HD from the boot options/drives that should come up...
Don't forget to set the startup disk to the hard drive once you get booted up
because the globe means the machine was set to netboot.
You may still want to check the disk though, the machine was set to netboot, however, it should timeout when it gets no response from the netboot server and continue booting from the hard disk.

17 in. iMac G4 Startup Issue/irregularity

I was wondering if anyone could help me with this. I restarted my iMac an hour and a half ago, and noticed that while it was booting up it had a folder icon with a '?' on it, and then 2 seconds later it switched to the 'finder' mac face, and booted up. Also, during the startup the screen seems to flicker more than I remember, but then I rarely turn my iMac off, so I don't have a lot of experience to reference here. I was wondering if this means more trouble to come, or if there is any preventative maintenance I can do to keep it from getting really bad. I've already run Cocktail, which cleans caches and repairs disc permissions. I've also got Disc Warrior, and the program says that the hard drives s.m.a.r.t diagnostic says everythings ok, and that the fragmentation on the drive is only 3%. What could be causing this? Could it be a software issue, or hardware, or both? Thanks a bunch to whoever can lend me a hand.
- Simon

Hello Simon,
Another way to check what is going on might be here. Go to...
Blue Apple ( top left of your screen )
System Preference
Start up disk.
There it should say that " You have selected to start Mac OS X xx.xx.xx from the volume Macintosh HD "
If it does not - That may be why the question mark appears at start up.
I would expect a little extra " flashing and banging! " if the system is hunting for a place to start working ( if that makes sense )
Regards
Ian

IMac G5 startup

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