IMac stuck at gray screen when booting

Hi - My 2011 iMac with 10.8.2 is stuck on the gray screen when rebooting. I was in Windows 7 bootcamp, and restarted to OS X. I see the screen below, and once the progress bar reaches 100%, the computer shuts off. Every time I reboot, the same problem. I've disconnected everything, except for the standard bluetooth wireless keyboard. I've tried some various boot options, such as holding down Shift while rebooting, as well as command+R, but neither had any impact, it is the same problem over and over. Any tips on what to try next?

If you want to preserve the data on the internal drive(s), you must try to back up now, before you do anything else. It may or may not be possible. If you don't care about the data, you can skip this step.
There are several ways to back up a Mac that is unable to fully boot. You need an external hard drive to hold the backup data.
1. Boot into Recovery (command-R at startup) or from a local Time Machine backup volume (option key at startup.) Launch Disk Utility and follow the instructions in the support article linked below, under “Instructions for backing up to an external hard disk via Disk Utility.”
How to back up and restore your files
2. If you have access to a working Mac, and both it and the non-working Mac have FireWire or Thunderbolt ports, boot the non-working Mac in target disk mode by holding down the key combination command-T at the startup chime. Connect the two Macs with a FireWire or Thunderbolt cable. The internal drive of the machine running in target mode will mount as an external drive on the other machine. Copy the data to another drive. This technique won't work with USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth.
How to use and troubleshoot FireWire target disk mode
3. If the internal drive of the non-working Mac is user-replaceable, remove it and mount it in an external enclosure or drive dock. Use another Mac to copy the data.

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My Mac Book Pro is stuck on gray screen when booting up

When booting up on my Mac Book Pro side it gets stuck on a gray screen and wont boot even when in safe mode. I have cleared the P/Ram and still have acces to the partioned windows side on the same computer. How should I procede to get my Mac OS running again.

See if these are of any assistance:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.7/en/mchlp2889.html
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
Ciao.

Macbook Pro Stuck at Gray Screen When Entering Boot Options

Hello apple community,
I have a 15 inch MacBook Pro 2008, and I decided recently to replace the 250 Gb hard drive with a new WD Black 500 Gb hard drive. I backed up all the data onto my external hard drive and replaced the hard drive. Now I am trying to enter the disk utility to boot from the disk utility by holding the option key. When I turn on the computer and hold the option key it gets stuck on the gray screen. Does anybody have any idea why this is happening? Thanks.

OK. When you say it doesn't work does that mean you cannot see the drive in Disk Utility? Of course that means you need to boot from another drive such as your external backup. If you happen to have a Snow Leopard DVD to boot your computer then you could try with that. But there isn't much you can do if you don't have another bootable drive in an external enclosure or other form of hookup like a universal drive adaptor.
Your model is not new enough to use Internet Recovery. I don't know what more to offer. You cannot even verify that the new HDD is OK by putting it in an external enclosure.

My imac has a gray screen when waking it up from sleep mode. about 9 months ago, I installed OS X Maverick.

This is the second time this has happened, since installing OS X (9 mos. ago). (I can't recall the fix from the last incident.) Upon waking the pc up from sleep mode, I get a gray screen. Nothing works except using the Command and P & R keys to get to "reinstalling OS X", to no avail. What do I need to do to get it back to normal?
My imac is a 21.5", mid 2011 item.

Those keys do not reinstall OS X. To do that:
Reinstall Lion, Mountain Lion, or Mavericks without erasing drive
Boot to the Recovery HD:
Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Repair
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported then click on the Repair Permissions button. When the process is completed, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Mountain Lion or Mavericks
OS X Mavericks- Reinstall OS X
OS X Mountain Lion- Reinstall OS X
OS X Lion- Reinstall Mac OS X
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet
if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.
COMMAND-OPTION-P-R keys resets the PRAM. OS X keyboard shortcuts.

Imac stuck at gray screen at the start

hello everyone. i have an idea about the stuck. when my mac was shutdowned i locked it with find my iphone app on my iphone. after opened up my mac and it played a voice and got stuck on there. had to close it. after that i pressed the power button and got the green screen. tried to start in safe mode and recovery disc and all got stuck in there. i able to open my mac in windows, but can't get in mac. i guess it's because of the find my iphone password thing but i dont know how to fix it.

Another update. Tried to reset nvram and pram. When i hit option command p and r button a lock amblem appears. And i enter the password that i set from find my iphone. After that another gray screen comes alon and it gets stuck again. Please somebody help me im really out of ideas.
Update again. Literally out of ideas. I deleted my mac from find my iphone icloud website too. Nothing works. Ideas please.

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My iMac won't load. When I turn it on there is the "chime" then nothing but a gray screen. I tried reseting the PMU, but still nothing. The machine froze while doing a backup and my hubby forced the machine off. When I tried to turn on the next day, this is what I got. Have tried starting it with everything unplugged... I am in the USVI and there are no Apple people here so I really need some HELP!

Since the problem seems to have started with the forced shutdown, try repairing the hard drive following the steps in Trav's Tips
You can also review this Apple KB Article
Try repairing the disk first and see if that does the trick.
Good luck (although since you're in the VI's your luck seems to be pretty good!)
Clint

IMac stuck on gray screen

I have an early '08 intel-based iMac which has quite suddenly not been able to restart.
I do have it partitioned to run Windows XP and I thought it was a problem restarting after working on the Windows side, but even if I leave it on the Mac side for an night, I still have the problem
I have taken it to an authorized Apple dealer and it has been checked out. No hardware issues were apparent.
I do have a Seagate external hard drive attached via USB for Time Machine and I also have a 7 port USB hub also attached via USB. The only other USB port in the rear of the computer has the keyboard attached.
I am able to startup from the Snow Leopard OS CD and if I hold down the option key at startup, I am able to startup Windows or my Time Machine backup or the CD, if I have it inserted.
However, I am not able to startup with the Mac OS on the internal hard drive which is running 10.6.8 and all the updates have been installed.
As I said, the Apple techie erased the hard drive and reinstalled both the Mac and Windows partitions, and although it seems to restart if restart is attempted soon after, the iMac restarts, but if the iMac sits for a time, it doesn't restart.
Does anyone have any experience with this and can offer help?
My next step is to erase the complete internal drive and start all over, including partitioning with Bootcamp.

OK. Checking the instructions on the link you sent me.
a) I have disconnected both peripherals, the Time MAchine backup hard drive and the USB hub. The only USB connected to the computer is my keyboard. My Epson printer is wireless. There is nothing else connected to the computer.
b) I have tried a safe boot and it gets stuck before it boots up.
c) I did a reset of the NVRAM
d) I am able to boot up from the Snow Leopard OS Cd.
e) I have done a complete permissions repair and a disk repair from Disk Utilites
f) Haven't bothered to plug into an outlet other than the power bar.
g) and the only step I haven't done is to remove the 2Gb Ram I installed several months ago. I would guess it is a third party piece of hardware although I did buy it from my Apple dealer.
h) I have, as the Apple Tech did as well, performed an erase and Install of the OS from the CD and have updated all the software.
I can restore from Time machine and then the computer will restart after that is done.
Sorry, I am not booting up from Time Machine, simply erasing and restoring from it.
Is it possible that something from the Windows partition could have infected the Mac side?
Thanks for the help so far.

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Try the sugestions in this Knowledge Base article; Mac OS X 10.5: Setup Assistant appears after every restart

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The graphic card is damaged. You can't do anything more than taking your computer to an Apple Store or reseller and getting your graphic card replaced.
Sometimes, when the graphic card is damaged, operating systems can't start. That's caused because the drivers that make the graphic card work detect an error, telling the operating system that the graphic card is unusable, so the operating system can't start and it restarts. However, you can start in safe mode because operating systems use a basic driver in this startup mode

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Welcome to Apple Support Communities
Press Shift key on boot and check that the computer starts. Finally, restart

Boot stuck at gray screen

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I hate to disagree, but I have had this happen at
least 4-5 times.
1. Happened (Before) I had an external HD attached, as Well as (After.)
(so HD not the issue.)
2. I had only the bare essentials installed on Tiger OS 4.10, B4 buying leopard.
(No other Software Installed, and NOTHING from 2nd install disk. No Optional Programs)
(Makes me rule out Quicktime.
3. I also Had same Grey Screen, Tried Disk Utility from cold boot (DVD)
Removed 1 Simm Chip And reset Pram. (Yes, I waited for 2nd chime.)
No Other OS or ANY Windows Products on this system.
Tried Cold Boot With DVD,
(made sure Active Boot Drive was DVD, NOT HD)
In Addition, Booted While Holding;
a. Shift Key - (Safe Boot)
b. Opt Key - ( I've forgotten )
c. C - Key (Password Change - No Help)
d. D - Key (verify/repair disk or permissions useless.)
Two recurring questions seem to be raised by level 2 Phone Support
to help me recover access, Without Formatting. I refused to do it, and insisted
they walk me out of this problem.
One suggested the Parse file was corrupted. Another Seems to feel that having
once forgotten firmware & or Master Password was the problem.
I disagree, I was able to recover that time by dropping to unix prompt, once I
got in, created root user, deleted My User Account,
then Recreated it, using Same Name ) Then deleting Root Account. (for Safety)
I no longer set Firmware or Master Password, It HAS Happened since.
I'm inclinrd to believe the corrupted Parse image, for all the reasons above.
It can be recovered, without Format Or Time Machine Restore. However several different
methods were used by different tech support people, so I have Messy notes on
what the actual steps were. Due to so much back tracking & Holding, And Different
methods used by different Phone Guys. NEVER attempt to try with level 1, INSIST
on level 2 support or you will not recover. Solution seems to have been successful
Most often, after working at unix prompt, and executing various commands.
If I find the Most Efficient notes, I kept from the 1st guy, who was Very Good.
I will post them. Sorry I couldn't be more specific on the recovery steps.
I remember running: fsck -?? & mount -???? , navigating to root, and not mush else.
Good Luck
PantherSherry

My intel imac White screens when booting

My intel imac White screens when booting. I have completed; power off restart - comnd-option p-r
While off I held power button 30 sec power cycled holding the apple button.

Try to restart in Safe Mode and let us know what happens.
Roger

Forzen gray screen at boot

I'm using an iMac that was new in Dec '12. 27-inch I think it's still the current model.
Lately I've been getting long if not terminal hang-ups at boot on the plain gray screen.
The only system maintenance I have with this Mac is to confirm and correct my preferences on the main drive, through Disk Utility. I know there is much more to clean up in the system.
What program should I be using to do this with?
I used to use Onyx, but that is now only a pay program now. If I must use a pay program I want to get the best value for the program.
So my question is two questions.....
1. Are there free programs that will clean up the caches and whatever else needs attending to?
2. What is the best pay program for maintaing a Mac?
Thanks

Take each of these steps that you haven't already tried. Stop when the problem is resolved.
Step 1
The first step in dealing with a boot failure is to secure your data. If you want to preserve the contents of the startup drive, and you don't already have at least one current backup, you must try to back up now, before you do anything else. It may or may not be possible. If you don't care about the data that has changed since your last backup, you can skip this step.
There are several ways to back up a Mac that is unable to boot. You need an external hard drive to hold the backup data.a. Boot into Recovery by holding down the key combination command-R at the startup chime, or from a local Time Machine backup volume (option key at startup.) Release the keys when you see a gray screen with a spinning dial. When the OS X Utilities screen appears, launch Disk Utility and follow the instructions in this support article, under “Instructions for backing up to an external hard disk via Disk Utility.”
b. If you have access to a working Mac, and both it and the non-working Mac have FireWire or Thunderbolt ports, boot the non-working Mac in target disk mode by holding down the key combination command-T at the startup chime. Connect the two Macs with a FireWire or Thunderbolt cable. The internal drive of the machine running in target mode will mount as an external drive on the other machine. Copy the data to another drive. This technique won't work with USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth.
c. If the internal drive of the non-working Mac is user-replaceable, remove it and mount it in an external enclosure or drive dock. Use another Mac to copy the data.
Step 2
Press and hold the power button until the power shuts off. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed to boot, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Use a different keyboard and/or mouse, if those devices are wired. If you can boot now, one of the devices you disconnected, or a combination of them, is causing the problem. Finding out which one is a process of elimination.
If you've booted from an external storage device, make sure that your internal boot volume is selected in the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences.
Step 3
Boot in safe mode. Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the boot volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Post for further instructions.
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.
When you boot in safe mode, it's normal to see a dark gray progress bar on a light gray background. If the progress bar gets stuck for more than a few minutes, or if the system shuts down automatically while the progress bar is displayed, your boot volume is damaged and the drive is probably malfunctioning. In that case, go to step 5.
If you can boot and log in now, empty the Trash, and then open the Finder Info window on your boot volume ("Macintosh HD," unless you gave it a different name.) Check that you have at least 9 GB of available space, as shown in the window. If you don't, copy as many files as necessary to another volume (not another folder on the same volume) and delete the originals. Deletion isn't complete until you empty the Trash again. Do this until the available space is more than 9 GB. Then reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode.)
If the boot process hangs again, the problem is likely caused by a third-party system modification that you installed. Post for further instructions.
Step 4
Sometimes a boot failure can be resolved by resetting the NVRAM.
Step 5
Launch Disk Utility in Recovery mode (see step 1.) Select your startup volume, then run Repair Disk. If any problems are found, repeat until clear. If Disk Utility reports that the volume can't be repaired, the drive has malfunctioned and should be replaced. You might choose to tolerate one such malfunction in the life of the drive. In that case, erase the volume and restore from a backup. If the same thing ever happens again, replace the drive immediately.
This is one of the rare situations in which you should also run Repair Permissions, ignoring the false warnings it may produce. Look for the line "Permissions repair complete" at the end of the output. Then reboot as usual.
Step 6
Boot into Recovery again. When the OS X Utilities screen appears, follow the prompts to reinstall the OS. If your Mac was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you’ll need the Apple ID and password you used to upgrade.
Note: You need an always-on Ethernet or Wi-Fi connection to the Internet to use Recovery. It won’t work with USB or PPPoE modems, or with proxy servers, or with networks that require a certificate for authentication.
Step 7
Repeat step 6, but this time erase the boot volume in Disk Utility before installing. The system should automatically reboot into the Setup Assistant. Follow the prompts to transfer your data from a backup.
Step 8
A dead logic-board battery in a Mac Pro can cause a gray screen at boot. Typically the boot failure will be preceded by loss of the startup disk and system clock settings. See the user manual for replacement instructions.
Step 9
If you get this far, you're probably dealing with a hardware fault. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store to have the machine tested.

Gray screen when turning on iBook G4 with tiny file folder in center of screen blinking the finder icon and a question mark. Have tried several things. Any help please??

Gray screen when turning on iBook G4 with tiny file folder in center of screen blinking finder icon and question mark. I cannot figure this out. Tried everything I know. Can someone help please???

Hello,
Ideally you need to boot from the disk as you have no other media advisable. (e.g your hard drive)
Without some form of system disk or restore you wont be able to diagnose the problem with your hard drive.
By using a Mac OS X system disk you can load up the Disk Utilities and repair the hard drive if shown it's available. If it's not available you would need to replace the hard drive and reinstall Mac OS. Without any disk to support you, you are going to struggle.
You can obtain replacement disk, both retail copies or system disk on the Internet.
If you know what version of Mac OS X you had install (I'm guessing that it would have been 10.3, but would recommend 10.4) A retail disk is normally black with a colored 'X' on it, while system disk are always.
Always try and obtain a copy of the system restore disks (Gray) for your iBook
Ebay is another outlet that has genuine system disk for sell, but like any auction site, it's as and when someone is selling them.
The only other thing you could do is take it to a Apple repair agent who could check the hard drive on your behalf. That way you can get confirmation if the problem is the drive or some other fault. They may even help restore the OS for you.
I can't think of anything else to try without some form of disk to help you.
There maybe just one other small thing you could try.
When booting up, firmly rest your palm of your hand on the iBook next to the tracker pad on the left side.
If it works then it's another fault that I'm aware of.

S930 stuck at Lenovo screen while boot up.

My S930 stuck at lenovo screen while boot up.
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Please help. TQ

Issue :- G500 Lenovo laptop screen gets stuck at lenovo screen and does not allow to do any thing alternatively need to power off laptop.
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I purchased my G500 lenovo laptop 4 or 5 months ago , it had been working fine for first 3 months but after it I encountered with this probelm.
I updated my bios with latest available version but that also not helped me
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IMac stuck at gray screen when booting

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