IMac will not boot into OSX after startup disk switch in control panel.!

I am having trouble with my son's iMac DV SE (graphite) running Classic and OSX (10.3.9). Typically, the computer runs in OS9 as the startup system because most of the kids' software we run is old and uses Classic. Over the weekend, I changed the startup disk to OSX in the control panels and restarted the computer so I could install some new software. The computer will not boot past the gray apple and progress indicator. I have tried resetting the PRAM, booting from the CD and restarting with the options key depressed to no avail. (Can't do a Safeboot either.) I was able to put the iMac into target mode and access the control panels via my laptop and restart in OS9. I thought I had resolved the issue causing the startup problem, but I was wrong. Now I can't get past the gray apple or access the hard disk through target mode (the iMac hard disk does not appear on the laptop's desktop). Is there a way to force the computer back into OS9 other than holding down the option key at startup? When I try this, I get the hard disk icon, but I can't move it off of OSX. Thanks in advance for any help.

Is there a way to force the computer back into OS9 other than holding down the option key at startup?
Holding down the OPTION key will only work if OS 9 is on a different partition than the OS X installation. If they are on the same partition, it won't work.
One way to get it back to OS 9 is to boot from the OS 9 or OS X installation disc. Then set the control panel, or preference pane, to boot from the OS 9 installed on the hard drive.
Another way is to boot from the OS 9 install disc and perform a clean install of OS 9. This will create a new OS 9 System folder and it will NOT touch any other files on the drive. KB 58176, Mac OS 8.5, Mac OS 9: Performing a Clean Installation

Similar Messages

G5 will not boot into OSX - stays at a command-line prompt

My G5 will not boot into OS X. I would appreciate and and all advice. Thanks.
What happened:
I had the G5 running one morning, with the Isight camera on, plugged into the front-console firewire port. I was running EvoCam software.
At about 2 hours into running, the cam stopped broadcasting – I got home to check it out three hours later, and the screen was black, and the fan was louder than I had ever, ever heard it on this box.
I did a hard shut-down with the powerbutton on the Cinema Display monitor.
At reboot, I see a grey screen for approx 5 seconds, with a dark grey apple logo, and then the screen goes to black, with a command-line prompt.
It’s been like that ever since.
I ran the Apple Hardware test, from the internal CD drive, and it shows no errors.
I cannot boot from an OSX installer DVD. It won’t recognize it. It goes straight to the black screen and Command line prompt.
I have re-seated the RAM, as well as the Airport Card. The only other card – which I have not re-seated, it the video card.
I am able to use the machine in Target Mode, so I can extract data from the drives, which is great. Oddly enough, I’m able to use the front-console firewire port to connect to my other Mac in Target mode – with no problems. Also – in Target mode, the fan never goes above the usual quiet self.
I would appreciate any advice one can provide. Thanks!
The machine:
Mac G5 dual 2.0 – First Generation (purchased December 2003)
It’s on it’s 3rd Motherboard – and now it’s fully out of Applecare warrantee.
OSX 10.4.9
4GB Ram
2 internal drives: 160GB + 300GB
Airport Extreme
20” Cinema Display (first generation)
Mac G5 dual 2.0 – First Generation Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Well, Apple Support does have articles on:
Isolating Issues in Mac OS X
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25392
won't boot or login
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106464#symp1
And if those don't work, call.
With G4 there is/was
"Fix for a Mac that won't power up
Mirrored Doors G4. When you pressed the power button, the button would light up, but the computer would not turn on. The fans on the power supply wouldn't turn on.
FIX: unplug the machine, pull the clock battery, hit the power button to discharge. Then plug it in without the clock battery. The machine should boot perfectly. Shut down, reinstall the clock battery, and now the system is fully functional. Macosxhints
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300552
Reseat video? try another video card?
My Step #1 is to always boot into Open Firmware (and do reset-nvram, reset-all, if you can't do that, you are sunk).
Oh, and What do you see in verbose mode on startup?
Mac Pro 2GHz 4GB 10K Raptor 23" Cinema Mac OS X (10.4.9) WD RE RAID Aaxeon FW800 PCIe MDD-G4 APC RS1500 Vista

My iMac will not boot into the Apple Hard Ware test. Why is this?

I have a late 2012 27 inch iMac. It will not boot into the Apple Hard Ware test. I do have File Vault turned on. Will this stop it from booting in to the test?

See Using Apple Hardware Test. For some Apple computers that shipped with OS X Lion, if Apple Hardware Test cannot be found on the hard drive, an Internet-based version starts up instead. An Internet-enabled connection via ethernet or Wi-Fi is required to use this feature. Some computers that shipped with Lion require a software update to use this feature. See Computers that can be upgraded to use OS X Internet Recovery for more information.
Note: your machine cannot be running Mac OS X (10.6.7).
27" i7 iMac (Mid 2011) refurb, OS X Mavericks (10.9.4), ML & SL, G4 450 MP w/Leopard, 9.2.2

IMac will not boot with OS9 or OS8 Disk

Hello,
I have a bit of a problem. I am trying to upgrade a friends iMac to 10.3.9. He had 10.2.xx on it. This is a slot loading blue G3. I went to do the upgrade from the 10.3 disks and it told me I needed a firmware upgrade. I got that tried to run it, but was told OS 9 is not on the system. No problem, I thought I could install that without incident. I put in my factory CD and all I got was a flashing folder and after a short delay, it booted into OSX. I then went to the prefs and told it to startup from the disk. Restarted. Short delay and then the flashing icon came up. So I decided to boot from Disk Warrior and format the drive. Rebooted with OS 9 disk and problem persisted. I tried the usual stuff, PRAM, took apart set SMU. No luck. Saw on a forum, that my battery could be low or dead. I purchased a new one set PRAM and the same thing happened. I am all out of ideas and am hoping one of you out there has had this happen to them and found a solution.
Thanks
Quadra

Are you sure that Mac OS 9 CD is bootable. There are some similar looking discs (white with a big orange 9) that are for "upgrading" and cannot be used to boot. It should say something like "full installation" on it if it is bootable. If it's a disc that came with Macs, not the retail disc, it usually needs to be the one that came with model.
Also, depending on the specific iMac G3 slot-loader you have, it may not boot it if the iMac originally came with a later version of Mac OS 9. For example, if the original OS was Mac OS 9.0.4, an installation disc with 9.0 will probably not work (because it is earlier). However, a 9.1 installation disc will work.

IMac will NOT boot into Mac OS X!! [URGENT]

(not sure what section this goes in)
After a failed install of Ubuntu 10.10 via BootCamp (was unable to install due to it not picking my wireless keyboard up, I'm unable to get a wired keyboard) I ejected the install disc but I'm unable to boot back into Mac OS X. Holding down the Option key while it's starting up does not work. I also tried booting into Safe Mode, didn't work either. I'm currently on my mother's computer because I am unable to use my iMac. How can I solve this?
When it boots up, it plays the startup sound then goes to a black screen with a flashing white text indicator thing.

Nevermind! My grandma brought a USB keyboard over.

Can not boot into OSX after boot camp installation and resizing of Macintosh HD

So from the beginning what I was trying to do was set up my iMac (27-inch, Late 2013) with boot camp so that I could play some old windows based games that can not be played in Parallels.
I went through the Boot camp process and everything set up just fine.
I had both OS X Yosemite 10.10.2 and Windows 8 Professional running but as I was installing games on to boot camp I discovered I did not allocate enough space and needed to extend the Boot Camp partition.
I used boot camp utility to set OS X as the default start up disk and had it restart
I launched into OS X and used Disk Utility to shrink Macintosh HD another 120GB
Restarted again holding option and launched into Windows
Used the disk management in windows to try and extend the boot camp partition into the unallocated space.
It was not an option to extend it so I tried to create a new simple volume from the unallocated space then delete it and try to extend it again.
It still was not an option.
From there I went to restart again while holding option and the only options I had were 10.10 Recovery and Windows
I tried using disk utility in recovery and Macintosh hd now only showed disk0s2
I tried to verify and it could not verify
I tried to repair and it could not repair.
I put the iMac in target disk mode and using a thunderbolt cable I tried using disk utility from my MacBook Pro (13-inch Mid 2012)
Verifying volume “disk2s2”Verifying file system.** /dev/rdisk2s2
Invalid BS_jmpBoot in boot block: 000000
File system check exit code is 8.Error: This disk needs to be repaired. Click Repair Disk.
Verify and Repair volume “disk2s2”Repairing file system.** /dev/rdisk2s2
Invalid BS_jmpBoot in boot block: 000000
File system check exit code is 8.Updating boot support partitions for the volume as required.Error: Disk Utility can’t repair this disk. Back up as many of your files as possible, reformat the disk, and restore your backed-up files.
This is the same error I got on my iMac
I used terminal diskutil list and got:
/dev/disk2
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *1.0 TB     disk2
   1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk2s1
   2:       Microsoft Basic Data                         799.3 GB   disk2s2
   3:                  Apple_HFS Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk2s3
   4:       Microsoft Basic Data BOOTCAMP                70.3 GB    disk2s4
I can see that Macintosh HD was disk2s2 but it now shows its Microsoft Basic Data.
I did not format this partition and it was working fine till I restarted the computer after resizing Macintosh HD.
I am not sure what I can do to fix this.
I've found multiple articles about similar issues, but the issue thet they have was that they could not boot to Windows instead of my issue not booting to OS X

****************    Update    *****************
From the Windows Partition using Disk Management I can see that the drive is still labeled Macintosh HD and that all of my data is there.
I have a complete backup so i'm not worried so much about the data.
What I'm most interested in is trying to solve this issue because I'd like to continue using boot camp and I actually work with mac computers and would like to be able to help others if this issue arrises again.

White iMac will not boot after 10.6.8 upgrade

I downloaded the 10.6.8 upgrade last night. This morning, the white plastic iMac will not boot.
I have tried evey known keyboard option.
I have tried booting from the snow leopard dvd.
I have zapped the pram.
Nothing!
Please, any help would be great.

We bought 2 iMac's 27inch with i7 Quad-core. Did the update a couple of hours ago. My Mac asked to reboot after update, but i didn't accept and worked with iTunes for a while. Then rebooted manually. After reboot it took about 15 minutes to reboot (light-blue screen with nothing on it, not even a mouse). My Wife also did the update of 10.6.8 and rebooted when asked. Her iMac also took 15 minutes to reboot, bus update was unsuccesful! So did update again and then denied reboot and rebooted manually! (Apple-logo and then choose "restart").
When we did that, iMac was very fast and updateproblem was solved! So deny reboot and reboot manually and problems are over. Same deal with 2 brandnew iMac. I'm guessing this is an issue. To much of a coincidence for me!

Intel iMac will not boot past gray screen

Intel iMac will not boot past gray screen
my system:
new (month old) 24" intel imac, 2.8 ghz, 4 gb ram.
running: leopard (upgraded from tiger, which was pre-installed at purchase), installed 10.5.1 update right before this huge problem occurred.
install discs on-hand: two-disc tiget set, single leopard upgrade disc.
what led to this:
i wanted to install windows using bootcamp on a 50 gb partition.
at this point i was running leopard 10.5
i followed all bootcamp instructions, printing out the guide, as well. once i got into the windows setup, i was prompted to choose a partition to install windows. unlike the bootcamp guide, which showed three partitions, one clearly labeled "bootcamp", i saw only one partition. not wanting to risk writing over my mac partition, i quit the setup and rebooted the mac os. after some googling around, i looked for firmware updates (didn't need any), and then software updates. i decided to try updating to 10.5.1.
i then ran through boot camp again, deleting my previous windows partition, creating a new one, and moving forward as before. once again, i was only shown one partition to choose from in the windows setup. i exited the setup again to reboot through the mac os, but this time, i was only given a blank gray screen.
here's what i have tried so far:
booting from a CD, holding down the C or D keys: no response (in fact, i have to restart the computer holding down the mouse button to be able to eject the CD)
booting with option key held down: gray screen
booting with option key held down with external bootable firewire drive attached: the firewire drive appears as a boot icon, and i can click on it within a five second window, but then the screen freezes after that time period, and nothing changes
booting into target mode while attached to another mac: gray screen (no firewire icon, and drive never shows up on other mac)
resetting NVRAM: i'm able to hear the boot chimes, but no difference in performance. gray screen every time
Safe boot: nothing but a gray screen
Verbose mode: gray screen
Single user mode: gray screen
Single user mode with firewire drive attached: occasionally (not every time), i am able to get the white on black terminal to show up. from here, i'm able to run fsck, but it appears to only be checking the firewire drive. i have tried several times to boot from here, and once it took me to a blue screen with movable arrow cursor, but it never went beyond this.
is there anything else left to try before taking it to apple?
any help would be greatly appreciated.
thanks,
Casey Burns
Casey Burns Illustration and Design
http://CaseyBurns.com

I'd call Apple support at this point. You'll need
to put this issue on the record.
Call U.S. iPod and Mac technical support: 1-800-APL-CARE (1-800-275-2273)
The wait may be long for an agent to come on the line
so expect that and have some other stuff to do in the meantime.
If you have the applecare protection plan, I'd ask about "onsite"
service.
I like your work ! Good luck !
Slim
Message was edited by: slimpikkunz

IMac will not boot, hard drive file problem? Can't install OS in 2nd part.

The iMac will not boot. The Apple displays on the screen, the cursor spins for awhile, and then it loops into a reboot effort.
Last night, I was doing a lot of custom file sharing settings using the include enclosed folders option at the bottom of the Get Info window.
Question 1: Could that file sharing process have messed things up?
In an effort to get things going........ A few weeks back, I used Disk Utility to create a 2nd partition, with the intent of installing Ubuntu Linux there. I never attempted the install, as far as I can remember, while playing with the Ubuntu Live CD. So, I thought I would install 10.5.6 from the CD in the 2nd partition. But I get an error message that says "The installer could not create the folder "/Volumes/Ubuntu 9.10/BaseSystem.pkg.161nDNDdQ.""
Question 2: I also shared that partition, could that have caused the OS install failure?
Question 3: If I understand the book correctly, I can try to install the OS from the CD on the 1st partition, and not lose my data, correct? Unfortunately, I don't have any backup for the data, as I don't own any drives large enough yet to accommodate the data on the drive.
Question 4: Anyone have any other thoughts as to what ent wrong?

Hi, Grant.
Sometimes, it just pays to think on a problem. I awoke thinking, if it will boot the OS X install CD, it ought to boot my Ubuntu Live CD. And then, maybe I can change permissions on the first partition. As soon as I thought that, it occurred to me, if the problems are with the permissions, what if I used the OS X disk, and erased (formatted) the Ubuntu partition. That should set all the permissions on that partition back to default. Would OS X install then to the Ubuntu partition?
You better believe it did!! I'm typing this from the Mac after updating my 10.5.6 to 10.5.8 in the 2nd partition, and I'm booting from the 2nd partition.
I then did as you suggested, and from the Mac, I repaired the permissions to the first partition. But, the result was the same, there are a few permissions that do not match, and Disk Utility cannot, does not, or will not correct them.
I'm currently downloading the 10.5.8 combo update .dmg file. My thought is to burn that to a disk, and then install it over the version in partition 1. And trust that the current installation on partition 1 does not have any cross linked files that will destroy some data.
I do have some old ATA IDE drives I can hook externally to the Mac, and copy some of the information I have from the Mac to those drives before doing the 10.5.8 install.
Can you think of a better solution?

IMac will not boot up when printer is plugged in USB

After buying my new iMac (with Tiger) I successfully transfered everything from my old iMac (with Panther) and all was well.
The problem is that when my printer (Canon Pixma MP130) is plugged in on start up, the iMac will not boot up (no gears turning on the white/grey screen). When I unplug the printer from the USB and start it up, it works fine. Its not a super big deal because I can just plug the printer in when I need it. But why does it do this?
I foound on the internet someone else who had the same issues. It was suggested to him to search the printer manufacturers website for updated drivers. I did this, installed them etc..... still no luck.
I am without any mac guru's here in Yellowknife......help!
Angie

Hello there,
I hope it is OK to recycle this old thread.  I did not want to create a new one since I am experiencing the exact same issue as the original poster *flying girl* as well as other posters in the following threads:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4190807
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3950255
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4201169
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4490899&#4490899
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4470944
I have two Macs, a PowerBook G4 and an Intel iMac 20" (Aluminum)--please refer to my signature or profile for the specs of these machines.  Of course, I got the PowerBook before I got the iMac.  I am running the latest version of the Canon MP130 drivers, printer drivers version 4.8.3 and scanner drivers version 12.11.0, on both machines.
When I turn on my PowerBook with the Canon PIXMA MP130 multifunction turned ON and connected via USB to the PowerBook, the PowerBook boots up just fine.  I have even experimented with both a USB hub and a direct connection to the Canon MP130, and the PowerBook boots fine in both instances.
However, when I turn on my iMac with the Canon MP130 turned ON and connected via USB to the iMac, the startup tone plays, and then the iMac hangs at the blue/gray solid screen--it does not even show the Apple logo or the spokes--that is, until I turn the Canon MP130 OFF.  When I turn it off, the Apple logo appears, the spokes move, and my iMac boots up just fine.  And as long as the MP130 is OFF, I can boot the iMac fine from scratch too.
I tried starting in verbose mode (⌘V) and single-user mode (⌘S), and the gray/blue screen still appears after the startup tone plays; again, if I turn the Canon MP130 OFF, the rest of the boot sequence resumes as normal, and only then do I get to see the descriptive text for those startup modes.  But the text goes by so fast that I miss most of it--I did manage to catch something that said something like "get full config descriptor = NULL," but I am not sure if that was the exact wording.  I would need a good camcorder or even just a digital camera or another device to capture exactly what the screen says in verbose mode.  If I had those options, I would post pictures here.
I was thinking about contacting Canon, but since the issue happens on one Mac only, I figured they would tell me that it is a problem with my Mac.  So hopefully posting the information here is OK.
Another key feature is that the Canon MP130 has a built-in card reader.  I made sure that my Startup Disk preferences were set to boot from the system drive, and they still are.  And I have reset the SMC and PRAM on the iMac.
I would like to mention the following link:
http://www.ehmac.ca/anything-mac/50389-intel-imac-wont-boot-when-canon-printer-p lugged.html
If you go to page 2 on that above thread, it shows one user who allegedly physically disconnected the card reader connection from the inside of the Canon MP130 (I would NOT recommend that myself).  I just wonder if there is a more feasible resolution to this issue.
Does anyone else experience the same issue with other printers or multifunctions?  Also, why does the issue occur only on my Intel iMac 20" (aluminum), and NOT on my PowerBook G4?
Please let us know about your experience as it seems many of us are at a loss for a solution.
Thank you very much for your help; we await!  :)
Cya!
\m/ Mad Metal Mage \m/

My iMac will not boot through Snow Leopard but will boot through Windows OS

My 2010 iMac will not boot in Snow Leopard, only Windows. Have tried reinstalling Snow leopard a few times and works only for a couple of minutes before freezing and doesnt reboot. Windows works perfect. Snow leopard just doesnt want to boot up past the Apple Logo. It was working fine one day and the next day it froze up and was able to reboot back into Snow Leopard but kept freezing. Now it doesnt load at all into Mac OS.
Brian

Possible scenarios:
1: The 10.6.3 SL retail disk is bad, it happens.
2: Your not using the 10.6.3 SL retail disk but one from another machine which doesn't have the drivers for that machine.
3: Your optical drive is funky or some other hardware issues.
4: Your trying to install 10.6 onto a PowerPC based Mac, no can do.
5: Your not using a wired keyboard for boot key commands, have some other hardware conflicts.
Possible solutions.
1: Copy the SL 10.6.3 disk using Disk Utility to another DVD, the error checking may resolve the original disk's issue.
http://www.brokenhomeboy.co.uk/pierow/blog/2011/10/make-a-bootable-backup-snow-l eopard-install-disc/
2: Make a SL bootable USB
http://www.maciverse.com/install-os-x-snow-leopard-from-usb-flash-drive.html
3: Call Apple for a new 10.6.3 disk (and make copies for backup before Apple discontinues selling it)
If your upgrading to 10.6 to get to 10.6.8 to upgrade to 10.7, be warned of this:
1: Your 10.5 software will not work in 10.7, no more Rosetta or PPC based code.
2: Your hardware will not qualify if it's a 32 bit Intel Core Duo, also you may experience slowdowns in performance over 10.6 (10.6 is the fastest OS X version for Intel Macs) in older Intel hardware (I suggest Early 2011 Mac's and later only for Lion)
3: Mountain Lion 10.8 is reportingly coming out this summer and will not run on a lot of older Intel based Mac's because of heftier graphics requirements.
4: 10.6 has the widest range of current avaialble software and drivers for third party hardware.
My advice, stick with 10.6.8 and stay there, buy a new Mountain Lion machine after this summer. Skip Lion completely.

My 2011 IMac will not boot up past the White apple logo screen with the whirly circle

My 2011 IMac will not boot up past the White apple logo screen with the whirly circle. I have tried various commands but to no avail. does anybody have any advice?

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 startup failure is to secure the 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 the last backup, you can skip this step.
There are several ways to back up a Mac that is unable to start. You need an external hard drive to hold the backup data.
a. Start up from the Recovery partition, or from a local Time Machine backup volume (option key at startup.) 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.” The article refers to starting up from a DVD, but the procedure in Recovery mode is the same. You don't need a DVD if you're running OS X 10.7 or later.
b. If Step 1a fails because of disk errors, and no other Mac is available, then you may be able to salvage some of your files by copying them in the Finder. If you already have an external drive with OS X installed, start up from it. Otherwise, if you have Internet access, follow the instructions on this page to prepare the external drive and install OS X on it. You'll use the Recovery installer, rather than downloading it from the App Store.
c. If you have access to a working Mac, and both it and the non-working Mac have FireWire or Thunderbolt ports, start the non-working Mac in target disk mode. Use the working Mac to copy the data to another drive. This technique won't work with USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth.
d. 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
If the startup process stops at a blank gray screen with no Apple logo or spinning "daisy wheel," then the startup volume may be full. If you had previously seen warnings of low disk space, this is almost certainly the case. You might be able to start up in safe mode even though you can't start up normally. Otherwise, start up from an external drive, or else use the technique in Step 1b, 1c, or 1d to mount the internal drive and delete some files. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of available space on the startup volume (as shown in the Finder Info window) for normal operation.
Step 3
Sometimes a startup failure can be resolved by resetting the NVRAM.
Step 4
If you use a wireless keyboard, trackpad, or mouse, replace or recharge the batteries. The battery level shown in the Bluetooth menu item may not be accurate.
Step 5
If there's a built-in optical drive, a disc may be stuck in it. Follow these instructions to eject it.
Step 6
Press and hold the power button until the power shuts off. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed to start up, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Use a different keyboard and/or mouse, if those devices are wired. If you can start up 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.
Step 7
If you've started from an external storage device, make sure that the internal startup volume is selected in the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences.
Start up in safe mode. Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a Fusion Drive or a software RAID, you can’t do this. Post for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to start 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 the login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
When you start up 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, the startup volume is corrupt and the drive is probably malfunctioning. In that case, go to Step 11. If you ever have another problem with the drive, replace it immediately.
If you can start and log in in safe mode, empty the Trash, and then open the Finder Info window on the startup 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 restart as usual (i.e., not in safe mode.)
If the startup process hangs again, the problem is likely caused by a third-party system modification that you installed. Post for further instructions.
Step 8
Launch Disk Utility in Recovery mode (see Step 1.) Select the 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 restart as usual.
Step 9
If the startup device is an aftermarket SSD, it may need a firmware update and/or a forced "garbage collection." Instructions for doing this with a Crucial-branded SSD were posted here. Some of those instructions may apply to other brands of SSD, but you should check with the vendor's tech support.
Step 10
Reinstall the OS. If the Mac was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you’ll need the Apple ID and password you used to upgrade.
Step 11
Do as in Step 9, but this time erase the startup volume in Disk Utility before installing. The system should automatically restart into the Setup Assistant. Follow the prompts to transfer the data from a Time Machine or other backup.
Step 12
This step applies only to models that have a logic-board ("PRAM") battery: all Mac Pro's and some others (not current models.) Both desktop and portable Macs used to have such a battery. The logic-board battery, if there is one, is separate from the main battery of a portable. A dead logic-board battery can cause a startup failure. Typically the failure will be preceded by loss of the settings for the startup disk and system clock. See the user manual for replacement instructions. You may have to take the machine to a service provider to have the battery replaced.
Step 13
If you get this far, you're probably dealing with a hardware fault. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service provider.

Imac will not boot up, chimes with apple logo and beach ball spin??

imac will not boot up, chimes with apple logo and beach ball spin?? after installing adobe flash and up graded apple softeware

If your iMac came with or is running Lion, startup holding either the Command-R keys or the Option key and select the recovery partition and then use Disk Utility to repair the Macintosh HD.
see > OS X Lion: About Lion Recovery
If your running Snow Leopard or earlier OS X, pop in your Install DVD and startup holding either the Option or C key, then open and use Disk Utility to repair the Macintosh HD.
see > Mac OS X - Using Disk Utility to Repair a Disk

Imac will not boot past Apple Logo

My imac will not boot after the good chime and apple logo (i don't even get a spinning wheel). I have held the option key down and selected the OS 10.6 disk with the same result. I was able to erase the drive and reinstall OS 10.6 using target mode and another computer. In target mode I can boot the other computer from the IMac HD but not the IMac. Have also tried holding the shift key and booting into safe mode with the same result. Additional note: I reset the PRAM and the SMU. At first on PRAM reset it would take 45 seconds for the machine to chime again, after OS reinstall and SMU reset, PRAM reset chimes within 10 seconds.... any help would be appreciated...

Kind of late but your solution helped me remember what once worked for me, a few years back.
Started iMAC in Target mode Used a firewire cable to a MacBook Pro
Started the Macbook Pro using the option Key and then restarted with the iMac as the Hard drive
Then I updated to 10.6.8 and allof the other updates.
shut down and rebooted and everything was fine.
But first I did quite a few other things before the update such as
It all started with a DiskWarrior finding overlapped files, I have been around the block a time or two so after it found three overlapped files, I shut down diskwarrior started up disk utility did a restore of the messed up drive to another external drive,
of course this copied overlapped files and all to the new external drive It took 24 huors or so, to back up the drive once it was done, I also tried a few times to correct the overlapped files to no avail,
so then I started the iMac up in target mode used the MacBook to format and erase the original drive, used the 10.6.3 DVD installer to install onto the hard drive, using the macBook DVD. After I was finished with the install to the iMAC,,,,,,,,,,this is where I got the three beeps like bad ram So idid the PRAM and SMC to no avail.
The operating system was evidently not new enough so once I did what i said at the begining of this post all went well.
Sometimes It is tough to remember some of the stuff that you learned several years ago.
and tired hard to forget.
I hoped this post does not scare away to many people, I was just about done with this computer until I read your post, one of several dozen, and it all came back to me.
Thanks a Bunch
I hope this can help others
themacprofessor

Installed Leopard 10.5.1, Will not boot into Win XP

I installed Leopard recently on my work laptop.
Before it had 10.4.11 and Win XP properly working on it.
Now after Leopard was installed, It will not boot into Win XP,
just gives a Black Screen and never progresses past that,
I hard reboot, and it boots fine back into Leopard.
All software updates up until 10.5.2 have been applied,
will applying 10.5.2 fix this issue?

All my financial records are on the Windows side of the iMac. I've used BootCamp for more than a year, I have MacOS 10.5 (very recently updated from 10.5.1 to 10.5.2), and there has been no problem with starting Windows until today. When I restart and hold down the option key, it always boots up into the MacOS. How do I get Windows?

IMac will not boot into OSX after startup disk switch in control panel.!

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