Imac won't startup

My imac won't startup only apple on gray screen and spinning gear. what can I do to make it work. I was using techtool to optimize and on restart it showed up with a can't find finder, it seemed to be stuck in operating system 9.0. I normally start up in 10.

hi there--
the first thing you should do for this problem is to boot holding the x. this will sometimes force a startup of os x. you can also try startup manager holding the option key. next try booting to the install disk of whatever operating system is installed on your computer (by holding the c key until you see a spinning cog under the apple) and then repair the disk with disk utility. this article gives directions for that http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214. if you can't boot to the disk try the fsck outlined in this article. make sure you select macintosh hd for the repair and that you can after a few attempts reach a point where disk utility says no repairs are necessary. after that you may be able to boot up okay. if you can't, attempt a safe boot by holding the shift key until the spinning cog appears again. if you can boot up in safe mode then remove items in /library/startup items and in login items in accounts in the system preferences (but they are called "startup items" prior to tiger). also, i would remove the fonts folder from the home library and then try a regular boot from there. should keep you busy for awhile. i hope one of these things solves your problem. [ 8 ) ]
just an added note-- if disk utility cannot repair the disk then back up info ( you may want to try firewire transfer http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58583) then you can try a 3rd party utility like diskwarrior or techtool pro. if those cannot fix the problem, the you will have to erase and install your operating system. before this though, check the smart status of your drive in disk utility. you can do this by selecting the first icon above macintosh hd with the alphnumeric code and manufacturer name attached to it. if it is still okay, smart status should say verified. sometimes smart status is not available. it depends on the drive.

Similar Messages

My imac won't startup past the spinning gear and my apple keyboard is wireless but it won't connect, how do I fix the problem so I can get into safe mode?

My imac won't startup past the spinning gear and my apple keyboard is wireless but it won't connect, how do I fix the problem so I can get into safe mode?
Can anybody help me on this issue? I have already tried to replace the batteries but since the computer won't get past the spinning wheel of death then the keyboard won't connect.

Please follow Apple's advice in http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570. If you need to get your hands on a wired USB keyboard, even a PC one will work fine.
Do not follow the previous poster's advice, that option is a "last chance" option. OS X is stable and in most cases a reinstall is never needed. Follow the directions in Apple's letter.

IMac won't startup after restore from time machine

After I restore my backup from time machine ( twice ) mi iMac halt at startup and won't startup. It stuck at the apple logo forever. I also restarted holding down command R safe mode and install OS X and it will startup okay but can't see my buck up files and applications here. Then I restore from time machine again using an earlier backup and it won't startup again. Please any help I will appreciate.

There could be a few reasons for this.
First what version of OS X do you have installed?
What version of OS X is the Time Machine Backup file from?
Did Reinstalling OS X from Recovery install the same version you had before reinstalling?
If you have not changed OS X versions then:
It sounds like there may be a bad file in the backup that is causing the computer to not startup after restoring it. This is especailly true if the computer boots just fine after a fresh installation of OS X, but without the Migrated Data being restored.
If that is the case, then the solution is not a quick one. You have to hunt down the bad file.
Moving Files Manually (Not in Migration Assistant)
Manually access your Time Machine backup folder from within Finder (you should see the backup drive in a Finder Window or on your Desktop). Once open, manually move data from the User folder (documents, music, movies, photos etc.) into their respective folders on the Mac. Reboot after each folder you move to see which folder contains the corrupted file then delete the affected folder/file after reinstalling OS X from Recovery.
If none of the files cause the computer to hang at startup after moving all your User data, then the issue is from within the System or Library folders.
NOTE: DO NOT manually move Applications, System, or System Library files over to the Mac. You can cause major issues with the current installation by doing so. It is safer to just reinstall all the Apps from wherever you got them so they can recreate their support files and such themselves.
2- Using Migration Assistant
Basically, if you have discovered the affected file. You can just simply delete it from the backup folder.
Reinstall OS X after you have done that, and use Migration Assistant to automatically migrate the data over minus the affected file/folder.
Its a pain in the rear, but it will at least let you salvage most of your data.
Let me know what happens riorec!
- Captain

IMac won't startup with SL Install Disk

I purchased SL for my 20" Intel core-duo iMac and can't get the computer to get past the startup screen (grey apple with spinning bars) with the install disk. It starts up fine using the original system disk, and I've repaired the hard drive and tried to repair the permissions (some won't fix), but I wasn't worried since I was planning to run an archive and install. Has anyone else had this problem? Could it be related to my hard drive?

Lou Casagrande wrote:
I purchased SL for my 20" Intel core-duo iMac and can't get the computer to get past the startup screen (grey apple with spinning bars) with the install disk. It starts up fine using the original system disk, and I've repaired the hard drive and tried to repair the permissions (some won't fix), but I wasn't worried since I was planning to run an archive and install. Has anyone else had this problem?
Could it be related to my hard drive?
no, it couldn't have anything to do with the hard drive. the hard drive is not involved in booting from the DVD. first try cleaning the dvd and then try booting again. if that does not help boot from the main hard drive, insert the dvd and verify it with disk utility. also checksum it with disk utility. (Images menu->checksum). most likely it's a bad dvd.
Message was edited by: V.K.

IMac won't startup - freezes on either white screen or Apple symbol

Got my 24" 2.4GHz iMac on release last year, with Tiger. Installed Leopard on it on release day.
The problem I have is that ever since a botched Boot Camp installation I've had endless problems with certain applications hanging during their startup (notably Image Capture) or refusing to quit (notably iTunes). Force Quit doesn't resolve these issues. Restarting doesn't work because Force Quit can't quit them so I have to pull the plug or otherwise force a shutdown.
Upon restarting I either get the grey screen that instantly appears, or, if I've pulled the plug and left it for a few minutes I can get to the Apple symbol but no spinner or any further start up action. Occasionally I get lucky, get back up and running, and all is well until the next crash.
All this started happening when I decided to try installing Windows on Boot Camp again. I've had it on here a couple of times since Leopard was released but usually end up deleting it eventually because either the Windows installation gets bogged down or I get bored with it and never use it. Anyway, this time, using the same discs I've always used (and yes, it's SP2, so it should be fine and anyway it's worked at least twice before) when I got to the 'restart to continue installing Windows' bit, I got the white screen and nothing happened. After an hour or so of praying and restarting endlessly trying to get a response, I finally got it to recognise my OSX installation and was up and running again. The Boot Camp volume didn't appear to be there and Disk Utility revealed zero problems whatsoever. Everything looked fine until these recurring hangs, refusals to quit apps and screwed up start-ups.
Any ideas? I don't have the expensive Apple support, but it's less than a year old! Of course, I realise that this means nothing to Apple, who seem to think I should pay a premium in order to have my machine warrantied by them for more than 90 days. Grr...
If I get it up and running I'm thinking I should just wipe the ENTIRE system absolutely clean and re-install Leopard and then use my Time Machine backup to put all my data back on (pricelessly valuable as I use the machine to work on my photography with), but I'm concerned that if there's a flaw in the System somewhere, a corruption, that installing the Time Machine backup will just reintroduce the error. On the other hand, if it's a deeply embedded and invisinle partition corruption from the bad Boot Camp installation attempt, that should be fixed by wiping the entire drive to reinstall Leopard, right?
Any ideas? I'm absolutely sick to the back teeth of this now.
Many thanks,
Owen

But service support means dragging my iMac down to an Apple Store after making an appointment that's no doubt a couple of days away. Taking a 24" iMac on public transport in London isn't something I particularly want to do.
It did actually start up eventually. I left it sitting on the Apple logo and after a few minutes it restarted itself and all was fine, until a couple of days later when two apps failed to quit, and force quit wouldn't do anything. Neither would Terminal, or Activity Monitor (it was BBEdit and Photo Mechanic this time).
I was forced to pull the plug and since then nothing whatsoever will get it past the Apple logo. Tried popping the original Tiger DVD in and running the hardware diagnostic and it says everything is fine, but trying to restart from the Tiger DVD, or the Leopard DVD, or any other DVD that's bootable, or the hard drive, or an external hard drive - all of them result in hanging at the Apple screen. Tried safe mode, tried holding Alt to choose a startup drive, everything.
What the heck do I do now?!

IMac won't startup; Leopard

Hej guys,
After deleting the Windows Vista partition using Bootcamp in Leopard, my iMac refuses to boot. When I boot I get the following message in a nice black screen: "No bootable device -- insert boot disk and press any key". Looks like my mac wants to start Windows, but since I deleted that partition, it can't....So I tried the various keycombinations:
- 'option'-key,
- C-key,
- D-key,
- OSX Leopard DVD, but doesnt boot
- Windows CD, does boot, but this I don't want ofcourse
- CMDoption+PR
- CMDoption+shiftdelete
Nothing works.., I can only boot from a windows installation disk from where I can only delete the single partition on the iMac, being the OSX partition.
Any other options to override windows at startup or nuke every last bit of Windows on my iMac?
Thanks a million in advance!
Daniel.

Okay, so I booted the windows-CD and restarted the iMac from there. Then at the startup-tune I pressed and held the option-key, which amazingly popped up the Boot-selection. I selected OSX and it booted! However, the joy was short, because once I came into Leopard, I heard the continous sound as if I was pressing and holding some key, which I wasnt. Even with the kboard unplugged the sound persisted and if I now want to open a programm or a pulldown menu, it immediately closes....
Whats the heck is going on here?

My 21 inch iMac won't startup at all Any suggestions?

Haven't used this iMac in a long time. Just guessing as to the iOS. Stopped using it when i think i overloaded the memory?

Just guessing as to the iOS.
Guesing what? And Macs don't use iOS.
Stopped using it when i think i overloaded the memory?
No idea what that is supposed to mean, but you can not damage it by using all the RAM.
Clear the startup settigs.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

IMac won't startup from disk

After start-up issues, Apple replaced the hard drive on my iMac.
After getting it back today, I restored my files and settings from my last Time Machine backup.
However, after restarting it would not accept my password.
However, when I try to boot from the leopard disk, A circle-cross symbol appears instead of the usual apple one. Thus, I have no chance to reset the password. This cross symbol, with the spinning one beneath it, just goes on infinitely.

Try this.
1: Turn the machine on.
2: Hold down the Apple and S keys (this starts the machine in single user mode)
3: What to see the root prompt (hit the Return key a few times to make sure initialization is complete)
4: Type the following command followed by the Return key (see general warning below)
mount -uw /
5: The above command mounts your file system as modifiable
6: Type the following command, replacing shortname with your actual short name, followed by the Return key. Follow the prompts
passwd shortname
7: With the password reset, enter the following command followed by the Return key
reboot
Note 1: Your keychain may not unlock. Unlock it manually and then reset the password.
General warning: Single User Mode is all powerful and a mistake could result in loss of data, loss of function, or permanent damage to the operating system. Be careful. I am not responsible for any damage you may cause Research the information above if you have distrust.
Oh, and please, no debates about "security holes." This is a normal function of the machine and there are methods to prevent it.
Hope this helps.

IMac won't startup. Nothing but fan spinning. No Chime or screen

#15 inch flat screen iMac
I was re-installing the system software 10.2 from CD #1 and the computer stalled. When restarting I took the disc out -dumb in know.
Now the installation is incomplete and there is no disc in the computer.
The computer will not restart. I did get one chime once but never again. The screen is blank, and the computer will not even turn on now. The fan does go on, but the power light does not. I can't get the CD drawer open to put in a disc. I have been through the help notes online. But none of the normal things you do when starting up has worked. I have reset the PRAM and tried to start up in verbose mode and single user mode. When I tried that I got a long beep once but nothing. I have tried all the commands to open the CD tray, but I think it's a hardware thing now. Any ideas?

Does it have the original PRAM battery?
I would check it first. When mine went, I had no response from my Mac at all; just a light on my power button; absolutely no boot at all.
Check out things in Texas Mac Man's tutorial on the subject. His tutorial is a little dated (don't believe it even mentions G5's) but the info in it, except SMU not being included, still applies.
Anyway, there is a lot of things to try in the tutorial.
Here's mrtotes guide with pictures for working in the iMac.
Cheers!
DALE

My iMac won't startup properly

Hi. I was repairing permissions on my iMac which I had not done for a long while.
On start up I get the chime and then the grey screen, then grey screen with apple logo and the rotating timer icon. After about thirty seconds, the fans ramp up to full speed and about five seconds later the computer dies.
Any ideas?

It sounds as if your power supply may be failing. Try booting from your install disc and repair with
Disk Utility
   1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc that came with your computer, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
   2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
      Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.
   3. Click the First Aid tab.
   4. Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
   5. Select your Mac OS X volume.
   6. Click Repair. Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk.
Then boot from your internal drive and repair permissions again.
Let us know how you make out.

2nd Gen iPad Mini stopped working yesterday. Won't startup under and configuration and is not recognized by my iMac.

2nd Gen iPad Mini stopped working yesterday. Won't startup under and configuration and is not recognized by my iMac. I believe it upgraded itself to iOS 8 (????)

Hey Kenneth,
So it sounds as if your iPad is not responding at all when you try to turn it on, is that correct? If so, I would suggest that you troubleshoot using the steps in this article -
If your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch doesn't respond or doesn't turn on - Apple Support
If you get it to start up and it is still not recognized by iTunes on your Mac, use the steps in this article to troubleshoot that issue -
If you don't see your connected device in iTunes for Mac - Apple Support
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
Happy computing,
Brett L

IMac won't read startup disk

Longstanding problem. Older iMac won't read the Leopard disk. I got around this by using my daughter's iBook in slave mode and then installing 10.5. Everything works but I can't start up with the disk to use disk utilities. It was suggested that I get a new ext dvd drive which I did. (Kanguru qs2)
I started it up and installed Office for Mac without a problem. Then I tried to use the 10.5 disk and it would not read it. I had a hard time getting the disk to eject. After it did eject I tried using some other disks including Office and none of them work now. Any ideas?

rafterdog wrote:
I started it up and installed Office for Mac without a problem. Then I tried to use the 10.5 disk and it would not read it. I had a hard time getting the disk to eject. After it did eject I tried using some other disks including Office and none of them work now. Any ideas?
Sounds like your new drive broke.

24" iMac won't start when iPod is connected

My 24" iMac won't start up/restart if my iPod is already connected to it. If I restart with the iPod connected, I just get a gray screen (with no apple logo) forever. Has anyone else experienced this problem? If so, any solution? I have Windows installed with boot camp, don't know if that's the problem, but I tried reseting the p-ram, but to no avail...
Intel iMac 24", 7600 GT, 500GB, 2GB. Titanium Powerbook 667 MHz G4, loaded. Mac OS X (10.4.7) 30 GB iPod Video

My suggestion would be disconnect the iPod. That's just me though.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93953
I'm guessing Boot Camp is the culprit. Whatever emulated BIOS it's using doesn't like the iPod as a startup disk.

IMac won't launch, disk utility says I cannot repair my Macintosh HD, back up files, reformat the disk and restore backed up files. How do I do all that? Help!

iMac won't start up, disk utility tried to repair disk it shows "keys out of order" error message in red and advises me to back up files, reformat disk and restore backed up files. I have no idea how to back up and restore etc... Help! Please!

Get an external drive of sufficient capacity to hold everything on your internal drive.
Partition and format the external drive.
Drive Partition and Format
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Apply button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Security button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.
Clone your internal drive to the external drive.
Clone Mavericks, Lion/Mountain Lion using Restore Option of Disk Utility
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.
     1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu then press the Continue
         button.
     2. Select the destination volume from the left side list.
     3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
     4. Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it
         to the Destination entry field.
     5. Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to
         the Source entry field.
     6. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive.
Boot from the external drive.
Boot Using OPTION key:
1. Restart the computer.
2. Immediately after the chime press and hold down the
      "OPTION" key.
3. Release the key when the boot manager appears.
4. Select the external disk icon from which you want to boot.
5. Click on the arrow button below the icon.
Reformat the internal drive and install OS X.
Install or Reinstall Mavericks, Lion/Mountain Lion from Scratch
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.
Erase the hard drive:
1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.
2. After DU loads select your startup volume (usually Macintosh HD) from the
      left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Optionally, click on
      the Security button and set the Zero Data option to one-pass. Click on
      the Erase button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks and click on the Install button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible
            because it is three times faster than wireless.
Open Startup Disk preferences and set the internal drive as the startup volume, then click on the Restart button.
Restore your data from your external drive backup.

TS4284 iMac won't start ... Disk0s2: I/O error when starting in safe mode

My iMac started lagging badly with a color wheels spinning round and round, so I rebooted and now it won't startup at all.
All I get is a white/grey screen with the Apple logo and a spinning wheel, but no joy in starting up.
I managed to start in safe mode, but it stopped at the following:
disk0s2: I/O error.
0 [Level 3] [ReadUID 0] [Facility com.apple.system.fs] [ErrType IO] [ErrNo 5] [IOType Read] [PBlkNum 1544944] [LBlkNum 3758] [FSLogMsgId 1702152349] [FSLogMsgOrder First]
0 [Level 3] [ReadUID 0] [Facility com.apple.system.fs] [DevNode root_device] [MountPt /] [FSLogMsgId 1702152349] [FSLogMsgOrder Last]
Don't understand a word of this, but would appreciate any guidance as to what to do? Is it time to take it in to the Apple Store or do I just dump the machine and get a new one?
I wonder if this is not caused by any updates? Would that be possible?

FunkyJazzMuso wrote:
Could the drive be taken out and accessed via a ISB cable so I can at least rescue my iPhone and iPad info?
Without any problem. Just extract the hard drive, buy an enclosure to put the hard drive and connect it to your new computer after setting it up, so you will be able to transfer all your data onto the new Mac. You can find some enclosures in OWC > http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/hard-drives/External-Enclosures/

Imac won't startup

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