Macbook Air 11" Overheat Grey Screen.

Help Help Help !!!! I have a 2010 11" MBA 128Gb 4Gb RAM running Lion. About 1 month ago whilst attempting to upload a video to youtube (which was going to take about 3 hours) about half way through I came back to the room to find my display had a grey screen with no words or spinning ball on it and the base of the laptop was boiling to touch. I switched it off manually and then switched it back on immediately and it started up no problem.
I attempted to upload the video 10 minutes later but the same thing happened again and the base got very hot. I therefore left the upload and performed it on my imac with no problems.
I use the MBA very occaisionally, mostly for surfing the web, Lightroom, Photoshop and iphoto without any overheating problems at all and certainly no locked out grey screen. Anyway the same thing happened again yesterday so I immediatley trawled the internet forums for any help and others experiences.
From what I have read so far I have not really seen a remedy for this. I am using Google Chrome, something which has been mentioned however others, who have had overheating issues, have had the same issues when using Safari and Firefox so I have elimenated that cause. I am using Lion and not Mountain Lion so I have eliminated that one. I have read about resetting the SMC and PRAM however I have not tried that yet.
I guess I am really asking others who have experienced this if their is an ultimate remedy, or if it as motherboard or fan replacement issue ??
As it is out of warranty I don't want to go down the road of taking it to the local Apple Reseller to be charged stupid money for them to have a look and fob me off with something which you guys and gals may be able to help me with.
Any idead much appreciated, thanks

ANSWER
I totally understand this issue!
It's happened to me when I can't even move my mouse around. It's stuck on a grey screen and it's driving me nuts. i know this answer. This problem happened to my last night actually.
What I did was leave it be for as long as it needs. My screen was grey for 24 hours. When I woke up in the morning, the screen was back to normal, on the screen I needed to log on with. BY THE WAY, I prayed for my laptop. LOL! I really hope you don't end up with a "hunk" of $1000 dollars on you're desk. Maybe this will take longer than mine did, OR shorter amount of time.
QUESTION.
JohGoins wrote:
My MacBook Air 2011 will not boot, as it gets stuck on a grey screen. Nothing works, not even any keyboard shortcuts.
What ive tried:
- Recovery Mode (Wont even change the screen, waited about 5 minutes)
- Resetting PVC or whatever its called (Just reboots the computer)
- Safe Boot (trying right now, told that it takes a while)
Taking it back to the apple store is my last resort, and I think im out of my warranty (no applecare).
Any help?

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MacBook Air stuck on grey screen

My MacBook Air 2011 will not boot, as it gets stuck on a grey screen. Nothing works, not even any keyboard shortcuts.
What ive tried:
- Recovery Mode (Wont even change the screen, waited about 5 minutes)
- Resetting PVC or whatever its called (Just reboots the computer)
- Safe Boot (trying right now, told that it takes a while)
Taking it back to the apple store is my last resort, and I think im out of my warranty (no applecare).
Any help?

ANSWER
I totally understand this issue!
It's happened to me when I can't even move my mouse around. It's stuck on a grey screen and it's driving me nuts. i know this answer. This problem happened to my last night actually.
What I did was leave it be for as long as it needs. My screen was grey for 24 hours. When I woke up in the morning, the screen was back to normal, on the screen I needed to log on with. BY THE WAY, I prayed for my laptop. LOL! I really hope you don't end up with a "hunk" of $1000 dollars on you're desk. Maybe this will take longer than mine did, OR shorter amount of time.
QUESTION.
JohGoins wrote:
My MacBook Air 2011 will not boot, as it gets stuck on a grey screen. Nothing works, not even any keyboard shortcuts.
What ive tried:
- Recovery Mode (Wont even change the screen, waited about 5 minutes)
- Resetting PVC or whatever its called (Just reboots the computer)
- Safe Boot (trying right now, told that it takes a while)
Taking it back to the apple store is my last resort, and I think im out of my warranty (no applecare).
Any help?

MacBook Air stuck in grey screen after ML installation

Hi everybody,
I have downloaded and installed Mountain Lion on my MacBook Air (2011). After the installation the computer restarted and stuck in the grey loading screen, showing the apple logo and the turning wheel. I've left it alone for hours but nothing happens. This is still the case and I cannot find a way out.
Here is what I have tried so far:
- Reload and reinstall ML via recovery mode (twice). Recovery mode shows me that 10.8 is installed, by the way
- Restart without peripherals connected
- Reset PRAM and NVRAM
- Disconnect all cables and let the computer rest
- Diagnose and repair hard drive (showed me a message that a Java-related group has a value of 80 but should be 0. Repair was "successful")
- Safe boot (A bar appears in loading screen but disappears after it is about halfway full and I'm back in grey screen)
Unfortunately none of this worked. I have a Time Machine backup but it is located at the other end of the country (long story) and I can't access it easily.
Do you guys have any more ideas what else I could try? I'd really appreciate it.
Thanks!
B4sti

I'm having the same issue. My MacBook air is stuck on the grey screen with the apple logo. I've waited for hours. Has anyone found a resolution to this issue?

TS2570 macbook air : start with grey screen... help !!!

I have a new macbook air (3 months old) and all the sudden when I start it I have a grey screen with a question mark. The relevant Apple support page doesn't take into consideration the fact that you can't put an install disk into a macbook air. Help !

Thank you for your answer.
Unfortunately, I had already tried this online recovery (it also works if you boot holding the option) but the utility program didn't offer me the possibility to repair (when I selected the disk, this option wasn't available. In fact, I couldn't choose any option at all for my disk).
I had just done the last system update proposed by Apple today. I never had any problem with a mac before and I am really in trouble in my work because of that. How can I try to save the most important files I was working on ? I am in Brazil so there is no Apple store available near my house.
I also have external hard disk, an imac and a macbook but I don't know if I can use any of them for that...

MacBook Air stuck on grey screen! Help! Help!

I was trying to uninstall Firefox so I moved the icon into the trashcan but it wouldn't delete. So I moved the two files I found in the trash to the desktop and then I restarted. Now my mac is stuck on the grey apple screen with the little timer. I did the PRAM restart thing...it chimed and went to the grey screen again. I am pretty sure the problem is that the Firefox is screwed up and Firefox is supposed to be the first app to load. What can I do???? Please please please help! I am totally lost here. Thanks!

Being stuck at the grey screen generally means there's something wrong involving reading something from or writing something to the hard drive. Letting the battery die may be something that is sometimes useful for a phone or iPod, but never for a computer.
Step 1: try restarting in Safe Mode. Reboot and when you hear the chime and/or the LCD backlight comes on press and hold the shift key until you see the Apple icon. The bootup will take longer than normal because the hard drive is being examined and repaired. If this works you'll get to the desktop but Safe Mode only loads a minimal number of drivers so some things won't work. Reboot normally and see if you can get to the desktop now. If Step 1 failed or if after rebooting you returned to the gray screen try step 2.
Step 2: try restarting in Recovery Mode. Reboot and when you hear the chime and/or the LCD backlight comes on press and hold the command and R keys. You should boot into a utility mode where you can a) check the hard drive directory and repair it if need be and b) download and reinstall the operating system and that's what you should try doing.
If step 2 fails reboot holding option, command and R. This is Internet Recovery mode which is similar to Recovery mode except the drive will probably need to be formatted or partitioned before the OS can be reinstalled. This will erase all your data.
And if this fails call AppleCare or make an appointment at the Apple store.

How do I turn on my MacBook Air if only grey screen when powered up.

What do I do if my computer only shows a grey screen when power turned on?

Follow the guidance offered in this Apple support article:
http://support.apple.com/en-us/TS2570
Ciao.

Macbook air stops at grey screen

On startup the sound plays and a grey screen appears then nothing happens.
After 5 mins a grey world icon with an exclamation mark appears on the screen
below it has apple.com/support
and under that -21 00D
Is there any way to get the computer to work or do i need to get to an apple store

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My MacBook Pro shows a grey screen at start-up how do I fix this problem?

My MacBook Pro shows a grey screen when I try to login and won't go onto my homepage. Why has this happened and how do I fix it?

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 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.

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turned by macbook air on and the screen is white with a question mark flashing and nothing else on the screen. will not boot up.

Click here and follow the instructions. If the computer was running Mac OS X 10.6.8 or earlier and you reach the third set of steps, insert a Mac OS X install disk or connect the computer's original thumbdrive.
(124635)

My MacBook is stuck on grey screen with rotating circle

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Shadish wrote:
If we change the keyboard to Arabic, will it only come with Arabic or with both English and Arabic?
English and Arabic.
I am curious how you think you could type any normal url or email address without English....

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ashg23 wrote:
Thank you, I have restarted but it is still stuck at the grey page with the spinning wheel? Any idea?
Have you started up holding down Command + R and attempted to install again?
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MacBook Air has a dark screen and works very slowly - what is happening?

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A couple of weeks ago I wanted to update iTunes and GarageBand, but since I couldn't find my charger and I really needed to update my iTunes, I just let it update without a charger. It seemed to be fine and I think I either switched it of or left it on sleep mode overnight (I don't quite remember). The next day, I opened it normally and it worked very slowly, it kept freezing and that little colorful rotating ball appeared every time I tried to turn on a simple program, like Chrome or something. I restarted it numerous times (it froze so much that I couldn't even force end the programs) and left it turned off overnight, but nothing helped. A few days after that I backed my MacBook up using Time Machine and deleted stuff I don't need (I previously used over 80 GB out of the 100 GB originally available). I went down to about 30 GB of space taken up, and after that my Mac started to work fine, except for the occasional freezes. It still wasn't as fast as it was before (I couldn't open a few tabs at the same time in Chrome, or two programs at the same time, without it continually freezing), but it worked fine so I just assumed it was because of all the space taken up. The occasional freezes still annoyed me, though (plus I couldn't put pictures on it because I was scared that the freezes would occur again), so I thought I could reinstall Snow Leopard. It seemed to work fine, so I just left it there as it installed. A while after that, the backlighting switched off, as it usually does after a while. What worried me, though, is that even when I pressed F2 or moved the mouse or pressed something on the keyboard, the screen would not become light again. The light was extremely dim and I could barely make out what it said on the screen, but it was bright enough that I read a message saying that Snow Leopard failed to install, and asking whether I'd like to try again. I restarted the laptop and the screen was not only very dark (the white screen that normally appears was now dark grey), but it also took a really long time to turn on. A few minutes passed before the Apple logo appeared, and it took about 5 minutes (in comparison to the usual few seconds that it takes me to switch it on) to fully load. Naturally, it still worked extremely slowly and kept freezing when it turned on, in addition to the fact that the screen was dim.
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Macbook air has a blue screen on start up

Hi,
My macbook air freezes on a blue screen on startup. I can see the cursor, but nothing else happens. Before this occured, the colourful "spinning wheel" used to come up with almost every application that I ran (for instance when writing documents).
I have a very basic understanding for these technical things, so I appreciate all the help I can get!
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This might be very easy to fix. Restart your computer and hold the shift key until the grey Apple appears. This is a safe boot. It checks the hard drive, deletes some caches, and loads only the essential drivers. If your computer boots to the Finder immediately restart it. With luck problem solved.

Macbook Air Freeze Booting White Screen Spinning Rainbow Circle - HELP

Hi All,
To begin with this happened to a macbook air which has not been turn on for around a year. This is Macbook Air Mid 2011 version.
After plugging in to charger and power on, the boot up after the grey apple logo stuck on the white screen with spinning rainbow circle, like below:
I Did Option + Power on , and the result is like below screen:
After enabling the Wifi connection and choosing the Recovery HD, resulted back to white screen with spinning rainbow circle.
I wonder why there is no Macintosh HD partition like many have mentioned in other threads??
I Did another type of Booting and after enabling the Wifi connection, still resulted Apple Support 5005F like screen below:
I tried googling to find what is 5005F and how to fix that, but can not find anything related to 5005F.
Please kindly help me to Fix and bring back this Macbook Air back online and working.
Thank you Thank you Thank you...

If you have booted into single user mode and ran "FSCK", and it will not repair, then it sounds like your hard drive is gone.
You will likely need to replace the hard drive.
Repair coverage? - Check your Service and Support Coverage - https://selfsolve.apple.com/agreementWarrantyDynamic.do. This will also show the make and model of the device.

Macbook Air 11" Overheat Grey Screen.

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