MacBook Pro Won't Boot Beyond Grey Apple Screen - Mystery Partition Found

My MacBook Pro, which suffers from appalling overheating (94 degrees C in each core last week) won't boot beyond the grey apple splash screen. I booted from a Developer's disk and ran Repair Disk/Disk Permissions. Both verified AND said the repairs failed. The drive (as opposed to the volumes) said it had no valid files and thus couldn't be repaired even though it verified. I target-disked it to one of my G4s and took off a bunch of apps and lightened its load, waited a while and tried again--it's been grey screen gear turning for 20 minutes now. I have Remote Desktop but it won't respond to that. Of course, Windows XP boots up perfectly normally on its Boot Camp-created partition, dumbly unaware of the general chaos on the other side.
While I had the Disk Utility from the boot disk on, I noticed my partition scheme had changed somehow. The big partition with the system was now in position #2, set between #3 (Windows--formerly #2 of 2) and a new one of only 200MB called #1 which is formatted OS X Journaled. I didn't make that partition and it couldn't be erased. I think the cpmputer is looking in the #1 spot for a system and can't find it because some renegade partition with no brain has pushed its way to the front. How do I annihilate that thing and get on with it? How did it get there?
Has anyone tried that alter the Apple Blower/Fan hack said to turn the fans on permanently?
For the record, I'm in L.A. and the ground has been rocking and rolling for the past 3 minutes on and off.
MacBook Pro 2.0/2GB/100GB Mac OS X (10.4.8) TiBookG4 1.0/512K/60; PowerMacG4 Quicksilver 933/1G/160; PowerMacG4 450/512K/30

I called Apple's Tech Support and they had me do perform sevral procedures I had done already, none of which worked. They suggested that the mystery partition (which has since ceased to reappear in the Disk Utility's view of the partition scheme) was an anomaly caused by the still-Beta Boot Camp--nothing was said about Windows XP booting, but I think you're right because whenever installing Windows, it always reserves a small "free space" on the PC's drive for its own purposes. Anyway, I'mre-installing now but very unhappy to hear I have suspected all along--the overheating is killing the computer. I know this from experience because Ihad a Powerbook G4 with a at-that-time-not-yet-recalled battery that overheated to such an extent that it fried the logic board and the harddrive. After a year of arguing with Apple, they replaced the computer with this MacBookPro--and overheating laptop that also had its battery recalled, has already been sent back to Texas for over heating (they replaced the superdrive which of course had no effect on the heat issue) and now has hard drive problems. I have two old PowerMac G4s sitting here plugging along--maybe I'm over laptops. Thanks
MacBook Pro 2.0/2GB/100GB Mac OS X (10.4.8) TiBookG4 1.0/512K/60; PowerMacG4 Quicksilver 933/1G/160; PowerMacG4 450/1GB/100

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MacBook Pro: Tiger wont boot past grey apple screen w/ spinning gear, HELP!

Hey everybody,
I have a 1.83 Ghz MBP with 512 mb of RAM (lame I know). The other day someone was using my computer to burn a CD on iTunes when all of my programs began failing. On instinct I rebooted my computer to solve the problem. Alas, now I cant boot past the grey apple screen, and the gear is spinning away. Saddest part of the story is that I had time set aside to back up my computer the day after this happened . Anyway what is the best thing to do from here? I haven't made any moves to fix it yet really, so what is the best thing that I can do to try and get my files back?
Thank you,
Sam A.

Hi, I posted to you in yoour other thread.
I very much doubt Disk Utility or fsck will fix an +Invalid Node Structure+ error. That's a pretty serious error and DU is just not robust enough of a utility to repair it.
If Disk Utility can't fix it, you'll need a more robust utility for the repair. I would recommend DiskWarrior. It is the best at directory repairs. It rebuilds then actually replaces your old directory. I feel every Mac owner should have a copy. Make sure you get the disk so you can boot up on it to run repairs. You can also install it on another drive and run it from there to repair this one. DW works faster that way.
I use DW once a month to try and catch errors in my system from getting too far out of hand.
If you have a good backup, hopefully a clone of your system before you had issues, an Erase and Install will also rid you of this issue. But, beware! You will lose everything on the drive with this procedure. Let us know if you need help with that!
Cheers! DALE
p.s. If the +Invalid Node Structure+ is real bad, there's a risk even the mighty DiskWarrior will not be able to help. Normally it will come thru; it's only in the severe cases it won't be able to do it. If you don't have a backup, and need the data bad, it's worth the try!

My MacBook Pro won't go beyond a white screen, after I pushed the restart button. How can I get it to a login? I have routinely backed it up, but don't know how to bring that up, nor if I have a boot file on that external disk. Help!

My MacBook Pro won't go beyond a white screen, after I pushed the restart button. How can I get it to a login? I have routinely backed it up, but don't know how to bring that up, nor if I have a boot file on that external disk. Help!

Take each of these steps that you haven't already tried. Stop when the problem is resolved.
To restart an unresponsive computer, press and hold the power button for a few seconds until the power shuts off, then release, wait a few more seconds, and press it again briefly.
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 a desktop Mac hangs at a plain gray screen with a movable cursor, the keyboard may not be recognized. Press and hold the button on the side of an Apple wireless keyboard to make it discoverable. If need be, replace or recharge the batteries. If you're using a USB keyboard connected to a hub, connect it to a built-in port.
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 in OS X 10.9 or earlier, 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.

Macbook Pro will not boot beyond grey screen. System freezes.

My Macbook Pro will not boot-up or get beyond the grey screen (with spinning gear wheel.) I've tried all the recommended actions: resetting PRAM, disk repair, permissions repair, re-boot in safe mode etc but still the problem persists. When viewing the safe-boot in verbose mode, the system seems to hang at the stage when it's checking the Airport & Ethernet - the last line on the page reads: "AppleBCOM5701Ethernet: 0 0 setFixedSpeed - logic error, speed any?"
Any ideas how to fix this without doing an Archive & Install?
I'm assuming that if I do an "Archive & Install" then I will lose all my Applications (VLC, Handbrake, MS Office for Mac etc.) Will this actually be the case? Will I lose them.
Any help gratefully received. Many thanks.

jfromplymouth wrote: ...I'm assuming that if I do an "Archive & Install" then I will lose all my Applications (VLC, Handbrake, MS Office for Mac etc.) Will this actually be the case? Will I lose them...
Archive and Install just affects the System files, so any apps you have should still be available afterwards. The Installer on the disk that came with your Mac, when you bought it, will tell you this before you proceed. Of course, you can always back out of the Installer if you feel chicken.
Notwithstanding it is still necessary to backup everything. You need to check that Time Machine is set to also backup your Applications folder. It might be set not to do this.
It may not be necessary to worry about this if you have the original installer disc(s). I think any stuff downloaded from iTunes etc can be re-downloaded. However, it's probably quicker to get Time Machine to backup your apps if you can afford the HDD space. It's bound to be quicker than re-downloading the stuff plus any updates. And of course there's those Apps that you have but forgotten about. What about them?

My Macbook Pro will not load past grey Apple screen...

Last night my Macbook Pro froze so I closed it and went to bed. Today when I opened it, it was still frozen, so I held down the power button and rebooted it. It got as far as the grey Apple screen with the spinning wheel and will not load any further than that. I've rebooted a couple times since and it continues to do the same thing, stays on the grey screen forever.
I searched this problem on the Apple Support Communitites and none of suggestions (holding Shift after the startup tone, holding Command+R) have worked so far. Is there any way to fix this problem without losing my data or having to pay to talk to Apple Support? PLEASE HELP! :(

Zzoozu wrote:
None of that made sense to me or helped me. Anyone else? Maybe someone who has answers dor someone not a computer genius?
Then we can't help you as we need you to be able to help yourself and the instructions are complicated and long to paste here over and over again for the same proceedure.
Hire the services of a local Mac computer repair before you delete your data by accident.
You can jump down and do #8, that might clear the issue right away, but some programs are not going to work and require updating or reinstalling again.
..Step by Step to fix your Mac

G4 won't boot past grey apple screen

Hi. I have been having the same issues with my G4 15". I'm frustrated. The whole thing started with stalling during applications. So I decided to reinstall my OS X 10.5. After reinstall, I copied my saved files from my "My Book" drive back to my hard drive. Stalling issues returned. I reinstalled again. still had some stalling issues, so I performed disk utilities. I repaired permissions. SMART status is verified. System still ran extremely slow. So, I followed directions on apple support for resetting the PRAM and NVRAM. After I did this, the computer won't boot past the grey apple screen. I have reset the PRAM and the NVRAM again. Still nothing. I rebooted up from OS install disk. I performed disk utilities repairing permissions and repairing HD. I did this for both my drive and the computers drive. I choose restart and again the grey apple screen. I have been trying to get this thing going for a week now. I'm near tears. Cornelius or anyone, can you help me? It says no errors are found, SMART is verified. But I can't get the computer to boot unless it is from the CD. Is the computer confused on where to boot from? Or is it shot? HELP ME PLEASE, before I play frisbee with my dear beloved mac!!!! It seems like this ALL started happening after I installed the update 10.5.8. I had ZERO problem prior to any software updates!!!

There have been report of some external drives/enclosures that do not work as a boot device. Not sure if the MyBook is in that category or not, just make sure that there is nothing else plugged into the Powerbook then try again.
Does the WD need its own power to be plugged into an AC power source? Try the other firewire port
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If non of the above works try booting while holding down the x-key, this should force it to look for an OSX volume, not sure if it works the same on an EHD but worth a shot.

Another G5 iMac won't boot past grey Apple screen!! HELP!!!

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Using Target Disk Mode is an excellent, idea, you should be able to drag your data on to the new machine.
Let us know how you made out,

Macbook Pro won't boot past grey screen with Apple logo and then shuts off

This is a long story...
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If you have a full retail DVD for 10.6 you can boot from that by holding the C key during startup...but you will then be in install mode if that is what you want to do. At least go ahead and see if it will boot ok from the 10.6 disk and then you can decide what you want to do further.
Apple does not have 10.5 for sale anymore from what some other users have said on here so if you want to go that route you will have to find a copy for sale such as from eBay or one of the Mac resellers.
Before taking the machine to someone, try booting from 10.6 and see if that works...that way you can narrow down problems the machine may be having.

Help! Mid 2009 MacBook Pro won't boot! Just apple and the wheel keeps turning... Out of AppleCare , survived the hurricane, NOW WHAT?

Won't boot. Won't turn off. No sounds. Just wheel turning around and around. What to do???

Don't turn it off, perform a emergency backup proceedure to a new drive.
Emergency backup procedure
Drag and drop copy your users file folders (music, pictures, documents etc) to a regular external powered drive as soon as possible.
Do not use, setup or trust only TimeMachine at this troubled time as it will copy corrupted data and we need just your users files safe just in case. TimeMachine cannot be used with a Windows PC.
Unmount (right click > eject) and disconnect all external drives once the backup process is completed.
Note:
If you have any over 4GB sized files, those won't copy to a standard formatted FAT32/MSDOS drive from the factory, if you need to save these 4GB+ files use another blank/empty drive and use Disk Utility to format it 1 Partition, Option: GUID, Format: OS X Extended Journaled.
Typical large 4GB+ sized files are movies, imovie projects and raw (non-compressed) audio files. Naturally if you don't have any of these or can avoid backing them up (like you don't care about them) then there is no need to reformat the drive from FAT32/MSDOS.
Mac's cannot copy to nor format a NTFS drive. ExFAT format to be used with a Windows machine must be right click formatted by Windows, not OS X (does it wrong) XP machines can install a free exFAT update from Microsoft. Vista-Win 8 can format exFAT.
Formatting a drive will erase all data on it.
Once the backup is completed, you can take your machine to a local PC/Mac tech and they can solve your software and or some hardware issues, but if a hardware issue is determined, you should take it to Apple first as they have the electronic checker.
If you get a new machine, drive or new OS X installed as a result of this problem, then you can access your external drive backup and restore just your files if the tech support won't or you rather do it yourself for privacy reasons.
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Macbook Pro won't boot up, get apple logo and gear just keeps cranking

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-mjg

Thanks for all the help; however, I still continue to have problems booting off of any other media.
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MacBook Pro won't get past grey startup screen

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You have to use Mac specific RAM chips.
You have to buy new RAM modules, I guess.
If you have extended AppleCare, contact Apple.
Best.

Macbook Pro won't boot and getting gray screen, help!

I have a Macbook Pro 15" from mid2011. The warranty just expired one week ago.
I was normally using it without any problem, when suddenly the screen started to freeze and get some horizontal line. I had to force shut down with the power button couple times. The next day, my MBP wasn't booting during the startup.
When I turn on, I can hear the chime, the Apple logo show up and the little wheel turns, but after those things the screen remaing gray without any thing happens.
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- Remove the RAM and put back
All those things weren't successful.
What do you guys think I should do now?
What are the main causes of gray screen or blue screen?
Should I replace my RAM or HD?
I'm avoiding to take to a technichian or a geek, because I have a lot of confidential work inside. Luckly, I have a backup of everything.
I appreciate every reply made.
Thanks!!

Hi Eric,
Thanks for your fast reply.
Yes, I've tried cmd-R. I get a "blue screen" with vertical lines. Pretty weird.
I'm unable to access the Disk Utility.
Do you think the HD is damaged?

MacBook Pro won't boot - stays on black screen and beeps every few seconds

Hi,
My MacBook Pro has been having issues - when powered on wont boot past the white screen and more recently will just stay on black screen and beeps every 5 seconds. I had someone look at it and it seems apparently the motherboard is the problem
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Any advice would be very helpful!
Thanks

Welcome to Apple Support Communities
It means that your Mac's memory is damaged > http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2538?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
First, replace the memory modules. You can buy more memory at OWC or Crucial. It can also be replace by a reseller.
If it doesn't work, the RAM slots are damaged, so your logic board has to be replaced. It costs more than a half of the price of your MacBook

My MacBook Pro does not boot beyond the login screen. I have a full hard drive. Help!

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Go step by step and test.
1. Start up in Safe Mode.
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2. Empty Trash.
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   http://support.apple.com/kb/PH13806
3. Delete "Recovered Messages", if any.
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    Empty Trash. Restart.
4. Repair Disk and Permissions
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5. Disk space / Time Machine ?/ Local Snapshots
Local backups
   http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4878
6. Delete old iOS Devices Backup.
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7. Re-index Macintosh HD.
   System Preferences > Spotlight > Privacy
   http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2409

MacBook Pro won't boot up past gray screen?

Okay, so I was running chrome and iTunes and spotify. Spotify was playing and Avast! Detected an infection and moved it to the chest. I quit chrome and opened up a Steam game called Garry's Mod, but it wouldn't open no matter how many times I tried it. So I tried to open chrome again and it bounced but didn't open. Tried to open system preferences and it opened but didn't show a window and wasn't responding. So I tried to restart but it wouldn't restart, so I force shut it down. Then it wouldn't go past the gray screen.
So I restarted the PRAM. Didn't work. Tried booting into safe mode. Didn't work. When into single user and checked the directories I think. Didn't work. Called apple and repaired permissions and that didn't work. Then I downloaded OS Mavericks and reinstalled it. Didn't work. So I'm redownloading to see if it might work if i do it again. Otherwise, he said I'd have to completely restore and lose my data, which would suck. I don't have a backup unfortunately.
What I'm wondering is if there's anything you think I could do that just might fix this?
Or, is there anyway to save my data if it won't boot up and I don't have a backup? I have lots of writing and music I really would not like to lose.

Your disk may be sick or dying. As you surmised the top priority at this point is to make a copy of your data.
First, check the health of the disk. Boot in Recovery Mode (Boot, Command-R). Run Disk Utility. Click on the upper left disk icon. Does the S.M.A.R.T. status say “Verified”? If not the disk/SSD is unhealthy and needs to be replaced. Click on the icon indented below, usually called “Macintosh HD” and Verify Disk. If it finishes with a green “OK” message then all is well with the disk. If it shows errors in red then you have found a problem to address once the system is backed up. Do not attempt software repairs until you have secured the data. Post back with the results of this test.
If the disk will not show up at all in Disk Utility to run these simple testes then it is probably already dead. A trip to an Apple store to confirm that would be in order.
If you have an external disk drive you can use as a backup drive then do so. If not I’m going to council you to purchase a drive you can use to replace your internal drive if need be. The silver lining is this new drive will be much faster than the old one. Google “Seagate 1 TB SSHD”. You should find a drive for about $100. Google “USB 3.0 enclosure”. That should cost $10 to $20. When they arrive plug the drive into the enclosure.
Assuming it is still breathing you can recover the data without booting from the sick disk.
Reformat the external disk Boot in Recovery Mode. Start Disk Utility. Plug in the new disk. Select it’s disk Icon (the second one down, left justified). Select the Partition tab.
Partition Layout > Single Partition
Name: Emergency Recovery 1 (or whatever name you wish to use)
Format: Mac OS Extended (journaled)
Options… > GUID Partition Table > OK
Apply
Select the Restore tab.
Drag the old system volume (Macintosh HD) to Source.
Drag the new disk volume (Emergency Recovery 1) to Destination.
Click on Restore.
If that will not complete post back for another emergency data recovery method.
If the backup succeeds use the First Aid tab in Disk Utility to select the old volume (Macintosh HD) and Repair Disk. If it repairs with a green OK message, will it boot normally?
Post back for further instructions. How to proceed will depend on what has transpired to that point.

MacBook Pro Won't Boot Beyond Grey Apple Screen - Mystery Partition Found

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