Macbook Pro won't boot. Stuck on blue screen?

Boy does my Mac have problems, ok here we go!
Originally, the display on my mac was distorted during operation and when trying to boot up, including in safe mode. Now the distortion is gone (except in safe mode), but when booting up, my Mac either gets stuck on the blue screen or, if it successfully boots up, can't handle anything more than safari without freezing up completely. I have a partition on my hard drive with Windows installed and tried booting up from that, but no luck. I've also gone in as a single user and changed the drive permissions (that worked once, but hasn't since then). I've done a hardware test and that didn't turn anything up. I can't think of anything else to try. Any ideas? I'm stumped.
Boring details:
Macbook Pro approx. 3 years old.
4GB 1600MHz memory
Approx 100GB free on hard drive
OS X 10.6.8

I did that when using singe-user startup. That worked at first but not anymore. I would reinstall the OS, but I'm out of the country and without a disc.

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Macbook pro won't boot, stuck on white apple screen

Noticed today, that my macbook pro won't boot . It gets to the white apple screen with the spinner under the apple logo. It stays like this for a long time without doing anything except spinning.
I've powered down and tried to boot up several times.
I have boot camp and windows on my mac and when the white screen appears, I can press Option to bring up which hard drive and the Windows partition will load without any problems.

Exacty what happens when you try to boot up from the disc that came with your computer? Are you holding down the c key? Have you tried holding down the "option key?" Are you able to run the Hardware Test - Intel-based Macs: Using Apple Hardware Test
Shut down your computer and disconnect all peripherals (keyboard & mouse if pertinent) from your computer. Now reboot.
If the Mac starts up normally, shut it down again and then plug in one of the peripherals (keyboard or mouse first) and start up your computer again. If it does so successfully repeat the process, adding one peripheral at a time until your Mac acts up. At that point, disconnect the last peripheral you added, reboot your Mac and search the peripheral vendor's website for an updated driver.
If no driver exists or the problem remain after installing the new driver, try a different cable or a different port on your Mac.
If none of the above works, again disconnect all peripherals from your Mac, hold down the "shift" key to start up in "Safe Boot" mode.
If the Mac starts up correctly, restart without pressing the "shift" key.
If your computer still does not start up properly, shut it down and restart it while holding down the Apple+Option-P-R keys; keep holding "all 4 keys" down until you hear the startup sound "twice."
If none of the above work Disconnect all peripherals from your computer. Boot from your install disc & run Repair Disk from the utility menu. To use the Install Mac OS X disc, insert the disc, and restart your computer while holding down the C key as it starts up.
Select your language.
Once on the desktop, select Utility in the menu bar.
Select Disk Utility.
Select the disk or volume in the list of disks and volumes, and then click First Aid.
Click Repair Disk.
(If Disk Utility cannot repair, you will need a stronger utility (3rd party) - Diskwarrior or Techtool PRO)
Restart your computer when done.
Repair permissions after you reach the desktop-http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25751 and restart your computer.
Remove any 3rd party ram.
Reinstall Lion - This will install a "fresh" copy of Lion without archiving old system files but leaves the rest of your files in place.
If your computer is still under warranty or you have Apple Care, take full advantage of it by letting tech support deal with your problems. It's what you're paying them for.
Out of warranty - take the computer to an Apple store or an AASP. Whichever is more convenient for you.

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.
I have tried some steps that I found on discussion, forums, and websites like:
- PRAM
- cmd-s (to verify and clean the HD)
- hold option and restore using a flash drive with Mountain Lion (after I choose the drive, I get a "blue" screen)
- 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 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

Mac pro won't boot: stuck on white screen, HD is new

My HD crashed (I think). Mac pro stuck on white screen for a while, then it goes to a black dos-like screen that says "no disc to boot.
I switched out my HD (I tested on different laptops and it works) and inserted the Mac OSX DVD but now it's just stuck on the white screen. I can't eject my disc either.
I hear 3 VERY small beeps (not the same beeps that states ram is missing/corrupt, which are louder. My beeps are VERY silent).
Fan works
No apple logo, just all white
CMD + R doesn't work, C doesn't work, option doesn't work, shift + ctrl + option doesn't work either
I'm at a loss
Help?
Thanks!
Macbook Pro Mid 2010, stock OSX (not sure which one that is)

Hey jlee12489,
Thanks for the question, and welcome to Apple Support Communities.
The following article provides troubleshooting steps for a computer that is not starting as expected. It may help to resolve your issue:
Mac OS X: Gray screen appears during startup
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
Some of the steps included:
- Perform a Safe Boot
- Reset the NVRAM / PRAM
- Start from your Mac OS X Install disc; use Disk Utility
- Check your cables and power source
- Remove third-party RAM and internal hardware
- Perform an Archive and Install installation of Mac OS X
- Perform an Erase and Install installation of Mac OS X as a last resort
Thanks,
Matt M.

Macbook Pro won't start up past blue screen

I'm running OS X 10.5.7 on my MBP, along with a boot camp partition. My superdrive has been playing up for the past few months, and upon learning that the 2.1 firmware update could be responsible, I obtained the update and attempted to re-flash the firmware myself. To do this I had to edit a system file and spoof my version number to 10.4.9; I couldn't flash the drive otherwise.
I used textwrangler to edit the file /System/Library/CoreServices/SystemVersion.plist - I had to unlock the file to do this. I saved it, used the flashing utility and rebooted as instructed, and then encountered the issue. The screen turns from grey to blue, and the "loading" indicator appears briefly before disappearing again - this happens repeatedly until I power my computer off.
I started up in single-user mode and performed a fsck - this repaired some filesystem issues I wasn't aware I had, but did nothing to fix the problem. Running in single user mode, however, did reveal that the loginwindow.app was crashing repeatedly, and crash reports were being saved in a log directory.
Attempting to start in safe mode results in it sitting on the loading indicator at the grey Apple logo screen for upwards of twenty minutes with no results (save my computer getting increasingly warm).
I've long since mislaid the discs bundled with my MBP as well as my Leopard disc.
Windows XP still boots with no problems.
What exactly is the cause of this issue? I wouldn't have thought the file I edited and not being able to get past this blue screen were connected. Is there any way I can restore it?
I also have a Macbook at my disposal - are there any feasible solutions which would involve booting another machine in target disk mode?
Message was edited by: fnool
Message was edited by: fnool

Is there any way I can restore it?
Did you make a backup of the file? Always a wise thing to do when messing with system files.
Not sure if pico works in SUM but it would be worth a try to edit the file again to revert it to its proper version. If that fails, you will need to get your Leopard disc for an Archive and Install. Might be able to get a replacement one from Applecare at little cost.
Good luck and let us know what happens.
Edit:
Just saw you have another Macbook available. If both machines were running same OS you might be able to copy the file from one computer to the other. I would do this as root though then run a Permissions Repair in Disk Utility afterward
Message was edited by: theonlydean

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
and either needs fixing or replacing. As I am traveling in Nicaragua the closest apple store is in Managua (capital). Would I be able to get the motherboard looked at and replaced if need be at this apple store? Also, does anyone know the approximate price for the motherboard to be replaced? Up until a few days ago the laptop was still turning on and working every now and then but now stays on black screen and beeps.
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

Powerbook won't boot - stuck on blue Screen with rolling pin wheel

Hi, maybe someone could remove my current headache.
My old Powerbook G4 is stucked on a blue screen with an infinite rolling pin wheel(just after the little mouse arrow appears and disappears).
For the information:
- I already did all the possibilities on this page without success:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1411?viewlocale=en_US#symp1
- When I do Fsck in single user mode, it tells me that everything is fine with the HD
- I also checked techtool pro v4: everything is fine with the hard drive and files
- I can't start in safe mode
- I can't put my computer in Firewire target disk mode - the Fireware icon screen appears but it doesn't mount on my apple dekstop.
- I don't know where is my old PB G4 install disk, so I can't try that.
Message was edited by: NGrignon

I don't know where is my old PB G4 install disk, so I can't try that.
And, there in lies the solution. Without an OS disc to repair the OS you are up the creek without an OS disc.

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 w/Snow Leopard stuck on Blue Screen during Reboot

Hello:
I posted this on other forums without any responses, so hopefully, I can get some help here.
On Sunday, I emptied my cache on Safari and my computer stayed frozen for a few minutes. I decided to re-boot, but every time I do so, it goes from the gray Apple screen to a blue screen and stops right there. I don't get the spinning wheel, but rather the black arrow that I can move about the blue screen, but nothing else. Here's what I've tried with no success.
1. Re-booting via Safe Mode (Command-Shift). Instead of freezing on the blue screen, it asks for my password and after a few seconds it stops on the Snow Leopard Pink/Black Stars background. Same result, only the background is different
2. Resetting PRAM - No luck
3. Re-booting with the Snow Leopard DVD and using Disk Utility. I follow the necessary steps online. No luck
Any help with resolving the problem would be appreciated. Thanks!

As a point of reference, here is a sample of the errors that were discovered during repair disk.
Volume file Count
569070 instead of 569075
Volume Directory Count
175474 instead of 175469
During "Repair Disk Permissions" I get this message:
Warning SUID file "System/Library/Core...has been modified on will not be replaced

Won't boot, stuck at blue screen

I have a problem with my MBP.
I was working on it just like every other day. While listning some music, at some point i lose all sound. Tried the headphones, ... Nothing worked. Next thing i was rebooting the MPB like normal (apple, reboot,...). While it was rebooting, i passed the gray screen with the apple logo and the little spinning thing. After that i got to the blue screen and was able to see the mouse point. But that's it. I'm not getting my login window, no menu, ...
Tried the Leopard disk, and repaired the disk. Repair was ok. Same result
Tried to repair disk permissions. Got all kinds of warnings about SUID-files (usr/libexec/load_hdi , ...)
If you guys want to, i can put a link here to a picture of the whole list of permissions failure...
Tnx for helping me!
Sam

Yes I have, and i couldn't find it.
I haven't got the time for waiting for an answer cause i really need this laptop. While i was going over other topics one told me to reinstall using Archive and Install. I just couldn't wait, so i took the chance.
I thought i was going to lose some stuff, or at least preferences like my Adium look. I put in the Leopard dvd, rebooted with the "c" pressed in and reinstalled it (using the archive and install option). The system rebooted again. I finally got back my login windows, logged in, and EVERYTHING was identical: passwords, preferences, maps, startup applications, even the alarm on my Awaken
Tnx alot for helping me Apple forums!
Sam

MacBook pro won't boot up with the screen after Yosemite

since updating to Yosemite my Mac book hasn't woken up from sleep
i can hear it turn on when I hit the power button but no screen or keyboard lights up
really need some help please
my Mac book pro is only 2-3 years old

Hi Bizzlewood,
Welcome to the Apple Support Communities!
I know it can be both frustrating and concerning when your computer doesn’t seem to wake from sleep. There may be a few different troubleshooting steps I would suggest in this situation. Please refer to the attached article for troubleshooting information.
OS X: When your Mac doesn't sleep or wake
Your computer cannot wake from sleep
Make sure your computer isn't powered off by pressing the power key for one second.
If you're using an external display, make sure your display is not powered off or unplugged.
If you are using a Mac notebook:
Make sure the computer's battery is charged. Try connecting the power adapter to the computer, then press the power button for one second to see if the computer powers on.
Make sure the AC power cord is connected securely to the power outlet, and that the outlet it is working correctly. Confirm the power adapter or cable is attached firmly.
If your computer is plugged into a power strip, make sure the power strip is not turned off. Check to make sure other items connected to the power strip are receiving power.
Confirm the right power adapter is connected on Mac notebook computers. If a lower wattage power adapter is used than the one that came with your Mac, it may not provide enough power to charge the battery while the computer is powered on. Make sure there is no debris in the MagSafe port that might prevent charging. When your MagSafe cable is connected properly, you should see a green or orange light on the connector.
If the issue is still not resolved after verifying the above information, please be sure to follow the steps listed at the bottom of the article in the Additional troubleshooting section.
Cheers,
Joe

MacBook Pro won't boot up past grey screen! Help!

Long story short, my Mac was working fine yesterday and then it froze. I held down the power button and didn't think twice about it. Now it won't start up past the grey screen. Actually, I just recently held down the "d" key before it started up and now I'm at Apple Hardware Test but I'm not sure what I'm suppose to do. My hardware is testing for something. Does anybody have any troubleshooting things I could try to help make it come back? I am very depressed it's not working. I tried calling Apple Support but the guy only sent me an e-mail telling me how to fix it.

AHT test can take up to 4 hours...
Intel-based Macs: Using Apple Hardware Test
You can also try Disk Utility (fsck)
Resolve startup issues and perform disk maintenance with Disk Utility and fsck

Macbook pro won't boot - how do I retrieve emails?

Hey guys
I've got a common problem that my Macbook pro won't boot. Sometimes I get stuck on the grey screen with spinning wheel, sometimes on the blue screen with spinning wheel
I've scoured the internet on another machine and tried every trick I can find with the MacBook Pro including
Disk / Permissions repair from install disk (says the HD is fine)
PRAM
Single User
Soft
It seems like my only option at the moment is an Install and Archive. I can mount the MacBook Pro on another machine with a firewire and remove files and backed up a lot on a hard drive before it died
What I am worried about is how to retrieve some emails from the machine that only exist locally because I have deleted them from the server
Is there a way of doing that?
Would Migration Assistant work?
If anyone could help me with this or suggest any other methods for bring my machine out of a coma I'd really appreciate it
d

Try a different adapter. If you don't have access to a known-good adapter any other way, make a Genius Bar appointment at an Apple Store.

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 won't boot AT ALL with USB HD plugged in

This is a recent problem and I don't know if it's an issue with my external HD or the macbook. I have a Western Digital 500GB MyBook HD that I use for Time Machine. When I reboot my computer with the hard drive plugged in, it hangs endlessly when booting up before the apple even appears. The startup chime comes on, and the screen turns color, but it does not get farther than that with the hard drive plugged in.
Additionally, if I unplug the HD, let the computer boot, and plug it back in when it's booted, the HD won't mount and I get the error in the console that a USB device has not responded for 5 seconds and is timing out. This repeats over and over again. To get the drive to mount again, I have to unplug the USB, unplug the power to the drive, and then plug the power back in, and then plug the USB back in.
Doing this, the drive will work normally again until my next reboot. I have tried Disk Utility's verify disk and it has found no problems.
Any suggestions?

I've recently been having the same problems, maybe within the last week or so... My Macbook pro will chime, get to the blue screen and sit there... until I either unplug or plug in a usb cable. My external drive is a Hitachi Deskstar 500GB. I've repaired permissions and such... I have noticed that I can boot into Safe Mode with ease.. so, there is something happening here, I just don't know what.
Any ideas would be wonderful, thanks in advance.
update
Also, question for Mikooster... did your problem start after installing Office 2008 ? I'm curious, that's the only recent thing I've installed that I can remember.

Macbook Pro won't boot. Stuck on blue screen?

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