MBP has gray screen with question mark folder on start up

Hi Mac Experts,
I have a MBP that won't start up. I get a gray screen with the question mark folder. Nothing else. I tried starting without the battery and also while holding the shift key but still get the same result. Any idea what happened and what I should try next? Thanks!

Need a Vacation:
Use the Leopard disk.
Repair Disk
Insert Installer disk and Restart, holding down the "C" key until grey Apple appears.
Go to Installer menu (Panther and earlier) or Utilities menu (Tiger and later) and launch Disk Utility.
Select your HDD (manufacturer ID) in the left panel.
Select First Aid in the Main panel.
(Check S.M.A.R.T Status of HDD at the bottom of right panel, and report if it says anything but Verified)
Click Repair Disk on the bottom right.
If DU reports disk does not need repairs quit DU and restart.
If DU reports errors Repair again and again until DU reports disk is repaired.
If DU reports errors it cannot repair you will need to use a utility like Tech Tool Pro or Disk Warrior

Similar Messages

I can't log in to my computer- when it turns on it has a white/gray screen with a flashing folder with a question mark in it. What does this mean and how can I get it to stop to log in?

Hi
I dropped my macbook yesterday and it turned itself off. When I tried to turn it back on all I got was a white/gray screen with a flash folder with a ? in the middle of it? What does this mean and how do I get it to stop so I can log onto my laptop?

Deev
Normally the question mark on the gray screen means it can't find the operating system. Have you tried booting up from the installation DVD? Do that, and when you come to the screen where it wants to begin a system installation you'll notice in the menubar where it say's utilites. Click on that and choose disk utility. from there choose your disk and try to verify and repair the disk. If you can you may want to also try and new install of the system. I don't know how much critical data you have, but reinstalling is an option. did you purcahse you from an Apple store? If you did you may want them to look at it. Hope this helps.
Regards,
Joseph

Initial startup with question marked folder with a disk already inside

Initial startup with question marked folder with a disk already inside

Reinstalling Lion/Mountain Lion Without Erasing the Drive
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.
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the main menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion and click on the Continue button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

HT1455 Did the lastest Apple update and now my Mac has gray screen with spinning gear and a status bar goes to half then turns computer off....help?

Did the lastest Apple update and now my Mac has gray screen with spinning gear and a status bar goes to half then turns computer off....help?

Thanks for your help.
Same thing happen when I hold the button, it idle for a while and then turn off by itself. Any more suggestions?
I got the disc..

IMac has gray screen with spinning wheel, but cannot login

After power failure last night, iMac has gray screen with spinning wheel when turned on, but does not go to login screen.

Having the same problem myself. iMac locked up and I had to hold the power button to turn it off. Ended up with the apple logo screen and spinning wheel. I tried the disk repair and got the same message as yourself, in that it couldn't repair it.
I linked up an external hard drive and installed OSX on it and booted from it. I was able to recover some files, but most I couldn't. I'm currently giving it a one pass erase in the hope (long shot) that a complete pass through the hard drive will show up any faults. Has anyone had this problem and been able to continue using the same hard drive? I really don't relish the thought of having to send it off to be replaced :-/
Assuming that the erase goes well I plan to put OSX back onto it and then run disk utility from directly on the drive and see if any faults show up. I'm kicking myself for not taking advantage of TimeMachine, but we live and learn.

White screen with question mark on iMac

I have a white screen with a file folder icon and a question mark. Anyone know what's wrong? The iMac will not load.

Besides checking out the possible solutions over in the "More Like This" thread over here----------------------->
Check out KB Article:
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11046 OS X Mountain Lion: If a flashing question mark appears

Frequent startup with question mark folder icon--a diagnostic challange!!!

I recently obtained a 500 mhz G4 Cube; I transplanted memory, video board, video riser board, and DVD/CD drive from my old (dead) 450mhz G4 Cube (logicboard and DC-DC board were fried) to the 500 mhz Cube AND I added a Western Digital 80gb hard drive. The problem involves frequent startups with the question mark folder (Mac OS logo alternates with question mark).; Eventually the system folder is found and OS 10.4.11 starts up--sometimes in 20 seconds and sometimes in 3, 4, 5 minutes or longer..........I have tried 2 brand new batteries after numerous PRAM (via keyboard) and CUDA resets (depressing the CUDA button on the motherboard just once and then installing the new battery). The battery terminals in the Cube look perfect--no corrosion. With the new battery, startups were fine for a day but now 4 out of 5 times, I will get the question mark folder. Using Disc Utility, I fixed any errant permissions and the hard drive checks out with zero problems. Once running, the Cube works great, but these startups are maddening. One other issue; if I start up with the G4 Cube 9.1 installation disc, the install program DOES NOT recognize any bootable discs; whilst starting up using the Tiger Upgrade install disc, my 2 bootable discs (partitions of my Western Dig. hard drive) ARE recognized. Any ideas would be greatly welcome!!

I believe I have solved the problem regarding the question mark startup---> after rechecking all cable connections to HD, OD, and logic board, I revisited the jumper setup on the HD; it turns out that I set the HD up to be the MASTER, but what I should have done was set the HD to be the MASTER with attached SLAVE. Since reconfiguring the jumper, all startups have so far been normal. Also, I did install OS 9 drivers, but I the OS 9.1 install disc still does not recognized my 5 gig partition when starting up from the CD; this is minor in retrospect as I can still use the classic mode with a earlier version of OSX that does not hog so much disc space.

Grey screen with question in folder

The color wheel would not go away after several minutes. I turned off the MacBook and then turned it back on . I got a grey screen with a flashing folder with a ? In the folder.
What do I do?

It looks like your hard drive has disappeared. Could be any number of reasons, including a dead hard drive.
If you can, I suggest you make an appointment at an Apple Store genius bar, and ask them to diagnose the problem. That service is free.
http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/
You will have to pay for repairs, unless the Macbook is under warranty.

I mac is snow leopard I bought for 19.99 mountain lion online an my computer has gray screen with the spinning wheel and don't work help me z

My computer I Mac is 10.6.5 I think but the issue was when I update it ask me for version 10.8.5 that was mountain lion wich I bought it for 19.99 Iand know is not working it had a gray screen with spinning wheel I have snow leopard on my iMac I bought mountin lion know the screen I grey I can't do nothing I reboots don't work I inserted the cd for my I Mac don't work can't do nothing I can't remove the cd can someone help me .

To get the CD to eject, hold down the mouse, or if you use it, trackpad, button while you reboot ... keep holding the button down until it ejects. If that doesn't work, this Apple note has some other steps.
See this Apple note on steps to take to deal with the grey screen.
Your iMac needs to be mid-2007 or newer with 2GB minimum memory (4GB+ is recommended) and 8GB or more of available disk space. You also should be at OS X 10.6.8 Snow Leopard to access the App store and install OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion.

Grey screen with question mark on boot up.

My son's 2011-12 Macbook Pro displays a grey screen with a question mark and will not boot. I pulled that first drive, put that first drive in a USB cage and connected the USB cage through a USB port and could boot a different machine with the first drive. I put a brand new second drive with a formatted and journaled OSX drive in place of the original first drive in my son's macbook pro machine tand got the same grey screen and question mark. Do I need a new electronics board? If so that is a $500 repair and not worth it on a 3 year old machine. Thoughts?

It could be anything at this point - most likely, it seems, is that you've a faulty SATA cable. If you go to www.ifixit.com you can find the Apple part number for the cable (or buy the cable at ifixit, even) and search eBay for the part number (much less expensive on eBay and I've yet to hear of one from eBay having failed).
I'm betting that's the problem.
Clinton

Mail has blue boxes with question marks

I have a new MacBook Pro. In mail when I receive anything with images, I just see blue boxes with question marks. Yes, i have tried reloading Mail, I have tried clicking on and off from Display remote Images, I have checked all my preferences and it just won't work.
How can i fix this - there must bean answer.
I am running Mail 5.2...it doesn't do this on my son's machine which is the same. OS 10.7.4

Hello Linc,
I'm not one to normally thread jack a post, but I am having the exact same issues, i found your posts while trying to solve the problem. Like tmack101, when I boot into safe mode the images load correctly, so something is loading up at startup thats causing the issue. I am very PC proficient, but am still new to OS X. I will post my results below to your terminal commands:
The domain/default pair of (/Users/darkster/Library/Preferences/com.apple.mail.plist, PreferPlainText) does not exist
mbair:~ darkster$
Step#1:**(wierd, I have little snitch uninstalled)**
kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}'
at.obdev.nke.LittleSnitch (2.4.0)
com.parallels.kext.prl_hypervisor (6.0
com.parallels.kext.prl_hid_hook (6.0
com.parallels.kext.prl_usb_connect (6.0
com.parallels.kext.prl_netbridge (6.0
com.parallels.kext.prl_vnic (6.0
Step#2
com.parallels.vm.prl_naptd
com.parallels.desktop.launchdaemon
com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper
com.adobe.SwitchBoard
com.adobe.fpsaud
at.obdev.littlesnitchd
Step #3
(x|openbsd)/{print $3}'
com.paragon.ntfs.upd
com.paragon.ntfs.trial
com.sony.PMBPortable.AutoRun
com.parallels.vm.prl_pcproxy
com.parallels.desktop.client.launch
com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager
at.obdev.LittleSnitchUIAgent
at.obdev.LittleSnitchNetworkMonitor
sibersystem.RFAgent.plist
com.microsoft.SyncServicesAgent
com.google.keystone.user.agent
com.adobe.ARM.df0ab5bbe6f698196fcc21e3c1e66dcb758bd911f4d637272d9d8109
Step #4
P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta}* L*/Fonts 2> /dev/null
/Library/Components:
/Library/Extensions:
/Library/Frameworks:
AEProfiling.framework        ProMetadataSupport.framework
AERegistration.framework    TSLicense.framework
Adobe AIR.framework        XSKey.framework
AudioMixEngine.framework    iLifeFaceRecognition.framework
FxPlug.framework        iLifeKit.framework
NyxAudioAnalysis.framework    iLifePageLayout.framework
PluginManager.framework        iLifeSQLAccess.framework
ProFX.framework            iLifeSlideshow.framework
/Library/Input Methods:
/Library/Internet Plug-Ins:
AdobePDFViewer.plugin            Quartz Composer.webplugin
CitrixICAClientPlugIn.plugin        QuickTime Plugin.plugin
EPPEX Plugin.plugin            SharePointBrowserPlugin.plugin
Flash Player.plugin            SharePointWebKitPlugin.webplugin
Flip4Mac WMV Plugin.plugin        Silverlight.plugin
JavaAppletPlugin.plugin            flashplayer.xpt
LogMeIn.plugin                iPhotoPhotocast.plugin
LogMeInSafari32.plugin            npContributeMac.bundle
LogMeInSafari64.plugin            nsIQTScriptablePlugin.xpt
/Library/Keyboard Layouts:
/Library/LaunchAgents:
at.obdev.LittleSnitchNetworkMonitor.plist
at.obdev.LittleSnitchUIAgent.plist
com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist
com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager.plist
com.parallels.desktop.launch.plist
com.parallels.vm.prl_pcproxy.plist
com.sony.PMBPortable.AutoRun.plist
/Library/LaunchDaemons:
at.obdev.littlesnitchd.plist
com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist
com.adobe.fpsaud.plist
com.apple.aelwriter.plist
com.apple.remotepairtool.plist
com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist
com.parallels.desktop.launchdaemon.plist
/Library/PreferencePanes:
Flash Player.prefPane
/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools:
com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper
/Library/QuickLook:
GBQLGenerator.qlgenerator    iWork.qlgenerator
ParallelsQL.qlgenerator
/Library/QuickTime:
AppleAVCIntraCodec.component        FCP Uncompressed 422.component
AppleHDVCodec.component            Flip4Mac WMV Advanced.component
AppleIntermediateCodec.component    Flip4Mac WMV Export.component
AppleMPEG2Codec.component        Flip4Mac WMV Import.component
AppleProResCodec.component        IMXCodec.component
DVCPROHDCodec.component            LiveType.component
DesktopVideoOut.component
/Library/ScriptingAdditions:
Adobe Unit Types.osax
/Library/Spotlight:
GBSpotlightImporter.mdimporter    ParallelsMD.mdimporter
LogicPro.mdimporter        iWork.mdimporter
Microsoft Office.mdimporter
/Library/StartupItems:
/etc/mach_init.d:
/etc/mach_init_per_login_session.d:
/etc/mach_init_per_user.d:
com.adobe.SwitchBoard.monitor.plist
Library/Address Book Plug-Ins:
Library/Fonts:
Library/Frameworks:
Library/Input Methods:
.localized
Library/Internet Plug-Ins:
Library/Keyboard Layouts:
Library/LaunchAgents:
com.adobe.ARM.df0ab5bbe6f698196fcc21e3c1e66dcb758bd911f4d637272d9d8109.plist
com.apple.AddressBook.ScheduledSync.PHXCardDAVSource.B3245B3F-8352-4668-A4F2-1AB BDFD6FAD3.plist
com.apple.CSConfigDotMacCert-**********@me.com-SharedServices.Agent.plist
com.apple.FolderActions.enabled.plist
com.apple.FolderActions.folders.plist
com.google.keystone.agent.plist
com.microsoft.LaunchAgent.SyncServicesAgent.plist
sibersystem.RFAgent.plist
Library/PreferencePanes:
.c4dsetup            .localized
.c4dsetupCINEMA 4DF51A2E69
Library/ScriptingAdditions:
RFAgentExtension.osax
Library/Services:
Step #5
iTunesHelper, AdobeResourceSynchronizer, Launchpad, Windows Server Launchpad
Thanks in advance for your assistance...

Upgraded to mavericks, computer now has gray screen with whirly sign and does not load

Upgraded to mavericks last night and computer is dead, gray screen only, tried turning off and on, makes endemic start up noise and then gray screen with whirly circle

Hi cladewig,
Thanks for visiting Apple Support Communities.
If your computer is only starting up to a gray screen and spinning gear, the steps in this article can help:
Mac OS X: Gray screen appears during startup
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
Best Regards,
Jeremy

I get a question mark folder upon start up

My Mac has been freezing up lately, now at start up I just get a grey screen with a question mark folder. Anyone have any suggestion?

Question (?) Mark, Blinking Folder, or Gray Screen at Startup
These are related but not identical issues. Their causes are outlined in Intel-based Mac- Startup sequence and error codes, symbols. Solutions may be found in:
A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac
Mac OS X- Gray screen appears during startup
In most cases the problems may be caused by one or more of these:
Problem with the computer's PRAM - See Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM.
Boot drive's directory has been corrupted - Repair with Disk Utility.
Critical system files are damaged or deleted - Reinstall OS X.
The disk drive is physically non-functional - Replace the hard drive.
Note that the information I have provided is what Apple recommends, If other users suggest different solutions than found here, then be sure what they recommend does not impact on your warranty, if any, or ability to get continuing Apple service.
Please don't start removing drives or changing cables unless you know what you are doing and have exhausted other non-invasive alternatives outlined here. If you perform any work yourself that is unapproved by Apple, then you will void any warranty you may have and lose all further Apple Support.
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
The main difference if you are using Lion or Mountain Lion is that you must first boot from the Recovery HD. Simply boot from the Recovery HD to perform the above.
Reinstall Snow Leopard Without Erasing The drive
1. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. Reinstall Snow Leopard
If the drive is OK then quit DU and return to the installer. Proceed with reinstalling OS X. Note that the Snow Leopard installer will not erase your drive or disturb your files. After installing a fresh copy of OS X the installer will move your Home folder, third-party applications, support items, and network preferences into the newly installed system.
Download and install Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1.
Reinstalling Lion/Mountain Lion Without Erasing The Drive
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.
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the main menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion and click on the Continue button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

Flashing Question Mark Folder on Start-up

I recently starting having administration issues with my Mac Mini.
I went to update to OS 10.5.7 and when the administrator box came up asking for my password, my name was missing. After putting in the correct information, was unable to update, but received the message what my clue to password was.
Anyway, I performed a safe startup, changed the password and tried again. Same issue as before. So I started up from the Start Up Disk, and ran Disk Utilities and verified the disk and repaired any permission issues. When I started up my Mac Mini from the hard drive, I still did not have my administrator password working.
At this point, the start-up ping is gone.
I reset the Pram and had the same issue. So, I saved all important files to an external hard drive and tried to do a clean install. I was unable to do the clean install.
I removed the hard drive from my Mac Mini and installed it into a friends Mac Mini. I had complete control of my computer with no administrator password issues, the ping was there, and I could reload all saved items and still not have any issue no matter how I started up the computer. I then performed a complete erase and reinstall and still had no problems.
I reinstalled the hard drive into my Mac Mini, and I now have the Flashing Question Mark Folder with gray screen on start-up and no ping. Can't fire wire to start up, can't clone, can't start-up from disk, safe mode, etc..
Any ideas would be helpful. Most likely I will be going to the Apple Store and seeing what they can do.

generally, the flashing folder mark means it can not find the startup drive.
if you hear those kind of noises your hard drive is most likely dead. while this is almost certainly true you can try booting from the install DVD and see if the drive is visible in disk utility. if you can't insert the DVD try this. reboot and hold option at the chime. this should boot you into startup drive manager. there you should be able to insert the DVd and choose it as the startup drive. boot from the DVd and once past the language screen start disk utility from the Utilities menu at the top. see if it detects the internal drive. if it does, try repairing it. if it doesn't the drive is dead.

Flashing question mark folder at start, broken CD drive, warranty Q's.

Hello! Thanks for reading.
Okay, so here's the background: I was just chilling around the house yesterday with my macbook, and it freezes, with no response from the touchpad or keyboard. I figure no problem, and just turn it off and on again. And then thats when I got the flashing question mark folder.
So I hopped on my family's PC to do some research, hoping to be able to fix it myself. Turns out the best way to fix it is to pop in the disk that came with the computer during start up... which I can't do because my disk drive is broken. I also tried other things, like pressing various keys (ctrl + option + p + r, or something like that)... and that didn't work.
The disk drive broke when I was at school, and as it was finals week, I had no time to get my computer to a genius bar. Then I moved quite a distance (see below), a process which has taken up most of my summer and made me quite busy to the point it has taken my macbook pretty much dying on me to get it to a genius bar. Gah.
So I guess I have a lot of questions now.
My computer is JUST a year old, by give or take a week or two.
I bought my computer from an authorized U.S. reseller in Japan while I was living there (I live in the US now, which I definitely wasn't expecting a year ago)... and no contact from apple came to buy apple care. Is it possible that because of the circumstance under which I bought my computer, that apple may still cover any repair or replacement fees under the warranty?
Also, I made an appointment at the local genius bar. Will that be free?
Also, does anybody have any other suggestions about how to get my computer up and running away from the **** that is the question mark folder?
Much thanks! I appreciate your time.

You made 2 big mistakes. 1) Apple may or may not contact you about AppleCare (sometimes I've gotten a postcard or email and other times I've not) but it is up to you to buy it before the 1 year mark. 2) whether it was convenient to get the computer repaired at the time or not, you should have contacted Apple to get the issue in the computer. If you didn't, Apple has no reason to believe it happened after the warranty ended.
You are going to foot the bill for the repairs

MBP has gray screen with question mark folder on start up

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