My iMac has trouble starting sometimes

I often have to try 3 or 4 times to get it to boot up. It just sits with a grey screen and beach ball. Is my hard drive failing?

Hi there irobguitar,
You may find the troubleshooting steps in the article below helpful.
Mac OS X: Gray screen appears during startup
http://support.apple.com/kb/ts2570
-Griff W.

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IBook has troubles starting up: (?)

The iBook of a friend has troubles starting up. She needs an apple for her studies and has had nothing but trouble with this iBook. She has already have to replace the motherboard and faulty RAM at the store where she bought it.
The most recent trouble is this: sometimes the iBook won't start or it takes a long time before it does. On the screen appears (?). Also when she's working with the laptop, the respons time is sometimes very long.
Her teachers said her that this problem is caused by the hard disk. But I've found a topic of a forum, where somebody had the exact same problem and where replacing the HD didn't help.
Does somebody have an idea what could be an answer?
Also, the store only gives a one-year warranty, but since there have been so many parts replaced, isn't there a two year warranty?
Thanks in advance.

Hi, and welcome to Apple Discussions.
Here is the link to Apple's Knowledge Base article on recovering from the flashing question mark folder:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58042
How long has it been since hard drive maintenance was performed? If it's been awhile, try booting into Safe Mode. This will take quite awhile longer than a normal startup because it does a file check and repair of the hard disk.
You will see the normal desktop. Once completely started up in Safe Mode, restart normally, and go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility. Click on the top hard drive icon in the left sidebar and note the S.M.A.R.T. status at the bottom right of the pane. What does it say?
Select the named boot volume in the left sidebar ("Macintosh HD" unless it's been renamed). What is the hard drive capacity and how much space remains available on it? Repair permissions on it.
See if a little hard drive maintenance helps out performance.

Computer has trouble starting up?

My mac has trouble starting up, it takes a very long time for it to get to the desktop screen. Once it gets to the desktop, nothing works...

..Step by Step to fix your Mac
Why is my computer slow?
Create a data recovery/undelete external boot drive

My new macbook air sometimes has trouble starting up. It gets stuck at various stages. I have reinstalled Lion twice. That solves the problem for a few days and then in reoccurs. Any ideas? Thanks, Marty

My new macbook air sometimes has difficulty booting up. I reinstalled Lion twice. That soves the problem temporarily and then after a few days it reoccurs. It also has trouble at times opening mail or Microsoft Word. Any ideas? Thanks, Marty

Marty,
Can you elaborate on what you mean by "difficulty" during the boot sequence? When/where is the difficulty occurring? Are you getting to the Apple logo? Apple logo with spinning gear? Blue screen? Login window? There's many phases to the boot sequence and when it fails can go a long way in determing what's causing the problem.
Also, what sort of third party software is installed? It sounds like at a minimum you've installed Microsoft Office? Anything else?
Lastly, after you reinstall Lion do you perform a restore from backup or remigrate your data/content right back into the new OS? If so that could potentially be the problem right there. But truthfully there's more information that needs to be provided to begin recommending troubleshooting steps.

My iMac has trouble loading fonts (and speakers) on startup.

Some mornings my brand new work iMac (running 10.7.2) has trouble loading fonts on startup. Sometimes the speakers don't appear to be connected/active either. Both problems go away for the day once I've restarted the computer once or twice. Any ideas on why this is?

Ok, ready?
1. How many fonts do you have?
2. How did you install them?
3. Which version of InDesign?
4. Your speakers: If external, is there a Lion update for them?
5. Have you checked your preferences for "Sound?

Ibook has trouble starting up, and when it does, it freezes immediately

Hey folks,
Last time I had problems with my ibook G4, everyone on here was extremely helpful, so I'm hoping you can help me out once more
Today I was using my computer as I usually do, and it froze, something I've never experienced. After shutting down my computer and restarting it, it wouldn't boot. The gray screen with the "thinking" wheel went fine, but when it got to the blue screen that usually has the "starting mac os x" window and progress bar, nothing happened. The window didn't pop up, and the computer was stuck on that blue screen. When I restarted, the same thing happened. I couldn't get my desktop to load.
After removing the battery for about 20 minutes and trying again, the computer got past that blue screen and loaded my desktop. However, after about 2 minutes, everything completely froze again, leaving me where I started.
Now I can get past the blue screen MAYBE 1/5 of the time after multiple restarts using control, command, power, but when it does, everything freezes. Luckily I was able to get it to work long enough to send myself important files (not a great time for this to happen considering I have a 12 page paper due tomorrow, haha) and check the S.M.A.R.T. status, which was fine and normal.
Anyone know what's going on?? Thanks!!!!!

hi there.
i can't say what the problem is but i can perhaps show you some ways to find it out.
firs thing i would do is to reset the P-Ram. shut your computer down and press "command" + "option (alt)" + "p" + "r" right after you pressed the start button and hold this combination until you hear the startup gong for tree times.
this can allready help - if not, try to boot from a system-cd. you can check the drive from system disc - do this and also check premissions.
if you have a "hardware-check" cd, you can use it to check your hardware.
post again if this doesn't help.
greetz
sepoe

After software update, iMac has trouble booting

I have a 17" white intel iMac (bought november '06).
I recently had to archive and install (long story)
Everything works except after every software update that requires a restart, my mac doesn't restart right. I hear the startup noise a few times, getting softer every time until it is not audible. The iMac stays on the gray screen until I hold the power button down and manually restarted it.
I tried resetting PRAM a few times, but it didn't help.
How can I fix this?
Thanks!

Are you sure you really had a problem? After a system update, it's normal for the imac to stay on the gray screen for a couple of minutes, then even reboot sometimes. If you've interrupted the process, you probably do have trouble now. I'd download the combo update from the downloads section of this site, run that, and give it time to restart itself.
If you mean it was stuck for like half an hour or something, that's not normal.

Zen Xtra has trouble starting up, strange problem, please h

Hello, my Zen Xtra has been having problems for a while.....it only starts up on first try every about 4 times......removing the battery and putting it back in makes it start up? every 2 times. I bought a spare battery and it makes no difference. Sometimes I can sit there pressing the On Button for an hour then magically just starts up.......Only had this MP3 for about a year and am wondering if it is finished. Any advice? Thanks.

Duplicate post.
Jason

My 27 inch imac has just started acting weird, the thumbnail images and folder on the desktop have disappeared although the titles are still visible. When I open a programme the programme windows are all black and the drop down menus just show random

When I tried to open the web browser the browser flashed black and white at start up, then all the applications when i open a new window are completely black, I am unable to view the drop down menus as the come out as random pixels. This happens to all new applications i have been able to open. The document window opens as plain white but if you click on it it opens a document even though you cant see any thumb nails. Some of the documents are open as normal images/files. Having been a mac user for 10 years i have never seen anything like this before, any ideas or suggestions

I have started running a virus check.
There are no viruses for OSX. Uninstall the software, repair permissions and restart your computer. Especially if it's Norton's. It's known to cause problems.
To rule out a hardware problem, run the hardware test: http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11342 OS X Mountain Lion: Use Apple Hardware Test and zapp the PRAM: http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11342 OS X Mountain Lion: Use Apple Hardware Test.
In the end you may need to lug your iMac down to your local AASP or an AS. Diagnostic testing is FREE!
i have had a mac in fact it is 17 years.
You got me beat by 3 yrs.

IMac has trouble sleeping.

Okay, so I've had my 2.1 iMac for a while now, ever since the update to 10.4.7, the system will not sleep. I can put the Mac to sleep, however, several minutes after I put it to sleep, it wakes up again. Since my computer is in my bedroom, I've taken to shutting down rather than putting it to sleep, since it will always wake up on its own. Any thoughts as to why this might be happening? Thanks
~ Ian

What non Apple peripherals do you have connected to it, Ian? List everything other than an Apple mouse and keyboard.
Also, if you haven't already done so, boot up from your Tiger DVD and run DiskUtility from the "Utilities" menu. Get it to "repair disk" and to "repair permissions".
Have a look at the thread at http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=558626&tstart=0 too.
Cheers
Rod

IMac has trouble discovering mouse

I turn my mighty mouse off each night to save batteries and when I turn it on the next day, it won't connect to the computer right away. I may have to turn it off and on 10 times to get the computer to discover it. I have to use a wired after market mouse to function until the mouse is discovered. Any secrets to getting the connection to respond sooner? If you don't turn it off, it really eats batteries quickly. Thanks, Bill

Hello Tempe:
I turn my mighty mouse off each night to save batteries
I suggest you quit doing that. Bluetooth devices (Apple, anyway), go into a very low power mode after a short period of non-use. What you save is minimal. Battery usage is a function of your particular use, not turning it on and off.
I would trash the preference file (com.apple.bluetooth.plist) and restart to be sure that there is not a corrupt preference file.
Barry

My iMac Mid 2010 Has Suddenly Started To Slow Down.

Hello,
My iMac has suddenly started to slow down. It was fine just a week ago.. Login time has increased, Applications take a while to start and they can sometimes make my computer unresponsive.
Finder freezes and so does safari.
I have deleted ALOT of old files and things i don't use anymore. I deleted my Windows Partition. I have also tried my options in disk utility but it seems to have not no effect. I also re-installed Mavericks.
I don't know what else to try. Please let me know if there is anything i haven't tried.
Specs:
21.5 Inch Mid 2010
3.2 GHz Intel Core i3
4GB DDR3
ATI Radeon HD 5670 512 MB

EtreCheck version: 2.0.11 (98)
Report generated November 23, 2014 at 11:42:49 AM PST
Hardware Information: ℹ️
iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2010) (Verified)
iMac - model: iMac11,2
1 3.2 GHz Intel Core i3 CPU: 2-core
4 GB RAM Upgradeable
BANK 0/DIMM0
empty empty empty empty
BANK 1/DIMM0
empty empty empty empty
BANK 0/DIMM1
2 GB DDR3 1333 MHz ok
BANK 1/DIMM1
2 GB DDR3 1333 MHz ok
Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n
Video Information: ℹ️
ATI Radeon HD 5670 - VRAM: 512 MB
iMac 1920 x 1080
System Software: ℹ️
OS X 10.9.5 (13F34) - Uptime: 0:40:21
Disk Information: ℹ️
WDC WD1001FALS-40Y6A0 disk0 : (1 TB)
S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified
EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / [Startup]: 779.00 GB (193.97 GB free)
Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
HL-DT-STDVDRW GA32N
USB Information: ℹ️
Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Apple Internal Memory Card Reader
Logitech USB Receiver
Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
Apple Inc. Built-in iSight
Configuration files: ℹ️
/etc/hosts - Count: 20
Gatekeeper: ℹ️
Mac App Store and identified developers
Kernel Extensions: ℹ️
/Library/Extensions
[loaded] com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverInt (2.2.7 - SDK 10.7) Support
[loaded] com.rim.driver.BlackBerryVirtualPrivateNetwork (1.0.18 - SDK 10.8) Support
/System/Library/Extensions
[not loaded] com.BlackBerry.driver.USBCDCNCM (1.0.6 - SDK 10.7) Support
[loaded] com.Cycling74.driver.Soundflower (1.6.6 - SDK 10.6) Support
[not loaded] com.mice.driver.Wireless360Controller (1.0.0d12 - SDK 10.8) Support
[not loaded] com.mice.driver.WirelessGamingReceiver (1.0.0d12 - SDK 10.8) Support
[not loaded] com.mice.driver.Xbox360Controller (1.0.0d12 - SDK 10.8) Support
[not loaded] com.quark.driver.Tether (1.1.0d4 - SDK 10.4) Support
[loaded] com.quark.driver.Tether64 (1.1.0d3 - SDK 10.6) Support
[not loaded] com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverVSP (0.0.74) Support
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecDriverCore (5.0.1) Support
[not loaded] org.walisser.driver.DWXBoxHIDDriver (1.3.4) Support
/System/Library/Extensions/Seagate Storage Driver.kext/Contents/PlugIns
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_4 (5.0.1) Support
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.PowSecLeafDriver_10_5 (5.0.1) Support
[not loaded] com.seagate.driver.SeagateDriveIcons (5.0.1) Support
Startup Items: ℹ️
FanControlDaemon: Path: /Library/StartupItems/FanControlDaemon
Startup items are obsolete and will not work in future versions of OS X
Problem System Launch Agents: ℹ️
[invalid?] com.paragon.NTFS.auth.plist Support
Launch Agents: ℹ️
[not loaded] com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist Support
[loaded] com.lexmark.bmlaunchd.plist Support
[loaded] com.lexmark.lexnetlaunchd.plist Support
[running] com.rim.BBAlbumArtCacher.plist Support
[running] com.rim.BBLaunchAgent.plist Support
[running] com.rim.blackberrylink.BlackBerry-Link-Helper-Agent.plist Support
[running] com.rim.PeerManager.plist Support
[running] com.seagate.SeagateStorageGauge.plist Support
Launch Daemons: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist Support
[invalid?] com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist Support
[running] com.cleverfiles.cfbackd.plist Support
[loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2.Agent.plist Support
[running] com.mice.360Daemon.plist Support
[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist Support
[running] com.rim.BBDaemon.plist Support
[not loaded] com.rim.nkehelper.plist Support
[running] com.rim.tunmgr.plist Support
User Launch Agents: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist Support
[loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.scheduledScan.plist Support
[loaded] com.macpaw.CleanMyMac2Helper.trashWatcher.plist Support
[loaded] com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist Support
User Login Items: ℹ️
iTunesHelper ApplicationHidden (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)
Dropbox UNKNOWN (missing value)
Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 15.0.0.223 - SDK 10.6 Support
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
Flash Player: Version: 15.0.0.223 - SDK 10.6 Support
GarminGPSControl: Version: 3.0.1.0 Release - SDK 10.4 Support
Default Browser: Version: 537 - SDK 10.9
SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.0.0 Support
Google Earth Web Plug-in: Version: 6.0 Support
Unity Web Player: Version: UnityPlayer version 4.5.2f1 - SDK 10.6 Support
Silverlight: Version: 5.1.10411.0 - SDK 10.6 Support
iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0 - SDK 10.8
Safari Extensions: ℹ️
Facebook Cleaner
YoutubeWide
Facebook Photo Zoom
3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
Fan Control Support
Flash Player Support
Growl Support
Paragon NTFS for Mac ® OS X Support
XBox 360 Controllers Support
DWXBoxHIDPrefsPane Support
Time Machine: ℹ️
Time Machine not configured!
Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
      2% WindowServer
      0% fontd
      0% coreservicesd
      0% FanControlDaemon
      0% SystemUIServer
Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
129 MB Safari
125 MB mds_stores
116 MB com.apple.IconServicesAgent
64 MB com.apple.WebKit.WebContent
52 MB Dock
Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
1.97 GB Free RAM
1.28 GB Active RAM
434 MB Inactive RAM
614 MB Wired RAM
395 MB Page-ins
0 B Page-outs

My iMac won't start, it only has the apple sign with the timer and downloading bar at the bottom and then switches off.

My iMac won't start, it only has the apple sign with the timer and downloading bar at the bottom and then switches off.

Hi Paula2808,
I’m sorry you are having trouble starting up your iMac, that must be quite frustrating. There are some troubleshooting steps I would suggest in order to get you up and running again.
First I suggest using the steps in this article for the Apple logo appearing -
Mac OS X: Gray screen appears during startup
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
If things still are not working correctly, you may want to continue with the steps in this article -
Troubleshooting: My computer won't turn on
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1367
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.
Best,
Brett L

My new iMac has recently had OSX Lion installed on it and now when I start the machine it looks like its updating something every time, and the wireless doesn't work. So I restart and everything is OK - until I have to start up again the next time?

My new iMac has recently had OSX Lion installed on it and now when I start the machine it looks like its updating something every time, and the wireless doesn't work. So I restart and everything is OK - until I have to start up again the next time - then I have to repeat this again! Any help appreciated.

I've been having the same issue, but have just discovered something on my own that hasn't been pointed out in any of the forums I've visited. In what I thought would be a vain attempt to help myself, I went to System Preferences, Users & Groups, and then clicked on Login Items. I discovered that one of the Items that was listed to open automatically upon login was iTunes Helper and that there was an exclamation point beside it indicating that it was incompatible. I simply deleted that item and now I don't have the situation you described and my wireless is connected. Hope this helps!

My iMac G5 has suddenly started to run slowly and I don't know how to fix it. I've run utilities which says it's working fine.

My iMac G5 has suddenly started running very slow. I've already gone through all the tricks I can think of, including reinstalling Snow Leopard and running a hardware test, which tells me my computer is OK, which it most definitely is not. Every little thing I try to do causes the beach ball to spend for 30 to 60 seconds. I'm typing this on my older computer, which is running fine. It would take me an hour to do this on the iMac that is affected.

First, you do not have an iMac G5 - they can't run Snow Leopard.
Have you checked the available disc space? For smooth running you need at least 5GB and preferably nearer 20GB free space.
Look at the bottom of any Finder window and see what it says is available.

My iMac has trouble starting sometimes

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