My MacBook Pro won't boot and apparently my HDD is locked

My MacBook Pro won't boot up. And it's says my HDD is locked when i try and reinstall OS. Help me please good people.

you want to check how many threads with same question first, and look in
Mac OS version forum that you have; and the notebook MacBook instead of the workstation forum for Mac Pro (non-laptop)
Not a lot of detail to go by with "won't boot" though.
Mac OS X Help
Isolating Issues in Mac OS
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1388
https://www.apple.com/support/osx/
https://www.apple.com/support/quickassist/
http://www.apple.com/support/mac101/help/
http://www.apple.com/support/mac101/tour/
Troubleshooting: My computer won't turn on
https://support.apple.com/kb/TS1367
Assume you know what your OS, how to use the Recovery Mode, and how to repair or do Safe boot and other tasks.
General purpose Mac troubleshooting guide: Isolating issues in Mac OS X
Creating a temporary user to isolate user-specific problems: Isolating an issue by using another user account
Identifying resource hogs and other tips: Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory and determine how much RAM is being used
Starting the computer in "safe mode": Mac OS X: What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode?
To identify potential hardware problems: Apple Hardware Test
General Mac maintenance: Tips to keep your Mac in top form
MacBook Pro
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks/macbook_pro
https://discussions.apple.com/community/mac_os?view=discussions
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro

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MacBook Pro won't boot and is overheating

My 2008 MacBook Pro started off having weird video problems. Then it won't boot everytime. Now it is not booting and is getting very hot while trying to boot. Thanks in advance for any help.

Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
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.

MacBook Pro won't boot, and then frozen by SBBOD

My MacBook Pro constantly freezes when I try to perform any task. I frequently encounter the spinning beach ball of death. Even if I don't see it then accomplishing anything is nearly impossible! The computer starts up very slowly and displays the gray screen and spinning gear for a prolonged period of time. Often times the computer won't start up at all and freezes on the gray screen.
My System
15" MacBook Pro - mid 2009
2.8 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo
4 GB RAM
Hard drive has 370 GB free out of 500
Fixes attempted
Repaired disk permissions
Uninstalled nonessential apps, including antivirus software (Avast was removed months ago)
CPU activity appears ok, frozen processes stopped
Trash emptied
Computer booted in safe mode, still got the SBBOD
This has basically rendered our computer nonfunctional and useless! For example, it took me nearly 30 minutes just to write this message. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

Then:
Fixing a Mavericks Installation Problem
How to manage a failed OS X Mavericks installation | MacFixIt - CNET Reviews.
Try these in order:
1. a. Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
    b. Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
2. Restart the computer in Safe Mode, then restart again, normally. If this doesn't help, then:
     Boot to the Recovery HD: Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the
     COMMAND and R keys until the Utilities 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.
3. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the Utilities 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. Select Restart from the Apple menu.
4. Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks: Reboot from the Recovery HD. Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks from the Utilities menu, 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.

Macbook pro won't boot and when I tried to back up the hard drive I got "disk utility can't repair this disk backup as many of your files as possible"

My macbook pro froze and initially would not even recognize the power chord. Now it charges, but will not load up. I opened in in disk utility to try and back it up so that I could take it to apple to have it fixed but I got the message that said "disk utility can't repair this disk backup as many of your files as possible". How do I back up the files???

Nichelle215,
you can try the method described on this Apple page, in the “Instructions for backing up to an external hard disk via Disk Utility” section. (You can skip step 6, since you already know that your disk is irreparable.) Note, however, that this method is not guaranteed to work. Once you get your disk straightened out, you might consider purchasing an external hard disk for use as a Time Machine backup destination, so that a similar problem in the future won’t wipe out the only copy of your files.

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 and shut down on its own.

Hi, I am running a Macbook Pro. My problem is that the OS froze during use, and I could not move the cursor. As which point I force shut down by holding the powerswitch. From that point onwards I could not get the machine to boot, it keep getting stuck at the grey screen with Apple icon. After loading at the grey screen for 15-20 mins it shuts down on its own.
I've tried to reset SMC (shift-control-option + power button) and PRAM (Command-Option-P-R) but it dint work. Please help. Thanks.

It appears your problem occured after you upgraded to 10.8.2, but if you did it right after the SSD and RAM switch then it's hard to tell exactly what is causing the issue.
I advise returning back to factory, hold command option r boot and wipe everything and reinstall 10.8
..Step by Step to fix your Mac
If the problem continues, then make a warranty/AppleCare call, hopefully you didn't strip the screw heads or leave any other tell tale damage inside.
If your fine on 10.8.2 for some time, then switch the RAM and do a hardware test extended or Rember or Memtest to make sure the new RAM is not the issue.
If that's fine then Carbon Copy Cloner to the external SSD and hold option key down to boot from it and test that.
Then do the internal SSD switch and test that.
Take your time, Mac's are so finicky and you can't just slap this or that and expect it all to immediatly work like it should.

MacBook Pro won't boot after trying to install 10.7.3 update. Start up stalls at Apple logo and spinning gear.

MacBook Pro won't boot after trying to install 10.7.3 update. Start up stalls at Apple logo and spinning gear. Computer won't even start in safe mode.

My daughter's MacBook Pro was doing exactly the same thing. I don't know if it had anything to do with the latest update. She called me about a week ago saying that her MacBook began running slower by the day . She then called me Friday and told me that it wouldn't get past the gray screen and the gear just kept on spinning. I did everything I could over the phone including Safe mode which it wouldn't go into and thought maybe it was the hard drive. She took it to the Apple store. Originally, they also thought it was the hard drive. It ended up being a corrupted operating system (Lion). Apple genius simply re-installed Lion and she's back up and running. Good thing she backed up right before it crapped out. She'll be restoring everything tonight. Don't know if re-installing Lion will help your situation, but it did the trick for my daughter.

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.

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 up Keeps turning off

MacBook pro won't boot up. When power button pressed the white screen w apple comes on w progress bar but shuts off before bar completed. If I move cursor or hit buttons it boots but will turn off if cursor stops Moving or stop pushing buttons. Just started happening. Ran hardware test and all shows ok. Any ideas??

Thanks for all the help; however, I still continue to have problems booting off of any other media.
I've tried the Apple CD w/ no success - I made an image of the apple cd and restored it to a USB drive, and it won't boot. I've tested both methods on another mac, and both options boot fine.
I'm going with my last restort here and am going to install OSX on a portable USB HD, and try to boot off of that (no clue if it will work given the outcomes of the other things I have tried). From there I'm going to backup the HD, and try DW as suggested.
Any thoughts as to why the mac refuses to boot off of any other media? It always boots halfway and then tells me I need to shutdown my mac.
Thanks again,

Macbook pro won't boot after installing update 10.9.3

macbook pro won't boot after installing update 10.9.3

Please read this whole message before doing anything.
This procedure is a diagnostic test. It’s unlikely to solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.
The purpose of the test is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party software that loads automatically at startup or login, by a peripheral device, by a font conflict, or by corruption of the file system or of certain system caches.
Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards, if applicable. Start up in safe mode.
Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a Fusion Drive or a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to start up and run than normal, with limited graphics performance, and some things won’t work at all, including sound output and Wi-Fi on certain models. The next normal startup may also be somewhat slow.
The login screen appears even if you usually login automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
Test while in safe mode. Same problem?
After testing, restart as usual (not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of the test.

My 2007 MacBook pro won't boot up beyond a White screen any ideas what to do?

My 2007 MacBook pro won't boot up beyond a White screen any ideas what to do?

Odd how this hasn't been archived yet.
I'm getting the same thing with my Macbook, but can't boot past the white screen. An Apple store in KS suggested I needed a new hard drive, but I've already put two in there and it's still doing the same thing. I really don't want to buy another motherboard like I had to a couple of years ago.
My choices are either buy a cheap drive to boot from and remove the current one to put into an external case, or save the money by not buying a new motherboard and putting it as a down payment toward a Mac mini.

MacBook Pro won't boot at start. I get a white screen with a blinking folder with a question mark in the middle. Any ideas?

MacBook Pro won't boot at start. I get a white screen with a blinking folder with a question mark in the middle. Any ideas?

Read this article...
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1440?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

I've updated to yosemite from Mavericks, but since i can't connect to the internet I used my time machine back up which was march 2013. Now my macbook pro won't start and ends with a prohibited ted sign. Any suggestions pls.

I've updated to yosemite from Mavericks, but since i can't connect to the internet I used my time machine back up which was march 2013. Now my macbook pro won't start and ends with a prohibted sign. Any suggestions pls.

Install or Reinstall Yosemite, Mavericks, Mountain Lion, or Lion from Scratch
Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.
How to Clean Install OS X Yosemite
OS X Mavericks- Erase and reinstall OS X
OS X Mountain Lion- Erase and reinstall OS X
OS X Lion- Erase and reinstall Mac OS X
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible
because it is three times faster than wireless.

My Macbook Pro won't boot up, only in safe mode!

Help, my macbook pro won't restart, only in safe mode! and it seems that safe mode has plenty of implications for use. my usb memory stick doesn't seem to be recognized while in safe mode. I was doing a cleanup on mackeeper just after I downloaded a trial version of microsoft office mac. The trial wouldn't work properly so I deleted it and decided to do a cleanup with mackeeper. than the mac froze while mackeeper was doing it's cleanup and the screen flashed black a few times. Ever since it won't boot up unless I use safe mode. Also, I downloaded the most recent updates while in safe mode but it doesn't seem to be recognizing that I already downloaded them because software update is still telling me that I have 6 updates. So I am horribly confused at this point. Please help, I need this laptop to do report cards (it's a good thing I got an extension). thanks

Please read this whole message before doing anything.
This procedure is a diagnostic test. It won’t solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.
Third-party system modifications are a common cause of usability problems. By a “system modification,” I mean software that affects the operation of other software — potentially for the worse. The following procedure will help identify which such modifications you've installed. Don’t be alarmed by the complexity of these instructions — they’re easy to carry out and won’t change anything on your Mac.
These steps are to be taken while booted in safe mode.
Below are instructions to enter some UNIX shell commands. The commands are harmless, but they must be entered exactly as given in order to work. If you have doubts about the safety of the procedure suggested here, search this site for other discussions in which it’s been followed without any report of ill effects.
The commands may line-wrap or scroll in your browser, but each one is really just a single line, all of which must be selected. You can accomplish this easily by triple-clicking anywhere in the line. The whole line will highlight, and you can then either copy or drag it. The headings “Step 1” and so on are not part of the commands.
Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.
When you launch Terminal, a text window will open with a line already in it, ending either in a dollar sign (“$”) or a percent sign (“%”). If you get the percent sign, enter “sh” and press return. You should then get a new line ending in a dollar sign.
Step 1
Triple-click the line of text below to select it. Copy the selected text to the Clipboard (command-C). Then click anywhere in the Terminal window and paste (command-V).
find /Sy*/L*/Ex* -type f -name Info.plist -exec sh -c '/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c "Print :CFBundleIdentifier" "$1" 2> /dev/null | egrep -qv "apple|Accusys|ArcMSR|ATTO|CalDigit|HighPoint|hp-fax|JMicron|print|SoftRAID|stex" && echo ${1%*.kext/*}.kext' {} {} \;
Post the lines of output (if any) that appear below what you just entered (the text, please, not a screenshot.) You can omit the final line ending in “$”.
Step 2
Repeat with this line:
ls -1A /e*/mach* {,/}L*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,Fram,In,Keyb,La,Mail/Bu,P*P,Priv,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo,Sta}* L*/Fonts 2> /dev/null
Important: If you formerly synchronized with a MobileMe account, your me.com email address may appear in the output of the above command. If so, anonymize it before posting.
Step 3
osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to get name of every login item' 2> /dev/null
Remember, these steps are all copy-and-paste — no typing. Also remember to post the output.
You can then quit Terminal.

My MacBook Pro won't boot and apparently my HDD is locked

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