Powerbook freezes at grey screen on startup

I have a 3+ year old Powerbook running 10.4.9 that won't go past the grey apple screen on startup. It pretty much spins indefinitely. I thought it might be a failing hard drive, but I'm not sure after the tests I've done. The drive is 80GB (74.53 GB capacity), with 7.99 GB available space. The drive itself is not as old as the laptop; it was replaced by Apple about a year ago. I have tried the following (with restart attempts in between):
*Zap PRAM
*Reset PMU
*Start up in safe mode (works normally, as far as safe mode is concerned)
*Ran AHT, found bad RAM module, removed module, ran AHT twice and found no other errors
*Startup in single user mode, run fsck, volume "appears to be OK"
*Attach to another PPC 10.4 machine to try to do a backup of files (mounts, works for a while, then crashes the "target" machine (iMac G5 20" 10.4.9))
*Tried to backup to iMac w/drag and drop, migration assistant (both firewire) and via direct Ethernet connection. Always works for a bit then crashes, forcing a manual shut down of iMac
*Startup from external FW drive w/OS X, ran Disk Utility, no problems found on internal HD
*Startup in open firmware, reset NVRAM
*Ran DiskWarrior 4.0, rebuilt directory
*S.M.A.R.T. status is normal/verified
Any suggestions, ideas would be much appreciated. I am really at a loss and very much want to fix this. Thank you.
-Amy
1.25 GHz AlBook 15 Mac OS X (10.4.9) 1 GB RAM

The problem may be the hard drive is too full. We have found that you don't want your hard drive to be more than 85% full. At last count 8 GB of 80 GB is 90% full.

Similar Messages

G5 locks on grey screen at startup

Started having disfunction with sleep mode (locked going into our out of sleep) and at startup some desktop icons would remain as white boxes, plus a couple other freeze-up problems. This lasted a couple days and now startup freezes at grey screen with no progress wheel. Local apple service says the logic board is toast. Is there anything I can do myself or anything I can ask the service guys to convince myself that this diagnosis is correct? $2500 for a machine and hardware that lasts 2.5 yrs makes me sick.
sick rick

Boot off your Install Disk while holding down the d key, (not c key), then run the extended Apple Hardware Test.
Unless your G5 came with a separate Apple Hardware Test CD, then use it & the C key.
Call Apple too, they've been quite nice for G5 problems if you're calm, focused, and pleasant.
Check for extended Warranties too. Some G5s were included.

Macbook Pro mid 2009 13 inch suddenly freezes and grey screen appears stating press key to restart

Macbook Pro mid 2009 13 inch suddenly freezes and grey screen appears stating press key to restart. Here is my recent crash report. Please help me.
Anonymous UUID:
714EBD8C-083D-E200-A9BD-6F925A8F8F14
Thu May 29 22:30:04 2014
panic(cpu 0 caller 0xffffff80026dbf5e): Kernel trap at 0xffffff80026d1197, type 14=page fault, registers:
CR0: 0x0000000080010033, CR2: 0xffffef8022f973c8, CR3: 0x0000000089778000, CR4: 0x0000000000000660
RAX: 0x000000000000001c, RBX: 0x00000000e00002c2, RCX: 0xffffff8002abb7d4, RDX: 0xffffef8022f973c0
RSP: 0xffffff800d2cb6a0, RBP: 0xffffff800d2cb6a0, RSI: 0x0000000000000001, RDI: 0xffffef8022f973c0
R8: 0x0000000000000001, R9: 0x0000000000000001, R10: 0xffffff8014ea65e8, R11: 0xffffff809b3160f0
R12: 0xffffef8022f973c0, R13: 0x0000000000000001, R14: 0xffffff800d2cb6ec, R15: 0x0000000000000001
RFL: 0x0000000000010202, RIP: 0xffffff80026d1197, CS: 0x0000000000000008, SS: 0x0000000000000010
Fault CR2: 0xffffef8022f973c8, Error code: 0x0000000000000000, Fault CPU: 0x0
Backtrace (CPU 0), Frame : Return Address
0xffffff800d2cb330 : 0xffffff8002622fa9
0xffffff800d2cb3b0 : 0xffffff80026dbf5e
0xffffff800d2cb580 : 0xffffff80026f3456
0xffffff800d2cb5a0 : 0xffffff80026d1197
0xffffff800d2cb6a0 : 0xffffff80026afd0e
0xffffff800d2cb6d0 : 0xffffff8002abb751
0xffffff800d2cb710 : 0xffffff8002abb54f
0xffffff800d2cb760 : 0xffffff7f8413fd2f
0xffffff800d2cb7a0 : 0xffffff7f84188b21
0xffffff800d2cb7e0 : 0xffffff7f841708d2
0xffffff800d2cb850 : 0xffffff7f84170fc8
0xffffff800d2cb890 : 0xffffff7f8413dfea
0xffffff800d2cba10 : 0xffffff7f8416d940
0xffffff800d2cbad0 : 0xffffff7f8413cad9
0xffffff800d2cbb20 : 0xffffff8002acea56
0xffffff800d2cbb40 : 0xffffff8002ad0051
0xffffff800d2cbba0 : 0xffffff8002acdabf
0xffffff800d2cbcf0 : 0xffffff80026b66a8
0xffffff800d2cbe00 : 0xffffff8002626bf1
0xffffff800d2cbe30 : 0xffffff80026139f5
0xffffff800d2cbea0 : 0xffffff800261e043
0xffffff800d2cbf20 : 0xffffff80026c975d
0xffffff800d2cbfb0 : 0xffffff80026f3a28
Kernel Extensions in backtrace:
com.apple.GeForceTesla(8.2.4)[24ED915E-02F3-3A31-8502-6AA41FFCA420]@0xffffff7f84 12b000->0xffffff7f841f5fff
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily(2.9)[244D4E48-78E6-3369-8D76-285C66EF9BF4]@0xffffff 7f82cbe000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IONDRVSupport(2.4.1)[B93BBFC9-9ED5-3DDD-8CED-5EDA081BB997]@0xff ffff7f8324b000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily(2.4.1)[B889D3AB-CCC0-3FCD-A83E-D2E3E4CB537B]@0 xffffff7f83208000
dependency: com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDAResmanTesla(8.2.4)[6EB3FF52-A4F6-3496-AE9C-D89B00F DE504]@0xffffff7f8325b000
BSD process name corresponding to current thread: Skype
Mac OS version:
13D65
Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 13.2.0: Thu Apr 17 23:03:13 PDT 2014; root:xnu-2422.100.13~1/RELEASE_X86_64
Kernel UUID: ADD73AE6-88B0-32FB-A8BB-4F7C8BE4092E
Kernel slide:
0x0000000002400000
Kernel text base: 0xffffff8002600000
System model name: MacBookPro5,5 (Mac-F2268AC8)
System uptime in nanoseconds: 60200033152435
last loaded kext at 44797399467641: com.apple.filesystems.smbfs
2.0.2 (addr 0xffffff7f84b15000, size 335872)
last unloaded kext at 15796237223278: com.apple.macos.driver.AppleUSBEthernetHost
7.0 (addr 0xffffff7f84b15000, size 20480)
loaded kexts:
net.telestream.driver.TelestreamAudio
1.1.0
com.rim.driver.BlackBerryUSBDriverInt
0.0.97
com.apple.filesystems.smbfs
2.0.2
com.apple.filesystems.ntfs
3.11
com.apple.driver.AppleHWSensor
1.9.5d0
com.apple.driver.AGPM
100.14.15
com.apple.filesystems.autofs
3.0
com.apple.driver.AppleMikeyHIDDriver
124
com.apple.driver.AppleHDA
2.6.1f2
com.apple.driver.AppleMikeyDriver
2.6.1f2
com.apple.GeForceTesla
8.2.4
com.apple.driver.AppleUpstreamUserClient
3.5.13
com.apple.driver.AudioAUUC
1.60
com.apple.iokit.IOUserEthernet
1.0.0d1
com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothSerialManager
4.2.4f1
com.apple.Dont_Steal_Mac_OS_X
7.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleHWAccess
1
com.apple.driver.AppleBacklight
170.3.5
com.apple.driver.AppleMCCSControl
1.1.12
com.apple.iokit.BroadcomBluetoothHostControllerUSBTransport
4.2.4f1
com.apple.driver.AppleSMCLMU
2.0.4d1
com.apple.driver.ACPI_SMC_PlatformPlugin
1.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleLPC
1.7.0
com.apple.driver.SMCMotionSensor
3.0.4d1
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBTCButtons
240.2
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBTCKeyboard
240.2
com.apple.AppleFSCompression.AppleFSCompressionTypeDataless
1.0.0d1
com.apple.AppleFSCompression.AppleFSCompressionTypeZlib
1.0.0d1
com.apple.BootCache
35
com.apple.driver.AppleIRController
325.7
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBCardReader
3.4.1
com.apple.iokit.SCSITaskUserClient
3.6.6
com.apple.driver.XsanFilter
404
com.apple.iokit.IOAHCIBlockStorage
2.5.1
com.apple.driver.AirPort.Brcm4331
700.20.22
com.apple.driver.AppleFWOHCI
5.0.2
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBHub
666.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleAHCIPort
3.0.0
com.apple.nvenet
2.0.21
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBOHCI
656.4.1
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBEHCI
660.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleSmartBatteryManager
161.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleRTC
2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleHPET
1.8
com.apple.driver.AppleACPIButtons
2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleSMBIOS
2.1
com.apple.driver.AppleACPIEC
2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleAPIC
1.7
com.apple.driver.AppleIntelCPUPowerManagementClient
217.92.1
com.apple.nke.applicationfirewall
153
com.apple.security.quarantine
3
com.apple.driver.AppleIntelCPUPowerManagement
217.92.1
com.apple.AppleGraphicsDeviceControl
3.5.26
com.apple.kext.triggers
1.0
com.apple.driver.DspFuncLib
2.6.1f2
com.apple.vecLib.kext
1.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleHDAController
2.6.1f2
com.apple.iokit.IOHDAFamily
2.6.1f2
com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDANV50HalTesla
8.2.4
com.apple.nvidia.classic.NVDAResmanTesla
8.2.4
com.apple.iokit.IOAudioFamily
1.9.7fc2
com.apple.kext.OSvKernDSPLib
1.14
com.apple.iokit.IOSurface
91.1
com.apple.iokit.IOSerialFamily
10.0.7
com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothFamily
4.2.4f1
com.apple.driver.AppleBacklightExpert
1.0.4
com.apple.driver.AppleSMBusController
1.0.11d1
com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothHostControllerUSBTransport
4.2.4f1
com.apple.iokit.IOFireWireIP
2.2.6
com.apple.driver.IOPlatformPluginLegacy
1.0.0
com.apple.driver.AppleSMBusPCI
1.0.12d1
com.apple.driver.IOPlatformPluginFamily
5.7.0d11
com.apple.iokit.IONDRVSupport
2.4.1
com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily
2.4.1
com.apple.driver.AppleSMC
3.1.8
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBMultitouch
240.9
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBHIDDriver
660.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBMergeNub
650.4.0
com.apple.iokit.IOSCSIMultimediaCommandsDevice
3.6.6
com.apple.iokit.IOBDStorageFamily
1.7
com.apple.iokit.IODVDStorageFamily
1.7.1
com.apple.iokit.IOCDStorageFamily
1.7.1
com.apple.iokit.IOAHCISerialATAPI
2.6.1
com.apple.iokit.IO80211Family
630.35
com.apple.iokit.IOFireWireFamily
4.5.5
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBUserClient
660.4.2
com.apple.iokit.IOAHCIFamily
2.6.5
com.apple.iokit.IONetworkingFamily
3.2
com.apple.driver.NVSMU
2.2.9
com.apple.driver.AppleEFINVRAM
2.0
com.apple.driver.AppleEFIRuntime
2.0
com.apple.iokit.IOHIDFamily
2.0.0
com.apple.iokit.IOSMBusFamily
1.1
com.apple.security.sandbox
278.11
com.apple.kext.AppleMatch
1.0.0d1
com.apple.security.TMSafetyNet
7
com.apple.driver.AppleKeyStore
2
com.apple.driver.DiskImages
371.1
com.apple.iokit.IOReportFamily
23
com.apple.driver.AppleFDEKeyStore
28.30
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBMassStorageClass
3.6.0
com.apple.driver.AppleUSBComposite
656.4.1
com.apple.iokit.IOSCSIBlockCommandsDevice
3.6.6
com.apple.iokit.IOStorageFamily
1.9
com.apple.iokit.IOSCSIArchitectureModelFamily
3.6.6
com.apple.iokit.IOUSBFamily
677.4.0
com.apple.driver.AppleACPIPlatform
2.0
com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily
2.9
com.apple.iokit.IOACPIFamily
1.4
com.apple.kec.pthread
1
com.apple.kec.corecrypto
1.0
System Profile:
Model: MacBookPro5,5, BootROM MBP55.00AC.B03, 2 processors, Intel Core 2 Duo, 2.53 GHz, 6 GB, SMC 1.47f2
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, PCI, 256 MB
Memory Module: BANK 0/DIMM0, 4 GB, DDR3, 1333 MHz, 0x830B, 0x4E54344743363442384842304E532D434720
Memory Module: BANK 1/DIMM0, 2 GB, DDR3, 1333 MHz, 0x80AD, 0x484D54333235533642465238432D48392020
AirPort: spairport_wireless_card_type_airport_extreme (0x14E4, 0x8D), Broadcom BCM43xx 1.0 (5.106.98.100.22)
Bluetooth: Version 4.2.4f1 13674, 3 services, 15 devices, 1 incoming serial ports
Network Service: Wi-Fi, AirPort, en1
Serial ATA Device: TOSHIBA MK3255GSXF, 250.06 GB
Serial ATA Device: MATSHITADVD-R   UJ-868
USB Device: Built-in iSight
USB Device: Internal Memory Card Reader
USB Device: Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
USB Device: IR Receiver
USB Device: Wireless Optical Mouse
USB Device: BRCM2046 Hub
USB Device: Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Thunderbolt Bus:
Model: MacBookPro5,5, BootROM MBP55.00AC.B03, 2 processors, Intel Core 2 Duo, 2.53 GHz, 6 GB, SMC 1.47f2
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, PCI, 256 MB
Memory Module: BANK 0/DIMM0, 4 GB, DDR3, 1333 MHz, 0x830B, 0x4E54344743363442384842304E532D434720
Memory Module: BANK 1/DIMM0, 2 GB, DDR3, 1333 MHz, 0x80AD, 0x484D54333235533642465238432D48392020
AirPort: spairport_wireless_card_type_airport_extreme (0x14E4, 0x8D), Broadcom BCM43xx 1.0 (5.106.98.100.22)
Bluetooth: Version 4.2.4f1 13674, 3 services, 15 devices, 1 incoming serial ports
Network Service: Wi-Fi, AirPort, en1
Serial ATA Device: TOSHIBA MK3255GSXF, 250.06 GB
Serial ATA Device: MATSHITADVD-R   UJ-868
USB Device: Built-in iSight
USB Device: Internal Memory Card Reader
USB Device: Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
USB Device: IR Receiver
USB Device: Wireless Optical Mouse
USB Device: BRCM2046 Hub
USB Device: Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Thunderbolt Bus:

riyazfrombangalore,
your 13-inch Mid 2009 MacBook Pro requires 1066 MHz RAM, but you have 1333 MHz RAM installed. Try replacing the 1333 MHz RAM with 1066 MHz RAM — Macs can be picky about the RAM which they find acceptable.

TS2570 Grey screen on startup...

I am using 2008 White Macbook with OSX lion running on it. Recently I tried to update the OS and then I started getting a folder with question mark on startup. After that I started getting a continuous grey screen on startup. I tried various options like command + option + P + Q, then Command + R, etc. but did not get any response. After that I pressed option key on startup then there was a response. A lock icon appeared on screen asking for a password. I tried the MacBook password and it is not taking that password as well. I tired all the passwords I remembered but nothing worked. My cd drive is not working and also I do not have original OS disks with me now. The apple service centre told that they can resolbe it as it is a vintage model. I called apple care but they are asking 29 $ for a call Which is ridiculou. Pl. help me

Does the lock screen look like the one on this page…
http://osxdaily.com/2014/01/06/set-firmware-password-mac/
That is an EFI password - it stops the firmware accepting ANY startup commands so you cannot boot from other media or use the startup keys to get into recovery mode, single user mode, target disk mode etc.
If you can't remember the password you will need to remove the battery & leave it unpowered for a few days. If you are lucky it will reset. If it doesn't reset you need to open the case & remove the internal clock battery. Not something anyone should do without the skills to work on electronics - take it to an Apple Store or an Apple approved service centre would be my advice.
It is also possible that you have Filevault password instead of an EFI password - did you need to enter a password after every reboot before the OS failed. This shouldn't be confused with a normal user account password.
If you have Filevault enabled you can still try booting into recovery mode, but you must enter the password to repair the boot disk.
The 'question mark folder' means it cannot find an OS that is bootable - it need to be repaired but you can't get to recovery mode without the EFI password - a catch 22 situation.
Since you have no install disks or other ways to boot it seems you are probably not going to be able to fix this. If you have another Mac you could try to download 10.7 & create a USB install disk & use that to try to repair the Mac, but it seems unlikely since it appears to have a firmware password.

HELP!! powerbook stuck on grey screen, not able to boot safe or single user

hey, i need some help, ive searched the forums the best i could, im experianced at fixing pc's but this has been my first mac in awhile, a friend of mine brought his 12" powerbook g4 to me, he says whenever he turns is on its stays stuck on the first screen where you see a grey apple and it shows a spinning wheel loading, he said hes even left it on overnight and it still stays there, he said he might have gotten a virus, cause he said he was searching **** last time it worked =P (hey i dont judge, every man has to find someway to reveive the "pressure")
so anyway, i dont have alot of his specs, not even the exact o/s # i just know he told me it osx 10.4, so i did some research and found some ways to TRY and fix it, i tried safe mode (shift) and single user mode (cmd+s) and even verbose mode(cmd+v) when booting up the powerbook, but alas, none have worked, safe mode doesnt do anything, just the same grey screen, and single and verbose mode both halts after the cmd screen goes through a few lines.
he doesnt have any software for his powerbook, they are all at home, which is about 900 kms away (or 559.26 miles to the non-metric ppl out there) so im working with nothing but my brain and the net, which isnt much, does anybody have any suggestions, maybe some third party software that would help, just point me in the right direction, or better yet, explain it to me like i was an infant, im not used to macs, but they intrigue. at least for now, i dont want to be put off just from this one little incident.
thanks to anyone who offers help, its my first time EVER asking for it in any forum.

Welcome to Apple Discussions.
There's a couple of things I can think of that may be the problem. Based upon what you have described, the first is a hard drive failure.
A couple of ways to check for this is to use the PowerBook's original installer disc (which you don't currently have access to), or perhaps a Mac OS X Tiger installation disc, to restart from and then use Disk Utility to perform a Repair Disk. Restarting from CD or DVD is performed by pressing the 'C' key during startup with the disc in the PB.
Another way to check is to see if the drive can be accessed via FireWire Target Disk Mode.
A second possibility is that there may be a directory corruption on the drive. If so, then DiskWarrior is the best option.
Another possibility is to take the PB in to an Apple Store or Apple Authorised Service Provider for them to diagnose.
15" 1.25GHz/12" 1GHz PBs, 2xPPC Mac minis, 12" iBook G4, Mac OS X (10.4.6) Cube, 2xTAMs, iPods 2G/4G, iPs, AEBS, AX

My macbook pro wont get past the grey screen at startup. Help!!

After doing a run of the mill software update on my macbook pro (running snow leopard) it froze during the "moving items into place" stage. I forced a shut down and now it wont get past the grey screen with apple logo and spinning wheel. I have tried booting from the original DVD but it still freezes. When I boot it in verbose mode it seems to stop at "jnl: unknown-dev: update_fs_block: error reading fs block # 3597880! (ret 5)", the Apple AHCD Disk Queue manager :: set power state is timing out and there is a disk I/O error. I have tried to reset the power manager (not sure if it worked or not) and I have also tried clearing the PRAM (again, not sure of that worked). When I try to look at the hard drive using target mode on my imac the hard drive doesn't come up but the DVD does. I'm concerned that my hard drive is fried. Any suggestions?

It would help to state in your post which remedies you tried that didn't work.
Start here > OS X Lion: If you see a gray screen at startup
If nothing there helped, try Starting up in Safe Mode
Safe Mode deletes some system caches that may help.
A Safe Mode boot takes longer than a normal boot so be patient. Once you are in Safe Mode, click Restart from the Apple menu.
If a Safe Mode boot didn't work, since your Mac has OS X v10.7 installed, restart your Mac while holding down the Command + R keys so you can access OS X Recovery built in utilities. The startup disk may need repairing.
Tip: Hold down the Eject key while starting up your Mac to eject a disc.

Mac mini and grey screen at startup

ok, so last night we come home and my mom tries to turn on her mac mini, but it just freezes on the grey screen in the startup process. i tried booting from the disk but it didnt work (no the disk is stuck in the drive cuz i cant start up the computer to eject it) i tried booting into a version of osx on my external hd by holding down option at startup, but nothing showed up not even the internal hd. none of the startup commands work (firewire target,single user,safe mode, holding mouse to eject cd) none of those worked, any ideas?

First off, why can't you insert the original install
DVD that came with your mini?
The drive won't take the disk at all. I tried other disks as well, and it won't take any of them in either. The drive is pretty much non-responsive.
Secondly, if you leave the mini on the grey screen,
what happens? Does it keep going however long you
leave it, or does it show a flashing questions mark
after maybe 15 minutes?
It remains on the gray screen for however long I leave it on.
Thirdly, since the mini was running for a couple of
days after the 10.4.8 update, the problem seems
unlikely to have been caused by that. What were you
doing the last time the mini was in use? How did you
shut it down?
Browsing the web, email, and listening to music for the most part. I put it to sleep for the night, and then when I came back the next day to activate it, it froze on me. Pointer wouldn't move, it was locked up. First time that has ever happened to me. After that I ended up turning it off by holding the power button down for five seconds. When I turned it back on, I got the gray screen.
Fourthly, what model of mac mini is it?
It's the original basic model. 1.25 G4 processor, 40 GB hard drive, and 256 MB RAM.
Mac Mini Mac OS X (10.4.8)

PB G4 OSX10.5 grey screen on startup/not recognize harddrive?

Powerbook G4 won't startup, stops at grey screen with folder alternating Finder icon/question mark.
Reseting PRAM has no effect.
When started in Safe mode, will go to two buttons, no drive icon.
When started in Safe mode with install DVD inserted, can get to Install screens.
Hardware tests (quick and long) show all okay.
When try to reinstall system, no icon for location to install to is shown.
Can put computer into Target mode, firewire icon appears on screen whether or not the install DVD is in. If install DVD is in, this will appear on second computer. If install DVD is not in, nothing appears on second computer.
History:
I purchased this unit preowned by single owner about a year ago with 10.5 installed. It has run well, almost exclusively Office 2004. Yesterday Entourage timed out Shut Down and would not allow Finder to be accessed by clicking on the desktop or Apple icon, so computer was shut down by press/holding power button.
Thank you for any assistance you can provide.
Troy.

if the drive is not visible at all in Disk Utility it's not a good sign.
sometimes the issue could be caused by drive cable connection or cable going bad, it's quite rare though
sometimes the drive may work when put into an external enclosure
DriveSavers is a well known recovery service, could be expensive:
http://www.drivesaversdatarecovery.com/

Grey screen on startup - verbose mode:"We are hanging here..."! Please help

Dear everybody!
I'm cross-posting from the iBook forum, because I found some helpful posts over here after posting my problem there. I hope someone can help with these NEWS:
Here´s the short version:
Two days ago freeze during dragging a pdf to a USB storage. I shut down all other apps, then also finder, iBook becme unresponsive, so I shut it down with the power button. Since then, I permanently get the grey screen with four language "You need to restart your computer..." on normal startup, no problems starting in safe mode, but then some other strange things happen (e.g. no volume adjustable, no speakers and no mic in sound prefs).
AHT from original disc: no problems found
Tried Command S during startup with fsck -fy, same problem on reboot.
Tried Verbose mode, below is the very interesting last lines:
Latest stack backtrace for cpu 0:
Backtrace:
0x000954F8 0x00095BF8 0x00026898 0x0028D204 0x00296090 0x0029585C 0x0029929C 0x00292520
0x00297790 0x00297C24 0x002ABDB8 0x000ABD30 0x02461200
Proceeding back via exception chain:
Exception state (sv=0x3154D500)
PC=0x9002FD20; MSR=0x0200F030; DAR=0x0007B39E; DSISR=0x00002C1B; LR=0x9002F95C; R1=0xBFFFF8F0; XCP=0x00000030 (0xC00 - System call)
Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 8.11.0: Wed Oct 10 18:26:00 PDT 2007; root:xnu-792.24.17~1/RELEASE_PPC
panic: We are hanging here...
Am I having a kernel panic? If yes, why does the console panic log not state any panic since more than a year? What's my next step?
Thanks for any useful ideas in advance!
Keywan

As for now, only thing that helped was an archive and install with preserve user settings. Seems after the reinstall of 10.4. everything that was weird has become normal again. I hope very much this state stays on for a while - or ever!
A comment to everybody: with problems that are common you get a lot of help from friendly users in here, but if like in my situation things get a bit more uncommon than the usual querks and troubles your bound to go through a whole workflow of tests and algorithms - i did learn some new things but eventually I had to go for the ultimate - the reinstall (of course, erase and install would have been more work.) and it's frustrating not to find out how it came to this problem. I wish I could nail it down to something I did mistakenly - i guess I'll find out next time.
THANKS THOUGH to those who replied.
Keywan

OSX Lion, stuck on grey screen at startup w/ spinning gear.

i believe i have tried everything i could find, so any info is good.
about a week ago my 2009 macbook pro 15 inch stopped starting up, always going to a grey screen with the apple logo and spinning gear.
what i have done so far.
reset nvram
repair disk and disk permissions.
try startup with various combinations of periferials
i am obviously able to start into lion recovery, but my time machine backups are on the other side of the world.
when i do a safe boot if stops with two entrys of nstat_lookup_entry failed: 2
any help is much appreciated

You can do two things
1: Install Lion over itself via the Recovery, won't touch your files or most programs.
Any program has a kernel extension file in System/Library/Extensions folder, that will get kicked out. Thus those few programs won't work and require a reinstall of their software
2: Install Lion on a blank powered external Disk Utility > Erase with Zero + GUID OS X Extended Journaled formatted hard drive, hold the option key and boot from it, same named user, and then access your internal drive to recovery files, disconnect then do #1
 Cheat sheet to help diagnose and fix your Mac
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks/macbook_pro?view=documents

Stuck on Grey Screen During Startup

I updated to Yosemite on Saturday and everything has been working fine, I have been able to shut down and startup as normal until today.
Last night I forced my Early 2011 MacBook Pro to shut down and today it will no longer get to the login screen.
I hear the chime, the Apple appears with the Yosemite status bar underneath, it takes a long time to get about halfway then both the Apple and status bar disappear leaving just a blank grey screen.
- I can get into Single User mode, using "fsck -fy" it reports that everything is OK.
- I can't get into Safe Mode.
- I have reset PRAM
- I have NOT reset SMC (is it worth a try?)
- I have a bootable Yosemite USB, holding option I can select that but instead of presenting the Utilities window it just brings up the Apple and status bar then grey screen. For some reason my WiFi network isn't in the list either. Also, the image of my hard drive that appears has a custom icon that I haven't used for at least 5 years, very odd indeed.
I'm at a loss, any help would be greatly appreciated.
NOTE
My left fan is faulty, I have ordered a new one online. I have been using SMCFanControl to monitor it, if the computer has been feeling hot I have been increasing the RPM for a minute to cool it just to be safe until the new fan arrives. Last night I increased the RPM and SMCFanControl became unresponsive which is why I forced the computer to shut down because I couldn't reduce the fan speed back to normal.

I am able to get into Internet Recovery Mode but eventually the globe disappears and it's right back to the Apple and status bar then grey screen again.
When holding Option only my hard drive shows, there is no recovery drive option.

Macbook Pro won't load past a grey screen on startup!

I apologise for what will most likely be an essay ahead.
I have a Macbook Pro (2.16ghz) that is just over three years old. It is running on Leopard with all the up to date patches / updates. Over the past week or so, it has been 'playing up' in the sense that the spinning loading icon would appear at random intervals and stay there for a good 20 to 30 seconds or so, not allowing me to do anything. If I would be listening to music, the music would pause and then come back on.
It would normally appear when something was trying to load. For example, the final straw was when I was using Adobe Bridge and it was taking an extremely long time to load up the photos I had imported and in the end I gave up. Speed has never been an issue before and my MBP has 2GB of RAM.
So I backed up what I needed and proceeded to do an 'Erase and Install(Leopard) format. Once formatted, the MBP booted up and I completed the registration, took my User picture blah blah etc. Once done, the MBP booted into OS X - this is where the problems occurred. The spinning loading icon appeared and after about 30 seconds or so, the Finder window / toolbar at the top disappeared, as did the Macintosh HD icon on the desktop. All I was left with was my wallpaper and Dock with icons in. However, if I clicked on any of the programs, nothing would happen.
Naturally, I tried restarting it and the same thing happened again. I figured that because my MBP was connected to a second Dual monitor, that this might have been the issue so I decided to boot from the OS X Leopard CD and do another 'Erase and Install'. I once again got past the registration screen, but this time, instead of booting into OS X my MBP stuck itself on a grey screen. It would not go any further.
I then decided that the spinning loading icon issue may be a RAM problem. When I first got my MBP, I upgraded the RAM so I knew how to take it out and replace it. So I tried taking out the RAM stick (1GB) I put in orignally and booting it with the original 1GB stick. The same problem occurred. I tried the other way round, putting in my 1GB RAM stick and taking the original out - nothing worked. I tried every possible combination, even swapping the sticks around.
Eventually my brother tells me he has some spare RAM which I also try and once again, this does not solve the issue. So I figure it cannot be a RAM problem.
So next I try booting from the OS X Disc on startup and run Disk Utility. I verify and repair the Mac HD which comes up fine. No errors, no issues, nothing.
I finally scour the internet for info on what could be the cause of the problem and the biggest suggestion seems to be formatting. So I once again try formatting my MBP for a third time - however this time, I get the original problem. It boots up into OS X but then the Finder toolbar and Mac HD icon disappear, leaving me with Dock and Wallpaper.
The final thing I try is resetting the MBPs PRAM on startup. This does not solve the issue.
So here I am. If you could be bothered to read all of that, well done haha I'm not sure if I could have.
If anyone has ANY suggestions or advice, please post!
I do not have Apple Care so if I was to take it to the local Genius bar, would they look at it for free and diagnose it? Or would that cost me? I have never had to take my MBP in before.
Thankyou again

I just skimmed over this because the post is like a small novel! lol Try a Apple Hardware Test. I think it's probably a bad logic board.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1509
Don't take it to a Genius Bar until you've done this, saves time and you might have a little more info to give them. Also that way you won't feel pressured into anything. It's out of warranty, so sometimes I've noticed they can be a little pushy especially on a very high dollar replacement such as a new logic board on an out of warranty item. Also the "enhanced diagnostic" is around $100, so you might have to at least fork over a hard earned Benjamin and not get anything fixed. And whatever you do, DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT tell them you upgraded the RAM yourself. If they are feeling in a good mood and decide to knock off any money or waive any sort of fees, this will kill it instantly. RAM is considered "user serviceable," but they normally try to plead "the part you installed is not Apple Authorized" or the "installation caused the issue and was not an ACHT." Put back in the original stick and leave it alone. Hope this helps you out!

G3 Beige: grey screen at startup; no icon; won't boot from CD

G3 Beige, OS 9.2; working perfectly for past year.
I was using a D-Link wired router, to this and my other Mac, G4 Graphite OS X Tiger.
Having just gotten a netbook, I installed a D-Link wireless router (DIR-615), and changed the ethernet cables for both (non-wireless) Macs over to the new router. (It had been configured for me by a Staples Associate where I bought it.)
The netbook and the Graphite G4 worked as they should, but upon restart, the G3 Beige not only wouldn’t boot, it didn’t even show a sad Mac or a question mark. It chimed, but only has a grey screen. Cursor works (& keyboard); nothing else.
I disconnected ethernet cable; same grey screen upon restart.
Won’t boot from Norton or Mac OS 9 CD, pressing “C” at startup.
Zapping pram didn’t help.
Shift during startup didn’t help.
Now what??
TIA.
PS: Meanwhile, I'm afraid to connect my emergency spare 7300 w/G3 upgrade & OS 9.1 to that router. Should I?

The next thing to try is re-seating the sound card. The backpanel is only well-supported on one side, and the sound card takes a beating in all the Beige G3s and similar Macs with tumble-open or lift open designs (but not the All-in-One). Jeff suggests you remove the exterior third screw \[and leave it out] and bend the top tab slightly before re-installing the two screws on the rail. This helps push the sound card back into the slot and keep it firmly seated.
Do you have any SCSI devices or SCSI cables connected? A dangling SCSI cable or a badly-terminated SCSI device can cause a Hang where you describe.

I have a grey screen at startup and cannot go any farther.

Hello,
My problem is similar to other folks problems. At startup I first experienced a flashing file folder with a question mark. After I tried to shut down and reboot I experienced a grey screen. After another shutdown and reboot I experienced an apple symbol with a spinning sphere below. I rebooted again after several minutes of watching this and no action. Now, I just recieve a grey screen.
I have tried some of the support tips with no success. Can anyone assist in walking me through a sure fire method(s) of getting my macbookpro up and running again.
I'm running on snow leopard. Macbook pro circa 2006..
Thanks

Here's a great Apple doc. on the subject.
DALE

17" Intel iMac Kernel Panic, Freezing at Grey Screen and Beeping!

Hi there,
I have a new 17" Intel iMac (Intel Core 2 Duo 2 GHz, 250 GB, 1GB Memory with OS X 10.4.8) that keeps getting those "You need to restart your computer. Hold down the Power button for several seconds or press the Restart button." messages.
It all started on Sunday when I tried to wake the computer (the computer went on Sleep by itself) and got that message so I restarted the computer but it froze on the grey screen (even before I got the Apple) and it beeped 3 times and then the light on front just kept blinking 3 times. I finally was able to erase and re-install OS X and everything was fine until I left the computer for a while, it went to sleep again, and then the message came back. I restarted and it seems to be fine but I'm worried the beeping and freezing will come back.
The first time this happened, I didn't know enough to "log" the kernel panics but I do know that I deleted a lot of the applications (iWeb, Garage Band, etc.) that I didn't need and fidged with the Share folder in the Users folder. I use a Flash Drive a lot and always left it connected to the keyboard's USB drive. Also leave my iPod Nano connected. After I reinstalled everything, I only deleted the Garage Band demos, installed and deleted the Firefox 2.0 and Opera (wanted to just stick with Firefox 1.0) applications. Only used the Flash Drive a little and haven't connected my iPod on yet. Trying to isolate the problem. I can't remember doing anything else.
Here's the log from the latest kernel panic:
Wed Aug 8 00:00:06 2007
panic(cpu 0 caller 0x0019075E): pmap-remove: mapping not in pv_list!
Backtrace, Format - Frame : Return Address (4 potential args on stack)
0x13f5bc18 : 0x128d08 (0x3c9ac4 0x13f5bc3c 0x131de5 0x0)
0x13f5bc58 : 0x19075e (0x3ccc58 0xa0000000 0x0 0x1a2010)
0x13f5bcb8 : 0x1937d7 (0xddd000 0xddd050 0x0 0x19a406)
0x13f5bd08 : 0x16535c (0x252d420 0xa0000000 0x0 0xa000a000)
0x13f5bdf8 : 0x165b10 (0xffe00000 0x0 0x0 0x0)
0x13f5be38 : 0x13a676 (0x13000c8 0x0 0x0 0xffe00000)
0x13f5be88 : 0x339160 (0x2529a30 0x202 0x13f5bee8 0x2529a30)
0x13f5bec8 : 0x343614 (0x2b725dc 0xa 0x0 0x0)
0x13f5bee8 : 0x343d3f (0x2b725dc 0xa 0x0 0x0)
0x13f5bf58 : 0x343f25 (0xa 0x1 0x13f5bf78 0x2416e038)
0x13f5bf78 : 0x1273f9 (0x2544a10 0xffffff7f 0x0 0x4)
0x13f5bfa8 : 0x1a1f8d (0xffffffff 0x1 0x0 0x253b500)
0x13f5bfc8 : 0x19a896 (0x0 0x0 0x19d0b5 0x253b500) Backtrace terminated-invalid frame pointer 0x13f5bef8
Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 8.8.5: Mon Dec 11 19:39:17 PST 2006; root:xnu-792.16.5.obj~1/RELEASE_I386
I also found this "error_log" in my System Profiler:
error_log:
Description: Printer error log
Size: 8.5 KB
Last Modified: 8/8/07 12:19 AM
Location: /var/log/cups/error_log
Recent Contents: ...
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/certs"
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/ppd"
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/classes.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/printers.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/var/spool/cups"
W [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/var/spool/cups/tmp"
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Configured for up to 100 clients.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Allowing up to 100 client connections per host.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Full reload is required.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:07 -0400] Full reload complete.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Setting AdobePDF8 device-uri to "pdf800://distiller/" (was "file:/dev/null".)
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Saving printers.conf...
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] New printer 'AdobePDF8' added by ''.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Saving printers.conf...
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Printer 'AdobePDF8' modified by ''.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Setting AdobePDF8 printer-is-accepting-jobs to 1 (was 0.)
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Setting AdobePDF8 printer-state to 3 (was 5.)
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Saving printers.conf...
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Printer 'AdobePDF8' modified by ''.
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Saving printers.conf...
I [07/Aug/2007:15:49:21 -0400] Printer 'AdobePDF8' modified by ''.
I [07/Aug/2007:16:35:22 -0400] Scheduler shutting down normally.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Listening to 7f000001:631
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Listening to 700c3000:0
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Loaded configuration file "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/certs"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/ppd"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/classes.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/etc/cups/printers.conf"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/var/spool/cups"
W [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Repairing ownership of "/private/var/spool/cups/tmp"
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Configured for up to 100 clients.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Allowing up to 100 client connections per host.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Full reload is required.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:15 -0400] Full reload complete.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:22:16 -0400] Printer sharing is off and there are no jobs pending, will restart on demand. Exiting.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Listening to 7f000001:631
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Listening to 700c3000:0
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Loaded configuration file "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Configured for up to 100 clients.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Allowing up to 100 client connections per host.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Full reload is required.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Full reload complete.
I [07/Aug/2007:21:28:43 -0400] Printer sharing is off and there are no jobs pending, will restart on demand. Exiting.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Listening to 7f000001:631
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Listening to 40113000:0
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Loaded configuration file "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Configured for up to 100 clients.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Allowing up to 100 client connections per host.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Full reload is required.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Full reload complete.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:00:06 -0400] Printer sharing is off and there are no jobs pending, will restart on demand. Exiting.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Listening to 7f000001:631
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Listening to 40113000:0
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Loaded configuration file "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Configured for up to 100 clients.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Allowing up to 100 client connections per host.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Full reload is required.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Full reload complete.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:12:01 -0400] Printer sharing is off and there are no jobs pending, will restart on demand. Exiting.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Listening to 7f000001:631
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Listening to 40113000:0
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Loaded configuration file "/private/etc/cups/cupsd.conf"
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Configured for up to 100 clients.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Allowing up to 100 client connections per host.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Full reload is required.
I [08/Aug/2007:00:19:06 -0400] Full reload complete.
I don't know what this part is about because I don't have a Printer hooked up to the computer.
The only other thing I can think of is I also installed WireTap and StuffIt before the initial crashing. I heard StuffIt was causing problems on some Intel Macs. Also changed a lot of the icons and changed the icon for Preview. I "verified" my hard drive and "verified and repaired the disk permissions" (I'm not that knowledgeable about computers let alone Macs). I also checked my hardware by pressing D while the grey CD OS X was running and get this:
4MEME/4/40000000: 2F244040
usually during the initial testing but when I restart and try it again, it's fine.
Well, that's all I can think of. Any thoughts?
Thanks a lot!
-Kim

Thanks for the reply and links!
After the first problems, I re-seated the RAMs. Does this mean I have to buy new memory? This is a pretty new iMac, bought it in May and have only been using it for maybe two months. Haven't done a whole lot with it but I usually keep a lot of programs open at the same time. I have Adobe CS3 installed too and it says it needs at least 1 GB of memory. I've heard people saying it's best to have as much RAM (this Mac can only take up to 3GB) when using those programs. Maybe it's getting too heavy? Should I only keep one program open at a time? Also, which part of my post indicated that it was memory problems? What the "panic.log" stated or that "4MEME/4/40000000: 2F244040" stuff? Anything else I can do to not let this happen again?
Thanks again!

Powerbook freezes at grey screen on startup

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