Startup Disk - only Network Startup available

Hello,
I've got a problem with startup. I have two partitions on my internal hard drive - HFS+ for Mac OS X Leopard and NTFS for Windows XP. I wanted to check the setting of startup disk but in the Startup Disk pane in System Preferences there is nothing but Network Startup. I can boot to Mac or Windows but I always have to wait like a minute while it tryes to connect or something. Do you know how to solve this issue?
Thanks

fatal_ wrote:
Hello,
I've got a problem with startup. I have two partitions on my internal hard drive - HFS+ for Mac OS X Leopard and NTFS for Windows XP. I wanted to check the setting of startup disk but in the Startup Disk pane in System Preferences there is nothing but Network Startup. I can boot to Mac or Windows but I always have to wait like a minute while it tryes to connect or something. Do you know how to solve this issue?
Thanks
For starters, deselect the network boot option so it does not spend time searching.
Holding down the Option key as noted by another poster is one way to select your OS.
Another option is to install rEFIt, a BSD boot selector program.
http://refit.sourceforge.net/
I am presuming you did not use BootCamp to install your Windows program, which might account for the missing boot manager that BC provides.

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He system software on this startup disk only functions on the original media

i welcom.ith a warning ofantheer on my g4 when my frieend told it to boot os 9.2 after boot thee first disk wasnt finished loading now the g4 wont boot it goes to the system the system software mon this startup disk only functions on the original media not if copied to another drive. Has a restart tab but at this point it has frozen and the mouse and keyboard do not functiuon. NEED HELP

Did this machine work before you tried to install 9.2?
you may not have the correct cd. i think you need the restore cd that came with the machine.
Where did you get the cd? black or grey?
We need your exact machine.
Query by serial number
"A serial number is a unique, identifying number or group of numbers and letters assigned to an individual piece of hardware or software. It's used for various things depending on the product / brand but what is your Mac's serial number for and more importantly... what is it hiding and what can it do for you ?"
http://www.appleserialnumberinfo.com/Desktop/index.php
>i welcom.ith a warning ofantheer on my g4
>when my frieend told it to boot os 9.2
why?
does the cd boot into the software installation process?
Where you able to pick what disk to install onto?
>after boot thee first disk wasnt finished loading
Could be a damaged disc. How long did you wait?
>now the g4 wont boot
We understand this line.
>it goes to the system the system software mon
Don't understand this. What appears on the screen?
>this startup disk only functions on the original media not if copied to another drive.
& your point is? You need to use the installation software to install. You cannot copy the cd.
>Has a restart tab but at this point it has frozen and the mouse and keyboard do not functiuon.
I don't understand this. Can you take a picture & post here.
>NEED HELP
Don't we all.
You are allow to edit your posts for 15 minutes. The edit is to the upper right in a sidebar.
Plese spell check the document before posting.

Windows disk doesn't show up in Startup Disk -- only on reboot w/option key

Greetings,
I installed Windows XP on a separate SATA drive, and all is well with it. But it doesn't show up as an option in Startup Disk. The only way I can boot from it is to Restart and hold the option key down. Its icon DOES show up in the "choose disk" screen that follows.
Another user posted the same problem here, and someone suggested zapping the PRAM. I did this, allowing it to cycle through four times, but it didn't help.
Any other suggestions?
Thanks,
DM

Hi,
Try posting in the Windows Compatibility Forum.
http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=687
Carolyn

No Windows startup disk - only Mac

HI, I installed Windows XP SP2 hassle free a day or two ago. the first time i tried to choose a startup disk during startup (holding down 'option' key) the windows disk was there.
the next time it was not.
from looking around i found the 'rEFIt' download and installed it, shut down rather than restart like they say but still no windows disk.
i am able to startup using system preferences and choosing it etc. but it would be a lot easier to do it during startup.
thanks
Andrew
oh and i did change the name of the windows partition to WINDOWS HD instead of unknown - if it has anything to do with that.

just started it up and tried holding down 'option' and it decided to work.
andrew

Deleted Startup disk remains default startup disk?

This one is new to me....
I have one disk with two startup partitions and a third as a "backup". I was working on the two startups partition disk and both worked fine. But recently one of the System Preference panels for Spotlight was corrupted so I did an "archive and install" on that partition. But when I did the restart after the archive and install I was unable to boot into the newly installed Leopard disk. Furthermore the machine default booted into the OTHER partition. So I tried to log into that one and the password input says I was putting in the wrong password (I was not). So I tried holding down the Option Key at startup and selected the startup disk I wanted - again, it booted to the other and the password was somehow fubarred. So I went ahead and "dismantled" that pesky defaulting startup disk, trashing both the system and the library folders - but on reboot it STILL boots to that disk even though now it doesn't exist AT ALL. Even the name remains? ***?
I went ahead and revealled all the invisible files - trashed those. I did Option+S at start up and fsck. I used TechTool Pro to repair, I used Disk Utility and permissions... UGH.
Why is this deleted startup STILL showing up and booting off the other present startup system on the other partition (Note: If I hold down Option key at start up I can still boot into the third OS I keep). What is interesting is that everytime I reboot and check the "pesky" startup disk from the other one I see a new System folder added to that (remember, I deleted it). After the invisible files were deleted it no longer did this. But, again, still boots into a non-existent login screen.
I know the "simple" answer is to reinstall and reformat this disk - but on the other "pesky" partition I have 750GB of data I'd rather not migrate (it's in the default user's folder that I didn't delete). And I'd like to learn what the heck is going on.
Thanks for anyone's illuminating insights on the phantom startup disk.

Hi, I vaguely rember you from before, but nothing here is the same as before, as it is with OSX in general!
Have you done a PRAM reset, CMD+Option+p+r...
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=2238
Does it boot into Open Firmware with CMD+Option+o+f ?
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=42642
reset-nvram (press Enter)
set-defaults (press Enter)
reset-all (press Enter)
What shows as boot choices if you hold the Option/alt key down at bootup?

Why will reader XI not let me accept the license agreement upon startup? Only Decline is available.

I have had to restore my Win 7 64-bit system due to Reader XI crashing on start-up due to internal error and it took Acrobat XI Pro with it. Now I cannot accept the license agreement. Tried Tab-Enter and that did not work. Any ideas? I need this for college classes immediately.
Thanks.

I don't know why this is happening; I have never seen this before. Try the following
using Windows Explorer navigate to C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Reader 11.0\Reader
double-click on Eula.exe and accept the License Agreement
If that still gives you the same problem, set the registry entry that you have accepted the License Agreement:
download, unzip, then run the registry script from https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/33ef697f-e339-49ab-bb3e-afc9057ece66

Xserve G5 - won't boot from disk, only network

I recently installed Yellow Dog 4.0 on a drive (far left) in a 3 bay G5 and I cannot get it to boot from the disk in the drive (not even by lighting the 3rd light on the lightshow). However, when I take the drive out and put it into a different G5 server that has only a single bay it works fine. I've also put the drive from the working G5 into the new G5 and it tries to boot from the network as well. I've looked at the Open Firmware for both G5's and they seem to be the exact same, including the 'boot-device':
/ht@0,f2000000/pci@7/k2-sata-root@c/k2-sata@0/disk0:2,\\:tbxi
When installing, I took the default partitions:
sda2 (1M) type=AppleBoot
sda3 (76439M) type=ext3, mountpoint=/
sda4 (1992M) type=swap
sda5 (100M) type=ext3, mountpoint=/boot
Thanks for any help, and let me know if more info can help.

gjortega,
I had the same problem. I found a very illogical fix to boot my G5 listed below. When it won't boot I take the side panel and the plastic shield out of the tower and then boot. This makes the fans run at full speed but in my case it starts right up. After it starts just replace both panels and the fan will revert to a slower speed and the computer will continue. I don't know why it works for me but I have found that others on the forum have had it work for them also.
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Macintosh b'Gosh

HD drive can't be recognized as bootable startup disk

Hi
I am using a MacBook with snow leopard. The HD is almost full, so I install new bigger HD. I used disk utility to restore the new disk from the old disk.
But the mac can't recognize the new disk as bootable startup disk. I get nothing when try to set startup disk in "System Preferences". There is only "Network Startup" option is available.
Every time start, I need to press the "Option" when I turn it on, and select the disk manually.
What should I do? Is there a configuration file so I can set the disk to be the startup disk?

Nihao GuoGuo & welcome to discussions.
Your new HD needs to be set for 'GUID' before it can function as a boot drive on an Intel machine - this means for use with Snow Leopard, which requires an Intel processor, the disk must have a 'GUID primary partition map'.
You should use the version of Disk Utility that is supplied with SL (/Applications/Utilities folder) and reformat the drive if you want to use it with your current configuration. When reformatting, create at least one partition (primary) and enable the GUID option at that time.
Without this particular configuration, the drive will not be able to perform as a boot drive with an Intel based computer and OS X 10.6.x

Startup disk disappeared after changing HDD

Hi all
Recently i changed my original 160Gb fujitsu HDD from my Macbook to WD 500gb
i cloned my original HDD to my current HDD using carbon copy cloner via USB
and i switched the HDD
during my 1st startup , there is a grey screen for around 20seconds before it starts to boot Mac OS
so i think that there should be something wrong with the startup disk
i went to system preferences -> startup disk to check
and then there is only network startup available...
May i know how to solve this problem?
Thanks.

Most likely you used CCC in Block level (block-for-block) Copy Mode.
You should avoid Block Level Clones on GPT disks, use file level clones instead. CCC makes bootable
file level clones that work trouble free. The problem rears its ugly head when you restore files to
anywhere but the same exact drive and volume you copied them from. It causes incorrect infomation
to be recorded into the GPT partition table headers.
http://developer.apple.com/technotes/tn2006/tn2166.html#SECCOPYINGCONCERNS
For file level clones always select "incremental backup of selected items".
http://www.bombich.com/software/docs/CCCHelp/CCCHelp.html?page=clone
The files and folders that are required by Mac OS X on the new drive must be copied to the new
target volume using the "Incremental backup of selected items" cloning method, also leave
the "delete items that don't exist on the source" box unchecked when restoring your clone.
To correct the problem you may need to recreate your partitions on the new drive, then restore
your clone to your new drive using the file level method.
Kj

No startup disks in System Preferences

...only "Network startup" shows.
I was trying to install a firmware update via OS9 (or so I hoped) onto my pismo so that I could use migration assistant for my new mbp. I had a fw drive attached, with 4 partitions, along with the pismo's hd and its 2 partitions. From the fw drive, I selected an os9.2 system folder to boot from, and the pismo booted up into 9.2 as expected; after restart, the pismo came up in panther however, rather than os9.2. Only after starting up Classic from the fw drive did I get the message the update failed. Next, I copied over the system folder with os9.2 onto the pismo. please note, the os9.2 folder is from a backup of my wife's g4 iBook. When I opened system prefs hoping to select the just-copied system folder as the start up disk - I got nothing, just network startup. No other folders. I just ran applejack to repair permissions, but afterward, still nothing in startup disk.
What did I do, and how can I fix it? Any help appreciated.

Alright - I've run Disk Utility and repaired permissions and now Sys Prefs has found all the volumes on my drive.
At first nothing had changed when I looked in Sys Prefs, and I highlighted the Network icon assuming I could deselect it. I could not. I triple clicked in the space next to the Network icon, and sys prefs seemed to wake up and immediately scanned. I selected the volume I wanted, and closed the lock to prevent changes. I had not clicked in the space before running Disk Utility, so perhaps clicking was all I needed to do, but since the log from DU suggests permissions were repaired, I suspect it was necessary.
Here's the log from Disk Utility. If someone can translate this for me to let me know what was done, I'd be grateful. I assume the glitch was in the system library filesystems line:
Repairing permissions for “Steve's Computer”
Determining correct file permissions.
We are using special permissions for the file or directory ./Library/ColorSync/Profiles/Displays. New permissions are 16893
We are using special permissions for the file or directory ./Library/ColorSync/Profiles. New permissions are 16893
We are using special permissions for the file or directory ./System/Library/Filesystems/cd9660.fs/cd9660.util. New permissions are 33261
We are using a special uid for the file or directory ./private/var/at/jobs. New uid is 1
We are using a special uid for the file or directory ./private/var/at/spool. New uid is 1
The privileges have been verified or repaired on the selected volume
Permissions repair complete

Startup Disk Memory Inexplicably Low/Missing

I normally keep a close eye on the amount of info going into my partitioned Mac HD (presently: capacity 29.88 GB, 27.64 Used, 2.23 Available), but I received a message today to the effect that "your startup disk is low in available memory..." while only running Safari... The last time I had checked (about 1 month ago) I had between 9 and 10 GB of available space, so needless to say I was rather surprised to get this message. I immediately did a "Get Info" on the drive and was SHOCKED for TWO reasons! 1) that the available memory was so low... but ALSO as I checked and RE-checked the memory was DISAPPEARING before my eyes! I was only running Safari (although a couple hours prior I had worked on and saved a 5+ page site in iWeb with a fair amount of imagery... I have 1 GB of RAM. I restarted and the drive has since stabalized at 2.22-2.23 GB Available. I restarted in Safe Mode and restarted again and ran a repair permissions on it. All seems to be ok for now BUT I haven't reopened iWeb for fear that that may be eating up what little memory is left AND then there is this OTHER issue of where these other 8 or so GB have gone to???? When I calculate Finder items in the HD they total 19.5 GB not the 27.64 that "Get Info" pulls up for it. One more note: I installed iLife '06 about a month ago... What is happening here?
PowerBook G4 17" Mac OS X (10.4.5)

Hi, O.
1. IMO, with only 2-3 GB of available (free) space, you're critically short of free disk space. Cache files and virtual memory swap files could readily and quickly consume that. See my "Problems from insufficient RAM and free hard disk space" FAQ.
2. A runaway process constantly writing to log files can chew up disk space. Check these Console logs for clues, specifically large blocks of repeating messages that recur at high-frequency. If you find such blocks, post some samples for diagnosis. Again, do not post the entire log or logs, just copy/paste samples of blocks of repeating messages that recur at high frequency.
Common causes of runaway processes writing to logs include software associated with Canon and HP scanners, software for HP All-In-One devices, and Adobe Acrobat version 7.x prior to version 7.0.5. Depending on the messages you post, I can give you specific actions to take if one of those apply.
3. See also my "Freeing Space on your Mac OS X startup disk" FAQ.
Good luck!
Dr. Smoke
Author: Troubleshooting Mac® OS X
Note: The information provided in the link(s) above is freely available. However, because I own The X Lab™, a commercial Web site to which some of these links point, the Apple Discussions Terms of Use require I include the following disclosure statement with this post:
I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from my recommendation or link.

IMovie: "startup disk almost full..."

but I currently have 221GB free on my hard drive. I realise there are other threads regarding this error, but they all seem to involve people whose disks are actually full. Mine, as indicated in Disk Utility, has 221GB available. This error only occurs when using iMovie. I am not working with HD video or doing anything really intense. I am running the MacBook Pro Retina (2012). This error has been occurring from the beginning and I've finally grown tired of it and decided to seek some answers. There's no reasonable explanation that using a stock native piece of software on Apple's premier notebook should be an issue. I don't know what I could do differently. I don't have any other applications running while iMovie is open.
Thanks!

Well, I am back in hopes that SOMEONE has respnded to this. I guess it's just me. I see literally hundreds of threads on here about the startup disk being full and everyone just assumes that they guy posting is a complete idiot. This message is appearing in ERROR. As I stated, I recently wiped, formatted, and installed a fresh OSX on my 2012 Retina. Upon starting iMovie for the first time, I got the same message I had always seen, "Startup Disk is Almost Full". I double checked my hard drive usage and confirmed that I still had 221GB free. 221GB free.
221GB of unused space on the disk.
221GB of unused space on the disk.
There are 221GB of free space on my startup disk.
My startup disk is NOT almost full, as more than half of it is empty, leaving 221GB unused. To put it another way, my hard drive currently has 221GB of unused space. As it stands today, 221GB of my startup disk are available for new data. When I start iMovie, an error comes up telling me that my startup disk is almost full but there is 221GB of open space on the disk.
In case I failed to clearly state the problem, my hard drive is more than half empty - 221GB free - and iMovie tells me its almost full.

Startup disk full - Outlook won't start to delete

Hi,
I have Outlook on my MBP and it crashed last night and said I had to rebuild my identity. Before it will rebuild, it wants to backup everything. This has filled up my startup disk. 0 space available. Now I can't get anything out of my outlook or get in there to delete. I have already deleted all of my pictures and documents and dowloads. Is there anyway to delete what it started to backup in Outlook so there is room? HELP! this is my life...
Thanks!

Have you emptied the trash yet?

Yosemite cannot find startup disk

Hi, I have a problem with Yosemite installed on my mid2007 iMac, which has me perplexed. After installing Yosemite I found that on booting, my iMac would not find the startup disk, and shows me a blinking question mark. The iMac might sometimes find the startup disk the first time after installation, but would fail to find the startup disk on subsequent startups. So to get the iMac to start I boot into my yosemite installer flash drive go to the start up disk section in the apple menu of the installer and select startup disk from there, and that gets me into the Yosemite session. Less than ideal.
I have tried a number of things;
A couple of clean installs of Yosemite 10.10.2.
Checking the integrity of the Hard Disk with Disk utility. (it said it was OK in cheery green lettering) I have had an aftermarket Corsair Neutron SSD as the startup disk for 8 months or so, which has been running well.
Checking the hardware with Apple Hardware Test which said no problems detected. I did this as I also had other issues, like beachballs occurring, particularly on the login page delaying login, and a couple of instances of Yosemite telling me that it couldn't shut down immediately because I had a app open, when I had in fact quit the app earlier.
A couple more clean installs, one next to last where even the Yosemite installer flash drive could not see the start up disk. With the last clean install I currently can start the iMac with the help of the installer flash drive.
Googled around, but didn't find a lead.
The only option I can think of to enable me to boot into Yosemite with less fuss is to install Refit, a program that helps people who want to dual boot linux on their mac. It may be able to present the startup disk.
Any suggestions gratefully received.
iMac 7,1(24-inch Mid 2007),2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 GB memory, 256Gb Corsair Neutron SSD, ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro 256 MB

The repairs were unrelated. I had a bad logic board and some bad RAM. The hard drive checked out fine.

Network Startup Mistake

I accidentally set my startup disk as "Network". Now, when I boot I get a blinking globe, then a blinking question mark on a folder. I have tried booting from the install disk and nothing happens. How can I change the startup back to the OS X folder?

Thanks John,
That worked, I am able to see the icon for the hard drive or the CD disk, however my mouse won't function so I can't choose to boot from the CD. I can hit enter and the system chooses the hard drive, but it hangs.
Any other advice?
Thanks so much. Lisa

Startup Disk - only Network Startup available

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