When (attempting to) boot up my 2007 MacBook, I only get a white screen with a flashing gray file icon and a white question mark on the file
I have the battery plugged in, everything I normally do when booting up the computer. The major problem is not being able to access anything.
That folder with the question mark icon means that the MacBook can't find the boot directory. That can either mean it can't find the hard drive or the Operating System data on the hard drive is somehow corrupted.
Put your install DVD into the optical drive (CD/DVD drive) and reboot. Be sure to either use the disc that came with your Mac, or, if you installed a later Mac OS X version from disc, use the newer disc. As soon as you hear the boot chime, hold down the "c" key on your keyboard (or the Option Key until the Install Disk shows up) until the apple shows up. That will force your MacBook to boot from the install DVD in the optical drive.
Or if you are running 10.7 Lion, boot from the recovery partition (Command +R on boot) and use Disk Utility to repair your OS 10.7 partition.
When it does start up, you'll see a panel asking you to choose your language. Choose your language and press the Return key on your keyboard once. It will then present you with an Installation window. Completely ignore this window and click on Utilities in the top menu and scroll down to Disk Utility and click it. When it comes up is your Hard Drive in the list on the left?
If it is, then click on the Mac OS partition of your hard drive in the left hand list. Then select the First Aid Tab and run Repair Disk. The Repair Disk button won't be available until you've clicked on the Mac OS partition on your hard drive. If that repairs any problems run it again until the green OK appears and then run Repair Permissions. After repairing use Startup Disk from the same menu to choose your hard drive for restarting from your hard drive.
If your hard drive isn’t recognized in Disk Utility then your hard drive is probably dead.
Similar Messages
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my macbook pro won't turn on. it just stays stuck on a white screen with a little circle spinning around and around when you power it on. i don't know how to get it to progress past this loading page.
Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
Restart the computer in Safe Mode, then restart again, normally. If this doesn't help, then:
Reinstalling Mavericks, 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, Mavericks: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks 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.
If you are not using Lion, Mountain Lion, or Mavericks then use the following procedure:
Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
Intel-based Macs: Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)
Restart the computer in Safe Mode, then restart again, normally. If this doesn't help, then:
Reinstall OS X without erasing the drive
1. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. Reinstall Snow Leopard
If the drive is OK then quit DU and return to the installer. Proceed with reinstalling OS X. Note that the Snow Leopard installer will not erase your drive or disturb your files. After installing a fresh copy of OS X the installer will move your Home folder, third-party applications, support items, and network preferences into the newly installed system.
Download and install Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1. -
What do I do when I power up the computer and get a grey screen with a folder icon and a question mark?
vickyfromosseo wrote:
What do I do when I power up the computer and get a grey screen with a folder icon and a question mark?
Read this: A flashing question mark or globe appears when you start your Mac -
I am having some trouble with my computer, what happened was: I was playing on a game, I played with a magnet, it started to go slower and slower, I pressed F9 then it went slower and then it went to a blank screen with a flashing document with a question mark on it. I tried the original OS X installation disk but when it came to choosing the area of which I save it, it showed no areas.
Startup your Mac while holding down the Option key. That should prompt the Startup Manager window where you can select the startup disk then click Restart.
If the startup disk is not available from that window, you may be able to repair the disk.
Help here > A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac -
When I boot up my I get a grey screen with a flashing folder with a question mark
I was trying to set up a bootable Linux flash drive for another computer using UNetbootin and I accidentally selected an empty partition on my hard drive instead of the USB I was trying to use. It went through the install process, and I didn't realize it was on my computer rather than the USB. The computer worked fine, so I thought nothing of it.
Today, I go to mess with my computer and it is frozen at the login screen. I restart it, and now I just get a blinking folder with a question mark. I try to go into recovery, but it isn't there. Internet Recovery works fine, but when I go to use Disk Utility or to reinstall the OS it cannot find the internal Hard Disk.
What am I supposed to do here? I don't want to lose all my data.greenbil1
You can contact AppleCare to buy a replacement set of the oringinal Install discs for a nominal cost. You will need the serial number and a credit card to place the order. -
Can't get my MacBook Pro to start up. Have shut it down several times and tried restarting but all I get is a grey screen with the spinning icon. Apple Support online suggested starting with power button followed immediately with the shift key. Same results. Also tried power button with shift key, command, and V. Black screen appeared instead with lots of data language but still no starting. This final page was suppose to result in an internal system check and restart but nothing happened and the black screen remains.Where do I go from here? Scheduled for the Genius Bar tomorrow but would like to resolve this beforehand.
You may be having a hardware problem that you cannot resolve on your own. Nevertheless...
...hold down the command and R keys whilst booting to try to get to your Recovery partition. If you can, use Disk Utility to try to Verify your boot drive (usually named "Macintosh HD" unless you've renamed it). If the verification fails, try to repair your hard drive. If everything appears to be OK, restart.
If you can't get into your Recovery partition, your problem is likely hardware related. If so, keep your appointment and see what the Apple techs have to say.
Clinton -
HAVE NEW 13.3 MAC AIR (previously, still have 13.3 MCbook pro which works captures what I am looking for an answer to)
when i open sites in safari the page opens fine if it is not a pdf based page.
Once i open a site that has a link to another page that is a pdf based page the page comes up as a black screen with no info showing
If I open a site that gices me an open to save a file to a word, excel type document or a pdf , everything works fine until I try to save the information to a PDF and again the screen goes black
I have tried the safari help site but to no avail, does anyone have a solution to thid problem. (I do have the abode ofr mac program loaded)If you delete all the Adobe Reader stuff it will probably fix this. For almost everything, the Apple pdf handling works better.
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This also happened at a bookseller's website, when I clicked on the photo of a book to enlarge it. Instead of showing me an enlargement, it took me to the same blank screen with the title bar, "Mozilla Firefox", and below it another bar with the words "Search Bookmarks and History," both at the top left of the screen. This has happened repeatedly at the two websites I have mentioned. When I went to the same sites using Internet Explorer, the error didn't occur. I did a Microsoft system restore for a previous restore point, but it still did not eliminate this glitch.
Press F10 or press and hold the Alt key down to bring up the "Menu Bar" temporarily.
* New Old Menu: https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/new-old-menu/
* Personal Menu (Personal Firefox Button): https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/personal-menu/ -
Anyone know what I need to do
A flashing question mark indicates the startup volume cannot be found. Follow the link above for troubleshooting, however be prepared for a failed internal hard drive. If I am correct you will need to take it into an Apple Store or AASP to have the HD replaced.
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Any suggestions?
Run through the list of general fixes here, perhaps one or more of them will get things to work again.
Step by Step to fix your Mac
If not you can likely retrieve your files this way, if they are not encrypted,
Create a data recovery, undelete boot drive
then use Step #20 in the above link to reinstall everything and return those files
Think about having alternate backup and restore options to avoid this type of issue.
When TM fails to restore properly, it's a royal mess to fix as you can see.
Most commonly used backup methods -
It started while I was using Adobe InDesign, and that program froze, then crashed. When I tried to reopen the program, the error message I received was simply "Error: 16".
I tried to take a screen shot of the error message for reference, and it gave me a message saying I couldn't because I didn't have access to the files where it would normally store the shot.
Attached to my computer at the time was my Seagate Free Agent Go-Flex for Mac backup drive.
So, I closed any open applications, and restarted my computer. But it wouldn't restart. It only displays a grey screen with a flashing icon in the middle of a folder with a question mark on it.
I have no idea what happened - I wasn't using the machine any differently than usual, and it only had a few basic applicaitons open in addition to InDesign (like Preview, Text Edit, Microsoft Word, iCal).
I have MacKeeper on my MacBook, and I keep it clean.
Does anyone out there know what this flashing icon indicates, and if there is anything I can try on my own to fix it?
Thanks.ali har wrote:
It started while I was using Adobe InDesign, and that program froze, then crashed. When I tried to reopen the program, the error message I received was simply "Error: 16".
I tried to take a screen shot of the error message for reference, and it gave me a message saying I couldn't because I didn't have access to the files where it would normally store the shot.
For the Error: 16
http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/827/cpsid_82744.html
Seems a uninstall and reinstall of CS is in order.
Attached to my computer at the time was my Seagate Free Agent Go-Flex for Mac backup drive.
May or may not be a contributing factor, may have kicked in at a wrong time or running root code.
So, I closed any open applications, and restarted my computer. But it wouldn't restart. It only displays a grey screen with a flashing icon in the middle of a folder with a question mark on it.
Computer can't find a bootable volume.
https://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
I have MacKeeper on my MacBook, and I keep it clean.
Well that explains it, MacKeeper is almost malware.
http://applehelpwriter.com/2011/09/21/how-to-uninstall-mackeeper-malware/
Search the forums here for "MacKeeper" they will tell the whole story, crapware.
Disconnect all drives, follow the "Grey Screen" instructions and hold Shift key down while booting, if you get into OS X , immediatly backup your files to another drive and disconnect.
In my opinion you should first check to make sure you have a backup of your data, then just erase the entire internal drive (hold c boot off the 10.6 disk, use Disk Utility), reinstall OS X, same user name, update to 10.6.8, c boot off the 10.6 and Repair Disk (to fix a update error) install your programs and finally return files from backup into the same main user folders like before (Music, Docs, Pictures etc.)
A pain it is, but you've hosed your system and in the process you might as well rebuild everything and have a fast machine again. So happens to clear MacKrapper, uninstall CS5 and any other junk in your system at the same time. Fresh, clean, lean and mean.
Learn to Carbon Copy Cloner to a external drive that new pristine boot drive, you can hold the option key and boot from it (even update it), which is a real bacon saver when something like this happens. Also it's free to use, donations accepted.
http://www.bombich.com/
Note: if anything above I've mentioned is too complicated or your not sure, seek the services of a local computer specialist. -
Mini is only booting to white screen with a file folder and ? flashing
Just bought a mac mini from a friend who reinstalled the os. It is booting to a white screen with a flashing file folder with a ? in the centre. I am using a wireless mac keyboard and mouse, change the batteries in the keyboard (just in case)........WHAT NOW????????
Before acquiring a second-hand computer, you should have run Apple Diagnostics or the Apple Hardware Test, whichever is applicable.
The first thing to do after acquiring the computer is to erase the internal drive and install a clean copy of OS X. You—not the original owner—must do that. Changes made by Apple over the years have made this seemingly straightforward task very complex.
How you go about it depends on the model, and on whether you already own another Mac. If you're not sure of the model, enter the serial number on this page. Then find the model on this page to see what OS version was originally installed.
It's unsafe, and may be unlawful, to use a computer with software installed by a previous owner.
1. If you don't own another Mac
a. If the machine shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, you need a boxed and shrink-wrapped retail Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) installation disc from the Apple Store or a reputable reseller—not from eBay or anything of the kind. If the machine is very old and has less than 1 GB of memory, you'll need to add more in order to install 10.6. Preferably, install as much memory as it can take, according to the technical specifications.
b. If the machine shipped with OS X 10.6, you need the installation media that came with it: gray installation discs, or a USB flash drive for a MacBook Air. You should have received the media from the original owner, but if you didn't, order replacements from Apple. A retail disc, or the gray discs from another model, will not work.
To start up from an optical disc or a flash drive, insert it, then restart the computer and hold down the C key at the startup chime. Release the key when you see the gray Apple logo on the screen.
c. If the machine shipped with OS X 10.7 or later, you don't need media. It should start up in Internet Recovery mode when you hold down the key combination option-command-R at the startup chime. Release the keys when you see a spinning globe.
d. Some 2010-2011 models shipped with OS X 10.6 and received a firmware update after 10.7 was released, enabling them to use Internet Recovery. If you have one of those models, you can't reinstall 10.6 even from the original media, and Internet Recovery will not work either without the original owner's Apple ID. In that case, contact Apple Support, or take the machine to an Apple Store or another authorized service provider to have the OS installed.
2. If you do own another Mac
If you already own another Mac that was upgraded in the App Store to the version of OS X that you want to install, and if the new Mac is compatible with it, then you can install it. Use Recovery Disk Assistant to prepare a USB device, then start up the new Mac from it by holding down the C key at the startup chime. Alternatively, if you have a Time Machine backup of OS X 10.7.3 or later on an external hard drive (not a Time Capsule or other network device), you can start from that by holding down the option key and selecting it from the row of icons that appears. Note that if your other Mac was never upgraded in the App Store, you can't use this method.
3. Partition and install OS X
a. If you see a lock screen when trying to start up from installation media or in Recovery mode, then a firmware password was set by the previous owner, or the machine was remotely locked via iCloud. You'll either have to contact the owner or take the machine to an Apple Store or another service provider to be unlocked. You may be asked for proof of ownership.
b. Launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the internal drive—not any of the volume icons nested beneath it. In the Partition tab, select the default options: a GUID partition table with one data volume in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. This operation will permanently remove all existing data on the drive.
c. An unusual problem may arise if all the following conditions apply:
OS X 10.7 or later was installed by the previous owner
The startup volume was encrypted with FileVault
You're booted in Recovery mode (that is, not from a 10.6 installation disc)
In that case, you won't be able to unlock the volume or partition the drive without the FileVault password. Ask for guidance or see this discussion.
d. After partitioning, quit Disk Utility and run the OS X Installer. If you're installing a version of OS X acquired from the App Store, you will need the Apple ID and password that you used. When the installation is done, the system will automatically restart into the Setup Assistant, which will prompt you to transfer the data from another Mac, its backups, or from a Windows computer. If you have any data to transfer, this is usually the best time to do it.
e. Run Software Update and install all available system updates from Apple. To upgrade to a major version of OS X newer than 10.6, get it from the Mac App Store. Note that you can't keep an upgraded version that was installed by the original owner. He or she can't legally transfer it to you, and without the Apple ID you won't be able to update it in Software Update or reinstall, if that becomes necessary. The same goes for any App Store products that the previous owner installed—you have to repurchase them.
4. Other issues
a. If the original owner "accepted" the bundled iLife applications (iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band) in the App Store so that he or she could update them, then they're irrevocably linked to that Apple ID and you won't be able to download them without buying them. Reportedly, Mac App Store Customer Service has sometimes issued redemption codes for these apps to second owners who asked.
b. If the previous owner didn't deauthorize the computer in the iTunes Store under his Apple ID, you wont be able to authorize it immediately under your ID. In that case, you'll either have to wait up to 90 days or contact iTunes Support.
c. When trying to create a new iCloud account, you might get a failure message: "Account limit reached." Apple imposes a lifetime limit of three iCloud account setups per device. Erasing the device does not reset the limit. You can still use an iCloud account that was created on another device, but you won't be able to create a new one. Contact iCloud Support for more information. The setup limit doesn't apply to Apple ID accounts used for other services, such as the iTunes and Mac App Stores, or iMessage. You can create as many of those accounts as you like. -
MacBook Pro is not starting up. It just stays on a white screen with a flashing folder icon. Have tried restarting while holding the Option key, and the cursor becomes visible and movable, but it does not go to the desktop.
Hello Sonya_Rose,
I found this article when researching the issue you describe here named A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac found http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1440.
Check the mouse and keyboard
This issue might occur if a mouse or trackpad button is pressed during startup. Make sure the button isn't pressed.
If the issue persists, shut down your Mac with its power button, disconnect any external mouse and keyboard, then turn on your Mac with its power button. If the flashing question mark issue persists, reconnect the keyboard and mouse.
Additional steps
If your Mac still starts to a flashing question mark, follow the steps below. If any step resolves the issue, you don't need to continue to the next one.
Select your Mac OS X startup disk with Startup Manager by restarting and holding the Option key. After your Mac starts up, restart again to verify that the flashing question mark does not appear.
If the issue persists, insert your Mac OS X installation disc. Be sure to either use the disc that came with your Mac, or, if you installed a later Mac OS X version from disc, use the newer disc.
MacBook Air note: On a MacBook Air, there are two options for starting up from Mac OS X media: Either connect a MacBook Air SuperDrive to the MacBook Air via the USB port and restart the computer, holding down the C key during startup, or use Remote Install Mac OS X to startup from a system software DVD that's located on a partner computer. Once started up from Mac OS X media, skip to step 3.
Restart the computer, then hold the C key during startup.
From the Utilities menu, choose Disk Utility. Don't click Continue.
Select your Mac OS X disk (named "Macintosh HD" by default) in the left side of the Disk Utility window.
Click the First Aid tab.
Click Repair Disk to verify and repair any issues with your Mac OS X startup disk.
After repairing the disk, try to start up normally.
Important: If Disk Utility finds issues it cannot repair, you may need to back up as much of your data as possible (or use Time Machine to back up to a different disk), then erase the disk and reinstall Mac OS X. You should back up important files and data before erasing a drive. Erasing deletes everything on the hard disk (including things on your desktop). Also, you can install Mac OS X onto an external disk, start from the external disk, and use Migration Assistant to transfer items from your usual internal Mac OS X startup disk to the external disk, then erase the internal disk and reinstall Mac OS X.
If the issue persists, and Disk Utility didn't find any irreparable issues, quit Disk Utility, quit the Installer, select your disk when prompted, and restart.
If the issue continues, reset PRAM. Note: After resetting PRAM, if the computer starts up normally, reselect the startup disk in the Startup Disk preferences.
If none of these steps resolve the issue, start up from the Mac OS X Installation disc and reinstall Mac OS X.
Regards,
Sterling -
A few days ago my i mac when into grey screen; there were a few options for starting up, restoring etc i tried all of them to the extent possible but didn't work. Then i decided to unplug my external backup drive in case it may be erased or info lost in this process and now all i get when i turn it on is a white screen with a flashing folder and question mark. Any ideas?
That indicates the computer is having difficulty finding the startup volume. Your internal HD may have failed or the system may have "forgotten" where it is. If you are using Lion or later (10.7.x or later) then restart in the Recovery Partition and choose the startup disk. Before doing anything carefully read and follow Apple's instructions in:
A flashing question mark or globe appears when you start your Mac -
White screen with Apple logo/ not booting
I recently tried to install the software for the "Flip" video camcorder and upon restarting my computer after installation, my computer is stuck on the white screen with Apple Logo, 'thinking" wheel spinning, and fans going full blast. I tried forcing a stop with turning computer off by holding power button in the back until system powered off. When I started the computer back up, it did the same thing.
What is the likely problem and how do I fix this. I bought the computer used and do not have the OS X software that comes with the computer originally.You really need those discs. You can either buy a BLACK retail version of Leopard and use that or you can call Apple at 800-767-2775 and for a nominal fee they will send you the proper discs for your model. You will need the serial number, which you can find on the bottom of the foot of your computer. Do not buy any grey discs, they are machine specific and will not work on yours. In the meantime, try starting by resetting the PRAM and the SMU
1. Shut down the computer.
2. Unplug the computer's power cord.
3. Press and hold the power button for 5 seconds.
4. Release the power button.
5. Attach the computers power cable.
6. Press the power button to turn on the computer.
You need to make sure also, that the software that comes with your Flip is compatible with the OS version you are running.
Let us know how you make out,
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