Why won't my PowerBook G4 boot past grey screen?

Have a G4 PowerBook running OSX that isn't interested in booting past the gray screen with spinning gear.  Tried rebooting holding down shift key to no effect.  Also reset PRAM, but only got a solid blue screen attended by much clickIng.  Don't have the OS disks, but not sure that would help in this case.  Main battery needs replacement, but I've only using this computer on AC. It's been booting fine for years without issue..  Any help is greatly appreciated.

See this Apple note on dealing with the gray screen on boot. You will need to boot from something else to do the disk repair step ... either an OS X disk or a bootable backup, since you can't repair the disk you're booted from. 

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  • My iMac won't boot past grey screen and it didn't come with a os x disk

    My iMac won't boot past grey screen with apple. I've tried booting in safemode but that didn't help and my iMac didn't come with a os x disk.

    Take each of these steps that you haven't already tried. Stop when the problem is resolved.
    Step 1
    The first step in dealing with a startup failure is to secure the data. If you want to preserve the contents of the startup drive, and you don't already have at least one current backup, you must try to back up now, before you do anything else. It may or may not be possible. If you don't care about the data that has changed since the last backup, you can skip this step.   
    There are several ways to back up a Mac that is unable to start. You need an external hard drive to hold the backup data.
         a. Start up from the Recovery partition, or from a local Time Machine backup volume (option key at startup.) When the OS X Utilities screen appears, launch Disk Utility and follow the instructions in this support article, under “Instructions for backing up to an external hard disk via Disk Utility.”
    b. If you have access to a working Mac, and both it and the non-working Mac have FireWire or Thunderbolt ports, start the non-working Mac in target disk mode. Use the working Mac to copy the data to another drive. This technique won't work with USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth.
    c. If the internal drive of the non-working Mac is user-replaceable, remove it and mount it in an external enclosure or drive dock. Use another Mac to copy the data.
    Step 2
    If the startup process stops at a blank gray screen with no Apple logo or spinning "daisy wheel," then the startup volume may be full. If you had previously seen warnings of low disk space, this is almost certainly the case. You might be able to start up in safe mode even though you can't start up normally. Otherwise, start up from an external drive, or else use either of the techniques in Steps 1b and 1c to mount the internal drive and delete some files. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of available space on the startup volume (as shown in the Finder Info window) for normal operation.
    Step 3
    Sometimes a startup failure can be resolved by resetting the NVRAM.
    Step 4
    If you use a wireless keyboard, trackpad, or mouse, replace or recharge the batteries. The battery level shown in the Bluetooth menu item may not be accurate.
    Step 5
    If there's a built-in optical drive, a disc may be stuck in it. Follow these instructions to eject it.
    Step 6
    Press and hold the power button until the power shuts off. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed to start up, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Use a different keyboard and/or mouse, if those devices are wired. If you can start up now, one of the devices you disconnected, or a combination of them, is causing the problem. Finding out which one is a process of elimination.
    Step 7
    If you've started from an external storage device, make sure that the internal startup volume is selected in the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences.
    Start up in safe mode. Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a Fusion Drive or a software RAID, you can’t do this. Post for further instructions.
    Safe mode is much slower to start and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including wireless networking on certain Macs.
    The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know the login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
    When you start up in safe mode, it's normal to see a dark gray progress bar on a light gray background. If the progress bar gets stuck for more than a few minutes, or if the system shuts down automatically while the progress bar is displayed, the startup volume is corrupt and the drive is probably malfunctioning. In that case, go to Step 10. If you ever have another problem with the drive, replace it immediately.
    If you can start and log in in safe mode, empty the Trash, and then open the Finder Info window on the startup volume ("Macintosh HD," unless you gave it a different name.) Check that you have at least 9 GB of available space, as shown in the window. If you don't, copy as many files as necessary to another volume (not another folder on the same volume) and delete the originals. Deletion isn't complete until you empty the Trash again. Do this until the available space is more than 9 GB. Then restart as usual (i.e., not in safe mode.)
    If the startup process hangs again, the problem is likely caused by a third-party system modification that you installed. Post for further instructions.
    Step 8
    Launch Disk Utility in Recovery mode (see Step 1.) Select the startup volume, then run Repair Disk. If any problems are found, repeat until clear. If Disk Utility reports that the volume can't be repaired, the drive has malfunctioned and should be replaced. You might choose to tolerate one such malfunction in the life of the drive. In that case, erase the volume and restore from a backup. If the same thing ever happens again, replace the drive immediately.
    This is one of the rare situations in which you should also run Repair Permissions, ignoring the false warnings it may produce. Look for the line "Permissions repair complete" at the end of the output. Then restart as usual.
    Step 9
    Reinstall the OS. If the Mac was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you’ll need the Apple ID and password you used to upgrade.
    Step 10
    Do as in Step 9, but this time erase the startup volume in Disk Utility before installing. The system should automatically restart into the Setup Assistant. Follow the prompts to transfer the data from a Time Machine or other backup.
    Step 11
    This step applies only to models that have a logic-board ("PRAM") battery: all Mac Pro's and some others (not current models.) Both desktop and portable Macs used to have such a battery. The logic-board battery, if there is one, is separate from the main battery of a portable. A dead logic-board battery can cause a startup failure. Typically the failure will be preceded by loss of the settings for the startup disk and system clock. See the user manual for replacement instructions. You may have to take the machine to a service provider to have the battery replaced.
    Step 12
    If you get this far, you're probably dealing with a hardware fault. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service provider.

  • G5 won't boot past grey screen

    G5 2.0 Dual will not boot past grey screen. Running 10.5.8 on an old maxtor 160gb drive, drive is available as a startup disc in StartUp disk in system preferences. But when it is chosen the machine shuts down in the usual manner then switches to the maxtor disk and only gets to the grey screen with the apple log no progress clock appears. Using disk utility from install disk reports that drive is ok, running techtool pro 4.6.2 reports the drive is fine and all file structures, volume structures and directories are fine. So of course i am keen to find out what the issue is and wether it can be resolved without resorting to a clean install. When booted from another internal drive the icon for the errant drive is visible and all files and folders are visible and readily accessable.
    It would be great to get back to booting from this drive as it is the main drive I use and has so much more on it than the secondary drive.
    Any help will be of immense use
    Thank You

    I assume you have already tried a PRAM reset.  If so, then the following three items may yield a clue.
    Number one thing to try is a Safe Boot by holding the shift key down at boot.  You may have a something in the non-minimal Apple kext set that is causing the hang.  (If it safe boots, you may have a problem in kext caches which can be cleared.  See below.)
    Second is to disconnect all peripherals except monitor, keyboard and mouse and see if something there is contributing to the hang.
    Third is to use verbose boot (hold down cmd-V at boot until you see a black Unix terminal screen come up) and see where the system is hanging.
    Clearing the kext Caches (if indicated)
    This is probably easiest done booted from the other drive, so I'll describe that method. 
    Open the Maxtor's System folder, then open the Library folder and drag the following two files to the trash:
    Extensions.kextcache
    Extensions.mkext
    Empty the trash.
    Open a Terminal session from the Terminal application in the /Applications/Utilities folder.
    Type cd followed by a space in the command line and then drag the icon for the Maxtor into the window, which will put a properly formatted Unix path into the command line, then press the return key.  Type the following three commands
    cd System <cr>
    cd Library <cr>
    sudo touch Extensions <cr>
    then give your password when requested and close the terminal session.  Select the Maxtor as the statrup drive in System Preferences and give it a go.

  • IMac wont boot Past Grey Screen, finder folder with blinking question mark

    iMac G5 won't boot Past Grey Screen. The G5 froze and i restarted, It will not go past the grey screen and it has the finder folder with blinking question mark, also the fans kick on wide open. As it atempts to boot a sound plays "beepda beepda beepda beep" that starts quiet and gets louder and repeats a couple of times. I ran a hardware check on the startup disk and all hardware passed. I thought it might be the RAM any suggestions?
    I have restarted using the troubleshooting methods in the guide.

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    I've taking the Mac to the Apple store to get looked at, and its probly the hard drive. Now Im trying to see if theres a way to recover the data myself. I've used software like "Data Rescue" the hard drive shows up "Maxtor Sabre" totally capacity: 0 bytes, and it will not recover anything.
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  • Macbook Pro won't boot past grey screen with Apple logo and then shuts off

    This is a long story...
    This morning, I would turn it on and it'd go to the grey screen with the Apple logo for a few seconds and then go to the icon that is a circle with a line through it. After reading online, I was able to boot it up in Safe Mode. I messed around a little bit in system preferences thinking I could fix it on my own, not really knowing what I was doing (I'm a *******). I went to Startup Disk in Preferences. I chose the MAC OS X, xxxx and then clicked the lock to prevent further changes and then clicked restart.
    Now when I turn on the macbook, it goes to the grey screen with the Apple logo for at least two-three minutes and then just shuts off. Won't boot into Safe Mode now. Please help. I already tried the Command-Option-P-R keys trick like five times.

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    Apple does not have 10.5 for sale anymore from what some other users have said on here so if you want to go that route you will have to find a copy for sale such as from eBay or one of the Mac resellers.
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  • Macbook won't boot past grey screen with Apple logo and spinning wheel.

    For some reason, after about 1 year and 10 months of owning my Macbook, it decided this morning not to load past the grey screen with the Apple logo and spinning cog/wheel.
    I used it for a couple of hours beforehand, and it was working fine. Software Update prompted me of about about 4 or 5 updates; I can't remember exactly what was downloaded, but I think there was a Security Update and iTunes among them. I restarted, left it to install with no errors, but when I logged in, Safari and iTunes were running incredibly slowly. I also noticed that the volume keys weren't responding, as well as the power key to bring up the "Sleep, Restart, Shutdown, etc" dialog box. I forced shutdown, hoping a restart would solve my problem, and that's when my troubles started. I originally just left it, but after about an hour the wretched thing was still spinning.
    So far, I have done a number of troubleshooting tips on a variety of websites. I have tried taking the battery out and holding down power for 5 seconds, resetting the PRAM with option, cmd, p & r, and holding down power until the sleep light flashes rapidly and the computer lets out a large "BOOOP".
    I have booted off my Leopard install disk with both option and c, repaired the hard drive a number of times, with there being no errors whatsoever. I have tried repairing permissions, but everything seems to freeze up, except the mouse.
    For some reason my computer will not boot into safe mode, either, and holding cmd & s at startup doesn't get me to the stage where I can enter commands with the keyboard.
    Unfortunately, because of my puny 60GB hard drive, I only have 1GB of free space left and cannot reinstall Leopard without wiping my hard drive.
    I would greatly appreciate it if anyone could assist me with this unfortunate dilemma. It's such a shame that my computer has been fantastic for so long and now decides to play up. (Maybe it's just Apple trying to get me to buy a new 2.4Ghz aluminium Macbook sooner than I was planning...)
    Thanks very much.

    Hi ds,
    Sorry to hear you're having such trouble!
    Unfortunately, the best thing you can do at this point is reinstall Leopard (and then attempt to install the combo updater, too). If you don't have a backup of your machine, you could boot it into Target Disk Mode (by holding down T at startup) and then attach it via FireWire to another computer to salvage your files.
    I recently had to repair a machine with this exact same problem, and after messing around with that for several hours, I'd have to say that I think that an Erase and Install is the way to go. If you then migrate over your user data and start having troubles, you at least know where the problem lies. I suspect, though, that having a clean machine with all of the new updates applied will be the end of the issue.
    Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. There are a few other things you could try first; you could, for example, manually download the relevant combo updater from Apple's website and attempt to install it to your damaged machine while it's in Target Disk Mode. If you have a copy of Disk Warrior, that too is certainly worth a shot (and in some cases may be the saving grace). In my experience, though, a failure of this magnitude isn't easy to resolve.
    Hope that helps.
    —Hazy

  • G5 ALS Won't Boot Past Grey Screen...Bad Logic Board?

    Hi all-
    I did a quick search, and found various answers, but none specific to my situation, so below, please find my tale of woe, and I appreciate in advance any advice you folks could provide:
    I have a G5, 2.0GHz, 20" iMac (upgraded to Leopard) that recently stopped booting past the grey screen/ chime. Somewhat irked, I did some trouble shooting to include the following:
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    4 - Repaired hard drive by booting to the install CD ... it returned errors that were not fixable, but since the log is on the computer that crashed, I don't have the errors to post here
    5 - After that repair, the computer booted, so I ran disk utility again, repaired permissions successfully, verified the hard disk via S.M.A.R.T. (arguably, not the most reliable indicator of hard disk life).
    6 - Just to be on the safe side, I did an Archive and Install.
    All that done, I was able to use the computer for 2 days, and this morning, I woke up to find the fans a-blazin' and the computer non-responsive...I rebooted to...you guessed it!...a grey screen.
    Luckily for me, my memory (akin to a steel trap!) served me well...I had the power supply changed two months ago under the repair extension program for my model iMac (bulging capacitors)..but they did NOT replace the logic board.
    If you have made it this far, thank you for reading, I am building to my crescendo....
    Being a slightly balding fellow, I have very little hair left to pull out here, so in desperation and with my recent power supply repair in mind, I pulled the back off of my beloved iMac (my very first Mac!) to reveal a bulging capacitor on the +logic board+.
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    Not only do you have a hardware problem, you should call Apple, tell them that you had the power supply replaced two months ago (you are within the 90 day warranty period), and ask that they replace the motherboard as well, since the previous repair didn't work.

  • Macbook Won't Chime Or Boot Past Grey Screen W/ Apple Logo & Spinning Gear

    So i took my Macbook into the apple store to get looked it, cuz i sensed it was a little too hot and maybe overheating........... I DJ so my Macbook is bascially used for that and that only, so after he ran a diagnostics he seen i needed a new fan, but they didn't have that fan in stock, so i went home.... Laptop still working fine until i went to boot it up and it didn't chime and was stuck on the grey screen with the apple logo and spinning gear. Does this indicate i need a new logic board or a new hard drive

    Hi ds,
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    Unfortunately, the best thing you can do at this point is reinstall Leopard (and then attempt to install the combo updater, too). If you don't have a backup of your machine, you could boot it into Target Disk Mode (by holding down T at startup) and then attach it via FireWire to another computer to salvage your files.
    I recently had to repair a machine with this exact same problem, and after messing around with that for several hours, I'd have to say that I think that an Erase and Install is the way to go. If you then migrate over your user data and start having troubles, you at least know where the problem lies. I suspect, though, that having a clean machine with all of the new updates applied will be the end of the issue.
    Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. There are a few other things you could try first; you could, for example, manually download the relevant combo updater from Apple's website and attempt to install it to your damaged machine while it's in Target Disk Mode. If you have a copy of Disk Warrior, that too is certainly worth a shot (and in some cases may be the saving grace). In my experience, though, a failure of this magnitude isn't easy to resolve.
    Hope that helps.
    —Hazy

  • G4 mirror can't won't boot past grey screen with dark gray apple

    Before this the computer was operating fine.
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    *Option 1*: Boot from your bootable backup drive, then erase the internal drive and clone the backup to the internal drive. You can use Disk Utility in the Utilities folder on the backup drive. Don't have a backup? Good time to start planning a backup strategy. Move on to:
    *Option 2: Download AppleJack* - VersionTracker or MacUpdate - and read the documentation carefully. Then install the utility and use it to perform repairs and maintenance on your normal startup drive. Note that to use AppleJack you must be able to startup in single-user mode. If the existing system is unable to start properly into single-user mode, then you cannot use AppleJack.
    *Option 3:* Purchase a copy of Leopard from an Apple Store or Apple retailer. Use it to reinstall OS X by doing an Archive and Install:
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    An Archive and Install will NOT erase your hard drive, but you must have sufficient free space for a second OS X installation which could be from 3-9 GBs depending upon the version of OS X and selected installation options. The free space requirement is over and above normal free space requirements which should be at least 6-10 GBs. Read all the linked references carefully before proceeding.
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    Boot from your OS X 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 Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger.) 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, then quit DU and return to the installer.
    2. Do not proceed with an Archive and Install if DU reports errors it cannot fix. In that case use Disk Warrior and/or TechTool Pro to repair the hard drive. If neither can repair the drive, then you will have to erase the drive and reinstall from scratch.
    3. Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When you reach the screen to select a destination drive click once on the destination drive then click on the Option button. Select the Archive and Install option. You have an option to preserve users and network preferences. Only select this option if you are sure you have no corrupted files in your user accounts. Otherwise leave this option unchecked. Click on the OK button and continue with the OS X Installation.
    4. Upon completion of the Archive and Install you will have a Previous System Folder in the root directory. You should retain the PSF until you are sure you do not need to manually transfer any items from the PSF to your newly installed system.
    5. After moving any items you want to keep from the PSF you should delete it. You can back it up if you prefer, but you must delete it from the hard drive.
    6. You can now download a Combo Updater directly from Apple's download site to update your new system to the desired version as well as install any security or other updates. You can also do this using Software Update.

  • Help: Macbook Pro Retina won't boot past Grey screen w/ Logo

    All,
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    That's what I thought but was able to do CMD-R and verify/repair permissions the disk. My hard drive is actually a flash drive so I'm guessing the controller or motherboard.
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  • Will not boot past Grey Screen of Death

    I was using Safari. Got the spinning beachball. Then it quit, followed by Text Edit, and Quicktime player which were running in the backround.
    I was able to restart through the Apple menu, and got the Grey Screen of Death(GSoD), with the apple, and no spinning gear.
    I had to shut it down using the power button and restarted holding Command-S so that I could run fsck in the Command Line, but it wouldnt go to the command line and all I got was the GSoD.
    So, I started the computer from an external firewire drive, (using the option button on startup, which worked), and it booted fine and mounted my internal drive. (All my files appear to be there and are accessible. The good News...)
    I ran disk utility, and it said that the internal drive was fine, no repairs needed.
    I shut it down,unplugged the power cord and battery, reset the PMU, restarted, zapped the pram, and let it try to load, only to get the GSoD.
    Then I booted from the firewire again, ran Techtool Pro (TTP), everything passed. I rebuilt the directory using TTP, restarted and still got the ole GSoD.
    Telephone Tech Support made me use the Install disk to restart, and run disk utility, (no problems), and upon rebooting still the GSoD. They said I could take it to the Apple store, or run an archive and install.
    I can't do an archive and install, (from home), because my original disk was Panther, and I can't find it, and my Tiger disk is only an upgrade disk. I don't want to do this anyway, and my last resort would be to clone my firewire disk back to my laptop, which I also do not want to do if I don't have to.
    I was considering buying Diskwarrior (DW). It used to do miracles for me with OS9, but that was always when the drive wouldn't mount. I don't know how DW does with the ole GSoD, and a disk that mounts, or whether it can be reccomended to deal in this situation.
    Any help would be appreciated, as well as anyone who cannot help, but can tell me what is wrong when the computer can't get past the GSoD.
    Thanks in advance.
    Powerbook G4 1.67mhz 1gb RAM   Mac OS X (10.4.8)  

    I wanted to add to my post that I have no third party hardware attached, (RAM, etc.), and disconnected all peripheral devices, only connecting the firewire external to boot the thing.
    I also made no recent software installations. The last was the 10.4.8 update on 11/22.
    Austin
    I looked at that article for <10.3.9
    The closest symptom was the blank grey screen. Though it did not mention the addition of the apple like my case. It suggests disk utility, and PMU reset, which I did and didn't help.
    I looked at some of the other symptoms fixes for the blue-screen, -OS9 is not installed on the computer, and single user and safe modes also don't work.
    I have an appointment at the Apple Store for this afternoon. I have the AppleCare protection plan. What in your opinion can they do, that telephone tech support couldn't suggest, besides performing the archive and install, that I can't do at home, and don't want to do anyway?
    Also, seeing as the internal drive does mount, and I can access the data, why do you think that DW might fix it? I know they have a proprietary method, but I did replace the directory with TTP.
    DW did perform miracles for me in the past, but then only when the disk wouldn't mount.
    Right now my plan is to see the Genius this afternoon, if he's got nothing new to offer, I can buy DW rev 39 at the Apple Store, and run it there.
    I guess barring any other advice, if you feel that DW can do the trick, I could buy it before seeing the Genius, and if it works, cancel my appointment.<br>
    Powerbook G4 1.67mhz 1gb RAM   Mac OS X (10.4.8)  

  • 2010 MacBook wont boot past grey screen, even after a new hard drive and install CD.

    Hey guys, I received a 2010 Macbook last year as a gift (no warranty). It worked fine untill a few days ago. It wouldn't boot past the grey apple logo. I took it in to an Apple store and they said it was a bad HDD. Since I didn't have much stored on it, and I have everything backed up to my desktop, I got a new, larger capacity HDD and replaced it with no issues. I started the Macbook with the OSX Leopard install CD, but it didn't identify the HDD, and now it won't boot past the grey screen.
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    House3917 wrote:
    I started the Macbook with the OSX Leopard install CD...
    Leopard is done for, call Apple via phone and order the 10.6.3 white retail disks and use those.
    Use these install instrcutions for best operation and performance.
    How to erase and install Snow Leopard 10.6

  • Mac will not boot past Grey Screen

    Hello;
    My 2007 iMac won't boot past the grey screen, not even with the Apple logo in the centre of the screen. I've tried booting into the Boot Manager, tried using the recovery partition, tried booting from an external USB and FireWire drive, reset the NVRAM, reset the SMC, tried booting with a DIskWarrior boot disk (can't even eject the disk now... i've tried holding onto the mouse to force eject), changed the RAM back to the original...
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    Please make a Genius Appointment and take it in for service.

  • Imac G4 wont boot past grey screen desperatly want to fix it!!!!

    Hi there,
    Please can someone help.....
    I got a Imac G4 at the weekend for a bargin, but it wont boot up.  When i turn it on it makes the noise and comes up with a grey screen with the apple logo and the loading circle.  It doesnt go past this screen and after about 15 mins turns itself off.
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    Did you try a PRAM reset?
    http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1379
    >I can't get the disk drive to open either
    If  the optical drive tray cannot be opened, what happens if you hold down the mouse button during startup?
    As a brody indicated, a faulty hard drive cannot be ruled out. Instructions for removing this drive can be found in the ifixit.com guides as well.
    If you can gain access to the optical drive, the best way forward would be to use an appropriate Mac OS X system CD in an attempt to start from that disc (holding down the C key).
    If it is not possible to locate a correct system CD right now, another way could possibly be to try to boot from an Ubuntu CD for PowerPC instead (once again, holding down the C key) just to see whether the computer is capable of booting at all.
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  • Wont boot past Grey screen

    My iMac suddenly went very slow and when rebooting never get past the Grey screen with Apple and circle - after some minutes hard disk stops.

    http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570  When you get to the part that talks about repairing your disk in disk utility, you don't have a disc to insert so you're going to hold down command and R on startup then you'll see disk utility.

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