A1229 Macbook Freezing on Startup

[Jaani]

Just started having this issue with my macbook. I tried to install Adobe Photoshop cs6 and it froze near the start of the installation and then the mac turned off. Now I cant get onto the desktop to try and change any of the settings or to reinstall the OS.

Things I am thinking it could be are...

- Overheating as the mac hasnt been cleaned in 4 years and I live with quite a few cats

- Crack in the solder between the processor and the motherboard due to constant heating and cooling

- Possibly a virus of some kind from the software?


Things I'd like to try are booting into the BIOS (or whatever its called on a mac) to alter the fan speeds to see if the problem alleviates, then I know all I have to do is give it a clean or, failing that, reinstall the OS to clarify it isnt a software issue.

Can anyone help me with those ideas? Or does someone have any other better suggestions? Anything would be most appreciated at the moment!

 

[Jaani]

UPDATE took the macbook pro apart and there was no dust or hair in it whatsoever, it was totally clean so I presume something to do with a software conflict and nothing to do with overheating. Is there any way to roll back the OS or install a fresh before getting to the desktop?

Again any help is massively appreciated

 

[niteflyr]

Try booting to safe mode:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1564

Try booting with the original grey install disk.

 

[Jaani]

Thanks for the advice niteflyr, we managed to figure out pressing command + R gets us into the recovery mode and thankfully there was a backup made today so all is now well with the mac! Yay!

Again cheers for the help mate, have a lovely evening

 

[desmojo]

MacBook Pro 17-inch A1229 Freezes

Hello folks - I seem to be having the same problem. My MB Pro recently began to freeze during start up. I get the chime and the apple appears, then the wheel turns for anywhere between 15 - 30 seconds and then everything freezes.

I tried all the start-up tricks I could find (safe boot, boot from external copy of drive, reset RAM, etc.) and nothing works.

So, I replaced the logic board...but the same exact thing keeps happening.

Anyone have any thoughts about what else may cause this? I can't find any guidance anywhere beyond the start-up tricks and logic board.

I know this computer is a dinosaur, but I don't need it to do anything fancy and it was working great before this happened.

Thanks!

 

[trish manson]

Solutions to stop mac from freezing up

There are two tips to stop mac's random freezes that heat you up
; a short and long term solution. Short term solution by pressing command, option and escape keys simultaneously. That will bring you to Force quit window, then click on the individual program and choose force quit to shut it down. Once the offending program has shut down then restart the entrire machine. However Force Quit does not fix the problem,it just merely brings your mac back to working state.The second option which is a long term option, is cleaning up and optimizing your system to avoid costly service or buying another a new one.