My computer froze yesterday, so I had to power it down. When I tried to power it back on it wouldn't go on and a grey screen with a circle with a diagonal line through it showed up. Any suggestions?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Huge problem while starting up 11 month old mac.
- Thread starter Surfing@Blacks
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Buy AppleCare if you don't have it before the computer is twelve months old
Then take it to the nearest Apple Store, and let them fix it before it goes out of warranty.
It sounds like you have a hardware failure. See if you can boot from your Apple DVD that came with your computer, by holding the option button down at boot time until you get to the blue (boot loader) screen. Look to see if your hard disk is listed there. If not, your first step would be to select the Apple Hardware test and continue booting. Run the quick test as well as the extended test and write down (exactly) any errors you may see.
This is not a definitive test, but a first step in troubleshooting.
Reply back with the errors (if any) or if the tests pass and we'll help you go on from there.
I agree. That's why I suggested the OP boot Apple Hardware test as a first check. If the drive failed, it will probably show some errors in the test.
Buy AppleCare if you don't have it before the computer is twelve months old
You are getting very close to your warranty date, and unless you are ready to do a lot of troubleshooting on your own, I would call Apple, or get to an Apple store ASAP.
As others have said, it sounds like you have hard drive issues, or your installation is corrupted somehow (possible but unlikely). Depending on the issue, you may be looking at reinstalling everything (hope you have a backup of what you need), or replacing the hard drive and then reinstalling everything.
If you have easy access to an Apple store, I would head there ASAP, and let them diagnose it. Merl1n's suggestions are good troubleshooting steps to help diagnose the issue if you have the time. If anything is wrong from a hardware standpoint, you are going to end up working with Apple anyway.
Just don't let that 12 month warranty run out...
To not buy applecare or an extended warranty of some type is nearly suicide with any portable machine these days. The odds are that SOMETHING will go wrong in 3 years time that you are covered.
I suggest doing all of the things above, but most importantly, following the first suggestion, buy applecare before your 12 month warranty is up.
It took me 2 years and 10 months, then my screen started to go (it was getting really dark in one corner, bad backlight), so I sent it in, when I got it back 2 weeks later my hard drive went. This was a powerbook that I took with me everywhere every day. It's still serving me well as my primary machine today...just short of its 4th birthday.
I suggest doing all of the things above, but most importantly, following the first suggestion, buy applecare before your 12 month warranty is up.
It took me 2 years and 10 months, then my screen started to go (it was getting really dark in one corner, bad backlight), so I sent it in, when I got it back 2 weeks later my hard drive went. This was a powerbook that I took with me everywhere every day. It's still serving me well as my primary machine today...just short of its 4th birthday.
I took it to an Apple Store
I live like 5 minutes away from an apple store, so I just ended up taking it there. He said the problem was that it was missing some files that are important to the OS. How does that happen? When it was working just fine. I am curious because I don't want it to happen again.
To applecare, I know I should buy it but my last 3 macs I had bought it and didn't even need it. I know the one time I don't will be the time i need it most. Isn't that how it always works out? haha
I live like 5 minutes away from an apple store, so I just ended up taking it there. He said the problem was that it was missing some files that are important to the OS. How does that happen? When it was working just fine. I am curious because I don't want it to happen again.
To applecare, I know I should buy it but my last 3 macs I had bought it and didn't even need it. I know the one time I don't will be the time i need it most. Isn't that how it always works out? haha
did you install any third party apps that asked for your password? (you need to type in your password in order to manipulate system files)
You can find good deals on Applecare on Amazon.com and also on eBay.
So what did they do to get you going again?
Everything was working fine until I installed wc3. I was in the middle of a DotA game and my mac froze. I held the power button down until it shut off then I powered back on and this is when I got the grey screen with the circle.
I don't know what happen honestly. Do you think I will be alright to reinstall wc3.
aross, I think he just reinstalled the OS. I still had all my files on the computer though.