Imac now takes forever to boot up

[alainr]

My 24" imac running os x 10.6.8 now takes 10 minutes to start up.

i haven't added new software. I use firefox 13.0.1

what can i do? any suggestions how to diagnose the problem?

 

[OLDCODGER]

Firefox is not the problem. Once fired up, use Disk Utility to check out the hard drive before going any further.

 

[GGJstudios]

My 24" imac running os x 10.6.8 now takes 10 minutes to start up.

i haven't added new software. I use firefox 13.0.1

what can i do? any suggestions how to diagnose the problem?

Make sure you have a current backup, as one possibility is your drive may be dying.

Delete any non-essential items from the following locations:

• System Preferences > Accounts > yourusername > Login Items
  (Lion users: System Preferences > Users & Groups > yourusername > Login Items)
  
  
• /Library/LaunchAgents/ and ~/Library/LaunchAgents/
  (Lion users: In Finder, click Go > Go to Folder > then enter the path)
  
  
• /Library/StartupItems/
  (Lion users: In Finder, click Go > Go to Folder > then enter the path)

Performance Tips For Mac OS X