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risk235

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 17, 2011
88
10
My Mac froze so I restarted it and was greeted with "?" folder. I tried internet recovery and my hard drives aren't showing up. I was going to reinstall OS X but both hard drives won't show up. Could it be a bad hard drive connector and if so is it something simple I can do myself?
 

Joelburman

macrumors regular
Oct 31, 2014
226
9
Is it an HDD sounds like it might have malfunctioned. You have time machine back-up?
 

zhaoxin

macrumors 6502
Jan 28, 2015
308
65
Open the box and reconnect you hard disk.
If above does not work, you may need to buy a need 2.5" hard disk or a ssd to replace it.

You may need to search the open process in ifixit.com
 

Fishrrman

macrumors Penryn
Feb 20, 2009
29,041
13,070
risk235 wrote above:
[[ No time machine backup. I did only iCloud. The hard drive makes a slight scratching noise then it stops. ]]

You have an appropriate username. Too much "risk" the way you're doing things now.

Your situation as it stands now is why I recommend that all Mac users keep at least one BOOTABLE CLONED BACKUP created with either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper.

If had a bootable backup -- instead of the all-but-useless "cloud" -- you could be back up and running in about 3 minutes. And from that point, go forward to ascertain what the trouble is. Just connect the backup, turn on the Mac, and get to it.

Sounds like it could be a physical failure of the internal HDD. Internet recovery won't work if there isn't a physical drive upon which to install the incoming software.

If I was in your position, I'd suggest:
- A new drive (consider an SSD, I suggest Crucial)
- A USB3 enclosure (such as this one):
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VKTJGW...UTF8&colid=R75PP4I2A0BE&coliid=I3DOKZ31SP7539
- Put the drive into the enclosure, retry internet recovery, and "aim" the software install at the new drive (you'll have to initialize it first)
- Boot the Mini externally for the moment, just to get it running.
- Get the data you need from the cloud and restore it to the external drive.
- Once everything seems OK, THEN consider installing the drive INTO the Mini.

If this works, get another drive for the enclosure, and create a bootable cloned backup to keep close by.
Then you won't have to face "I can't boot" situations, such as you have now!
 

risk235

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 17, 2011
88
10
Thanks for the advice. I should of known better. It takes something like this to open your eyes and be more careful.
 

marclondon

macrumors 6502
Aug 14, 2009
368
90
London
My Mac froze so I restarted it and was greeted with "?" folder. I tried internet recovery and my hard drives aren't showing up. I was going to reinstall OS X but both hard drives won't show up.

You've got two drives - but a system on only one? if you have access to another Mac you can put a system on a USB stick or external drive and then install a system on the good drive.

M.
 

risk235

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 17, 2011
88
10
Got a call from the Apple Store and turns out it was a failed hard drive. Guess I'm going to get a hard drive enclosure and hopefully be able to recover some of my data. Thanks for all the help and suggestions.
 

philipma1957

macrumors 603
Apr 13, 2010
6,394
273
Howell, New Jersey
Got a call from the Apple Store and turns out it was a failed hard drive. Guess I'm going to get a hard drive enclosure and hopefully be able to recover some of my data. Thanks for all the help and suggestions.

get a good external pay the money and the external goes from mac to mac to mac.
 
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