MacBook acting up. Won't boot correctly...

[garyth]

Hello, I'm experiencing a LOT of frustration when I try to start up my MacBook Pro (10.9 mavericks. 2011 MBP. i7 sandy.).

So after pressing the power button, it sings its little heart out and shows me the good ol grey apple as usual, laughing as it waits to humiliate me once more.
Afterwards, the spinning dial and a loading bar come out to play. This is what the screen looks like at this point:

When that bar fills his little belly up entirely with the grey Apple color, I clasp my two hands together and pray. Pray that this will be the time that I make it through the boot screen to save my valuable un-backed-up files...

NOPE.

The screen blacks out. The fans are no longer heard. My MacBook has, once again, shut off.


I come to this community in search of a wise prophet. One who can explain this dreaded plague to me and what quest I must accept to save my little guy here.

So far I have tried to boot in safe mode/HDD selection with no such luck. This machine is convinced it needs this update; nothing else buddy boy. I can say now that I sense a new hard drive/clean OS install in my future...

All the best,
Garyth

 

[Intell]

Do you have any other Macs? Have you tried starting it up in Recovery Mode by pressing and holding Command-R?

 

[garyth]

Do you have any other Macs? Have you tried starting it up in Recovery Mode by pressing and holding Command-R?

Thanks for the reply, I just tried the command + R on boot; nothing else happened.
I do have a 2008 mac desktop. Is it of any help?

 

[Intell]

You could possibly recover your unbacked up files. Do you have a FireWire cable to connect your two Macs? If you do, turn off your Macbook and connect it to your other Mac. Then press the power button and press and hold the T key. This will start it up in Target Disc Mode. It should appear as an external hard drive on the 2008 Mac. When (if) it does, copy all of your important files.

 

[garyth]

You could possibly recover your unbacked up files. Do you have a FireWire cable to connect your two Macs? If you do, turn off your Macbook and connect it to your other Mac. Then press the power button and press and hold the T key. This will start it up in Target Disc Mode. It should appear as an external hard drive on the 2008 Mac. When (if) it does, copy all of your important files.

I will have to try this once I buy a firewire cable. Thank you.

 

[Intell]

Make sure you get the right kind. Your Macbook Pro has FireWire 800 also know as 9 pin FireWire. Your 2008 desktop will have FireWire 400 also know as 6 pin FireWire, but it may have FireWire 800 as well. The two types are fully compatible. You can get a cable that has 800 at one end and 400 at the other.

 

[garyth]

Make sure you get the right kind. Your Macbook Pro has FireWire 800 also know as 9 pin FireWire. Your 2008 desktop will have FireWire 400 also know as 6 pin FireWire, but it may have FireWire 800 as well. The two types are fully compatible. You can get a cable that has 800 at one end and 400 at the other.

Did not know that! Thanks for the heads up!

 

[simonsi]

If that doesn't work pull the HDD and put it in a USB caddy, then see if it will mount on the desktop you have and copy the files from there....