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Need HElp, ON vacation and MacBook Pro 15 2.2 ghz not booting

M

MBM007

macrumors regular
Original poster
Sep 6, 2006
145
1
Boulder
Loaded pics up for the 1st time from my 7d into Aperture 1.5 and left my computer on......woke up and it wouldn't come out of sleep. I did a hard shutdown holding down the power button and the screen just stays black and I never hear the chime....light on power button is solid white. Since I'm on vacation with my wife and infant daughter I don't have time to mess around troubleshooting but see it may be a failed logic board?? Do they just fail randomly or what?? My aunt that I'm staying with turned off a surge protector a light was plugged into, I was using her power charger for her MacBOOk Pro and only this morning found out it was plugged directly into the outlet below the surge protector was on that she flipped off.....could that have created a surge on the other plug or something?? She does this all the time with her MacBook Pro plugged in and its never created a problem, I'm writing this post from her computer right now!!
(Only brought the Mac out because my iPad wouldn't load the photos for some reason, don't know if it has something to do with the HD video or because I also had photos from my Canon 50d on there or if that has something to do with my Mac's problem??) I've attempted an SMC restart and it does the same thing??

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated as I'm now extremely stressed thinking I may have lost all my pics that I haven't backed up in months of my infant daughter. When I start it up I hear an initial sound of a hardrive spin or fan but then its basically silent.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide as I'm losing my mind right now.
 
Firstly, press the battery indicator button. If you get any less than two lights, it needs to be charged.
 
Cheeto, it had been charging all night.....when I got up it was still plugged in and its when I realized the problem.
 
Cheeto,
I left it unplugged hoping a dead battery would create some magic.....recharging now
I'll post when I get back in front of my comp.....need to de-stress with a few drinks by the beach.
 
Ronnoco said:
Concur, the "black screen" sounds like a charging issue...when my MBP is out of charge, the screen goes black...
Click to expand...

Battery was full this morning.....but battery definitely needs to be "serviced" as indicated by its status the last time I could see it last nite....it only holds a charge for an hour or so anymore.
Why do a bunch of posts say these symptoms indicate a failed logic board??
 
MBM007 said:
Battery was full this morning.....but battery definitely needs to be "serviced" as indicated by its status the last time I could see it last nite....it only holds a charge for an hour or so anymore.
Why do a bunch of posts say these symptoms indicate a failed logic board??
Click to expand...
Well, one of the symptoms of a failed logic board is getting power but no startup chime (black screen)...it could be the logic board, but a battery issue is just as much a possibility...
 
Ronnoco said:
Well, one of the symptoms of a failed logic board is getting power but no startup chime (black screen)...it could be the logic board, but a battery issue is just as much a possibility...
Click to expand...

So I should wait till it gets to 2 bars on the indicator and then attempt a reboot??? Or then go thru the troubleshooting guide linked earlier??
Is there a way to tell if its the logic board has failed other than taking it into Apple??
Harddrive should be fine tho I take it??
 
MBM007 said:
So I should wait till it gets to 2 bars on the indicator and then attempt a reboot??? Or then go thru the troubleshooting guide linked earlier??
Is there a way to tell if its the logic board has failed other than taking it into Apple??
Harddrive should be fine tho I take it??
Click to expand...

I don't believe you can test the logic board if the computer won't startup...wait till you get a few more lights in the battery indicator and give it a try...if it is still black, I would take it to Apple...make sure you have disconnected all cables and peripherals from the MBP...I would think the harddrive should be fine...if it were a harddrive issue you'd at least be able to get to the grey screen with the question mark...
try THIS
 
Thanks for the help, but unfortunately nothing worked. Going to Apple and a certified repair apple shop to do a diagnostic tests. At this point could care less about the computer, just hoping to save months of pics of my daughter. Foolishly haven't been backing things up cuz I've never had a problem so I'm praying it all can be saved!!!!!!!
 
LUL, it's sad to say so many people don't realize how easy it is to get information from a "dead" computer. Most people believe, once your computer stops working, ALL data has been annihilated. XD

Fact is, your hard drive is VERY MOST likely fine. The hard drive is where ALL information is stored, so as long as that one component survived, all is well.

A dead motherboard means NOTHING to your hard drive. If the technician tells you your computer is dead, at the very least, save the hard drive. You can plug it into your next computer and copy all the data off. If you get a mac, you can even "migrate" it all over, so it will be like nothing ever happened at all. All of your applications and pictures will be right where you left them.

Typical hard drive
sata2.5drive.jpg
 
I've attempted to get into target disk mode with no luck....heading to have it looked at and will let u guys know
 
MrCheeto said:
LUL, it's sad to say so many people don't realize how easy it is to get information from a "dead" computer. Most people believe, once your computer stops working, ALL data has been annihilated. XD

Fact is, your hard drive is VERY MOST likely fine. The hard drive is where ALL information is stored, so as long as that one component survived, all is well.

A dead motherboard means NOTHING to your hard drive. If the technician tells you your computer is dead, at the very least, save the hard drive. You can plug it into your next computer and copy all the data off. If you get a mac, you can even "migrate" it all over, so it will be like nothing ever happened at all. All of your applications and pictures will be right where you left them.
Click to expand...

I realize it's not likely, but even being the slightest possibility scares me to death
 
roker said:
I have one of these 15" 2.2 mbp's, apparently they have that dodgy video card in them which can cause what you have described:

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2377?viewlocale=en_US

Mine hasn't given any trouble yet, I don't know if that's a good thing or not.
Click to expand...

After going to the Apple retail store, I found out it was luckily the dreaded Nvidia card causing the problem....which is nice, free replacement out of warranty. Lady said they do all replacements in house so I decided to let them do it after having the hard drive removed and backed up.
Anyone heard if the replacement functions any better??
 
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