New iMac does not boot

[wfz]

I just bought and received my new 21.5" 2012 version iMac yesterday. Excitement turned to disappointment right after trying to boot. It stayed on the screen with a question mark inside a folder icon after being blank for ~1 minute. I googled for answers and tried zapping the pram, etc techniques without any success. I then tried booting with option key pressed, it went to a screen to login to a network screen. I saw all the wifi connections but I couldn't connect to my own router even I was sure I entered the right password. From info I read, it appears that the Mac can't find the system or maybe it has a broken HD.

So what else can I do to make this new Mac work? Is there a utility that I can download to reset it to factory state? This also brings up an issue for the future. Where is the OS DVD? What happens if my system dies again in the future, is there a combination key to restore (like many Windows based laptop do) to factory state?

I ordered it online from Amazon. Instead of sending it back to amazon for replacement, can I have it replaced at a local Apple store? It's only 1 day old.

Thanks for your help,

 

[justperry]

It means that the system volume is not blessed, it can be repaired but it's a bit complicated.
The easiest way out is to get into Recovery Mode and reinstall the OS, do so by holding Command-R at startup, a screen will appear to reinstall the OS amongst some other options.

Edit: But if you want it the difficult way here it is.

Boot into recovery mode, then from the menu bar choose Terminal and enter the following command:

sudo bless --folder=/Volumes/Macintosh HD/System/Library/CoreServices --file=/Volumes/Macintosh HD/System/Library/CoreServices/boot.efi --setBoot
Hit enter
Then restart.

 

[wfz]

Thanks for the info. I will give it a try tonight.
Is that normal to ship a Mac unblessed? So the original OS is in one invisible partition? Is it possible to extract it so I can have a DVD copy of the OS?
What is the benefit of doing it the difficult way in the 2nd option you described compared to the first one?

Thanks again for the help,

 

[justperry]

Thanks for the info. I will give it a try tonight.
Is that normal to ship a Mac unblessed? So the original OS is in one invisible partition? Is it possible to extract it so I can have a DVD copy of the OS?
What is the benefit of doing it the difficult way in the 2nd option you described compared to the first one?

Thanks again for the help,

They are blessed when leaving the factory, they should be but even there mistakes do sometimes happen, or somehow it got "damaged" on it's way to you, this is no big deal if you know how to repair it.

Before I tell you more about a clone of your OS let me tell you that the second way is much faster, it blesses the System and in a few minutes you are good to go, the blessing itself takes micro seconds.
Reinstalling the OS with recovery can take minutes but also hours or even days dependable on how fast your internet connection is.

Cloning your OS is fairly easy, if you download Carbon Copy Cloner it does it for you but you need an external disk to do so, the good news about CCC is it creates a bootable system, so if there is a problem with your normal system you can startup from the external by holding the Option key and then choose the external and you are up in minutes.
OS X also has it's own backup system called TimeMachine, it is much easier than CCC but you can not really boot from it and there are quit some problems with it, I don't use it.

CCC is free up until 3.4.7

 

[Weaselboy]

Thanks for the info. I will give it a try tonight.
Is that normal to ship a Mac unblessed? So the original OS is in one invisible partition? Is it possible to extract it so I can have a DVD copy of the OS?
What is the benefit of doing it the difficult way in the 2nd option you described compared to the first one?

Thanks again for the help,

When you see that question mark at boot it means to Mac cannot find the OS to boot from. That can be due to the OS install being corrupted (not likely since you have never touched the install), or a hardware problem like a bad drive, drive cable, or even logic board.

There is no way the system shipped from Apple without the drive being "blessed".

Don't even waste your time messing with this. It sounds like you have a hardware problem. Just ship it back to Amazon for a new replacement.

The full OS is not on the hard drive. All that is on the drive is a 650MB recovery partition that is used to connect to Apple's servers and DL the 4.7GB OS install.

If your hard drive is bad, the system can also boot to what is called Internet Recovery. This is the same recovery screen only it is pulled from Apple's servers by the system's firmware. It sounds like this is the screen you got when you booted.

 

[justperry]

When you see that question mark at boot it means to Mac cannot find the OS to boot from. That can be due to the OS install being corrupted (not likely since you have never touched the install), or a hardware problem like a bad drive, drive cable, or even logic board.

There is no way the system shipped from Apple without the drive being "blessed".

Don't even waste your time messing with this. It sounds like you have a hardware problem. Just ship it back to Amazon for a new replacement.

The full OS is not on the hard drive. All that is on the drive is a 650MB recovery partition that is used to connect to Apple's servers and DL the 4.7GB OS install.

If your hard drive is bad, the system can also boot to what is called Internet Recovery. This is the same recovery screen only it is pulled from Apple's servers by the system's firmware. It sounds like this is the screen you got when you booted.

I am not saying I don't agree with you but that Terminal command will do NO harm at all, and all it takes is a few minutes.
A couple of months ago someone had a very similar issue and it got resolved by this command.
It's off course up to the OP if he wants to try this or not, again, it won't damage anything.

 

[old-wiz]

I would take it to the Apple store and get them to fix it. You could also send it back to Amazon as a non-working device and hopefully they would replace it. If it was me I would send it back to Amazon and demand a replacement or my money back. A brand new machine should boot, period. Are you sure you didn't get a previously opened system?

This is why I tend to buy at the Apple store in person - I can open the box and make sure everything is there and it at least boots to osx in the case of a laptop or at least works if it's an iPad or iPod. I hate buying expensive stuff from Amazon - it's just too much hassle if something goes wrong and you have to go to their support people and argue with them for help. If you are only buying a book or a DVD or a USB backup disk, then Amazon is fine. But I would never ever buy a laptop, TV, or an iMac from Amazon.

 

[FreemanW]

Logic fail.

My first question is why didn't you contact Apple immediately?

The second part of the first question is why didn't you contact Amazon about your D.O.A. order?

Instead of picking up the telephone and allowing yourself to be taken care of by customer service at Apple or Amazon (both with stellar Customer Service), you went to the tubes of the googles and joined a forum to post this thread.

WTF?

If there is not an Apple Store near you, I would resolve this with Amazon. Have Amazon "cross-ship" a replacement order.

You may (very likely) be required to pay for the replacement under a "cross-ship" arrangement, but you won't have to wait for Amazon to process your failed unit return before sending out the replacement.

 

[Weaselboy]

Have Amazon "cross-ship" a replacement order.

You may (very likely) be required to pay for the replacement under a "cross-ship" arrangement, but you won't have to wait for Amazon to process your failed unit return before sending out the replacement.

You don't even need to call Amazon to do this. Just go to your order online and click "return or replace items" and explain it is broken and they will cross ship another item and give you a free return label. Very easy. I have never had to pay for a cross ship item, but have never had one as expensive as an iMac either... so there may be some dollar threshold where this kicks in?

 

[Bear]

Thanks for the info. I will give it a try tonight.
Is that normal to ship a Mac unblessed? So the original OS is in one invisible partition? Is it possible to extract it so I can have a DVD copy of the OS?
What is the benefit of doing it the difficult way in the 2nd option you described compared to the first one?

Thanks again for the help,

If you reinstall the OS before the licenses are registered you won't be able to reinstall iPhoto/iMovie/GarageBand.

For a new system where something is broken, I would just get it replaced.

 

[wfz]

I went to Apple store and they couldn't restore it using network. It appears to be a bad HD. I returned and get a replacement today. The new one works right away. THANK YOU ALL for the advice.

----------

You don't even need to call Amazon to do this. Just go to your order online and click "return or replace items" and explain it is broken and they will cross ship another item and give you a free return label. Very easy. I have never had to pay for a cross ship item, but have never had one as expensive as an iMac either... so there may be some dollar threshold where this kicks in?

I did just like you said. IT works! Thanks.

 

[Weaselboy]

I did just like you said. IT works! Thanks.

Glad it worked out. Can't beat Amazon!

 

[wfz]

Glad it worked out. Can't beat Amazon!

Amazon's service is great. I submitted the replacement Saturday afternoon, and the package arrived Monday afternoon. They arranged UPS pick-up today too and I didn't pay anything. The only thing wasn't clear was whether it was return or replacment after I submitted for the replacement. I showed as return so I called them to check if it was replacement. The rep just did a replacement again and I recieved 2 packages of iMac today.

 

[computerstar]

I just bought and received my new 21.5" 2012 version iMac yesterday. Excitement turned to disappointment right after trying to boot. It stayed on the screen with a question mark inside a folder icon after being blank for ~1 minute. I googled for answers and tried zapping the pram, etc techniques without any success. I then tried booting with option key pressed, it went to a screen to login to a network screen. I saw all the wifi connections but I couldn't connect to my own router even I was sure I entered the right password. From info I read, it appears that the Mac can't find the system or maybe it has a broken HD.

So what else can I do to make this new Mac work? Is there a utility that I can download to reset it to factory state? This also brings up an issue for the future. Where is the OS DVD? What happens if my system dies again in the future, is there a combination key to restore (like many Windows based laptop do) to factory state?

I ordered it online from Amazon. Instead of sending it back to amazon for replacement, can I have it replaced at a local Apple store? It's only 1 day old.

Thanks for your help,

Command +r will take you to the recovery screen where you can reinstall the OSX. You may need to connect to Internet though.