screen busted

[dvdbons]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to this forum so I really hope this question hasn't been alked 5 million times already.

I was watching a movie on my 2008 macbook pro when the screen suddenly froze.

I've restarted the pc in safe mode, which works, but when I restart it again it just goes back to the frozen screen.

(In safe mode it says I have no airport card installed and I can't connect an external hard drive or usb)

What could the problem be?

Pleeeeease help

Dave

 

[niteflyr]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to this forum so I really hope this question hasn't been alked 5 million times already.

I was watching a movie on my 2008 macbook pro when the screen suddenly froze. Image

I've restarted the pc in safe mode, which works, but when I restart it again it just goes back to the frozen screen.

(In safe mode it says I have no airport card installed and I can't connect an external hard drive or usb)

What could the problem be?

Pleeeeease help

Dave

I think you have a fairly complex problem there, but I don't think it warrants 2 identical threads. If you want more answers, you need to provide more specific information. A better title might help. (your screen is not physically broken)
What model MBP? I believe you stated 2,2 earlier which is a 2006 15"?
What OSX version? Snow Leopard, Lion, etc.
Do you have a backup? Time machine, etc.
When it froze, were you watching DVD, streaming, Netflix, iTunes, etc?
When you restart, at what point does it freeze? Do you get to the log in screen? Desktop? Or does it freeze immediately?
What steps have you tried, etc. The more info you can provide, the better the chances that somebody will recognize the problem.

 

[dvdbons]

I think you have a fairly complex problem there, but I don't think it warrants 2 identical threads. If you want more answers, you need to provide more specific information. A better title might help. (your screen is not physically broken)
What model MBP? I believe you stated 2,2 earlier which is a 2006 15"?
What OSX version? Snow Leopard, Lion, etc.
Do you have a backup? Time machine, etc.
When it froze, were you watching DVD, streaming, Netflix, iTunes, etc?
When you restart, at what point does it freeze? Do you get to the log in screen? Desktop? Or does it freeze immediately?
What steps have you tried, etc. The more info you can provide, the better the chances that somebody will recognize the problem.

Hi Nite flyer,

Really sorry about that, I'm new to this forum thing so when I couldn't find my first post I figured it was deleted and I started a new one.

I do indeed have a 2006 bversion 15" macbook pro.

It's running OSX 10.6.8

I do have a backup of all my files on a hard drive

When it froze I was a watching a movie on VLC player, the macbook had been getting pretty warm for a while, could be that the fan was blocked up perhaps.

When I switch the macbook on I get the grey screen with the apple logo in the center, then it load a little bit and then it goes to the frozen screen as shown in the pic above.

The only step I've tried is is the reboot in safe mode - which works. I'm a complete mac noob so I don't have the technical knowhow to do anything else - yet.

Thanks again for taking the time answer my post.

Dave

 

[raptor402]

Hey, Dave

First off, why don't you list the following information in your original post (or a new post)

1. MacBook Pro Model
2. OS X version
3. CPU (frequency will do)
4. RAM
5. HDD
6. Any hardware modifications
7. Any other issues

Most of the information should be available in [Apple Logo > About this Mac] on your status bar.

It's possible that this is a software issue, in which case a reformat and OS reinstall should solve the problem. If that doesn't fix it, then a hardware issue would be the best diagnosis, though that's unlikely.

However, let's not jump to conclusions right away. First of all, in safe mode, open Disk Utility application (Applications > Utilities). Your hard disk should be listed on the left. Select it. Then, click on Repair Disk Permissions.

I hope this helps.

Regards
Raptor

 

[Mr Rabbit]

Have you made any software changes recently? Software updates, driver installations, etc? If not then I would doubt software is at fault.

My first guess based on the photo in the first post is a failed video card (which is part of the logic board). Graphic anomalies like that ARE possible with software issues but almost always show up when an old build of the operating system is installed onto a Mac with newer hardware. For instance, you might see similar results if you somehow installed 10.7 on a new MacBook Pro, since 10.7 may not have the drivers to support proper video on the MacBook Pro the result could be similar to this. If no software changes have been made recently (these types of problems tend to pop up quickly when changes are made) then the video card is likely at fault. RAM is another possibility.

If you still have the gray system discs that came with your Mac you can use those to run Apple Hardware Test (AHT), which is a basic diagnostic that puts the major components under load and can give you error codes if failures are found. To run AHT:

1. Insert your gray system / restore disc that came with your Mac
2. Power the Mac on while holding the "D" key on your keyboard
3. Keep holding D until you see either an icon like the one below or until you see the Apple logo on the screen
   
   
4. If you see the icon below then AHT is booting successfully. Once it loads you can check a box for "Extended test" and click "Test" to run the diagnostic. The extended test can take a long time depending on the amount of RAM installed so don't be alarmed if it's still running after 45 minutes.
5. If you see the Apple logo then the Mac isn't recognizing AHT. You might try again and/or try the other system disc.

This CNET article has some good info on how to interpret the error codes that AHT can return.

If you get a 4MEM error then your issue may indeed be RAM related. If this is the case I would remove one DIMM at a time (if 2 DIMMs are installed) and power on the Mac to see if the issue changes. Also try moving the DIMMs from one slot to another to rule out the possibility of a bad RAM slot on the logic board. Apple has a good KB article explaining how to remove/install RAM in MacBook Pros - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1270

Hope that helps!

 

[dvdbons]

Hey, Dave

First off, why don't you list the following information in your original post (or a new post)

1. MacBook Pro Model
2. OS X version
3. CPU (frequency will do)
4. RAM
5. HDD
6. Any hardware modifications
7. Any other issues

Most of the information should be available in [Apple Logo > About this Mac] on your status bar.

It's possible that this is a software issue, in which case a reformat and OS reinstall should solve the problem. If that doesn't fix it, then a hardware issue would be the best diagnosis, though that's unlikely.

However, let's not jump to conclusions right away. First of all, in safe mode, open Disk Utility application (Applications > Utilities). Your hard disk should be listed on the left. Select it. Then, click on Repair Disk Permissions.

I hope this helps.

Regards
Raptor

Thanks a million guys, you really are super helpful!!

----------

Have you made any software changes recently? Software updates, driver installations, etc? If not then I would doubt software is at fault.

My first guess based on the photo in the first post is a failed video card (which is part of the logic board). Graphic anomalies like that ARE possible with software issues but almost always show up when an old build of the operating system is installed onto a Mac with newer hardware. For instance, you might see similar results if you somehow installed 10.7 on a new MacBook Pro, since 10.7 may not have the drivers to support proper video on the MacBook Pro the result could be similar to this. If no software changes have been made recently (these types of problems tend to pop up quickly when changes are made) then the video card is likely at fault. RAM is another possibility.

If you still have the gray system discs that came with your Mac you can use those to run Apple Hardware Test (AHT), which is a basic diagnostic that puts the major components under load and can give you error codes if failures are found. To run AHT:

1. Insert your gray system / restore disc that came with your Mac
2. Power the Mac on while holding the "D" key on your keyboard
3. Keep holding D until you see either an icon like the one below or until you see the Apple logo on the screen
   Image
4. If you see the icon below then AHT is booting successfully. Once it loads you can check a box for "Extended test" and click "Test" to run the diagnostic. The extended test can take a long time depending on the amount of RAM installed so don't be alarmed if it's still running after 45 minutes.
5. If you see the Apple logo then the Mac isn't recognizing AHT. You might try again and/or try the other system disc.

This CNET article has some good info on how to interpret the error codes that AHT can return.

If you get a 4MEM error then your issue may indeed be RAM related. If this is the case I would remove one DIMM at a time (if 2 DIMMs are installed) and power on the Mac to see if the issue changes. Also try moving the DIMMs from one slot to another to rule out the possibility of a bad RAM slot on the logic board. Apple has a good KB article explaining how to remove/install RAM in MacBook Pros - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1270

Hope that helps!

Wow, ok, I'll give that a shot, the only problem is my CD drive is also broken (broke a few years back but I never use it anyway) I'm sure I can load the system restore disk via usb or not?

Thanks a million btw.

Dave