Grey Screen And Logo Freeze

J

jreyesortiz

Registered
Hello,

I have a MacBook Pro 17" Early 2011 running Yosemite, I get to the grey startup screen with the Apple Logo and the status bar gets to about 25% and gets stuck. Then it will stay that way till it overheats and then shuts off.

I have scoured the internet for answers, and have tried all types or rebooting in safe mode, and every other option holding different keys, and nothing has gotten me passed the loading screen. I had to put the laptop in the freezer as a last resort attempt recommended by someone. It worked and after about 15 min it froze and I haven't had any luck getting it to restart again using any methods.

I really just want to know if it's a hardware or software problem. If its hardware can it be fixed? If it's the HD I have no problem replacing or reformatting it. I was successful enough to have been able to copy my important files.

Any help would be appreciated, thank you all very much in advance!


2.3GHz Intel Core i7
16GB Ram
120GB SSD Main drive and 750GB SATA Backup drive (NO DVD)
 
jreyesortiz said:
Hello,

I have a MacBook Pro 17" Early 2011 running Yosemite, I get to the grey startup screen with the Apple Logo and the status bar gets to about 25% and gets stuck. Then it will stay that way till it overheats and then shuts off.

I have scoured the internet for answers, and have tried all types or rebooting in safe mode, and every other option holding different keys, and nothing has gotten me passed the loading screen. I had to put the laptop in the freezer as a last resort attempt recommended by someone. It worked and after about 15 min it froze and I haven't had any luck getting it to restart again using any methods.

I really just want to know if it's a hardware or software problem. If its hardware can it be fixed? If it's the HD I have no problem replacing or reformatting it. I was successful enough to have been able to copy my important files.

Any help would be appreciated, thank you all very much in advance!


2.3GHz Intel Core i7
16GB Ram
120GB SSD Main drive and 750GB SATA Backup drive (NO DVD)
Click to expand...

Most likely it is a corrupted system. I suggest you do the following:

Install or Reinstall OS X from Scratch

Be sure you have backed up your files because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.

Boot to the Recovery HD:

Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears.

Erase the hard drive:


1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.

2. When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility and press the Continue button.

3. After Disk Utility loads select the indented Macintosh HD entry from the the left side
list. Click on the Erase tab in the toolbar.. Set the Format Type to Mac OS Extended,
ournaled from the dropdown menu. Click on the Erase button. Wait until the operation
completes, then quit Disk Utility and return to the main menu.

4. Reinstall OS X: Select Reinstall OS X and click on the Install button.

Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible
because it is three times faster than wireless.

This should install the version of OS X that you had installed.
 
OP never returned since that first post more than 2 months ago.

Another direction to consider, especially with the 2011 MBPro 15- and 17-inch is the general graphics chip problems that seem to show several different issues.
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/
The OP may have missed those issues, when the video may have not been working either.

This is really common, and the OP would want to check with Apple to make sure the issue is not the graphics issue. Apple would provide warranty service for that.
 
I think I'm having a similar problem with a different twist and wondering if anyone has any suggestions. I have gone through the reboot process of command-R or rather ended up holding alt key and restarting, which brought me back to the OS X Utilities (after a while of reloading). However, when I highlight any of the four options (Restore from Time Machine, Resintall OS X, Get Help Online, Disk Utility) 'continue' does not become active. So it seems I'm a bit stuck on this page, except that I can highlight those options, and I can also navigate through the top menu bar (OS X Utilities). When I open 'startup disk' the pop up box is empty/blank. Should I restart again from the Apple drop down menu (top left)? Is there anything I can do through the Terminal (an available option through the Utitlities menu bar)? Network Utility and Firmware Password Utility are also options and I don't know if they can help me...
 
Try shutting down completely, and be sure to disconnect any external devices, except for a network cable, and keyboard/mouse if you use those, and leave power connected, of course.

Do a PRAM reset:
Press and release the power button, then immediately hold Command+Option/alt+P+R
You should hear the boot chime sound. Keep holding the same 4 keys until you hear the boot chime two more time. While the boot chime is still sounding, release the keys, immediately hold Command+R
You should boot to the recovery system (the screen with menus that you described.)

If you had to also hold the Alt key for this to work, did you see a spinning globe during the boot before you saw the normal Apple icon? Then you are likely not even booted to your drive at all. That should happen, if you hold the alt key, in addition to the command + R.
You boot to Apple's servers, and that allows you to boot and install to a blank hard drive, without needing any other install media.
You can also tell by clicking on "Reinstall OS X" then Continue. If it displays the original OS X system that your Mac shipped with, then you are booted to the server, through your internet connection.
If you only saw the Apple icon, and a progress "spinner" or bar, then you can ignore what I said about the internet boot.

When you are at the main menu screen, choose Disk Utility, then continue. If your drive does NOT appear in the Disk Utility window, then your drive may have failed. If your drive DOES appear in the Disk Utility, then try a First Aid repair, then quit Disk Utility, and attempt to reinstall OS X.

If NONE of that works for you, and you can't make any progress, then it is still very likely that your drive is just gone (without even sending you a good-bye notice :D )
And, I can still help you if you come back and tell what model of Mac you have, how old it is, and what kind of drive is installed (hard drive, or SSD - or just tell me what you know about the Mac, and we'll go from there)
 
Wow thank you I really appreciate all the input. I tried to follow your instructions and following the command+option+P+R multiple chimes release to Command+R, I was faced with the spinning globe. I was asked to input my wifi network password, which I have done -- I'm not even sure I have a cable around to plug in. Now it is again loading up which is what happened last time, so I hope it will send me again to the recovery system screen. I guess from there I will try to again follow your instructions assuming I can indeed move through the recovery system screen. I think the globe will be spinning for a while. Earlier it took about an hour.

I am on a 13in MacBook Pro from 2011. I don't know what kind of drive is installed...the machine has been a bit slow lately and occasionally freezes, but I did clean up my drive and trash things, make space, etc. a few months ago. Other than being a bit slow and occasionally freezing, I've not had any problems with it.

Thanks again, if you have any more thoughts I totally welcome them!
 
The only drive that appears in disk utility is Mac OS X Base System. When I verify disk (the only option) it says this drive is ok. This time when I then try to reinstall OS X Mountain Lion I am prompted to select a disk where to install, but there are no options for selection. That seems to suggest that the drive h as failed, I guess? Any thoughts on bringing it back to life?
 
Yes, the Mac OS X Base System that you see in Disk Utility is just the mounted image of the system that you are booted to, which is on Apple's servers. So, you are booted to Internet Recovery, and not on your hard drive at all.

The hard drive is not appearing at all - Disk Utility would show a line with the model number of your hard drive. An example would be something like: ST500LM012 Media. That's the Seagate brand hard drive that I have in my Mac mini. Then you would have at least one more line under that manufacturer's line. The normal one would be your boot partition. It may still have the original name "Macintosh HD", or might be a different name (even "Untitled" :D ), but would be one that you have seen before as you search for various files on your hard drive.
Anyway, bottom line - if you don't see anything other than the Mac OS X Base System, then your hard drive is not recognized, and probably failed. You can bring your MBPro back to life by removing the bad drive, and replacing it with a new drive.
It's a mechanical device, and will eventually fail. Replace with new. It's likely that nothing on that drive can be recovered, but your can TRY by removing that old drive, then putting it in an external drive enclosure, connect to your Mac, and see if anything can be visible in Disk Utility.
Finally, if you need to replace the hard drive, this would be a great time to consider replacing the old spinning hard drive with an SSD (solid state drive). You will get a noticeable boost in performance - faster booting, and almost all normal operations would feel significantly faster. Less heat, perhaps better battery life, and the SSD is completely silent.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top