Dead PB G4 1.5GHz
I've got a question regarding a dead PowerBook G4, 1.5GHz, ALU. It will start up, the screen lights up, I get the white screen with the grey Apple logo on it, and then ... instead of the black throbber that indicates it is trying to access the boot disc, I've got ... NOTHING.
Furthermore, I cannot hold down the option key to select another device to boot from, or boot from a system DVD. Basically, it seems to be off in another dimension where it cannot read any I/O from anything. Not CD, DVD, any external FW disc, nada.
So, I'm guessing some piece of hardware is blown. I get the <BONGGGGGG> sound when it starts, and then, the afore-mentioned, super-exciting grey screen with white Apple logo.
It's not exactly the end of the world, because, through way too many unfortunate accidents and the perpetually falling prices of hard drives, I am, strangely enough, fully redundant. To the extent that my important data lives in at least 4 locations, and the crap, in at least 2. I've also got this funny feeling I can just pop out the boot disc and read it elsewhere, because it will boot/read NOTHING, so probably it's intact.
So basically, it's really inconvenient.
My question is: does anyone have any experience with a similar situation? Is it worth it to haul it to an Apple store (applecare has expired on it), where they will tell me ... <what?> "That'll be $1200 to repair it!" Uhm, no thanks, I'll buy the MBP when they finally sink a Merom in there, hopefully within the next month or three. Or <hoping> is this something relatively simply, "Ah, we just swap out this chip! That'll be $10 bucks plus $50 for labor. No, wait, we're Apple, we meant to say, that'll be $300 bucks!" The latter I can live with.
Just kinda bummed out, I needed this particular laptop to last, exactly as long as it takes for the new MBP to arrive, and instead it keeled over, probably 2 feet from the finish line. I'm wondering if anybody has dealt with this particular hardware issue before, and what the cause might be, or is it a dead motherboard.
Oh, also, if there's any super hardware guru reading this, who can just wave his hands around, and HEAL my PB by reading these words. Well hey, go for it, that would so totally rock.
Thanks for any insights.
Richard
Furthermore, I cannot hold down the option key to select another device to boot from, or boot from a system DVD. Basically, it seems to be off in another dimension where it cannot read any I/O from anything. Not CD, DVD, any external FW disc, nada.
So, I'm guessing some piece of hardware is blown. I get the <BONGGGGGG> sound when it starts, and then, the afore-mentioned, super-exciting grey screen with white Apple logo.
It's not exactly the end of the world, because, through way too many unfortunate accidents and the perpetually falling prices of hard drives, I am, strangely enough, fully redundant. To the extent that my important data lives in at least 4 locations, and the crap, in at least 2. I've also got this funny feeling I can just pop out the boot disc and read it elsewhere, because it will boot/read NOTHING, so probably it's intact.
So basically, it's really inconvenient.
My question is: does anyone have any experience with a similar situation? Is it worth it to haul it to an Apple store (applecare has expired on it), where they will tell me ... <what?> "That'll be $1200 to repair it!" Uhm, no thanks, I'll buy the MBP when they finally sink a Merom in there, hopefully within the next month or three. Or <hoping> is this something relatively simply, "Ah, we just swap out this chip! That'll be $10 bucks plus $50 for labor. No, wait, we're Apple, we meant to say, that'll be $300 bucks!" The latter I can live with.
Just kinda bummed out, I needed this particular laptop to last, exactly as long as it takes for the new MBP to arrive, and instead it keeled over, probably 2 feet from the finish line. I'm wondering if anybody has dealt with this particular hardware issue before, and what the cause might be, or is it a dead motherboard.
Oh, also, if there's any super hardware guru reading this, who can just wave his hands around, and HEAL my PB by reading these words. Well hey, go for it, that would so totally rock.
Thanks for any insights.
Richard
Comments
Bong sound is good sign
but could be logic board.
single user boot apple-s.? You didn't say you tried it...
Bong sound is good sign
but could be logic board.
Weird day, MBP was just released, Wooo Hooo!!! Great Timing!
Still, if there's nothing critically wrong with it, I'd prefer not to toss it into the trash, it's a nice machine, 2GB ram, well taken care of, etc. If nothing else I could use it as an iTunes server or something.
And ya know what, YES, I did try it, AND it booted into single user mode. Great advice, thank you! I ran fsck, it says fixing minor problem with volume headers, but after this, it is still not booting, and it still will not let me hit the Apple key and select another device to boot from.
I don't get it. If the logic board was gone, I obviously could not boot single user mode. At the same time, I cannot boot ANY volume. I scanned knowledge base on Apple and reset NVRAM and PRAM, and still have exactly the same thing.
Richard
And ya know what, YES, I did try it, AND it booted into single user mode. Great advice, thank you! I ran fsck, it says fixing minor problem with volume headers, but after this, it is still not booting,
So it said at the end of FSCK'ing that the volume appeared to be OK.? This is a good sign. Then you exit and still nothing?
and it still will not let me hit the Apple key and select another device to boot
??? You hold option (alt) key during booting to select which volume to boot from. Also you hold down c during booting to force boot from CD.
I don't get it. If the logic board was gone, I obviously could not boot single user mode. At the same time, I cannot boot ANY volume.
It could still be logic related in the sense that it is intermittent...
Please check your booting key combos!...
??? You hold option (alt) key during booting to select which volume to boot from. Also you hold down c during booting to force boot from CD.
--
Sorry, my bad, I meant OPTION/Alt key.
Okay, so I'm not at the point where I CAN consistently boot it using safe mode. Any particular advice regarding what I should do there?
I've run fsck, it's not the boot disk.
The main problem, which DOES NOT CHANGE appears to be related to BootCache. If, I type sync, reboot -n well, presto! It all works again (after starting in safe mode). Everything appears to be a-ok.
However, just restarting from the GUI, will cause it to crap out and freeze, at the same place, every single time. (Apple logo, with no throbber below it.)
I CANNOT hold down the option key and select device to boot from. Period. No matter what I do. The little screen in the center that allows you to cycle through the available boot devices, never comes up.
The computer sees 2GB of RAM, nope I haven't tried to remove or swap it, but I'm not sure this could improve the situation. It appears to directly relate to, whatever BootCache is doing, or thinks it is doing.
Any further useful advice is greatly appreciated. Again, it's not the end of the world, and I'm now in a 5-7 day countdown to take delivery of a new MBP, but there appears to be nothing wrong with either the CPU, the disks, or anything except bootcache. The computer passes the hardware self test from the system install disk, with zero errors in anything.
Thanks,
Richard
this has saved my ass many times for all sorts of reasons.
Maybe that the directory has headed south and needs a damn good rebuild.
Couple of ways todo this - you can try inserting the cd and boot off it. (The normal way).
Or if it won't boot off the cd then you may need to use another Mac and hook the Albook up via fw and TargetDisc to get at it.
Try a copy of DiskWarrior on that puppy
this has saved my ass many times for all sorts of reasons.
Maybe that the directory has headed south and needs a damn good rebuild.
Couple of ways todo this - you can try inserting the cd and boot off it. (The normal way).
Or if it won't boot off the cd then you may need to use another Mac and hook the Albook up via fw and TargetDisc to get at it.
Thanks for everybody's input.
Yeah DiskWarrior is good, Data Rescue II is perhaps even better 8) but what was causing all the strange wackiness was... Open Firmware ROM password. This was set on the PB back during the days of Panther and completely forgotten. The reason nothing was selectable and no other volume could be started from the Option key, was the #*$&!# password.
All is well.
Thanks again, very much, to everyone who gave input.
Richard