G5 won't boot?

Posted:
in Genius Bar edited January 2014
I have a dual G5 here that dosen't seem to want to start up. It makes a clicking sound, and as long as I hold down the power button the light will stay on. Yet it seems as though the machine never wants to "turn over". I installed the bluetooth update last night then shut it off. I also added an extra gig of RAM from crucial, but that has been in there for some time with out problems. Any ideas?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 11
    Do you hear the fans or your HD start up? The fans are software controlled. The click is probably your HD or power supply, most likely the HD. If the HD doesn't spin, neither do the fans. See if you can boot from CD, if you can, it's your HD.
  • Reply 2 of 11
    fulmerfulmer Posts: 171member
    I've been having the same problem lately...



    Try holding down the c key (boot from CD) even though there is no CD in the tray



    When the spinning boot icon shows up release the c.



    When you get into OSX, run disk utility on the HD.
  • Reply 3 of 11
    hold down option+command+o+f to boot into Open Firmware (if you can't do that, you definitely have a major hardware problem).



    if you get to the OF screen, type

    eject cd

    and hit return



    put in the Apple Hardware Test CD that came with your computer, or the Restore Disc that came with your computer, or the Installer disc for your current OS if it's more current than what came with your computer.



    then type

    reset-nvram

    and hit return



    then type

    reset-all

    and hit return



    then hold down the C key as soon as you reboot.



    Check back here if you need instructions on what to do next.



    (yes, I fix Macs for a living, and... YOU'RE WELCOME </nick burns, computer guy>)
  • Reply 4 of 11
    fulmerfulmer Posts: 171member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by FormerLurker

    hold down option+command+o+f to boot into Open Firmware (if you can't do that, you definitely have a major hardware problem).



    if you get to the OF screen, type

    eject cd

    and hit return



    put in the Apple Hardware Test CD that came with your computer, or the Restore Disc that came with your computer, or the Installer disc for your current OS if it's more current than what came with your computer.



    then type

    reset-nvram

    and hit return



    then type

    reset-all

    and hit return



    then hold down the C key as soon as you reboot.



    Check back here if you need instructions on what to do next.



    (yes, I fix Macs for a living, and... YOU'RE WELCOME </nick burns, computer guy>)








    Thanks for the tip, but it only fixed it once. The next time I shutdown/rebooted it happened again.



    Do you have a perminate fix?
  • Reply 5 of 11
    Quote:

    Originally posted by fulmer

    Thanks for the tip, but it only fixed it once. The next time I shutdown/rebooted it happened again.



    Do you have a perminate fix?




    Get it to boot, backup your important files to external HD/CD/DVD. Clean install OS X. Not an easy solution, but permanent.
  • Reply 6 of 11
    In case anyone cares, one of the processors had fried. Awesome.
  • Reply 7 of 11
    Quote:

    Originally posted by westonm

    In case anyone cares, one of the processors had fried. Awesome.



    That really sucks. Sorry for your loss. Your lucky you could get it to start after frying a processor, thats some serious stuff there! I hope you got Apple Care!
  • Reply 8 of 11
    Quote:

    Originally posted by westonm

    In case anyone cares, one of the processors had fried. Awesome.



    NICE!



    Can you post a pic of the dammage?



  • Reply 9 of 11
    Quote:

    Originally posted by \\/\\/ickes

    NICE!



    Can you post a pic of the dammage?







    I'm sure it's not quite as nice for him as it would be for us. Frying a G5 sucks royally. I wouldn't be too happy. Although, I would like to see a pic, if there is any visible damage.
  • Reply 10 of 11
    Quote:

    Originally posted by DMBand0026

    I'm sure it's not quite as nice for him as it would be for us. Frying a G5 sucks royally. I wouldn't be too happy. Although, I would like to see a pic, if there is any visible damage.



    I know... I know...



    "NICE" was my attempt at sarcasm.

    Killing a chip is not a good thing...



    I have killed an Athlon XP chip a year or so ago... but that was by pressure (crushing the die) not by heat.



    Again, a pic would be nice if you did indeed fry the G5. I will even host it for you if you don't have means to post it.



  • Reply 11 of 11
    Quote:

    Originally posted by westonm

    In case anyone cares, one of the processors had fried. Awesome.





    You've got me worried now...



    I've been having the same problem with my system. I can eventually get the system to boot, and when I run the Activity Monitor, it shows both CPU's working fine...\



    I think I'll run the TechTools diag just to make sure...
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