What would cause OSX to freeze at startup? 1

[THK1138]

I have a G4 with a 1Ghz processor and 768 MB RAM. A 30GB Primary drive and a 120GB secondary drive. I've had it for about 1 year and it's never given me any problems until now.

I started it up, and it began to load updates. One was for QuickTime, and the other was a system update. The updates seemed to go fine, but when it restarted, it just froze at the startup screen with the OSX logo with desktop background. The mouse moves, but that's about it. After several restarts and power downs it still does the same thing. If I recall correctly, it is version 10.0.4.

Are there any key combinations I can use that are similar to windows safe mode, or a way to undo the update? Though I've had the Mac for a while, I seldom used it and am not as familiar with it as I am with Windows. I'd like to get back into to it, but all I have is a G4 disk with OS 9 I bought to update the BIOS for the new processor. BTW, I did the BIOS update and processor when I first got it, so I don't think that has anything to do with the problem I'm having now.

Any help for a Mac newbie would be greatly appreciated.

 

[brontosaurus]

Start in Safe Mode:

With computer off, press the power button.
Immediately after you hear the startup tone, press and hold the Shift key.
Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple progress indicator

If that doesn't work, and if you have the OS CD, boot with that and run diagnostics.

 

[drlex]

If you'll excuse a comment that's not directly related to you problem and on the basis that you solve your issue, I'd heartily recommend that you upgrade from 10.0.4 to at least 10.3.x (Panther)- you'll see a helluva performance boost.

I have an iMac G4 800MHz & 1GB that was originally supplied with 10.2 - it's now on 10.3.9 (and I'm waiting to see what 10.5 will be like). Out of interest when I first got it, I loaded 10.0 that I bought for my G3 iMac. It was pretty darn slow in comparison with 10.3.5 that I then installed over it.

[If, of course, 10.0.4 was a typo for 10.4.0, please ignore the above.]

soi la, soi carré

 

[THK1138]

Please forgive the typo, I know it causes confusion and can be a waste of good advice. It was late, as it is now and my eyes are/were crossing. It is 10.0.4, and ran like a tiger. Alas, I purchased the Mac on an auction site, and the seller did not bother to include the OS DVD or CDs whichever he loaded it with.

I did try the brontosaurus tip to no avail right to the letter. I also tried some other tips found at:

http://www.fif3.com/howto/archives/001983.html

In addition, I found many helpful key combinations at Apple's website. I would consider purchasing an upgrade to 10.4.9 if I thought it would keep my files and programs intact. Otherwise I suppose I would have to start fresh.

 

[drlex]

Without existing DVDs/CDs, you look to have a few options:
1) Try booting with a data recovery tool like Disk Warrior or Drive Genius to see whether the bad file(s) can be repaired. Might be unsuccessful, but these applications can be useful later.

2) Hit eBay or a local mac reseller for a retail copy of Mac OS X. eBay should give you a choice of 'cats' (Leopard/Panther/Tiger); retailers will be Tiger only.

3) Getting a friend with a mac to access your boot-up disk over fire-wire in target disk mode and run diagnostics/repair utilities.

good luck!

soi la, soi carré

 

[THK1138]

OK, I a purchased a OSX 10.4.9 Tiger Upgrade on eBay. I have a G4 OS 9.2 disk, so I could always use it anyway. It is my understanding that I could do the upgrade and keep my files and programs intact. The auction also came with a Developer Tool xCode and CD Disk, which I have no clue what do with.

Meantime, I'll remove non essential peripherals as my next step. Can't afford Disk Warrior after buying Tiger, but DW does seem to be the disk tool of choice from what I've been able to gather here and there.

Thanks for the tips drlex, but I don't know anyone that has a mac, so I'll be going with tip #2 at this point. Too bad it's the weekend so I won't be seeing the DVD and CD until next Tuesday or Wednesday. But I won't be sitting on my hands until then. From the advice I'm getting through this thread, I just may be able to resurrect it.

Never give up, never surrender! I'll get this puppy figured out if it kills me.

 

[drlex]

You should be fine with the 'archive and install' option, assuming you've got enough disk space. Check the Apple knowledge base for a description of the action, but in effect your previous system folder is renamed and a new one created and 'blessed' as the boot folder.

The only downside might be that if the directory of you HDD is damaged, the install might over-write existing files. I think this is very unlikely, and I don't want to scare you, but be aware of the possibility.

I had a similar experience to you, in that one system file must have been corrupted and my machine wouldn't boot. Disk warrior or drive genius (I can't recall which) reported a problem on the directory (b-tree) and tried rebuilding. The problem persisted, but an archive and re-install of the OS solved the problem and no other files were affected.

soi la, soi carré

 

[THK1138]

Well, drlex, et al,
I finally got it up and running. I got the OS X 10.4 upgrade DVD, and had to load OS 9.2.1 to run it. I thought I could run the upgrade just by holding the C key, but no, I had to completely install 9.2.1, then the OS X icon showed up on the desktop where I could finally double-click it and OS X installation began. I did choose the 'archive and install' option and that brought my old desktop background and desktop icons back. There are 3 aliases missing from the dock, but they're Micro$oft apps. No big loss.

Thank you all for your help. I think I'm up and running again!

 

[drlex]

Yay/woot/rah!
and thanks for the star.
I guess you needed to load OS 9 on the basis OS X was an upgrade disk - at least one can let it get on with the job unattended.

I recall reading reports from new users to Tiger that mentioned it was a little slow at first, due to 'spotlight' indexing the contents of their hard drive.

soi la, soi carré