Unfortunately, any computer user may encounter a problem when operating system Mac won't boot and seems to freeze during the loading process. It usually looks like this: the computer starts to boot, the Apple logo appears on the screen as usual, but then nothing happens - the system does not boot, and the computer does nothing but forced shutdown The power button does not respond. In other cases, a loading indicator may appear under the Apple logo (similar to the one shown in the image above), but then nothing happens. Why does this happen and how can you fight it? Is it required in such cases? Let's figure it out in order.

Why Mac won't boot and freezes at the Apple logo

The reasons why the Mac stopped booting can be different:

• Operating system failure due to damage to important system files(for example, in case of incorrect installation of a system component update, or installation of a new OS).
• Damage to system files due to malware.
• Lack of free space on the computer boot volume.
• Inability to detect the boot volume due to a software error or cable damage hard drive(a clear symptom of this is).
• Malfunction of hardware components (damage to the hard drive or SSD, defective video chip, etc.).

Mac won't boot and freezes. What to do?

Depending on the reasons for the problem, there are different variations of its solution. Some you can try to implement yourself, while others can only be implemented by a specialist at a service center. Below we will give some recommendations on what you can do if your Mac stops booting and hangs on Apple logo or loading indicator. Let's start with something simple.

Boot in Safe Mode

Few people know that the operating room Mac system OS allows you to boot into Safe mode, which allows you to identify various software errors systems. In Safe mode, only the system kernel with the main important functions is loaded, and when the computer boots in safe mode, the file system is checked for errors and, if possible, eliminated. Therefore, in most mild cases, booting your Mac into Safe Mode followed by a graceful soft reboot may solve the problem if your Mac won't boot and freezes.

In order to boot your Mac (it doesn't matter whether it's a MacBook, iMac or Mac Mini) in safe mode, you need to When you turn on the computer, hold down the "Shift" key on the keyboard and hold until the loading indicator bar appears. Please note that macOS boot time in safe mode takes significantly longer than a standard operating system boot, so we recommend being patient.

Correcting Errors Using Disk Utility

Disk Utility is a specialized application for working with the boot volume and file system MacOS, which allows, in addition to standard features formatting or partitioning the disk, checking the disk and boot partition for errors and correct access rights to system files.

To run Disk Utility if your computer won't boot normally, you need to boot from the built-in MacOS recovery partition. For this it is necessary When you turn on the computer, press the Alt/Option (⌥) button and hold it until the boot partition selection screen appears, then select the Recovery partition. Force booting from MacOS recovery partition can be done by pressing a keyboard shortcut Command (⌘)-R when you start the computer.

When the recovery partition is launched, you need to select "Disk Utility":

In Disk Utility, select the "First Aid" section and click "Run" (relevant for MacOS versions El Capitan and Sierra), or manually select "Check Disk" and "Check Permissions" (available for OS X Yosemite and older). If, at the end of the process, the disk utility reports that the disk is good or restored, then try restarting the computer and check the loading of the operating system again. If the errors found are successfully corrected, MacOS should boot correctly in normal mode.

If, during the scanning process, the disk utility displays an error message that cannot be corrected, you should think about how to save important files and documents, and then reinstall the operating system.

Reinstalling the MacOS operating system

If your Mac won't boot and is stuck at the loading indicator, and recovery regular means does not give results, then, most likely, it will hardly be possible to do without reinstalling the operating system. At the same time, given the fact that the computer does not boot, retrieving the user’s files and documents can be very problematic.

To extract files from a boot volume that can't start, you'll either need to connect your computer to another Mac in external drive(the method is not very simple and requires a second Mac computer, FireWire or Thunderbolth cable, as well as strict compliance with the Mac OS versions on both computers), or connect to the computer from an external drive with an installed operating system, or special software for extracting and transferring data.

Unfortunately, not everyone Mac user there is the possibility of carrying out similar manipulations and, faced with a situation where their computer stops loading correctly and freezes, and simple ways solutions to the problem do not help, they simply do not know what to do. If your MacBook Pro, MacBook Air or iMac does not boot or the operating system freezes when loading, you can always contact our service center specialists for help. will be carried out as quickly as possible, taking into account all your wishes about saving important data and the desired settings that our employees will make for your computer so that it pleases its stable work for a very long time yet.

If your macbook freezes on the apple, we can fix it quickly - in 30 minutes. Contact us!

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11 comments to the article "What to do if your Mac does not boot and freezes at the Apple logo"

I have exactly the same problem - my Mac won't boot and freezes at the Apple logo
It hangs on the apple for a long time, then a chamomile appears, starts spinning, and so on ad infinitum.
I have important data there and I'm afraid of losing it. Can you restore both the data and the functionality of my MacBook?

• Hello Alexander!
  Sometimes, such problems are associated with the physical death of the hard drive on your Macbook. Unfortunately, hard drives on MacBooks fail, and not as rarely as we would like. If this is your situation, then we will need to separately remove the data that can be saved. After that buy new hard disk, install it, and return all saved data back, after installing the system.
  The cost of such a service is agreed upon with the client, after a thorough diagnosis of hard drive damage.

Fair, not overpriced and not underestimated. There should be prices on the Service website. Necessarily! without asterisks, clear and detailed, where technically possible - as accurate and concise as possible.

If spare parts are available, up to 85% of complex repairs can be completed in 1-2 days. Modular repairs require much less time. The website shows the approximate duration of any repair.

Warranty and responsibility

A guarantee must be given for any repairs. Everything is described on the website and in the documents. The guarantee is self-confidence and respect for you. A 3-6 month warranty is good and sufficient. It is needed to check quality and hidden defects that cannot be detected immediately. You see honest and realistic terms (not 3 years), you can be sure that they will help you.

Half the battle is Apple repair- this is the quality and reliability of spare parts, so a good service works with suppliers directly, there are always several reliable channels and your own warehouse with proven spare parts for current models, so that you do not have to waste extra time.

Free diagnostics

This is very important and has already become a rule of good manners for the service center. Diagnostics is the most difficult and important part of the repair, but you don't have to pay a penny for it, even if you don't repair the device based on its results.

Service repairs and delivery

Good service We value your time, which is why we offer free shipping. And for the same reason, repairs are carried out only in the workshop of a service center: they can be done correctly and according to technology only in a prepared place.

Convenient schedule

If the Service works for you, and not for itself, then it is always open! absolutely. The schedule should be convenient to fit in before and after work. Good service works on weekends and holidays. We are waiting for you and working on your devices every day: 9:00 - 21:00

The reputation of professionals consists of several points

Company age and experience

Reliable and experienced service has been known for a long time.
If a company has been on the market for many years and has managed to establish itself as an expert, people turn to it, write about it, and recommend it. We know what we are talking about, since 98% of incoming devices in the service center are restored.
They trust us and convey complex cases other service centers.

How many masters in areas

If there are always several engineers waiting for you for each type of equipment, you can be sure:
1. there will be no queue (or it will be minimal) - your device will be taken care of right away.
2. you give to Macbook repair an expert in the field of Mac repairs. He knows all the secrets of these devices

Technical literacy

If you ask a question, a specialist should answer it as accurately as possible.
So that you can imagine what exactly you need.
They will try to solve the problem. In most cases, from the description you can understand what happened and how to fix the problem.

As they say, “there are no devices that will stop working at some point in time.” This statement can also be applied to the product Apple– MacBook. Despite stability and performance, sometimes the system crashes. Moreover, there were no obvious reasons (for example, a blow or a fall) before the problem.

If the PC does not turn on for some reason, do not panic, you need to calmly analyze the situation and try to solve the problem yourself. In this article we will tell you several ways to eliminate the problem.

Mac beeps on startup - what to do?

When starting up, strange noises are made from the case. This may be a crackling noise, then the cooler on the processor is not working correctly. If the PC emits a kind of systematic squeak, it is necessary to determine its nature:

• One signal that repeats with a frequency of 5 seconds is not detected RAM devices. In this case, you need to remove the bottom cover of the laptop and move (or shake off the dust) the RAM.
• Three beeps that repeat after 5 seconds – the memory has failed the system test. Perhaps the user recently changed the OP and did not insert it into the connector correctly. In this case, you need to remove and install the memory or put the memory stick in another slot.
• One long squeak when you turn on the laptop from the button - this is how PCs released before 2012 react to firmware updates. In this case, you need to turn on your Mac a little later.
• Three long and three short signals that alternate in turn - thus, the computer lets you know that its firmware is damaged. If the PC model was released later than 2012, then the firmware will update on its own, you just don’t need to disturb the system at this moment. If the model was released earlier than 2012, then the firmware must be restored at a service center.

What to do if your Mac doesn't respond to the power button at all?

1. In this case, you need to check if your Mac is receiving power. Your PC's battery may be low and you need to connect it to the network.
2. If the charge indicator does not light up when connected, you need to check the battery itself. This requires turning off the power, removing the battery, then turning on your Mac again. If it works, the problem is in the battery. If not, there may be a problem with the PC's power supply.

If your Mac makes a startup sound but the screen won't turn on

• There is a button for adjusting the display brightness on the device's keyboard. If the brightness is set to 0, then the picture will not be visible. It is recommended to increase the brightness. This problem often occurs among users who have children.

Photo: Buttons for adjusting brightness MacBook monitor

• If the brightness is normal, but the picture does not appear, the problem may be in the cable that connects motherboard computer and monitor. It will be very problematic to check the problem yourself; it is better to contact a service center for help.
• The problem may be not only in the cable, but also in the failure of the device’s video card. If the cable just “breaks through”, then you can open and close the lid. At some point the picture may appear. But if the card is faulty, this will not happen. In some cases, the Mac will beep frequently, with single beeps repeated every 2 to 3 seconds.

If the OS stops loading and the Mac reboots

• You can try turning off your computer and turning it back on after a few minutes. This problem may occur if the operating system was not shut down correctly before.
• You can try starting the OS in safe mode. To do this, upon startup, hold down the Shift key until the company label appears. Then you need to select the download mode.
• If the problem is not solved, then you should reset NVRAM settings(memory chip with primary instructions for running Mac). To do this, at startup, you should simultaneously hold down Option, Command, P and R. You must hold them until you restart the computer.

• If the system crashes when loading an account, you can try changing the user. If this is not possible, then you need to try to go to safe mode under account administrator.
• If all else fails, then you should use system recovery using Disk Utility. To do this, when loading, you must simultaneously hold down the “Command” and “R” buttons on the keyboard. Next, it is recommended to follow the system prompts to restore the OS. You may need to reinstall macOS.

If, after completing all the steps, the MacBook still does not boot or show any signs of life, then it is recommended to take the device to a service center.

It is unlikely that anyone will argue with the fact that Apple technology is of high quality and reliable. It is worth noting that most modern and recently released laptops from other manufacturers are much inferior to the MacBooks of 2008. All available models in the line work without failures or freezes, but this does not guarantee uninterrupted operation of the device. Sometimes unexpected situations happen. This is exactly what this article is dedicated to. Let's look at the reasons why your MacBook may not turn on, and how to fix them.

How can you tell if your MacBook won't turn on?

In order to understand that the equipment does not turn on, you do not need to have skill or any special knowledge. When loading, it is enough to pay attention to what is drawn on the screen. If a folder icon appears gray, on which - exclamation mark, that means there is a problem with the laptop. There is no need to panic right away. If there is no system failure, then laptop technologies are capable of protecting all the data on the hard drive.

How to reset settings?

If a slight freeze occurs and you don’t want to spend a lot of time with recovery, you can use the EFI memory quick rollback function. All data after this will not be deleted and will remain on the hard drive. What needs to be done for this? First, turn off the laptop by holding down the Command-P-R-Option buttons and pressing the power key. It’s worth pressing on them until loading screen. This will quickly get rid of freezes, the memory will be cleared, and the operation of the MacBook will be completely restored. In the future, to avoid such troubles, it is better to backup your computer and place it on any cloud storage. Then, in the event of an unexpected failure, it will be easy to restore all data.

If after such manipulation the laptop still does not start, then you need to check state of hard disk, as well as how the cable is attached to the motherboard.

Possible reasons

Before choosing ways to solve the problem, you need to determine why the freeze occurred. The question of why the MacBook won’t turn on will bother every owner who finds himself in this situation. What caused the software to turn off: a system failure, a memory or processor error, or some other problem? In addition, a breakdown could occur as a result unstable work operating system. Often such a reaction occurs in a laptop during the update process. Sometimes this happens when you connect an incompatible device to a MacBook. This problem can be easily solved - just turn off all additional equipment.

Fixing the problem: first method

First of all, you should use safe way turning on the laptop - Safe Boot. What is it for? When working with it, the MacBook only downloads software, which is verified and installed from certified sources. In order to turn on the laptop in this mode, you need to press the Shift button and then carry out the usual manipulations. Unfortunately, the download process can be long, but you shouldn’t rush or interrupt it, because all data should remain unharmed.

If the user needs to do detailed download In order to understand why the failure occurred, you should start turning on the laptop in the usual way, additionally holding down the Command, Shift and V keys. Then the MacBook will boot into safe mode with the ability to view all the startup details. In other words, Verbose Mode is additionally activated. What does this mean? This download method allows you to find out all the information about the utility and driver files, as well as see all the errors that occurred as a result of their operation.

If after such a launch the laptop functions normally, then it can be loaded as standard. But sometimes this method does not help solve the current problem, then you need to proceed to the second option for troubleshooting. If after this the MacBook Pro does not turn on, what to do, you can understand further.

Fixing the problem: second method

Of course, a laptop may freeze and not turn on for many reasons. If we assume that the problem is with the hard drive, then you can use the Disk Utility program to check its status.

First of all, you need to turn off your laptop. If the display shows a gray/blue/other color screen and this cannot be done, you will have to forcefully turn off the power. To do this, just hold down the start button for 7 seconds.

Now you can open recovery mode. It is from this that you need to launch Disk Utility. How to do this? You need to hold down the MacBook's power button, as well as Command and R at the same time. After this, the user will see a screen with utility icons installed in the operating system. You need to find the Disk Utility program and run it. Now you need to find the name of your hard drive on the screen and enable checking it. After finishing, you need to fix all the problems and restart the laptop. However, if the MacBook turns on and off, and the methods described above did not help, then proceed to the next step.

Fixing the problem: third method

If the user has made a backup copy of documents, but cannot get to it due to a failure in the MacBook, then the third method will suit him. You need to enter the external disk mode, which is called Target Disk Mode.

How to launch it? A second MacBook is required. It is needed to connect them with one cable. Now you can turn on your own laptop. If any problems arise, you can hold down the power button for a few seconds until the logo appears. Now you immediately need to press the T key. Keep it in this state until the inscription appears on the screen in the form of Thunderbolt. External disk mode has started. On at the moment a laptop is actually just that, and not a traditional computer. If the download is successful, a new one will appear. hard drive. Thanks to this, you can easily transfer the necessary data to this medium. You are now allowed to restore your laptop. Even if the information is deleted from the main disk, it will remain on the new secondary disk.

Fixing the problem: the fourth method

If none of the methods described above could help resolve the problem and its results, and the MacBook screen does not turn on, then the last option remains - reinstalling the operating system. In order to do everything correctly and not end up with a crash, you need to enable the laptop recovery mode. How to do this is indicated above in the article: you should press the MacBook start button while holding down the R and Command keys.

After this, the operating system will turn on. You need to find the Reinstall menu. A dialog box will open. You must follow all the instructions described in it. Now the question of what to do if the MacBook does not turn on should resolve itself.

None of us will doubt the reliability of the MacBook from Apple, because even the 2008 models still provide good competition to some modern laptops. Therefore, we can confidently say that the Apple Macbook works without freezing and practically does not break down, however, this does not mean that in some cases the laptop will always work like a clock. I would like to reflect the answer options for why the MacBook won’t turn on and their solutions in this article for our readers.

Firstly, a signal that the Macbook will not boot may be the appearance on the computer screen of an icon in the form of a gray folder with a question mark. But for now there should be no reason to panic, since the reliability of the technology allows you to save your data before the computer is turned off. Assuming that no system failure has occurred, then, no matter what, internal memory device, all information must be saved.

How to reset Macbook Pro and Macbook Air?

If your MacBook has a slight freeze and you want to quickly recover all data without loss, then you need to reset the EFI memory settings. To do this, turn off the computer, and then, while holding down the Command P R Option buttons, press the power key, while continuing to hold all keys until the next time the system greeting appears on the computer screen. This maneuver will help avoid system freezes and save data stored on the computer, as well as completely restore work on the Macbook. In the future, it is better to back up your computer data to cloud storage in case of an unexpected failure.

If after the operation your MacBook Air does not boot on its own again, check the condition of the hard drive, as well as the moment of connecting the HDD cable to the motherboard.

Saving data when your MacBook freezes is one of the main tasks, so you need to know the procedure to follow, after which your computer will be restored again along with all the data. But first we need to find out why this freeze happened? Firstly, there could be a problem with the computer, namely: memory failure, processor error, controller failure and other reasons. Secondly, a breakdown can also occur with the operating system, for example, when updating it to EI Capitan. Thirdly, the reason for the freeze may be the emergence of new connections that are not always compatible with the computer. In the latter case, you simply need to disconnect all additional device connections from the USB ports.

To correctly determine the cause of the failure, you need to check the battery and make sure that it is not discharged or has not stopped working, because if the battery runs out while updating the OS program on a MacBook, the entire system will most likely freeze. So, it’s worth considering several ways to fix the computer freezing problem.

Method 1. Safe Boot - safe boot mode

First of all, use a security mode in which the MacBook will only load verified content when it starts. To do this, deactivate the MacBook and then turn it on while holding down the “SHIFT” button. Starting a MacBook this way takes a lot of time, however, there is no need to rush, because it is more important to boot with the least loss.

If you have to carry out a more detailed download to fully determine the cause of the failure, then you need to boot the MacBook by holding down several buttons: Command + Shift + V. This will give you the opportunity to launch Safe Mode on your Macbook and view the details of launching Verbose Mode, including the causes of problems.

What does verbose mode mean? Loading Verbose Mode is a method of loading an operating system in which specific information appears on the display about the downloaded files of drivers and programs and displays in detail all the processes occurring in the system during the boot process of the MacBook.

If after the above-described download your computer can be fully restored, then perform a standard reboot of the operating system. If this method did not help you solve the Macbook freezing problem, then in the future we recommend that you turn to the next method to solve the problem.

Method 2: Download via Disk Utility

It is clear that the MacBook may not turn on and freeze for various reasons. If we assume that this is not a hardware problem, but that the hard drive is to blame, then it will not be difficult to check the cause if you run Disk Utility or Disk Utility on your MAC.

First you need to turn off your computer. If your MacBook displays a blue, gray or other color screen with a spinning boot button, then, unfortunately, you will have to forcefully turn off your MAC by holding down the computer start button for 5-8 seconds.

Next, to activate Disk Utility, you need to open the recovery mode in your operating system. You can do this in the following way. Hold two buttons simultaneously Command and R and press the power key. Upon successful login, a screen named MAC OS X Utilities will open in front of you. Now look for the Disk Utility icon on the open screen to activate it. Next, click the name of your MAC's hard drive, which is located on the screen to the left of Disk Utility. Next, start the verification by activating the Verify Disk line and wait until it finishes. Finally, activate the verification process by clicking on the Repair Disk line. Next, all that remains is to start your computer again.

Method 3: Launch an external drive

Sometimes it’s better to play it safe, so you end up in a situation where there is not a single backup copy of your data, and your computer has frozen inappropriately. Even if you have saved repeatedly backups data, but how to get to it now? This problem was easily solved by your Apple Macbook, since you can use a special external disk mode - Target Disk Mode.

The sequence of actions to start an external drive consists of the following order. It won't take long to get started additional computer MAS. Once the second computer is found, connect them using a certified Thunderbolt cable. The next step is to turn off your MacBook, and if necessary, press and hold Power button for a few seconds until the laptop can boot. After your computer starts booting, immediately press the “T” key and hold it down until the Thunderbolt entry appears as an icon on your frozen color screen.

This starts external disk mode. Essentially, the laptop plays the role of an external drive, and not the usual computer. If everything went well, the Finder will soon display an external device - a new hard drive. Using this unusual convenience, you can copy and save all your necessary data before the computer is restored.

After everything is saved to the external hard drive, you will have to move it to the Finder, just like you would with a real drive. Then disconnect the Thunderbolt cable and start the laptop by holding the Power button again.

Method 4: Restart the operating system

When none of the methods worked positive results, and your MAC is still hanging, the last option is to reinstall OS X. To do everything according to the rules, you need to turn on the laptop in recovery mode and exactly repeat all the steps specified in option 2. In particular, we launch the MacBook with the using the R+Command buttons.

After the operating system starts, find the Reinstall OS X line and, following the instructions that appear on the display, follow all the steps to restart the operating system.

If, after all the work done, your MAC does not start again, then, alas, perhaps the problem lies in the hardware and you need to contact a service center, since some parts have failed or the cable is broken. However, such a failure could also occur due to replacing old and connecting new equipment that is not compatible with your OS X. For example, if you install someone else’s memory module on your MAC. Therefore, carry out repairs of your devices only in certified service centers and don't be fooled by the cheapness.

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