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Resolved Question

Cannot restart OS Lion after installing new firmware?

by Sep 19, 2011 7:29PM PDT

Yesterday I was prompted to install new software updates on my new (1 week old) Macbook Pro.. It went through the process of installing new firmware with the normal 'dont touch whilst installing' warning,it then did the grey screen with tracking instalation bar and then asked to be restarted, which I did!
Now it just sits there with a grey screen and the fan on full spin! It did this for about an hour before I decided to shut it down.. Still doing it this morning with no signs of starting up.. Help please!

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wimware has chosen the best answer to their question. View answer
7 Posts
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Best Answer

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Since this sounds like
by Sep 19, 2011 11:04PM PDT

Since this sounds like a SMC update gone bad, you may be looking at getting the logic board replaced here.

First though, go to Apple's support site and look up on how to reset the SMC on your particular model. Try that first, and if it doesn't solve the problem, then you'll have to take it in to get the logic board replaced.

Since it's only about a week old, and thus within a pretty standard 30 day return period, if you requested they just swap it out for a brand new unit I would say you stand a pretty high chance of success. Worst case scenario you're looking at probably 3-5 days to get the MLB replaced.

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Replacement on it's way!
by wimware Sep 20, 2011 1:10AM PDT

Thanks Jimmy, very helpful.

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Answer
Insert the Recovery DVD
by Forum moderator Sep 19, 2011 9:52PM PDT

that came with the MBP.
Shut the machine down by holding the power button down until it shuts off

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Unfortunately
by Jimmy Greystone Sep 19, 2011 10:58PM PDT

Unfortunately, the new MBPs and MBAirs don't come with any restore media. They have a firmware which is apparently capable of bootstrapping itself off a netinstall server Apple has set up.

It's really annoying on the ASP side, because there are no real options for ASPs to restore customer units. We either have to download the OS individually on each unit, which is needlessly time consuming, and a complete waste of bandwidth, or ASPs can buy a single use flash drive. From what I'm told, it locks itself to a specific unit when used.

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I wasn't aware of that,
by mrmacfixit Forum moderator Sep 20, 2011 2:33AM PDT

seems a little short sighted, especially as not everyone has Broadband and I know two people who have computers but do not have Internet Access at all!

oh well, such is 'progress"


P

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I think you covered that before!
by macnerd10 Sep 20, 2011 4:21AM PDT

The recovery partition does what you described, but to restore the OS, the computer will redownload Lion again (3.4 GB). And Jimmy is right - it would never occur to a new user to create a DVD/flash drive to boot Lion; on top of that from what??? The situation seems to be crazy: people who upgraded to Lion can use the installer to create bootable media but those who get a new computer with Lion have no option but to buy the Apple dongle for 70 bucks. Unless the recovery partition allows just a download of the OS, which I am not sure about. It would be nice to find out; if it does, I take my words back.

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I fully agree
by Jimmy Greystone Sep 20, 2011 11:04AM PDT

I fully agree, and have added my voice to what I understand is a veritable chorus of complaints from ASPs in just the US, probably worldwide. Hopefully they'll at least offer something akin to the old retail DVDs. Don't care if it's an actual DVD or USB flash drive, just so long as it'll boot pretty much any unit and let me install the OS sans-Internet.

The other thing that strikes me, is more and more ISPs are imposing bandwidth caps on their service, and this seems to be happening at the same time more and more companies are going to digital distribution methods. This is just a train wreck waiting to happen, and the fallout is likely going to affect ISPs and companies like Apple pushing this online only thing. If you need to restore your iPhone/Pod/Pad you have to do it via iTunes which downloads the image every time. Now if you're going to add Mac OS X to that list, that can eat up a big chunk of your monthly bandwidth. Someone who has a cellular modem, which usually has somewhere around a 5GB/mo cap, could see their entire months allotment basically wiped out in a single day.

Something is going to have to give at some point.

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