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General discussion

Install DVD will not load

Feb 27, 2011 11:30PM PST

Hello I started having a frequent need to Repair Permissions so decided to do a reinstall. When I put the install disk in the Superdrive and rebooted with C pressed I got a flashing circle with a line through it similar to the international do not enter, folowed by a folder? followed by an apple sign that is stable and a grey screen with no further activity.

When I hook up an external DVD drive to the firewire and attempt to start the computer this way the xact same happens.

Thank you.

Macbook Pro 2010

Discussion is locked

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that Install DVD,
Feb 28, 2011 2:03AM PST

may be damaged in some way or, it may not be capable of starting your version of the Macbook.


Is it the Restore disk that came with your MacBook or is it a retail OS X installation disk?

P

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wont install
Feb 28, 2011 8:34AM PST

It is a brand new 10.6.6 full instal disk

my restore disk was lost during a move
I tried Drive Genius and it would do the same

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I have run into this issue
Feb 28, 2011 10:02AM PST

I have run into this very issue twice now, having previously never seen it before. Unfortunately it's always on customer systems so I can't just wipe the drive and try to reload the OS, because they almost always pass diagnostic testing.

I just took a quick video of the issue this afternoon and sent it off to Apple to see what they have to say about it. I'll post more when I hear back. Not holding my breath for it being anything terribly enlightening, but every now and then they surprise you.

Preliminary indications seem to be that it's just a corrupted OS, because I can swap in a drive from another system and it'll boot up just fine. So it's not an EFI issue or anything with the hardware.

And while it's possible Apple just recently updated its retail discs to 10.6.6, last I checked they were still 10.6.3, and that likely wouldn't work with a Mid-2010 MBP. You'd really need to get a set of the official restore discs, because the Mid-2010 MBPs came out after 10.6.3 IIRC, and so they have a couple of special drivers not in the retail disc. If you call Apple's support line and give them the system serial number, for about $20US or so they can get you a new set of restore media. In any case, when you have issues starting the install media, it's always best to first try it with the restore media that came with the system. Then you can rule out there being any issues with the OS revision.

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install disk failure
Feb 28, 2011 12:10PM PST

THANK YOU.
InterestinglyI ran commands on a startup and got a message that drivers were absent. The disk I treed to install was 10.6.6.
If I do a firewire target mode to another computer could I erase the hard drive in this manner on the computer that wont boot?

Again thank you very much.

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Sure
Feb 28, 2011 12:54PM PST

Sure. Target disk mode basically turns your computer into a very expensive external enclosure. That's how any other Mac will see it. It will be just like any other external HDD.

If Apple has put out a 10.6.6, that SHOULD have worked, but like I said, when you run into issues like this, the first thing you should do is go back to the original restore media.

But if you do wipe the drive and reinstall the OS, let me know how that turns out. Like I said, I've run into this issue twice in about as many weeks. It's a rather curious problem, and has me intrigued. When I hear back from Apple, probably tomorrow some time, I'll share anything useful they have to say.

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Heard back
Mar 1, 2011 9:53AM PST

I heard back, and surprisingly actually managed to get a couple of the good TSPS agents. The ones who can do more than read the troubleshooting section of the service manual.

According to them, on the newer unibody MBPs the HDD bracket can be troublesome, and given it's a thin flexible cable, I can certainly see that. I've had to replace a few of them myself.

So basically they said to take the drive out and put it into an external enclosure and then try booting off of it from that. If it boots, it's a bracket problem, if it doesn't boot, it's likely a HDD problem.

In any case, if this is a Mid-2010 MBP, there's no way it could not be under warranty, so this is a purely academic discussion. You should just take it into an AASP or Apple store and let it be their problem to sort out. Part of the cost of that system was that warranty, so make use of it.