04-21-2009, 02:18 PM

*specs of problem mac in sig.

so lets see. after having frequent firefox crashes this past week, i decided to back up all my files just in case of a meltdown; used time machine for this. a few days ago i boot up my system and the desktop is completely frozen (beachball spinning). i see no files on the desktop except for the hard drive. i let it sit then it starts screen saver. once i revive it, the files are there. no freeze, weird. seems to be working fine until a couple of hours later. i had no choice but to use the power button to restart. i get a grey screen with a file and question mark. not good. so i grab the os x 10.5 dvd and reboot from the dvd. disk utility, 'repair disk' greyed out. no option for 'archive and install' either. only 'erase and install'.

i decide to try and boot up to the drive again, this time.. normal white screen with apple and saw. just no response. it keeps spinning until the screen goes to black and seems to be shut down. i started up in single user mode and did fs check. i exited and it booted up my system, still with the lingering desktop freeze. the single user start up seems to be the only way i can get to my desktop. all else fails. i realize the problem is my hard drive. i would like ideally like to archive and install os x again but i can't repair the disk. suppose i wound up erasing and installing, would my time machine back up be able to upload some files [photos, music, docs] onto the new operating system with no hassle?


(sorry if this post isn't the most structured. )
help help help!!

04-21-2009, 04:07 PM

i decide to try and boot up to the drive again, this time.. normal white screen with apple and saw. just no response. it keeps spinning until the screen goes to black and seems to be shut down. i started up in single user mode and did fs check. i exited and it booted up my system, still with the lingering desktop freeze. the single user start up seems to be the only way i can get to my desktop. all else fails. i realize the problem is my hard drive. i would like ideally like to archive and install os x again but i can't repair the disk. suppose i wound up erasing and installing, would my time machine back up be able to upload some files [photos, music, docs] onto the new operating system with no hassle?

Why bother trying to erase and install? If the hard drive is defective all you're going to do is prolong the agony...

Buy a new hard drive and use your Time Machine backup to restore everything to the new drive:

Install the new hard drive, boot the machine with your original install media, select Disk Utilities from the Utilities top menu, format the new drive as HFS Journal.

Select install from backup. (Time Machine)

Time Machine restore = Link

Regards.

04-21-2009, 08:00 PM

thank you chscag.

it seems like quite the challenge in replacing the hard drive in the model i own.
AMFITEATAR - Naucni portal - Upgrade your iMac 20" or iMac 24" aluminum 2007, 2008 & 2009 to 1.5TB Hard Drive - DIY Guide

but nevertheless, it must be done. anyone else have any success stories in replacing the hard drive? any tips, suggestions, warnings?