I think this is bad. This might be bad...right?

My 2008, 2.66 GHz Intel Core Duo, 4 Gb 800 MHz DDR2 SDRAM iMac using OS X Leopard (10.5.8) has been acting up lately.

Sometimes when I boot it up I will get the question mark in the folder and what sounds like whale noises underwater. Talked to the Apple rep in town at the local business which sells Apple products, we theorize it could be the fan not working properly and thus things tend to overheat, thus things won't work well.

But i just got this:

Below is the screen shot, here is a cut and paste:

Verifying volume “Macintosh HD”

Performing live verification.
Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
Checking Extents Overflow file.
Checking Catalog file.
Checking multi-linked files.
Checking Catalog hierarchy.
Checking Extended Attributes file.
Checking volume bitmap.
Checking volume information.
Invalid volume file count
(It should be 830940 instead of 831034)
Invalid volume directory count
(It should be 212714 instead of 212615)
The volume Macintosh HD needs to be repaired.

Error: Filesystem verify or repair failed.


This is also what I get with the Serial-ATA

Intel ICH8-M AHCI:

Vendor: Intel
Product: ICH8-M AHCI
Speed: 3 Gigabit
Description: AHCI Version 1.10 Supported

WDC WD3200AAJS-40VWA1:

Capacity: 298.09 GB
Model: WDC WD3200AAJS-40VWA1
Revision: 58.01D02
Serial Number: WD-WCARW6385145
Native Command Queuing: Yes
Queue Depth: 32
Removable Media: No
Detachable Drive: No
BSD Name: disk0
Mac OS 9 Drivers: No
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status: Verified
Volumes:
Macintosh HD:
Capacity: 297.77 GB
Available: 32.93 GB
Writable: Yes
File System: Journaled HFS+
BSD Name: disk0s2
Mount Point: /






I'm really not sure what to do here. I am on limited funds and the local Apple representative store in town charges $55 for a diagnostic, $95 for repair (though the $55 is included as part of the $95; I won't be paying $150, just the additional $40 if it's required).

I'm not sure if this is a cooling temperature issue or a memory issue or what. I just know things aren't working as they should. Need some help or advice, please.

Lately, sometimes I will get that annoying spinning rainbow for a minute or two then things will work just "fine."

First is this an iMac?

That sound you are hearing also could be the hard drive dying and the flashing ??? and other symptoms also scream that. The noise could be a fan but I wonder.

Have you tried booting with your OSX DVD and running Disk Utility from there?

The drive is passing SMART but still could be dying!

Yes this is a desktop iMac, I think it's a 17". It's one of the older models, purchased in December 2008 from the local retailer.

I tried running Disk Utility from the OSX DVD but I'm not sure if I did things correctly. This is where I shut down the computer, pop the disk in and hold down the C key right? or do I not need to hold down the C key?

You start holding down the C key right after the startup sound and keep it down till the Apple shows up. Then it should be booting from the OSX DVD. When you get to the installer menu, look up top and for utilities and then Disk Utility.

The noise that comes through when the question mark appears sounds a bit like whale noises underwater or maybe a squeaky wheel. This is why yes it might be the hard drive but we thought also the possibility of a fan needing to be replaced or cleaned as well. However things sometimes have just 'stopped' where the spinning rainbow takes place and I have had to shut down manually as a result.


Would a 'dying' hard drive be able to be repaired or just replaced? And what is a typical cost for an iMac hard drive? If such a price may be found.

That sure sounds like the drive. Any SATA 3.5 hard drive would work. I can give you a few URLs if you need them.

URLs wouldn't hurt for the moment, I'm just wondering how much cost it could be to replace/repair the hard drive.

Drive prices have shot up!

Search Results for Western Digital at MacSales.com

They have a 160 GB for cheap.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Hitachi...rive/3931876.p?id=1218443184943&skuId=3931876

Prices have skyrocketed and just recently. I was not aware they have gone so high.

Hmm well for me the cheaper the better, I am just wondering if it will be possible to save all information currently on this drive if I buy a new one and have the Apple dealership install it for me.

If I were you I would stop using the current drive and get a new one ASAP. Put the old on e in an external exclosure and if the thing still works, transfer the files over.

The more you power up that drive the larger the chance of having it fail totally and loosing everything.

So this is what I get when I click the 'Repair Disk Permissions' option.

Can anyone please explain to me what if anything this means below?



Repairing permissions for “Macintosh HD”
Reading permissions database.
Reading the permissions database can take several minutes.

Permissions differ on "private/var/log/secure.log", should be -rw------- , they are -rw-r----- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/DVD.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/FRSettings.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/FRSources.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Movies.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Music.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Photos.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/Podcasts.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/CoreServices/Front Row.app/Contents/PlugIns/TV.frappliance/Contents/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Permissions differ on "System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/BackRow.framework/Versions/A/CodeResources", should be -rw-r--r-- , they are lrw-r--r-- .
Warning: SUID file "System/Library/Filesystems/AppleShare/afpLoad" has been modified and will not be repaired.
Warning: SUID file "System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/DiskManagement.framework/Versions/A/Resources/DiskManagementTool" has been modified and will not be repaired.
Warning: SUID file "bin/rcp" has been modified and will not be repaired.
Warning: SUID file "usr/bin/rlogin" has been modified and will not be repaired.
Warning: SUID file "usr/bin/rsh" has been modified and will not be repaired.
Warning: SUID file "usr/sbin/pppd" has been modified and will not be repaired.
Warning: SUID file "usr/sbin/vpnd" has been modified and will not be repaired.

Permissions repair complete