How to retrieve files from macbook?

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Hey guys, what are my options to try retrieve files from a 2008 macbook which only gets to the first screen and cannot get to the desktop please?
 
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Great if you used Time Machine to back it up to an external drive or CCC to make a clone.
 

pigoo3

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Hey guys, what are my options to try retrieve files from a 2008 macbook which only gets to the first screen and cannot get to the desktop please?

Hard to suggest exact options without more info:

- Why (or can you guess why) it is not getting to the desktop?
- What OS version is it running?
- Since it's a 2008 MacBook...do you have the original gray disks that came with it...or do you have a retail OS install disk?
- Have you tried various things such as an SMC reset, a PRAM reset, booting into Safe Mode?

* Nick
 
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Only info i got from the guy was what was posted, he should be calling me this week, I'll find out more when he calls, meantime, I could swear someone on this forum some time back had said that you could connect either the problem macbook or the hdd to another mac to retreive info that way?
 

Slydude

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You can do that but which option is best depends in part on how borked up things have gotten. Here's a quick overview of some of the options:

1. Boot the troubled MacBook in Single User mode ( command S) and run the command fsck -fy to try and correct errors.
2. If the machine is running and gets to the desktop launch Disk Utility to verify and repair the hard disk.
3. Use a second Mac in Target disc mode to repair this Mac. I think this is one of the options you were talking about but it depends upon both Macs having Firewire ports.
4. Remove the hard drive, place it in an enclosure and attempt to repair if using another Mac.

I'm sure those aren't all of the options but it will give you an idea why it's important to know hardware specifics and exactly what's wrong.
 
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Would something like an Ubuntu Live CD/USB be able to access/copy the files?
 

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