Mac Book Pro OS-X repair

My 2009 MacBook Pro was working fine but shut down spontaneously today. I attempted several times to reboot but the system would not complete before shutting down. I used the command R after the apple log appeared to determine if a repair could be made internally, but a message indicated a "sibling link" problem. I plan to visit the Genius Bar tomorrow at the local Apple store but thought to check in here first for any further suggestions.
Thank you!

That particular error is indicative of a defective hard drive. Hopefully you have been making backups?


Added edit: Do not double post. Your duplicate has been removed.

2009 MacBook Pro

chscag said:

That particular error is indicative of a defective hard drive. Hopefully you have been making backups?


Added edit: Do not double post. Your duplicate has been removed.

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Thanks for your reply. It was a good run for the now almost seven year old laptop - any thoughts for a comparable good replacement under $1300? I don't need a lot of storage.

If you liked it, and if it was running well except for the drive, it would be a lot less expensive to replace the dead drive with an SSD. You'll see a huge improvement in speed.

MacInWin said:

If you liked it, and if it was running well except for the drive, it would be a lot less expensive to replace the dead drive with an SSD. You'll see a huge improvement in speed.

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Thanks for the very helpful advice! My lack of knowledge would not have considered this option - good to know!! -Holly