Q: My mac can't boot

I was trying to download windows on my usb drive and i think i accendentaly erased something. The weird thing is normally I have never partioned my sdd an d whe i was on disk utility (recovery mode) there was a new partition named Untitled. I can see that there all my data (i think) but i can't boot on my startup disk. When i try to boot there is afolder with a question mark on.

-Thanks in advance

- Sorry for my bad englis

MacBook Air, OS X El Capitan (10.11), Machintosh HD

Posted on Nov 2, 2015 10:08 AM

I have this question too

Q: My mac can't boot

All replies

Helpful answers

Page 1

by Pmintz25,

Pmintz25 Nov 2, 2015 10:11 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 4 (1,634 points)

Nov 2, 2015 10:11 AM in response to MacLovah

Turn the computer on and hold Option immediately. See if your hard drive appears.

If you are using Bootcamp to install Windows, it partitions your hard drive for you.
Reply options

Link to this post

by OGELTHORPE,

OGELTHORPE Nov 2, 2015 10:12 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 9 (52,343 points)

Mac OS X

Nov 2, 2015 10:12 AM in response to MacLovah

Reset the SMC and the NVRAM:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204063

Then try a safe boot:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201262

Any change?

Ciao.
Reply options

Link to this post

by MacLovah,

MacLovah Nov 2, 2015 10:15 AM in response to Pmintz25
Level 1 (1 points)

Nov 2, 2015 10:15 AM in response to Pmintz25

No it doesn't appears that when i thought that there was something weird.
Reply options

Link to this post

by MacLovah,

MacLovah Nov 2, 2015 10:18 AM in response to OGELTHORPE
Level 1 (1 points)

Nov 2, 2015 10:18 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

Are you sure this is safe ? Because I don't want to lose my data
Reply options

Link to this post

by OGELTHORPE,

OGELTHORPE Nov 2, 2015 10:26 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 9 (52,343 points)

Mac OS X

Nov 2, 2015 10:26 AM in response to MacLovah

None of the operations that I posted will have any affect on your data.

With that said, when you get your MBA back in operation, backup your data. That way there will never be such a concern on your part in the future. If you value your data, backups are essential.

Ciao.
Reply options

Link to this post

by Pmintz25,

Pmintz25 Nov 2, 2015 10:26 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 4 (1,634 points)

Nov 2, 2015 10:26 AM in response to MacLovah

Those steps are perfectly safe.

The next steps, if the above don't work, would be to boot into the Recovery mode using Command-R. Open Disk Utility and verify/repair your hard drive.
Reply options

Link to this post

by Csound1,

Csound1 Nov 2, 2015 10:27 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 9 (50,439 points)

Desktops

Nov 2, 2015 10:27 AM in response to MacLovah

MacLovah wrote:

Are you sure this is safe ? Because I don't want to lose my data

Why do you not have a backup?

You will lose data one day, you won't even get to choose which day.
Reply options

Link to this post

by MacLovah,

MacLovah Nov 2, 2015 10:49 AM in response to OGELTHORPE
Level 1 (1 points)

Nov 2, 2015 10:49 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

I did all the steps and didn't work how can I backup my data on recovery mode ?
Reply options

Link to this post

by MacLovah,

MacLovah Nov 2, 2015 11:04 AM in response to Pmintz25
Level 1 (1 points)

Nov 2, 2015 11:04 AM in response to Pmintz25

The machintosh hd has no problems but the "untitled" has. And when try repairing on the apple ssd ts064C it gives an error.
Reply options

Link to this post

by OGELTHORPE,

OGELTHORPE Nov 2, 2015 11:04 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 9 (52,343 points)

Mac OS X

Nov 2, 2015 11:04 AM in response to MacLovah

You can try to get data off of your MBA via Target Disk Mode:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201462

It will not hurt ti try Pmintz25's suggestion of booting into the recovery partition and running Disk Utility>First Aid.

If no success, you best option is an appointment at an Apple store genius bar. The evaluation will be FREE.

Ciao.
Reply options

Link to this post

by MacLovah,

MacLovah Nov 2, 2015 11:12 AM in response to OGELTHORPE
Level 1 (1 points)

Nov 2, 2015 11:12 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

I tried it "The machintosh hd has no problems but the "untitled" has. And when try repairing on the apple ssd ts064C it gives an error."
Reply options

Link to this post

by Pmintz25,

Pmintz25 Nov 2, 2015 11:15 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 4 (1,634 points)

Nov 2, 2015 11:15 AM in response to MacLovah

If Macintosh HD has no problems it seems strange you can't boot to it.

When you're in Recovery mode, select the Apple, then choose Startup Disk. See if Macintosh HD appears here.

Otherwise OGELTHORPE is probably right about going to the Apple Store. Sometimes it's better to have someone else there looking at the same screen you are.
Reply options

Link to this post

by MacLovah,

MacLovah Nov 2, 2015 11:24 AM in response to Pmintz25
Level 1 (1 points)

Nov 2, 2015 11:24 AM in response to Pmintz25

It appears when i try to boot it there is a folder with question mark. The problem is I live in Istanbul (a lot of people) and the genius reservations are full.
Reply options

Link to this post

by Pmintz25,

Pmintz25 Nov 2, 2015 11:57 AM in response to MacLovah
Level 4 (1,634 points)

Nov 2, 2015 11:57 AM in response to MacLovah

If a flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac - Apple Support

It states that if you can't boot after successfully repairing the disk in Disk Utility, then you should try reinstalling the OS. This shouldn't erase data either. It just writes the OS files over the old ones and leaves your files intact. This is straight from the article.

The very last steps are an Erase and Install, but do not do that until you have exhausted all other options.
Reply options

Link to this post