iBook G4 will not boot in safe mode, but will boot normally

Hi sd2102 and welcome to Apple Discussions.

I had noticed your thread when it appeared but as I didn't know why Safe Boot isn't working I refrained from responding.

You say "I found an article online suggesting that one way to do maintenance on the laptop was to boot up in safe mode" - that is true. Safe Boot takes longer than normal startup explains: Safe Boot forces a directory check of the hard drive. This is identical to using Disk Utility's Repair Disk or the fsck -fy terminal command.

I don't know what Safe Boot does by way of reporting a problem that it cannot repair but, & I'm guessing here, it may be that the symptoms you describe are indicative of just such a scenario.

What I recommend as a first step is to carry out "Disk Utility's Repair Disk" using your install disk. Place the disk in the drive and restart holding the C key down immediately after you hear the chime. This will boot the iBook from the Install Disk.

You don't mention whether you are using 10.3 or 10.4 (or even 10.5) but the procedure is basically the same. If using 10.3 choose Utilities>Disk Utility from the Menu Bar, if using 10.4 or 10.5 first select your preferred language, then Utilities>Disk Utility from the Menu Bar.

From the left hand pane of DU select the hard drive name and check at the bottom of the right hand pane that the S.M.A.R.T. Status is Verified. Then select the Volume name (Usually Macintosh OS X HD unless you've called it something else) from the left hand pane, then select the Repair Disk button. Wait while the disk is checked and repaired. If DU reports that repairs were made repeat the process until it reports that the volume "Appears to OK"

Quit DU, then Installer and restart.

Post back with how things go.

Good luck,

Adrian

Edit: p.s. Can you also report your HD size and available space. This info can also be got from the bottom of the DU window after selecting the OS volume name.

Message was edited by Adrian.

Hi again, Thanks for getting back.

Not good news I'm afraid. When DU reports that the volume cannot be repaired a third party repair utility is called for. Disk Warrior is the one most commonly recommended on these forums, TechTool Pro is another.

Like DU's Repair Disk, these repair utilities cannot be run from the boot disk and have to be run either from another bootable Mac OS X installation, i.e. another computer/partition on an external HD, or the Utility CD used in the same way as the OS X install disk.

If you don't want to go that route the alternative is to create a comprehensive back-up of your files to another medium - an external HD would be needed here otherwise you'd need a lot of CDs - and then to use the install disks to zero overwrite/erase your iBook HD and reinstall everything.

Whichever route you take, or even if you choose to carry on as you are, I sincerely recommend that you still back everything up to an external. As the OS is damaged a clone wouldn't be a good idea at this stage but once the problems are sorted that would be the way to go.

You also need to know that, with only 7 GB free, you are running at the bare minimum for free space. 15% is the usual recommendation. If you have been running with much less than 7 GB that could well have been the cause of you current problems.

Long term I think you need to consider getting a larger internal HD. The lifespan for notebook HDs is 3-5 yrs, your current HD could well be living on borrowed time. iBook compatible HDs are not expensive, the fitting isn't straightforward, but is doable DIY. (I've done it, with no prior computer tech experience whatsoever) Or shop around for a supply and fit from a reputable Apple mechanic.

My own replacement is a PATA Hitachi 160 GB; Western Digital are also frequently recommended. Currently 250 GB is the largest PATA laptop drive available.

Good luck, and post back if you need any more info, advice or guidance.

Adrian