RAM failure?

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Level 1

4 points

RAM failure?

My mid-2011 iMac won’t boot, it gives a continuous beep and displayed a folder with a ? In it. I’ve tried re-installing RAM and replacing with new RAM (all correct spec) and it’s still failing. Any ideas please?

iMac 27″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Jan 12, 2022 8:00 AM

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Answer 1

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den.thed

Level 10

90,928 points

Jan 12, 2022 8:16 AM in response to DemM66

One beep every 5 seconds indicates a RAM issue.

see > https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202768

The ? mark screen indicates a Hard Drive issue.

see > https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204323

Edit: sorry Phil0124 didn't see you there.

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Answer 2

Phil0124

Level 10

216,842 points

Jan 12, 2022 8:06 AM in response to DemM66

The folder with a ? means it's not finding a valid operating system to boot from. It has nothing to do with RAM issues.

It means either your hard drive failed, or it got corrupted and it cannot boot from it.

See here: link-> If your Mac starts up to a question mark - Apple Support

Do note NVRAM and RAM are not the same thing.

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Answer 3

Phil0124

Level 10

216,842 points

Jan 12, 2022 9:26 AM in response to den.thed

den.thed wrote:

...

Edit: sorry Phil0124 didn't see you there.

No worries. The more the merrier! 😉

DemM66 wrote:

Ok I’ve tried resetting NVRAM and rebooting in recovery mode but no change.

am I right in thinking this means I need to take it in or is it completely busted?

It means the hard drive may have failed. Depending on the model it may be possible to replace it. If its still under warranty Apple can fix it or replace it for free. Otherwise, the repair will have a cost.

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