Azrax
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Failure to erase disk after grey progress bar reboot loop

Hey guys, I've been having this problem for a while now but haven't bothered to try and solve it until now, but anyways:

 

Just for info, I have Windows 7 Ultimate bootcamped installed, in case that makes any difference.

 

My late 2011 MacBook Pro can't boot properly.  It boots onto a a screen with the grey mac logo, but a grey progress bar which takes around 10 minutes to complete, and then my computer shuts down.  I realize the problem was probabaly just my disk was corrupt, in which I tried to boot from Recovery HD and verify and repair the disk, but that didn't work, so I tried to erase my disk, but even that didn't work.   The error message was that disk couldn't be unmounted.  I then went to terminal to force unmount (sudo diskutil unmountdisk force /dev/disk0) and even after that it didn't work, which left me out of ideas, so I would be grateful if you can point out what I did wrong, or can help me....

 

BTW I have backed up my stuff from my bootcamp (which still works) so I don't worry about erasing my disk.  I intend to uninstall this bootcamp and reinstall with windows 8 anyways so it is fine if I have to reformat and partition...

MacBook Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9)

Posted on Feb 16, 2014 7:56 AM

by Melophage,Solvedanswer
Melophage Melophage
Level 5 (7,161 points)
A:

Azrax,

 

no, there isn’t. You currently have no known working Mac OS X environment from which to repair your non-working Mac OS X partition, so you’ll either need to use someone else’s (which could include an Apple store’s, as Linc Davis suggested), or buy what you need to give yourself a working Mac OS X environment.

Posted on Feb 17, 2014 5:02 PM

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Azrax

Q: Failure to erase disk after grey progress bar reboot loop

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  • by Melophage,

    Melophage Melophage Feb 16, 2014 3:05 PM in response to Azrax
    Level 5 (7,161 points)
    Feb 16, 2014 3:05 PM in response to Azrax

    Azrax,

     

    if you have a FireWire 800 cable and access to a second Mac with a FireWire 800 port, you could boot your MacBook Pro into Target Disk mode, so that it can be treated as an external drive from the other Mac. The other Mac should then be able to run Disk Utility to verify/repair your MacBook Pro’s disk.

  • by Azrax,

    Azrax Azrax Feb 16, 2014 5:33 PM in response to Melophage
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 16, 2014 5:33 PM in response to Melophage

    Unfortunately I don't have one of those cables or a second Mac... Any other ideas?

  • by Melophage,

    Melophage Melophage Feb 16, 2014 5:57 PM in response to Azrax
    Level 5 (7,161 points)
    Feb 16, 2014 5:57 PM in response to Azrax

    Azrax,

     

    you could purchase an external drive, format it for Mac use and install OS X onto it, then boot from it and run Disk Utility from there to verify/repair your internal drive.

  • by Azrax,

    Azrax Azrax Feb 16, 2014 6:25 PM in response to Melophage
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 16, 2014 6:25 PM in response to Melophage

    Thanks Melophage for the responses, but:

     

    Hm ok.  Is there any way of fixing it without either buying something, or using another part or laptop?  The one thing I've yet to talk about is using the 'sudo' command but that returns as 'command not found' or something like that, some help there?

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Feb 16, 2014 7:09 PM in response to Azrax
    Level 10 (208,037 points)
    Applications
    Feb 16, 2014 7:09 PM in response to Azrax

    It's a failed drive or some other hardware fault.

     

    Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service provider.

    Back up all data on the internal drive(s) before you hand over your computer to anyone. There are ways to back up a computer that isn't fully functional — ask if you need guidance.

    If privacy is a concern, erase the data partition(s) with the option to write zeros* (do this only if you have at least two complete, independent backups, and you know how to restore to an empty drive from any of them.) Don’t erase the recovery partition, if present.

    Keeping your confidential data secure during hardware repair

    Apple also recommends that you deauthorize a device in the iTunes Store before having it serviced.

    *An SSD doesn't need to be zeroed.

  • by Melophage,Solvedanswer

    Melophage Melophage Feb 17, 2014 5:02 PM in response to Azrax
    Level 5 (7,161 points)
    Feb 17, 2014 5:02 PM in response to Azrax

    Azrax,

     

    no, there isn’t. You currently have no known working Mac OS X environment from which to repair your non-working Mac OS X partition, so you’ll either need to use someone else’s (which could include an Apple store’s, as Linc Davis suggested), or buy what you need to give yourself a working Mac OS X environment.

  • by Azrax,

    Azrax Azrax Feb 18, 2014 12:28 AM in response to Melophage
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 18, 2014 12:28 AM in response to Melophage

    Ok, thanks.  I brought it to a genius appointment and some tests were done which resulted in a diagnosis which said the hard drive was corrupt, and it was quickly fixed and I am finally able to boot on mac and reinstall windows.  Thanks for the help though!