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User profile for user: jkd22
jkd22 Author
User level: Level 1
16 points

2010 iMac 27" Black screen, only cursor visible

Trying to help out a friend with a crashed imac:



Have tried resetting the NVRAM/PRAM, tried unplugging it, etc. The machine sounds and looks like it's booting up but there is only a black screen and the cursor. There is important data on the machine.

Is there anyway to boot this up with a USB stick with some apple restore or some other OS (linux?) to try to restore the data before trying to reinstall the OS?


It has 2 factory 1 TB hard drives inside. Both drives have important data.


I cannot get AHT to work.


What happens when I turn it on is this:


I hear the apple sound, I see the grey apple screen and the spinning loading incon thing. Then I just have a black screen with a mouse pointer. I can move the mouse but nothing else loads and I can't see anything else. It sounds like my programs that are set to load on startup are loading.


I updated to 10.9.x or whatever the latest available was a few months ago.


Any advicde?

Posted on Mar 14, 2014 3:57 AM

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User profile for user: jesseinma
jesseinma
User level: Level 1
47 points

Posted on Mar 17, 2014 6:12 AM

I had the same issue with my 2008 iMac and Apple support walked me through the fix yesterday...

1. Shut the computer down by holding the power button for 10 seconds

2. Restart the computer and press shift at the same time until you see the progress bar start moving

3. Once you reach the point where your screen goes dark and you see the cursor, type the first letter of the username for your computer, then hit Enter, then type your password, then hit Enter.

4. After a moment, you should see the spinning beach ball

5. Your screen should then move on to something along the lines of "Completing OSX Installation" (I can't remember the exact wording). Let it finish. After that it should go to your normal desktop and the issue should be fixed. (If your screen goes pitch black during this process, hit the space bar. I thought it wasn't working, but the screen was just sleeping).

Apparently it's an issue with an automatic update that never quite got past the login screen.

Hope this helps!

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User profile for user: jesseinma
jesseinma
User level: Level 1
47 points

Mar 17, 2014 6:12 AM in response to jkd22

I had the same issue with my 2008 iMac and Apple support walked me through the fix yesterday...

1. Shut the computer down by holding the power button for 10 seconds

2. Restart the computer and press shift at the same time until you see the progress bar start moving

3. Once you reach the point where your screen goes dark and you see the cursor, type the first letter of the username for your computer, then hit Enter, then type your password, then hit Enter.

4. After a moment, you should see the spinning beach ball

5. Your screen should then move on to something along the lines of "Completing OSX Installation" (I can't remember the exact wording). Let it finish. After that it should go to your normal desktop and the issue should be fixed. (If your screen goes pitch black during this process, hit the space bar. I thought it wasn't working, but the screen was just sleeping).

Apparently it's an issue with an automatic update that never quite got past the login screen.

Hope this helps!

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User profile for user: Gigilox
Gigilox
User level: Level 1
0 points

Jun 8, 2014 2:28 PM in response to jkd22

Hello. i have tried this technique to make my IMac's screen return 'back to normal', and it hasn't worked for me. i changed my keyboards batteries(since they were running low since the beginning), but it still does not work. Sometimes when i turn back on my computer, the Mac breaks down and shuts back off. i am extremely confused to help bring my mac back, and I have a a really important meeting shortly. Please help, thank you.

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2010 iMac 27" Black screen, only cursor visible

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