2012 Mac mini. Dead?

Question

2012 Mac mini. Dead?

My Mac mini won't start up anymore. When I hit the power button, the light in front goes on. However, there is no startup chime or video. After a few seconds, the fan goes into hyperdrive.

I've unplugged it, then plugged it back in after 15 seconds. I've tried to zap the nvram. I've taken out the RAM that I added, and reinstalled the original chip to make sure the ram is OK. I've taken it apart and tested the hard drive - it mounts when I connect it to my iMac, and I can view my files. While I had it open, I tested the 2032 battery; it was down fairly low (but not dead) so I replaced it with another. Still has the same problem. I'm set to trash it at this point, unless someone out there sees something that I missed. Thanks for looking!

Posted on Jun 15, 2014 7:40 AM

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Answer 1

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den.thed

Level 9

76,840 points

Jun 15, 2014 8:23 AM in response to Community User

1. The fan problem sounds like maybe you have a disconnected or bad temp sensor.

All the tenp sensors are used by the SMC to control the fan speed and if one is bad or missing, it will cause the fan to run at full speed.

2. What monitor are you using and is it connected to the HDMI or Thunderbolt Port...?

If you just updated to 10.9.3 and have a DVI monitor connected to the HDMI port using the supplied HDMI to DVI adapter...? Try connecting the monitor to the Thunderbolt Port using a Mini DisplayPort to DVI Adapter.

If you are using a VGA monitor connected to the Thunderbolt port using a Mini DisplayPort to VGA adapter...? Try testing an HDMI TV or DVI monitor on the HDMI port.

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Answer 2

Jun 15, 2014 12:02 PM in response to den.thed

I think all the problems are tied together, and they're symptoms of the main problem. I use the Mini as a HTPC, so I changed HDMI ports. Still no go. I should have mentioned that the Mini froze, and that it stopped booting after I forced it to restart. The only thing i can think of is to remove and reformat the hard drive, but I can't imagine that it would fix it since I don't even get the Apple logo when I turn it on.

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