rick268
Level 1 (9 points)
Desktops

Q: My Powerbook boots up every few times and the hardware test still gives me -9972 error

René O'Deay wrote:

 

My Powerbook G4 15" aluminum 1.67Ghz 10.3.9 Panther won't start up.

(I did a backup on an external drive not long before it failed)

have gotten lost in my research on apple forums and knowledge base.

From the original install discs:

The Hardware test gives the error.

"2STF/8/3 ATA-100 ata-6-Master (-9972)"

The Disc utility does see my harddrive but fails to repair with the messge:

1 volume cannot be repaired,

'Invalid  node Structure'

Disk 'no valid packets (-9997)'

 

I do have a useless partition from TechTool 4 and had successfully run the programs just before Powerbook failed.

aid everything was ok, with no warnings.

 

found somewhere a link to a hardware test code list, that said 9972 could be the cable (ribbon?) to the drive needed to be reset, replaced, or the harddrive replaced.

our local New Orleans 'official' Apple Tech guy calimed it was the harddrive and not worth replacing.  he whined that it would take hours, tho the guys on ifixit claimed only half an hour.

 

i have since got a refurb MacBook (even older it turns out) with Tiger, but I miss my 15 incher Powerbook. (on very tight budget)

 

the battery got zapped by lightning last year and have struggled with it ever since. it won't fully recharge.

Right now have got it on the AC without the battery to try to charge the backup battery.

 

I have managed to restore it several times after crashing, inspite of my tech guy claiming otherwise. but have never really opened it up besides just looking at the memory slots. just one filled with 512 card.

 

so any advice, or suggestions.

I've been messing with my Power book for like 10 hours and finally finished replacing the hard drive. (just installing the software and all the updates took almost 2 hours by itself) Now it boots up every few times and the hardware test still gives me -9972 error.

 

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Posted on Dec 26, 2014 6:22 AM

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rick268

Q: My Powerbook boots up every few times and the hardware test still gives me -9972 error

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  • by LostAccount,

    LostAccount LostAccount Dec 26, 2014 6:20 AM in response to rick268
    Level 1 (125 points)
    Mac OS X
    Dec 26, 2014 6:20 AM in response to rick268

    My friend. Do not despair.

     

    Firstly, you have a backup. Kudos.

     

    Secondly, i suspect the hard drive in the machine is more than just a few years old. Hard drives die. I suspect the hard drive is the issue, not the cable.

     

    Thirdly, it is worth changing the hard drive and take the ifixit advice. Simple to change. If it will be your first time changing the hard drive, just be organized and follow the steps carefully.

     

    Now, before we decided it is the hard drive we need to confirm this.

     

    I would check if SMART reports favorable conditions for the drive. Disk utility can tell you.

    If good then I would zero out the drive. This allows the drive to excercise every sector and will build confidence of a well prepared drive going forward.

     

    You can then restore from backup.

     

    The other option is to replace the internal HD with a new one, perhaps with more storage.

     

    As an FYI, I replaced the drive on my powerbook G3 and it's faster, quite , has more storage and gives me some peace of mind. Worth the money. The little guy runs beautifully. 

     

    Sent from my iPhone