rutakay

Q: 3 beeps on  post

Hi,

 

I had plans to sell my iMac (mid-2011) and beforehand a friend tried and failed to upgrade it to El Capitan from Snow Leopard. Since then it has taken about 5 minutes for my computer to start-up and looks like this (below) during this time- we're not sure what exactly went wrong. Otherwise the computer works fine.

screen.jpg


 

However a few weeks later, I received a re-installation disc from Apple to reset my computer to factory settings before selling and then came across '3 beeps on post' issue which Apple said is apparently due to the RAM not passing a data integrity check.


Can someone please advise how I can;

          1. try to fix the RAM issue/ check this is the actual issue.

          2. reboot to factory settings

          3. upgrade to latest operating system.


Thank you

iMac (21.5-inch Mid 2011)

Posted on Jan 2, 2016 1:18 PM

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Q: 3 beeps on  post

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  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Jan 2, 2016 1:23 PM in response to rutakay
    Level 10 (270,295 points)
    Desktops
    Jan 2, 2016 1:23 PM in response to rutakay

    3 Beeps at startup means you have bad memory modules. Replace RAM.

     

    Clean Install of Snow Leopard

     

    Be sure you have backed up your files because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.

     

         1. Boot the computer using the Snow Leopard Installer Disc 1 that came

             with your computer.  Insert the disc into the optical drive and restart the computer.

             After the chime press and hold down the  "C" key.  Release the key when you see

             a small spinning gear appear below the dark gray Apple logo.

     

         2. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue

             button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.

             After DU loads select the hard drive entry from the left side list (mfgr.'s ID and drive

             size.)  Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.  Set the number of

             partitions to one (1) from the Partitions drop down menu, click on Options button

             and select GUID, click on OK, then set the format type to MacOS Extended

             (Journaled, if supported), then click on the Apply button.

     

         3. When the formatting has completed quit DU and return to the installer.  Proceed

             with the OS X installation and follow the directions included with the installer.

     

         4. When the installation has completed your computer will Restart into the Setup

             Assistant. After you finish Setup Assistant will complete the installation after which

             you will be running a fresh install of OS X.  You can now begin the update process

             by opening Software Update and installing all recommended updates to bring your

             installation current.

     

         5. If you are planning to sell or give your computer away, then do the following:

     

            After you reformat your hard drive and reinstall OS X, the computer restarts to a

            Welcome screen and asks you to choose a country or region. If you want to leave

            the Mac in an out-of-box state, don't continue with the setup of your system. Instead,

            press Command-Q to shut down the Mac. When the new owner turns on the Mac,

            the Setup Assistant will guide them through the setup process.

     

    Download and install Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1.


    Upgrading to El Capitan

     

    You can upgrade to El Capitan from Lion or directly from Snow Leopard. El Capitan can be downloaded from the Mac App Store for FREE.

     

    Upgrading to El Capitan

     

    To upgrade to El Capitan you must have Snow Leopard 10.6.8 or Lion installed. Download El Capitan from the App Store. Sign in using your Apple ID. El Capitan is free. The file is quite large, over 5 GBs, so allow some time to download. It would be preferable to use Ethernet because it is nearly four times faster than wireless.

     

          Macs that can be upgraded to OS X El Capitan

     

     

             1. iMac (Mid 2007 or newer) - Model Identifier 7,1 or later

             2. MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer) - Model Identifier 5,1 or later

             3. MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

             4. MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer) - Model Identifier 2,1 or later

             5. Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

             6. Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

             7. Xserve (Early 2009) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

     

    To find the model identifier open System Profiler in the Utilities folder. It's displayed in the panel on the right.

     

         Are my applications compatible?

     

             See App Compatibility Table - RoaringApps

  • by rutakay,

    rutakay rutakay Jan 2, 2016 1:27 PM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 2, 2016 1:27 PM in response to Kappy

    Hi,

     

    Thanks for all the detail.

     

    Just to confirm its not 3 beeps on start-up but 3 beeps when I try to reinstall to factory settings- do I still need to change the RAM? And if so, how do I do that? Not very technical but can follow good instructions.

  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Jan 2, 2016 1:37 PM in response to rutakay
    Level 10 (270,295 points)
    Desktops
    Jan 2, 2016 1:37 PM in response to rutakay

    Yes. The easiest thing to do is remove all but one memory module. If this stops the beeps then the module you remove should be replaced. Or, make an appointment at the Apple Retail Store - Genius Bar and take it in for service. If you are not in the USA or cannot set up an appointment this way, then contact your local Apple Store directly.

     

    If you need to purchase RAM:

     

    OWC

    DataMem

    Crucial

     

    OWC should have an online tutorial you can follow as well as memory and toolkits.

  • by rutakay,

    rutakay rutakay Jan 2, 2016 2:44 PM in response to Kappy
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 2, 2016 2:44 PM in response to Kappy

    Ok, I gave it a go. I removed one memory module and still go 3 beeps on post when trying to run the re-installation disc. I double-checked the other module and still the same 3 beeps.

     

    Are there any other checks I can do before purchasing and replacing both modules to make sure that this is the only issue?

     

    Thanks