theone421

Q: MacBook Pro with question mark inside a folder again after fix

So I have Macbook Pro 2012 13" with a 500GB SSD and 8GB ram. In May, my computer wouldn't boot into the OS without previous indications of a possible failure. It would display a question mark inside a folder on startup (which later I thought meant that the hard drive was an issue). I took it to Apple Authorized Tech Repair on my campus and they were unable to figure out the source of the problem, but stated that it was possible my OS was corrupt. After some more research on my own, I began to think it was TRIM bug that was a known issue with Samsung. Samsung gladly replaced my hard drive. I connected the new hard drive and I still ran into the same issue. I began to consider the hard drive ribbon cable was the issue.. So I replaced that, and was able to boot up again! Fast forward to today, several months later, and I'm experiencing the same issue. However, now I can boot into the OS sometimes while sometimes it will display the flashing folder icon. Could it be that the hard drive ribbon cable that I bought was of poor quality, or could this indicate a bigger, more serious issue? I'm confused as to how to proceed to fix this. Any help is greatly appreciated!

MacBook Pro (13-inch Mid 2012), OS X El Capitan (10.11.4)

Posted on Sep 15, 2016 10:42 AM

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Q: MacBook Pro with question mark inside a folder again after fix

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  • by lllaass,Helpful

    lllaass lllaass Sep 15, 2016 11:17 AM in response to theone421
    Level 10 (188,679 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 15, 2016 11:17 AM in response to theone421

    Yes, I suspect either a problem with the new ribbon cable or its connection to the logic board.

    This is the Mac Pro desktop forum. I requested your post be moved to the MacBook Pro laptop forum.

  • by theone421,

    theone421 theone421 Sep 15, 2016 11:20 AM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 15, 2016 11:20 AM in response to lllaass

    I'll take a look at it and try unpluggin/replugging before attaching a new ribbon cable. Is it possible its the logic board itself could be damaged? Thanks for your help!!

     

    -P.S I apologize for posting in the wrong forum.. my mistake. Also, I tried moving the post, but I can't seem to be able to.

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Sep 15, 2016 11:47 AM in response to theone421
    Level 9 (60,884 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 15, 2016 11:47 AM in response to theone421

    The folder with the question mark says, "I could not find a bootable MacOS Volume in the place you told me it was to be found."