How To Fix A Mac When It Crashes, Burns, And Dies

Andreas said:

Guys i have a problem:
After trying to recover the hole hd with an .iso file under disk utility, my ibook g4 , 12” display, 20gb, 512, wont boot up again.
After the chime, mac logo, the display shows me the following message:
-sh: /etc/profile: line 6: unexpected EOF while looking for matching ‘o’
-sh: /etc/profile: line 9: syntax error: unexpected end of file
-sh-2.05b#
Well, i bought the lap top from a pawn shop back in miami, so, it didnt come with any osx disk. Now that im back in rio de janeiro, brasil, im getting on my nervs. Please help me here. Any ways to get it back to life again? U can send any answers to my email as well. .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)  Thank you so much people !!!

tom samson said:

I think I can manage most things mac but how can you tell if it is the monitor or the computer when the monitor is simply blank -G5 1.6 and 17inch LCD

Victoria Stoklosa said:

For recovery from a kernel panic and most crashes where you can’t get past the blue screen to your Desktop, and for general maintenance and really ‘deep’ cleaning, get Applejack (freeware) http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/19596

It runs in Singe User Mode (boot with Command + S keys held down), It has a simple menu of commands and a box of text that informs you further. Look for the deep cleaning autorun command, write it down, restart in Safe Mode, then type in that command and hit Return. Let ‘er rip.

This utility is used by Apple Geniuses (that’s where I heard about it) and has saved my non-booting butt many times.

Do yourself a favor and run it at least once a month. Does the mundane UNIX maintenance, and more. Also good for this kind of thing is Onyx, but you have to be in the Finder to run it.

MacSmiley said:

For me, it’s easier to clean up with Applejack than it is to find my Install Disc. It looks scarier than it is. It’s basic maintenance “by the numbers”.

Dan said:

Time Machine is great for what it does. Save files. It’s not so great for getting your Mac back and running quickly. It may take hours to restore your Mac. A cloned hard disk gets your Mac up and running with a simple reboot.

My preferred method for backing up is to use multiple external drives that are clones of my Mac’s hard drive, and use Time Machine to back up files, but not to restore. That takes forever.

simon said:

why not just use Time Machine???
Great to restore the whole disc back to ANY point of time. The ultimate recovery solution that seem no other software can compare. I have restored quite a number of time due to a faultly harddisk cable…
What you just need is a Mac OS X Leopard installation disc, choose restore from time machine under utility menu
Maybe because I always connect the backup drive to my mac, but you know, I don’t really
know it is backing up if I don’t look at the time machine icon…!

Art said:

I love that AppleJack utility. Very helpful for running all that maintenance before you even boot up.

Knock on wood, but I haven’t had a hard drive failure since my NeXT system, back in 1989. And my current oldest iMac, a G4 lampshade from 2002, is still running smoothly after being abused in an office environment for most of its years.

I learned my lesson in college on the NeXT. That was painful and since then, I’ve been religious on backups.

Clones, Time Machine and Portable off-site storage. Plus we use Dropbox, which has online storage as well, though we use it for different purposes.

All the tips are great. I’d only add that maintenance is a healthy habit as well. Repair permissions before OS X updates. Always use the combo updates. Run Onyx from time to time. Plug your Mac into a UPS. Lastly, I’d add that if you buy large external hard drives, spend a little more. I prefer G-Tech because they are built like tanks and most models don’t have fans.

jackiebleaucheeze said:

AppleJack. Great utility for getting your Mac back up. A little geeky and intimidating, but it works.