My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
+
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's been just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
+
* Plug in the "system install" pen drive
+
* Reset the SMC
+
* Reset the PRAM
+
* Hold down the Option key
+
* Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
+
* Battery powered, MagSafe powered...
-
-Reset the SMC
+
Nothing works!
-
-Reset the PRAM
-
-
-Hold down the Option key
-
-
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-
-
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
-
-
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
+
I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
-
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
+
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death.'' don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
-
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
+
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: Your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other MacBook system, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the installed USB stick, or a network boot server. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT, when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and [guide|6371|disconnect the hard drive|new_window=true]. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
-Reset the SMC
-Reset the PRAM
-Hold down the Option key
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
-
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and [https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Air+13-Inch+Mid+2011+Solid-State+Drive+Replacement/6371|disconnect the hard drive|new_window=true]. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
+
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and [guide|6371|disconnect the hard drive|new_window=true]. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
-Reset the SMC
-Reset the PRAM
-Hold down the Option key
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
-
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
+
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and [https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Air+13-Inch+Mid+2011+Solid-State+Drive+Replacement/6371|disconnect the hard drive|new_window=true]. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
-Reset the SMC
-Reset the PRAM
-Hold down the Option key
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
-
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and [https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Air+13-Inch+Mid+2011+Solid-State+Drive+Replacement/6371|disconnect the hard drive|new_window=true]. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
+
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
-Reset the SMC
-Reset the PRAM
-Hold down the Option key
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
-
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
+
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and [https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Air+13-Inch+Mid+2011+Solid-State+Drive+Replacement/6371|disconnect the hard drive|new_window=true]. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
-Reset the SMC
-Reset the PRAM
-Hold down the Option key
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
-
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
-
-
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
-
-
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
+
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen. I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections. Is there something else I can try? Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it break "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger in perfect shape. Just one year of light use.
+
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawlessly. The battery and charger are in perfect shape. It's seen just one year of light use.
-
Right after a normal reboot, suddenly it stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else. If, then, I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after some minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
+
Right after a normal reboot, it suddenly stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without the Apple logo or pointer), and nothing else. If I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after a few minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-
-plug the "system install" pendrive
+
-Plug in the "system install" pen drive
-
-reset the SMC
+
-Reset the SMC
-
-reset the PRAM
+
-Reset the PRAM
-
-hold down Option key
+
-Hold down the Option key
-
-hold down C key (for rEFIt)
+
-Hold down the C key (for rEFIt)
-
-battery powered, magsafe powered...
+
-Battery powered, Magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
== Update ==
-
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as good as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
+
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as well as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software, and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
-
But first things first: I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple centre for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
+
But first things first. I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple center for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a Phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
-
Pleae correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your Macbook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
+
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your MacBook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
-
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive are dead. They're just in deep coma.
+
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive is dead. They're just in a deep coma.
-
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup thisk will boot and there you are anew to life.
+
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup disk will boot and there you are anew to life.
-
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
+
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully, it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
-
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it in their support webpage, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
+
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it on their support page, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
[SOLVED] Startup chime, no boot, white screen of death
+
Startup chime, no boot, white screen of death
Text:
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger in perfect shape. Just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, suddenly it stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else. If, then, I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after some minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-plug the "system install" pendrive
-reset the SMC
-reset the PRAM
-hold down Option key
-hold down C key (for rEFIt)
-battery powered, magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
== Update ==
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as good as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
But first things first: I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple centre for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
Pleae correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your Macbook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive are dead. They're just in deep coma.
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup thisk will boot and there you are anew to life.
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it in their support webpage, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
Welcome any correction or precision to this post.
[SOLVED] Startup chime, no boot, white screen of death
Text:
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger in perfect shape. Just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, suddenly it stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else. If, then, I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after some minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-plug the "system install" pendrive
-reset the SMC
-reset the PRAM
-hold down Option key
-hold down C key (for rEFIt)
-battery powered, magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
+
+
== Update ==
+
+
Well, folks: I finally found out what went wrong, and I'll try to explain it as good as my ignorance of Apple hardware, OS-X software and firmware, and computers in general, allows me.
+
+
But first things first: I have good news for you: if you ever get the ''white screen of death'', don't panic! And, unless still under guarantee, don't take your computer to an Apple centre for them to steal you yet more money by making you pay for a new logic board and/or a new hard drive. Probably you can solve the problem by yourself, spending only a few -very well invested- dollars in a pentalobed or a phillips #00 screwdriver, plus maybe a Torx T5 one.
+
+
Pleae correct me if I'm wrong, but, as far as I've guessed and investigated, it works like this: your Macbook Air's firmware (probably also any other Macbook, but I can't be sure about that) is always instructed to try to, in the first place, boot off certain piece of hardware: be it the hard disk, an external DVD unit, the install USB stick, the network, or whatever. This option can be set in the OS's Startup Manager. When the actual boot setting is any other than the hard drive, then, at boot time, the firmware will look for the instructed medium to boot off, and if for whatever reason it doesn't find it, then it will try to boot off the hard drive as a "last resource". BUT when the actual boot setting is "hard drive" and, for whatever reason, the data is corrupted or something is wrong with the boot sector, then the computer will NOT try to find any alternative device, or a network, where to boot off: it will keep forever trying to boot off the hard drive, and thus you get the dreaded white screen of death. The Apple engineers are so smart!!
+
+
But it's actually not dead: neither your motherboard nor your drive are dead. They're just in deep coma.
+
+
How can you wake it up from this coma? Simple: remove the back cover and disconnect the hard drive. Believe me: with the right screwdriver, it's very easy to do and ''even you'' can do it. Then, and only then, if there is NO hard drive where to try to boot off, the firmware is programmed to look for some other medium: USB stick, external DVD, network... So, plug this medium in and... voilá! There you get your little spinning animated icon and, eventually, the Apple's apple; the startup thisk will boot and there you are anew to life.
+
+
Now, once you've managed to boot, the FIRST thing you have to do is go to the Startup Manager and set the firmware to boot off your whatever startup medium is (otherwise, upon reboot you'll be in the same S*ITuation). After this, you can plug back in your hard drive and reboot your computer. Hopefully it will boot off as instructed (the USB/DVD/Network), it will recognize your hard disk, and you can use the Disk Utility to repair it, reformat it, or whatever you want to do with it. After this, everything will go back to normal, and you've saved the Apple care center's $500 bill.
+
+
Hope this will help someone to avoid the three weeks anguish I've gone through... I'm sorry to say that it is A SHAME on Apple's part to sell such cr*p and not respond for it, nor inform about it in their support webpage, but joyfully get your money when you take your laptop to repair.
[SOLVED] Startup chime, no boot, white screen of death
Text:
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger in perfect shape. Just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, suddenly it stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else. If, then, I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after some minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
-plug the "system install" pendrive
-reset the SMC
-reset the PRAM
-hold down Option key
-hold down C key (for rEFIt)
-battery powered, magsafe powered...
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
[SOLVED] Startup chime, no boot, white screen of death
Text:
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger in perfect shape. Just one year of light use.
Right after a normal reboot, suddenly it stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else. If, then, I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after some minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
+
-plug the "system install" pendrive
+
-reset the SMC
+
-reset the PRAM
+
-hold down Option key
+
-hold down C key (for rEFIt)
+
-battery powered, magsafe powered...
+
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger work ok.
+
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger in perfect shape. Just one year of light use.
-
Then, right after a normal reboot, suddenly I got the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else!
+
Right after a normal reboot, suddenly it stopped working: I get the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else. If, then, I don't shut it off, the fan starts working after some minutes. If I close down the lid, the screen remains lit.
-
I've tried all the fixes and combinations: plug the "system install" pendrive, reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down Option key, hold down C key (for rEFIt), battery powered, magsafe powered... Nothing works! I just get the chime and the white screen. If, then, I "let it be" and don't shut it off, after some minutes the fan starts working (so, I guess there's some CPU activity?).
+
I've tried all the usual fixes and combinations:
+
-plug the "system install" pendrive
+
-reset the SMC
+
-reset the PRAM
+
-hold down Option key
+
-hold down C key (for rEFIt)
+
-battery powered, magsafe powered...
+
Nothing works! I just get the chime and the permanent white screen.
-
I don't have an adapter for external screen, so I can't check if it's a display-related problem.
+
I don't have any kind of adapters, so I can't check anything involving cable connections.
-
Would you think that this is a screen issue, or rather a logic board issue? As this model is LED-less and has noiseless disk, no way of knowing if it boots but the screen is broken, or if it doesn't boot at all.
-
-
Some hints? Thank you!
+
Is there something else I can try. Am I facing a broken logic board? Can it get broken "just like that"?
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless. Battery and charger work ok.
-
Suddenly, after a normal reboot, I only got the startup chime and a white screen (without apple logo).
+
Then, right after a normal reboot, suddenly I got the startup chime, a bright white screen (without apple logo nor pointer), and nothing else!
-
I've treid all the fixes: reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down Option key, plugging in the "system install pendrive", hold down C key (for rEFIt), fully charge battery, fully discharge it, magsafe plugged, magsafe unplugged... Nothing works! I just get the chime and the white screen. If, then, I "let it be" and don't shut it off, after some minutes the fan starts working (so, I guess there's some CPU activity?).
+
I've tried all the fixes and combinations: plug the "system install" pendrive, reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down Option key, hold down C key (for rEFIt), battery powered, magsafe powered... Nothing works! I just get the chime and the white screen. If, then, I "let it be" and don't shut it off, after some minutes the fan starts working (so, I guess there's some CPU activity?).
I don't have an adapter for external screen, so I can't check if it's a display-related problem.
-
Would you folks guess this is a screen issue, or a logic board issue? As this model doesn't have any external evidence of a working system, and the SSD disk is totally silent, I can't know if it's booting (thenI'd have a broken screen) or if it's simply not booting at all (then I'd have a broken logic board).
+
Would you think that this is a screen issue, or rather a logic board issue? As this model is LED-less and has noiseless disk, no way of knowing if it boots but the screen is broken, or if it doesn't boot at all.
-
I've read some similar topics, but none exactly like this. Some hints? Thank you!
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless.
Suddenly, after a normal reboot, I only got the startup chime and a white screen (without apple logo).
I've treid all the fixes: reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down Option key, plugging in the "system install pendrive", hold down C key (for rEFIt), fully charge battery, fully discharge it, magsafe plugged, magsafe unplugged... Nothing works! I just get the chime and the white screen. If, then, I "let it be" and don't shut it off, after some minutes the fan starts working (so, I guess there's some CPU activity?).
I don't have an adapter for external screen, so I can't check if it's a display-related problem.
Would you folks guess this is a screen issue, or a logic board issue? As this model doesn't have any external evidence of a working system, and the SSD disk is totally silent, I can't know if it's booting (then I'd have a broken screen) or if it's simply not booting at all (then I'd have a broken logic board).
I've read some similar topics, but none exactly like this. Some hints? Thank you!
My Air with rEFIt installed was working flawless. Booted it lots of times, no problem.
+
My Air (rEFIt installed) was working flawless.
-
Now after writing some information, I rebooted, and since then, I only get the startup chime, and a white screen without apple logo.
+
Suddenly, after a normal reboot, I only got the startup chime and a white screen (without apple logo).
-
I've treid all the fixes: reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down option key, reboot with system pen drive plugged in, reboot without, hold down C key (for rEFIt), fully charge battery, fully discharge it... Nothing works! Always get the chime and the white screen.
+
I've treid all the fixes: reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down Option key, plugging in the "system install pendrive", hold down C key (for rEFIt), fully charge battery, fully discharge it, magsafe plugged, magsafe unplugged... Nothing works! I just get the chime and the white screen. If, then, I "let it be" and don't shut it off, after some minutes the fan starts working (so, I guess there's some CPU activity?).
-
I don't have an adapter for external screen.
+
I don't have an adapter for external screen, so I can't check if it's a display-related problem.
-
Do you folks think it's a screen issue, or a logic board issue? As this model doesn't have any "disk" indicator or led, and as the disk is totally silent (SSD), I can't know if it's booting (then I'd have a broken screen) or if it's simply not booting at all (then I'd have a broken logic board)
+
Would you folks guess this is a screen issue, or a logic board issue? As this model doesn't have any external evidence of a working system, and the SSD disk is totally silent, I can't know if it's booting (then I'd have a broken screen) or if it's simply not booting at all (then I'd have a broken logic board).
I've read some similar topics, but none exactly like this. Some hints? Thank you!
My Air with rEFIt installed was working flawless. Booted it lots of times, no problem.
Now after writing some information, I rebooted, and since then, I only get the startup chime, and a white screen without apple logo.
I've treid all the fixes: reset the SMC, reset the PRAM, hold down option key, reboot with system pen drive plugged in, reboot without, hold down C key (for rEFIt), fully charge battery, fully discharge it... Nothing works! Always get the chime and the white screen.
I don't have an adapter for external screen.
Do you folks think it's a screen issue, or a logic board issue? As this model doesn't have any "disk" indicator or led, and as the disk is totally silent (SSD), I can't know if it's booting (then I'd have a broken screen) or if it's simply not booting at all (then I'd have a broken logic board)
I've read some similar topics, but none exactly like this. Some hints? Thank you!