Forums | MacLife

PaddyFahey · 2009-08-28 9:45 pm

My 3-yo G5 Mac (running 10.5.8) started suddenly shutting down randomly, unexpectedly. When I restart, it takes a long time - after the gray screen with the progress indicator, there is a blue one with nothing on it which sits there for quite a while. Any ideas?

Thanks,

Paddy

Last edited by PaddyFahey (2009-08-28 9:48 pm)

Jyri Erik · 2009-08-29 10:39 pm

Check your hard drive(s). It could be a sign that the HD is dying/corrupted. I fixed one machine with the same problem with an HD replacement. However, it also could be that the system is dying. Had another system with the same problem that nothing I did fiexed the problem and it fianlly gave up the ghost.

Jyri

avkills · 2009-08-30 7:40 am

Sounds like the hard drive to me also. They are actually remarkably easy to install. Did my Mom's.

-mark

SomeOneOrOther · 2009-08-30 9:32 am

Load up Disk Utility, and run "Verify Disk".

PaddyFahey · 2009-08-31 9:43 am

Thanks - I'll give Disk Utility a try. Is it possible to use an external hard drive as the system disk? I have one I don't use that much.

Last edited by PaddyFahey (2009-08-31 10:34 am)

Nefarious · 2009-08-31 11:00 am

Yes, if the external disk is attached as a Firewire drive. Do backups as soon as possible. Then install your OS onto the external drive. To boot off the external drive, you can boot holding down the OPTION key (and select the drive) OR set the startup drive in System Preferences. I prefer the System Preferences method.

PaddyFahey · 2009-08-31 11:43 am

Thanks, that's great news. I'll have at it tonight.

Paddy

PaddyFahey · 2009-08-31 5:30 pm

Hey all,

I started my Mac up from the CD, and ran disk utility. It ran once and did find some problems and fixed them, but on the verification rescan it just died - no warning, just powered off (which is the same as the problem I've been having). I started it back up (from the CD) and started disk utility again, and it died right away.

So... this would mean that the problem is not caused by the hard drive, right? Any ideas?

Thanks,

Paddy

Nefarious · 2009-08-31 6:05 pm

RAM issues are "easy" to check. If you have multiple RAM chips, take one of them out and see what happens. Then switch chips if still having problems.

Pariah · 2009-08-31 6:35 pm

PaddyFahey wrote:
Hey all,

I started my Mac up from the CD, and ran disk utility. It ran once and did find some problems and fixed them, but on the verification rescan it just died - no warning, just powered off (which is the same as the problem I've been having). I started it back up (from the CD) and started disk utility again, and it died right away.

So... this would mean that the problem is not caused by the hard drive, right? Any ideas?

Thanks,

Paddy

A Hardware problem very well may not be detected. Your drive might read right to a utility and still be on deaths door.
Drives are cheap, back-up and replace. It's the only way to be sure.

PaddyFahey · 2009-08-31 7:48 pm

Pariah - it shut down while it was started from the CD drive - isn't the hard drive at that point uninvolved in the running of the computer? If that's the case, wouldn't it rule the hard drive out as the cause of the problem?

Nefarious - I first tried running the hardware test from the CD, but it wouldn't stay alive long enough to run. I have 2 RAM modules, a 512MB and a 1G. I tried them in all possible combinations of the two slots, and still had the problem (even if I tried to run the hardware test in each combination). It would shut down almost immediately.

However, I did notice some corrosion on the top of the capacitors on the motherboard, right next to the panel with "G5" in large letters on it, in fact the ones indicated in this picture:
http://mymarketingservices.googlepages. … citors.jpg

I guess I'm hosed, then? Any idea how much a repair like this would cost? The machine is 2.5 years old, I don't have an extended warranty...

Thanks,

Paddy

Pariah · 2009-09-01 5:56 am

PaddyFahey wrote:
Pariah - it shut down while it was started from the CD drive - isn't the hard drive at that point uninvolved in the running of the computer? If that's the case, wouldn't it rule the hard drive out as the cause of the problem?

You were running Disk Utility on the drive which means read/write operations were being performed and a bum HDD can certainly crash a system even when it is not the boot drove.
I have 4 HDDs connected to my computer and I have had multiple drives for years and I have had non-boot volumes fail in a way that made the system crash.

That the process crapped out during verify points towards the HDD, not away from it.

PaddyFahey · 2009-09-02 12:34 pm

OK, thanks.

Paddy

Forums | MacLife

#1 2009-08-28 9:45 pm

G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#2 2009-08-29 10:39 pm

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#3 2009-08-30 7:40 am

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#4 2009-08-30 9:32 am

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#5 2009-08-31 9:43 am

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#6 2009-08-31 11:00 am

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#7 2009-08-31 11:43 am

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#8 2009-08-31 5:30 pm

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#9 2009-08-31 6:05 pm

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#10 2009-08-31 6:35 pm

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

PaddyFahey wrote:

#11 2009-08-31 7:48 pm

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

#12 2009-09-01 5:56 am

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

PaddyFahey wrote:

#13 2009-09-02 12:34 pm

Re: G5 Mac shuts down randomly, unexpectedly

Board footer