Spinning Wheel Of Death Issue?

Joined
Sep 24, 2015
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Hi,

I have a 15" macbook pro running OSX 10.6.6, and recently I have started to get the SWOD of death shortly after turning it on and loading up the OS. Its usually fine for a couple of mins and then if I try run a program the SWOD starts and wont stop, and my only option has been to do a hard reset with the power button.

Ive so far booted into safe mode and ran disk utility where I verified the disk permissions, repaired them and then verified the disk, which seems to help a little on the next boot into regular mode, but it usually only extends time frame before the SWOD reappears.

Ive also booted into single user mode and used the fsck -yf command multiple times, all of which have said in the results that the HDD appears to be ok.

Is there anything else I can try or what is likely to be the issue here?

I dont use the machine for browsing, only for music production and have 100GB free of a 250GB HDD. It has 1GB RAM
 
Joined
Sep 17, 2014
Messages
4,854
Reaction score
241
Do you have OS 10.6.6 on a DVD? Given that you did get some "assistance" from running Disk Utility in Safe Mode, it could be helpful if you ran Disk Utility "by itself". You can do that by booting your machine from the DVD, and then running Disk Utility from there. If you can do that, use Disk Utility to 1) Verify and Repair Permissions, 2) Verify and Repair your internal disk at the Volume (ie, top) level, and 3) Verify and Repair the disk at each partition level.

Additionally, after you get things working, you should consider upgrading to the last version of Snow Leopard, 10.6.8. You can get the Combo Updater from here:

https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1399?locale=en_US

That update allows anyone with OS 10.6 through 10.6.7 to get to OS 10.6.8.
 
Joined
Sep 24, 2015
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Na its a old machine so dont have the OS on a disc. Will 10.6.8 function ok with only 1GB of ram?
 
Joined
Sep 17, 2014
Messages
4,854
Reaction score
241
Na its a old machine so dont have the OS on a disc. Will 10.6.8 function ok with only 1GB of ram?

Yes, it will function with only 1 Gig of RAM. But, you might want to consider upgrading the RAM in your machine to at least 4 gig. Your machine will run WAY better if you do.
 

Cory Cooper

Moderator
Joined
May 19, 2004
Messages
11,102
Reaction score
492
Just a note: Even though fsck passes, there could still be issues with the hard drive, as it doesn't perform a surface scan for bad blocks/sectors. It only checks the catalog/file structure integrity, not physical defects.

Snow Leopard will run just fine with 1GB of RAM, although 2GB or more will afford you the ability to run more apps simultaneously.

Make sure you have a current Time Machine or other backup before you do anything else. The 10.6.8 Combo Updater honestone mentioned is a good idea.

C
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Top