subject: Resolve Your Mac Startup Problems Without Taking it to a Mac Repair Shop [print this page] Resolve Your Mac Startup Problems Without Taking it to a Mac Repair Shop
Are you having problems with your Mac at startup? Macintosh computers are very reliable, but even the best made machines still have problems now and then, or some Mac repair technician look at it - they get "cranky" at startup.
Startup problems can be related to hard drives, corruption in the OS user accounts, a bad battery or power supply, or even the logic board. Clues to the problem can be found by determining when the system fails and then isolating a pattern to find a solution.
Begin by removing the external disk drive, printer, or other external peripherals. Before you take your computer to an Apple dealer or Mac repair shop, answering a few simple questions can help narrow the types of mac repairs you may be dealing with.
First of all, is your system turning on?
If not, then you are likely dealing with a dead battery, bad logic board, or a problem with your AC adapter. A certified MacBook repair specialist can help you narrow down the exact cause of the problem and make improvements.
Do you hear a popping sound?
If so, then you may be dealing with the capacitor failing. Fortunately, a new power supply or AC adapter will not be difficult or expensive for a Mac repair shop to replace.
However, if you suspect your MacBook repair involves a dead or defective battery and your laptop has a removable battery, try to remove it first to see if that resolves the problem. A defective battery can prevent your laptop from booting, or if it fails to shut down properly after the a crash of the OS, it could prevent a successful reboot.
Depending on the nature of the problem, an Apple dealer may need to send your MacBook to an outside repair shop, so it might be easier to start with an authorized apple repair shop that you trust, and deal directly with the Apple technicians who will be fixing your computer.
Mac repair shops will often recommend the use of Time Machine, a program that makes a complete backup of your system. Using Time Machine, in the case of hard drive failure or data corruption, Mac users can go back to the last time their system worked fine.
Does Your MacBook slow down with age?
Perhaps the problem you're dealing with is a slowing start time. Your Apple Mac dealer or Apple repair shop may or may not have specific solutions for this, but there are several ways you can accelerate it on your own.
Remember, your Apple MacBook or iMac needs to run through a significant amount of code before you see the startup page. The longer you use your computer, legacy programs increasingly need to sort out every time they are activated. Apple Dealers will often give you tips on how to fix this, but it is much simpler to remove unused programs, especially programs that automatically turn on every time you boot your computer. Using the "uninstaller" program, such as AppDelete or AppZapper will clean up unwanted applications easily, including all library-related files and definitions.
How do you know which programs load each time you boot your Mac up?
Simply go to the Macintosh > HD Library > Startup Items and the startup programs will all be listed. You may want to delete some programs directly from this list, but be careful not to delete anything that you really might need. Remember, deleting anything from this folder will affect all user accounts, not just your own, so make sure you know what you are deleting before you delete it. To see which programs boot for a particular user, go to: Apple Menu > System Preferences > Accounts, then click on "Login Items" tab for the desired account.
Another suggestion that Mac repair shops often make is to offload large media files and your iTunes library to a secondary drive. These files take up a lot of space on your computer hard drive storage, and they can affect the overall performance of your Mac computer when the hard drive is near max capacity.
Still having problems with starting a Mac?
No need to take your Mac to the Apple dealer or reseller. You'll get a better mac repair service from an Authorized Apple Service Provider (AASP). An AASP's main objective is to get your computer running, not to sell you a new one.
