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teney7 · Dec 9, 2005, 10:46 AM

My 12'' PB G4 had a driver become corrupted the other day. I rebooted, and since I have FileVault on (a mistake) it took forever to boot, so I thought it was normal. However, a couple of my friends and I logged into single user mode and watched the code run... the computer couldn't access a filevault driver and was getting nowhere in opening Mac OS X. Since we couldn't find the commands to shut off filevault, we decided to just wipe it and re-install, but when I put the install discs in, the first one runs great and then the second gives me an error that "there were errors during installation, please restart". Since everytime I restart, I get the same error, I am led to believe that maybe I have a bad install disc 2. However, when I transferred my data via FireWire to an iMac at work, the hard drive in my PB was making some pretty nasty sounds. DiskUtility verifies permissions and the disk itself to be OK, but all of us who heard it agree that it doesn't sound good. I am wondering, first of all, how accurate is DiskUtility, was the diagnosis even correct in the first place, and what should I do...? Wait to get another install disc 2 from a friend or should I call Apple? The machine is under warranty, but no AppleCare. TIA.

f1000 · Dec 9, 2005, 11:07 AM

Your hard drive is hosed. Disk Utility is NOT an accurate judge of drive failure and I strongly recommend that you don't try to use it to repair your drive any further. Doing so could permanently destroy your data.

Get DiskWarrior and/or Data Rescue X. My guess is that the former won't help you much if at all, but the latter could be priceless.

If the machine is under warranty, Apple will replace the drive for you.

bernt · Dec 11, 2005, 02:02 PM

You should try and run the Apple Hardware Test that came with your machine. It's probably on the install disc 1. AHT doesn't necessarily find all the errors, but if it does, then there's no doubt that your disk is faulty, which will save you from doing more troubleshooting when talking to AppleCare.

teney7 · Dec 14, 2005, 07:58 PM

Yeah, the hard drive is fried... it is on its way to CA...

RickO · Dec 20, 2005, 08:02 AM

Hi
I just sent my PB 15" 1.67 DDR2 back today with exactly the same faults your having. Started with Kernal panic then would not reboot. Would not reinstall, format or disk check. Took out my Crucial 512 DDR2 stick (exactly the same as the Apple one in the machiine) and gained enough stability to reinstall. So I thought I had a bad stick of ram. However..... last night did all the same fauts again and would not restart. So it is either bad Drive, RAM or other hardware.

First Mac I have had faults with (excluding iPods of course!!)

my other macs are G5 2x2ghz, iMac, PB12", ibook

photoeditor · Dec 20, 2005, 10:15 AM

Remember you can still get AppleCare up to one year after purchase. For those of you who don't have access to educational pricing, don't forget to shop around; I think CDW still sells it for $299 which is $50 off the list price.

teney7 · Dec 24, 2005, 01:22 AM

In trying to restore some of the programs that were on my PB, specifically iPhoto and the rest of iLife 05, the restore disc 1 that I was using says "Error: the package is damaged and cannot be read." Will Apple send me a new disc if I call or go to a store? Is there a way to get these programs without a disc?