If the system is really flaky but kind of works, booting the dying machine into target disk mode is handy as well. It lets you connect the ill machine to a healthy one to diagnose or recover data without having to crack the case. If you have a utility laptop loaded with your software tools, it can save time and prevents warranty issues you might run into if you open the case. Apple's instructions are below:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1661
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I created a bootable USB stick and have loaded all my utility software onto it. I then boot the Macintosh from that by holding down the Option key during startup and selecting the USB drive as the startup drive. This gives me more portability than a laptop, but perhaps not as much capability.
I've used this for some time, and it works well in my situation.
I've used this for some time, and it works well in my situation.
I too have made bootable thumb drives. Mine are actually the install DVD with the OS X drive utilities. I just recently used it for a failed drive.
If there's anything ever wrong with a computer it's a virus.Nobody ever typed the word 'error' when writing for computers.Erase the drive and reinstall.
We use a product named "Scannerz" for disk and system troubleshooting. It can find disk surface problems and help isolate bad cables, etc. Personally I think it's a bit for the more technically oriented, but I guess a fair number of people are using it.
A word about USB thumb drives with OSes installed on them. TAKE THEM OUT OR WHEN NOT IN USE DISABLE SPOTLIGHT INDEXING ON THEM. I made that mistake with one that was 32G. I put Snow Leopard on it as an emergency boot flash drive, and because there was so much space left over I started using it to transfer files on it. One day I went to write to my trusty thumb drive and it was rendered read-only. I found out that Spotlight was continually updating the indices on it, and it depleted the write cycles on it. Remember an thumb drive is not an SSD - it's not intended to handle continual reading and writing.
As an FYI, I think it was installed in the USB slot for about a month continually (more or less) fot that to occur.
A word about USB thumb drives with OSes installed on them. TAKE THEM OUT OR WHEN NOT IN USE DISABLE SPOTLIGHT INDEXING ON THEM. I made that mistake with one that was 32G. I put Snow Leopard on it as an emergency boot flash drive, and because there was so much space left over I started using it to transfer files on it. One day I went to write to my trusty thumb drive and it was rendered read-only. I found out that Spotlight was continually updating the indices on it, and it depleted the write cycles on it. Remember an thumb drive is not an SSD - it's not intended to handle continual reading and writing.
As an FYI, I think it was installed in the USB slot for about a month continually (more or less) fot that to occur.
I know that sounds stupid, but there seem to be some bogus sites out there that tell people how to "correct" problems, particularly when the system is having problems booting, and their advice isn't sage, it's probably criminal.
I came across one of these once and the writer gave explicit instructions how to make changes to some critical permissions and files in the root OS, and if you do so, he claimed it would fix your problems. I didn't believe it so I cloned an OS onto a FireWire drive and it literally rendered a perfectly good operating system totally useless. BUYER BEWARE. I knew enough to be wary of this sort of thing, but I bet a lot of others aren't.
I came across one of these once and the writer gave explicit instructions how to make changes to some critical permissions and files in the root OS, and if you do so, he claimed it would fix your problems. I didn't believe it so I cloned an OS onto a FireWire drive and it literally rendered a perfectly good operating system totally useless. BUYER BEWARE. I knew enough to be wary of this sort of thing, but I bet a lot of others aren't.
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