32 - iMac G5, 17-inch Troubleshooting Symptom Charts

Flashing question mark appears on the screen

1. Boot from the system CD that came with the computer and see if the hard drive
mounts on the desktop.
2. Launch Drive Setup. Reinstall the system software drivers for the hard drive.
3. If no hard drive is found in Drive Setup, verify the hard drive cable connections.
4. Reinstall system software. Backup the data first.
5. Reinitialize the hard drive.
6. Replace the hard drive.
7. Replace the logic board.
Optical Drive

CDs or DVDs don't show up on my desktop.

1. The first thing we should check is whether your drive can read discs normally. Try
inserting an audio CD and check whether it shows up on your desktop or launches
iTunes. Then eject it and insert the iMac Software Install and Restore disc that came
with your computer. Are either of these discs recognized by the computer?
Yes: It seems that some discs will show up on your Desktop, so the drive is OK - the
problem is the individual discs that don't appear. Try cleaning these discs, and make
sure they're in a format that can be read by your computer.
No: So no disc will show up on your desktop. Go ahead and leave the iMac Software
Install and Restore disc in your drive, and we're going to try a process that involves
restarting your computer. Follow the instructions, below.
– 1. Leave the iMac Install and Restore disc in the drive.
– 2. Go to the Apple menu and choose Shut Down.
– 3. Once the computer has shut down, hold down the OPTION button and press
the power button to start the computer up again.
– 4. You will see a blue background, a curly arrow and a right arrow, and between
them is a button with the name of your hard drive. Wait about thirty seconds to see
if another button comes up with the name iMac Software Install and Restore.
– 5. After waiting about thirty seconds, choose the button with your hard drive's
name, and click the right arrow button.
– 6. The computer will start up normally. Open your browser and go back to the
Apple support page at: www.apple.com/support”
2. When you were looking at the button with your hard drive's name on it, did a button
with the iMac Software Install and Restore ever appear?
Yes: The fact that the disc appeared there means your drive does know that a disc is
in it. Let's check some system settings to see if they're the reason the discs don't
appear.