macOS Infinite Boot Loop Recovery | No Backup | No Data Loss
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- čas přidán 25. 07. 2024
- I used nearly every tool in my macOS repair kit while recovering from the infinite boot loop error. I explain every step of diagnosing and repairing macOS. The troubleshooting methods I show can be used in a number of different situations involving disk failure and kernel panics. Learn how I was finally able to recover from the infinite boot loop error without a backup and retain all of my data.
📋 Table of Contents
Intro: 0:00
Infinite Boot Loop Symptoms: 00:21
Boot Loop Appears: 00:34
Adjusting for Your Mac Model: 02:07
Boot Error First Response : 02:44
PRAM / NVRAM Reset: 03:27
SMC Reset: 04:04
Booting to Safe Mode: 05:00
Searching Windows for Solutions: 05:17
Apple Software Updates: 05:50
Boot Camp Control Panel: 06:01
Windows Updates: 06:11
Patience and Desperate Restarts: 06:37
Cause of My Infinite Reboot Loop: 07:10
Booting to Recovery Mode: 07:47
First Aid with Disk Utility: 08:22
Target Disk Mode: 09:00
No Backup Disk Recovery: 09:58
Keep Data and Reinstall macOS: 10:30
Back in macOS without Data Loss: 12:28
Outro: 13:40
🔗 Links Mentioned:
Apple Documentation on PRAM / NVRAM Resets:
support.apple.com/en-us/HT204063
Apple Documentation on SMC Resets:
support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295
🧩 Related Content:
Learn macOS | Full Tutorial:
• Mac Tutorial for Begin...
Disk Utility | Full Tutorial:
• How to Use Disk Utilit...
Mac Tutorials Playlist:
• macOS Tutorials by Ans...
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I wasnt up to date with Sonoma, I was on venture. I got all the way to the "Keep Data and Re-Install Mac OS" section and had to update to Sonoma, it worked after a while just like yours! Thank you so much for the help, I just finished with the time machine backup to an external SSD to play it safe, but this saved me so much time! Thanks again! (2019 Intel Macbook Pro w/ Touchbar)
A brindis for your health! I'm 89 years old and went to your same situation a couple of times.(A lot of couple of times.) And like you, alone, without any help, I solved your same problem. And watching You Tube, i thing is a common problem with Imac. Congrat!
Oh man... I know all about "late night tech decisions" that send me into a tailspin. Glad you recovered and thanks for documenting the processes.
lol someone gave me an Xbox one that was overheating and I repasted it at 2am to only find it do the same thing boot as soon a a game is actually loaded and it works the cpu the fan maxes out and it shuts off instantly so now it does it less but still does it I think a chip is fried or something but I took it apart and put it back together multiple times thinking what did I do wrong
@@dkemp1337 Oh... you poor guy. I've done that 'dance' too many times over the years!😒😬
I normally get so irritated with story time but at this moment, I really needed to hear that someone got through this with a happy ending. Praying I get there too! Thanks for sharing
thia was such a weird issue - very distressing. was great to watch what you went thru as it seemed i was also getting to bottom of my "toolbag" so weird - thanks for posting. did not feel so alone - even tho we are separated by several months by now.
Man! What an excellent natural speaker you are. So tech savy, you are thata your speaking abilities may be even more captivating.
Wow, thanks, I really appreciate that!
I believe order is important. I had tried restoring the OS, didn't work, cleared the PRAM, didn't work, etc. But seeing that you did those in reverse order I tried again and SUCCESS!
Thanks!
This video is the last piece in the puzzle of getting my HD back properly! So glad you made this, Anson! Didn't know if the Recovery mode's "Install" option would wipe my files and I haven't found an answer until now. Thanks so much!! :D
Just had a 2018 MBA behave like this. Backed up files through target disk mode using another device and then did a full reinstall. It shut down a few times just like yours. It also worked!
The video helped. The last step is what brought my laptop back to life. Not going to lie I was just extremely stressed out the whole time but very relieved and happy now thanks !
You have no idea how much you’ve saved my butt today.
I was having a bad day already, when i got home i tried opening up my macbook and i was shocked to see that i was stuck on a loop.
Then i found your video, hoping that i’d still be able to recover my macbook data…
I love your story telling it made me feel i wasn’t alone when dealing with this scary situation
I appreciate your story and how you helped us solve this
You are my hero please keep making videos and sharing your stories
Thank you so much for this video. While some may not appreciate you taking the time to explain everything, I really did (I appreciate the context over getting straight to the point and not knowing the full experience/full story of what was happening). and going through what you went through with your on/off cycling issues. I was having the same issue with my 2019 Macbook Pro. My laptop is also partitioned into apple/windows and I was experiencing exactly what you were with my windows being able to start up just fine when holding down shift but once updating and trying to switch back to apple with boot camp it would go back into the on/off cycle (just as you experienced). In the past when this has happened to me a simple NVRAM/PRAM reset would resolve the issue but not this time so I also appreciate that you went through and explained/showed the multiple ways you can resolve the on/off issue. This Video helped me get my laptop back up and running correctly, so thank you very much for taking the time to make this video. 😊
I got to step 4 and it fixed mine. Thank you for the video!!! So much
Super story, steps and the narration / video work is great... :-D thanks :-)
Hello Anson,
So, at the end of all this, did your Windows operating system boot up properly with bootcamp?
thanks
Tysm for this guide, I tried to install bootcamp on my MacBook Pro which worked fine and all but after a couple of hours I decided to deinstall it cause I didn’t have that much space left. All was fine and nothing seemed wrong but the next day when I tried to start my MacBook it got into that loop where the startup sound appeared and the progress bar was loading only for 5% and then restarting. In the end the reinstalling of Os helped me out and I kept all of my data thankfully :)
thank you for this! no data lost on my end!🙏🙏🙏 love the story telling too as i went through each process on my computer at the same time
had this problem, probably because I recently deleted windows... this worked!! thank you so so soooo much, it was also my last chance at having a normal student week with my mac :) this video gave me reassurance that someone else had gone through this and confidence that I could do it too by following this tutorial, as well as saving me from the scoldings I could've potentially gotten from my parents for destroying my laptop... sub'd and liked!!
Yep, same thing happened to me. I am trying the reinstall next. Thanx for the vid!
I tried everything up to about minute 7 and nothing worked. Decided to do the reinstall MacOS option and after about an hour or so it finally let me back in! It was weird since I only logged into Windows through Bootcamp which had always worked before. Great video, very helpful.
This exactly happened to me last night. All the same!!! However, as I watching this video I was already in the final stages and it started up properly! 😂 kept me occupied, great vid!
Haha awesome, glad to hear you got it back up and running and I could help support the recovery effort!
This happened to me exactly. Thanks for sharing.
This video really helped me learn a lot! Great video and great story telling my brother. Appreciate your time and effort to make this video. Subscribed! 💯
That's awesome to hear and I'm glad you enjoyed the story. For situations like this details matter so I wanted to get those in for anyone with a similar issue. Thanks for the sub!
Thank you, Anson! - my nightmare is now sorted
I have a question, if the macbook pro did reinstall itself, but didn't save all your data, will your bootcamp data still be safe and sound? Can you still boot up into windows?
IMac 27" Yosemite 10.10.5 - none of these options worked for me. Started getting grey screen after installing more RAM and now the infinite boot loop. please help
Great video! It is the most detailed video on the earth. Thank you!
You superstar!...fixed thanks so much!
You gave me hope. I ran the repair option but one of my drives wouldn’t repair. There’s an issue. What do I do? Honestly it looks full
I have no words, you save me bro
Hey, i have the same keyboard and i'm using it with a mac. Did you have any isssue with the volume change button doesn't work?
Honestly, str8 to the point is best but somehow your story is just as gr8❤ty
Bro, I was stuck on my MacBook Pro M1. Infinite loop. Followed instructions to Power + Option. it worked. Thanks so much! Fingers crossed. Updating to Sonoma.
Woohoo, awesome! Glad you got back in. Have fun on Sonoma!
Hey Anson. I’m in the same Restart loop. I noticed in the video you are on the Beta program. I am too. However, I can not reinstall the Sonoma MacOS (which worked last week) because I get the error ‘can’t downgrade your MacOS. I’m taking your excitement to the next level. Any thoughts / advise?
thank you my brother, this happened to me as well and your solution worked great
question though, did you encounter the problem again after going into windows again? im too scared to look lol
thank you again though this saved me, sub and like earned, peace 🙏
Repairing now, dunno if it will fix my issue but as a primarily Windows user I appreciate the help.
I have an issue and mine is quite complex… so i have this 2017 MBP and the screen was already messed up so i used to use a separate display, and it had to be connected to power to be able to view on the screen. Now with this loop going on, i cannot even see anything on my separate display, also i cannot connect a bluetooth keyboard even if i use the usb-c cable to try and press and hold the keys to send it to recovery mode or anything😢
I really need your advice in this. Should I download bootcamp again? if so what should I do to prevent it from going into a bootloop?
I was navigating in to the settings last night and I decide to reboot my Mac from the settings window, there was an option that says “restart from HD” which is the only HD in my laptop, and big surprise! Computer restart and I wasn’t able lo login I got exactly the same loop as your, I try everything as you explain and in other forums, but nothing really happen now I’m hoping I’ll be able to see my files again still 2 hrs to wait! what a Weird glitch/bug? do you have any idea why is this happening??
My imac has grey questionmark at startup so its not booting up properly and disk utility is not fixing the issue and i canterase or install a new os
This was so funny! I am watching it while waiting for my OS install because I literally just went through a restart loop 🤣. However my install say 7 hours so I’m not as hopeful 🤦🏻♀️😂
Do note that Apple Intel "Target Disk", in iMacs using Apple silicon M chips, is an option in the macOS Recovery.
Another option for recovery pertains to the usage of electro-optical devices.
Discussing "Target Disk", does make you a nerd! Congratulations on joining the club!
Omg thank you very much, you really saved me and my macbook.
Have you seen the screen coming up as not giving a disk option to install os on?
Thank you so much! I tried all the steps and the only one that worked as the Cmd+R and Install MacOS Sonoma! I had recently deleted my windows bootcamp partition and I believe that prompted it to happen as I had not downloaded the latest iOS.
After everything and de OS system got back to work as usual does de windows system got errased? Or it was still ther and you could work perfect after that in bouth systems?? Because I have the same exact problem
Both systems work perfectly to this day. I’ve even updated the Mac partition to Sonoma.
GOAT MAN U HUST SAVED ME 😭🙏
Awesome, great to hear!
How come you posted EXACTLY what happened to me 😭😭 I’m on the last step waiting to see if files can be saved 😢 Ty for the step by step troubleshooting tutorial I definitely needed it explained to me like a baby and if you hadn’t shown exactly everything you went thru in the last step I would’ve gotten impatient many times and thought my computer froze and would’ve force restarted during mid re-installation and really fucked up 🤦🏽♀️ Still waiting on it but just had to thank you first!
I'm sitting here watching the Apple bar load again hoping my iMac actually starts this time after sudden loss of power earlier after a transformer blew in the neighborhood. However, my iMac is from 2011 or 2012. I will go through as many steps as I can. Hope I have a successful resolution. Appreciate the information!
Thank you reinstalling Mac OS worked for me - had a boot loop with the error “enter the password to unlock the disk”
When I went back into start up disk, to get to windows, the icon wasn’t there. How do I fix this?
what about if your mac resets every time you try logging in, freezes when trying to log in via safe mode, and the recovery mode keybind just brings you to a loading screen that fills up by a super small amount without going past that point before suddenly shutting down 5-8 minutes later?
Mosrv
All t c
13:41
Ugh, my macbook got a kernel panic and infinite loop because of windows update didn’t go well.
Mac reboot … a horror story
No Apple logo showing for me I did a post root patch reboot no Apple logo just progress bar not moving help me get back to my system
You saved my life bro. Thank you for sharing this story. Saved all my data!!!
That's awesome to hear! Any more details? Were you in an infinite boot loop? Was Boot Camp involved? Did you have to go through all the steps? If not, which step fixed it for you?
@@AnsonAlexander Yeah it was related to Bootcamp, I had installed Windows on my macbook pro 2019 for the first time yesterday, and when I tried to go back to MacOS, it would infinitely reboot itself. I tried all of the steps leading up to reinstalling MacOS in Recovery mode and none of them worked for me either. It was only after the reinstall, was I able to boot up again. All is seemingly working now. Thanks.
I tried reinstalling but its asking for more space. How can I free up space in recovery mode? I tried target disk but its not showing up in my M1 iMac (The problem laptop is Intel Mac). Any help is greatly appreciated
I have the same problem, any luck?
it won't let me boot into recovery mode and I don't have anything to connect my computer to another mac :( pls help
thanks you made my day
@AnsonAlexander, I had the EXACT same situation as you, only my machine was an early 2015 13" MacBook Pro Retina (model A1502). My machine also has dual boot between macOS (Ventura) and Win10. However, I had replaced my original 250Gig SSD with an aftermarket Samsung NVME 2Tb drive. In my case, Other than unusually long bootup times, which is a common issue with NVME upgrades, this setup was working fine until the macOS update. I was wondering if my NVME drive was part of the issue, but you seem to have a desktop model. Since I am not very familiar with desktop Macs, can you confirm that your machine was running on the original SSD, not some NVME upgrade? I ended up swapping back to my original SSD as I could never figure out how to fix the NVME drive death boot loop issue. Thanks.
Awesome! Thanks for relieving some of the anxiety of using the reinstall feature. My iMac would run fine from guest account, but reboot constantly or lock up when it didn't reboot.
Update: Didn't work. I think the main/admin login I used is corrupt. Had to limp in safeboot mode and created a new admin account. Machine works fine with that login (guest too).
You. Are. THE MAN
Thanks.. This did it for me..
Awesome, welcome back to your Mac!
I thought it was ok, but after reinstall, it went back into infinite boot 😱
Do I install it macintosh HD or Macintosh HD - data, whats the difference
My MacBook Air has been in starting internet recovery for over 8 hours and isn’t even half way done… HELP!!!
I am completely unable to redownload MacOS. I tried to erase my computer and just go about it that way, but I was still unable to get in. Does anybody know any way to fix this?
I’m having this same issue with an M1 MBP. Already went through reinstalling the OS once. That unfortunately did not work and now on my second attempt. I was luckily able to recover my data through Target Disk mode but I would love to not have to wipe the whole MacBook clean. We’ll see how this goes!
Oh wow, that is an interesting yet, unfortunate, situation. I'd love to hear how it ends up. How old is the MBP? Did you run Disk Utility and, if so, see any errors?
Hi, how did you recover the data through target disk mode? What did you do?
Omg thank you!!!
I did all of this and still hasn’t opened. I have noticed two things though . No start up audio “zzhing “ and no sound of HD whirling away ! Has the hard drive broken? If so how can I start my iMac ? Thanks Paul
Great climactic storytelling:) But what happens if Command+R is not working:( I can’t even get into Recovery mode. Any advice. My Macbook Air has been stuck on the Apple logo for many hours now. Tried everything:/
Hello Sir , I have tried many things but done with that, please help
I found a decent workaround/stopgap when my MacBook Pro 2012 unibody did similar:
Install OS onto a memory card and use it as a hard drive.
It's great because it gives you time to back up everything before you do the HD reinstall. I've been running like this for a couple years now, my files were still there so I was afraid the HD reinstall would wipe everything.
Used Recovery Mode cmd-r at startup, and chose Install OS onto the memory card. (USB flashdrive runs too slow.)
Option-Reboot, chose the memory card, and we're back!! Woot!
Downsides: At each startup, the computer sets files on the actual HD to read-only. You can copy, view, edit, etc., but you have to save changes to the memory card.
The other downside is you have a memory card sticking out of the computer all the time, don't bump into it!
Tldr: boot while holding command + R
Thank you so so much! Im never touching boot camp ever again lol
Anyone have a cliff notes version?
This exact thing just happened to me, and I did the same thing. I have a 2.9 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i9 MacBook Pro. Command R worked, and the utility scan was okay. Then, I reinstalled the OS, and everything was fine. But it happened again in one week. The second time, I brought it to Apple to run diagnostics. Everything seemed okay, but the technician said I might have a hardware issue. :(
Now, I feel unsafe with this computer. What are your thoughts? Should I do a full wipe of the computer? It’s working, but I feel like I might be ready for an upgrade. However, I still think this computer might have some life left in it. Thoughts?
I still can't get mine to stop shutting down. Mac book pro 2020, after doing all he said still shuts down. It never gets to the screen where it changes. Not sure what to do at this point.
How do you fix it. I have the same problem could not boot. but windows does.
Worked but didn’t work? I restored the dead laptop but as soon as i removed the usb c cable that was connected to my other laptop it turned off and the boot loop nightmare started all over again 😢 Any suggestions?
Target disk mode sounded interesting!
Having issues with a OSX Yosemite to Sierra upgrade on a 21" 2013 late imac with a 1tb fusion drive.
It has stuck on the black screen with apple logo and a progress bar. Stuck like at the end.
Booted in recovery mode, entered disk utility did first aid on the disk. No errors found. Rebooted and the loading process started over. But after a couple of hours it stuck again on the same spot.
Have not tried the CMD + L for the log screen or if it was Option + L people has told on forums that the progress bar isnt accurate. And the log window can tell the process and the remaining time and if it has like hang/crashed and such.
Dont understand why this happened with the upgrade.
Have like 30 gig free space. So it should be enough.
When i started the upgrade process within Yosemite it ran a compatibility script before the process. No errors or nothing telling me something about the free space.
So.. i have not tried the NV/PRAM reset. I have not tried booting up on a Linux Live USB and copy data there.
I have not tried this Disk target mode. Dont know what cable needed.
The imac is a friend.. and she also has a newer imac 27" i dont know what year though and what ports available.
I have a macbook pro late 2013 with big sur installed that are available for that process aswell.
Is it possible to connect an external usb drive on that 21" imac and boot up osx sierra from a usb stick and install osx on that external drive? and use that to access the internal disk data?
Please suggesstions?
thanks for the help, was boutta have a panic attack
thank u
Lesson learned, I jumped to the end first and then around to different points and nothing was working. Was going to erase because I don’t have space to reinstall, but decided to start from the beginning and try every step in order. I see text below the loading bar for the first time 🤞🏼
I’m glad you got it resolved! I know some people don’t going through the whole process but there really was a reason I did everything in this order so I’m glad you were able to be patient with my story and get your Mac fixed :)
Hey Anson, I was having the same issue with you and bootcamp and decided to send it and reinstall mac os sonoma. However, it says its going to take 26 hours and 11 minutes to reinstall. If that is the case, should i be concerned?
What is you do all this and you get the message of “Internal Error” and have no recover key?
What next steps would you recommend?
As I mentioned, I would use target disk mode on the computer, wipe the hard drive in disk utility via target disk and then reinstall the OS via target disk mode.
So I tried reinstalling macOS but... It got rebooted during it too😅. Still facing the same issue
Next time, get straight to the solution of the problem. Keep going. Thanks
Unfortunately, not all problems are the same. This video has the solution to many macOS problems. Hope you find what you're looking for.
what if the infinite reboot loop reappears even after reinstalling mac OS?
Exactly my problem please could you tell me if you found a solution?
@@molez5022 I haven't really tested out his solutions yet, I'm just asking questions to get prepared, but I recommend bringing your device to the MAC OS Support Professionals
Mine’s worse. I couldn’t do repair on disk, wouldn’t allow me to reinstall OS, recovery mode not working-only internet recovery. Tried to erase disk and its completely deleted internal drive instead…😭
Im stuck in the boot loop… and none of this worked for me. :(
fucking epick history! love your video
Didn’t work for me… The recovery server could not be contacted (unable to reinstall macOS)
Sounds like you were trying to do a network reinstall. Will have to get your computer connected to Ethernet or to WiFi from the boot menu to perform network recoveries.
U saved my fricken life bro 💀
This worked out well for me. Now I'm going to bed.
after the first 2 options I just went to the restore options Man.....
Awesome! Glad it helped and hopefully can sleep better now!
Command R worked for me but don’t wanna do Sonoma again. Here goes..
All keystrokes must be completed before the Apple logo. There’s only one way to reset PRAM. PRAM is where system settings related to sound volume and display resolution etc. it has nothing to do with core systems.
Try different methods: could not enter recovery mode (command+R/ command+option+R/command+shift+option+R), could not enter safe mode, could not enter hardware diagnostic mode, could not boot from external drive, could not reset pram/nvran or SNC. could not become external drive from other Mac, could not enter FDU model, but can enter windows, without any problem.... It falls and break the screen, I used an external screen try everything... don't know what to do now.
Bruh, we not here for story time. Straight to the pointtttt. Thanks for the video tho.
I'm sorry you didn't appreciate the story but, when going through all of the troubleshooting steps as I did in this situation, it's important to have context and understand why you're attempting a particular fix. Hope you're able to fix your computer if you're having issues...
@@AnsonAlexanderdude I was getting anxious as hell as you were telling your story then at the end where you talked about the hand jitters and rapid heartbeat while writing the script , sheesh. Right there with you bro. I'm dealing with a similar issue with my 2009 iMac on High Sierra. Might just have to use the apple configurator. Felt like just f it, erase and clean install but you have inspired me.
There we go again.. Blah blah blah
There we go again.. Blah blah blah
There we go again.. Blah blah blah
Y’all complain about everything. Just forward the waffle if you don’t want it. Dudes trying to help you and y’all just wining. 😅 none of this worked for me but damn!
If anyone ever gets an issue where you cannot install the Mac OS because you don’t have enough storage on your Mac HD.
Plug in an external drive, (format it) and install the Mac OS onto the hard drive and boot up the Mac.
Access your Macintosh HD while on the hard drive OS and clear up space. Delete your caches too.
Once you have enough storage deleted. Restart the Mac into recovery mode again and reinstall the Mac OS onto your Macintosh HD. Hope this helps someone because I learned this over 24 hours of heartache 😂
I think my intel machine is borked to hell, trying to reinstall for the second time... I hate my life lol
Me Too! MacOS Sonoma!