Macbook A1181 Random shutdown > now won't boot

[RockIT Man]

Last week, a customer brought a MacBook in. It wouldn't boot past the Apple logo. It just got stuck and sat there. Disk Warrior found the OS 33% out of order. I ran DW and then was able to boot into OSX. Smooth sailing... The customer picked the computer up and went on her way.

Today, the customer came back. They said the computer worked fine for a day and then started shutting down randomly, normally when multitasking. I told them that it sounds like a hardware issue vs. the previous software issue.

Trying to replicate the issue, I started up iTunes and played some Aerosmith. Sure enough, after about 3 seconds of Sweet Emotion, the computer completely cut off. I turned it back on, tried again, same result.

I then tried to run software update to see if their were any firmware upgrades. The Mac cut off again. I attempted this again, same result.

Then the mac began only booting to the apple logo and cutting off. Now, the white led lights up and that's it. It seems that the issues is getting worse and worse by the minute. I've reset the PRAM and SMC with no luck.

Has anyone come across this before? I'm stumped.

 

[anonymous Mac Tech]

Last week, a customer brought a MacBook in. It wouldn't boot past the Apple logo. It just got stuck and sat there. Disk Warrior found the OS 33% out of order. I ran DW and then was able to boot into OSX. Smooth sailing... The customer picked the computer up and went on her way.

Today, the customer came back. They said the computer worked fine for a day and then started shutting down randomly, normally when multitasking. I told them that it sounds like a hardware issue vs. the previous software issue.

Trying to replicate the issue, I started up iTunes and played some Aerosmith. Sure enough, after about 3 seconds of Sweet Emotion, the computer completely cut off. I turned it back on, tried again, same result.

I then tried to run software update to see if their were any firmware upgrades. The Mac cut off again. I attempted this again, same result.

Then the mac began only booting to the apple logo and cutting off. Now, the white led lights up and that's it. It seems that the issues is getting worse and worse by the minute. I've reset the PRAM and SMC with no luck.

Has anyone come across this before? I'm stumped.

If DiskWarrior is finding a lot of issues, that usually means something else is causing the directory structure to get hosed out (i.e. random shutdowns, system freezes, bad HDD, etc.). To think DW would fix a random shutdown issue is crazy. Think about running chkdsk on a Windows machine, it fixes a bunch of problems and calling the customer telling them the machine is fixed assuming that will take care of random shutdowns.

Did you bother to take the machine apart and see if the fan is even turning? How about the heatsink? Does it look like a quilt was woven and stuffed in there? What about thermal grease? Does the machine seem to be charging? Is the magsafe port (charging port) have any debris stuck in there (it's magnetic so there could be)? Does the battery seem to be charging or does it run off battery alone if it does charge?

This isn't a Mac only thing. Whether it be a Windows a Mac with these symptoms this is pretty common sense tech troubleshooting. I'm not trying to be a jerk, but it's hard to believe you are stumped when it doesn't look like you've even opened the machine up.

 

[RockIT Man]

If DiskWarrior is finding a lot of issues, that usually means something else is causing the directory structure to get hosed out (i.e. random shutdowns, system freezes, bad HDD, etc.). To think DW would fix a random shutdown issue is crazy. Think about running chkdsk on a Windows machine, it fixes a bunch of problems and calling the customer telling them the machine is fixed assuming that will take care of random shutdowns.
.

Maybe I didn't explain well enough. When I first received the machine, there was not a problem with random shutdowns. The problem was the fact that the computer was stuck at the loading screen and wouldn't boot into the OS. It wasn't until a week after returning the computer that I was notified of issues with the computer randomly shutting down.

I did run a hardware diagnostic on the machine a week ago before releasing it to the customer. Everything checked out. I also ran software update. Everything was already updated.

The fan is clean and turning.
Haven't checked thermal grease as of yet.
There was some gunk in the charging port. Removed it.
The battery is charging.
It will run off of the battery.
I've tested combinations of on battery/no battery/and both.
I've also tested multiple chargers.

This isn't a Mac only thing. Whether it be a Windows a Mac or with these symptoms this is pretty common sense tech troubleshooting. I'm not trying to be a jerk, but it's hard to believe you are stumped when it doesn't look like you've even opened the machine up.
.

I've seen these problems arise on both Mac and PC. Typically it is an overheating issue. This computer doesn't seem hot and even after leaving it off for an hour, it still is doing nothing. It's weird to me that in just about an hours time the computer went from booting and then shutting off, to not even showing a display.

Also, when the customer first brought the computer back to me, it stayed on for about two hours (unplugged) until I got to it and played the song in iTunes.

Wondering if the computer was dropped after it was initially released to the customer.

 

[anonymous Mac Tech]

Maybe I didn't explain well enough.

Thanks for clearing things up. If folks would just post this info in their first post then we could get right to business and save techs trying to help a lot of typing. Check/reapply the thermal grease. Also, I've noticed with these machines on a few occasions that RAM or or one of the RAM slots will go bad. Worth checking out. Seems to be a trend forming with that model as they get a few years old.

 

[FremontPC]

Looks like there were a few with that model number. Does this one have Nvidia graphics? You could be looking at a bad logic board....

 

[RockIT Man]

Looks like there were a few with that model number. Does this one have Nvidia graphics? You could be looking at a bad logic board....

Yes, it has an Nvidia GeForce 9400M.

 

[FremontPC]

It seems the ones with the 8600m mostly had the bad logic boards. Might be good to check around...

Have you tried booting from an OSX disk or maybe Ubuntu?

Did you say it currently boots off the battery?

 

[RockIT Man]

I reapplied the thermal grease.
I tried different combinations of RAM/RAM slots.

Still no luck.

I haven't booted to a live CD but the computer will no longer post so that's not an option. I will say that after letting it sit (off) overnight, when I came in this morning, it did boot to the Apple logo before it cut off. I immediately tried again and it went back to fan spinning, white led, and no display or chime.

 

[FremontPC]

Try pulling the power cord and the battery, then holding the power button down for 20 sec. or so, reconnect the power and try again. Any difference?

If you can find a serial number, you might check around to see if that model has a replaceable graphics card (some macbooks did). Otherwise, it's not sounding too good...

 

[RockIT Man]

Try pulling the power cord and the battery, then holding the power button down for 20 sec. or so, reconnect the power and try again. Any difference?

If you can find a serial number, you might check around to see if that model has a replaceable graphics card (some macbooks did). Otherwise, it's not sounding too good...

Yeah, tried that for the umpteenth time. And replacing the video card is gonna be a no go.

 

[FremontPC]

Looking pretty grim.

I don't suppose there would be something lodged in one of the other ports? Any signs of spillage?

I'm not really finding anything definitive that pegs that Nvidia chip as a problem.

 

[anonymous Mac Tech]

Did you disconnect airport card, HDD, optical, maybe even disconnect the LVDS cable? Its a long shot but you never know. Also, if its an original macbook, those units had heatsink issues. I'd try a new heatsink after letting it sit overnight to see if it made a difference (heatsinks are pretty cheap). Also, might want to try removing all mounting screws to see if it's shorting somewhere.

 

[RockIT Man]

Just a quick update. After letting it sit (powered off) all day yesterday, it booted up fine this morning. I'm just waiting for it to cut off any second now...

 

[Rob_NNCC]

sounds like it is overheating. That model macbook had a problem (as in I have seen it on several of them) of getting a nice little blockage in the tiny fan channel.
I know it is something you probably have already looked at, but still worth a shot.

 

[FremontPC]

Might be worth trying giving this a try:

http://mac.softpedia.com/get/System-Utilities/Temperature-Monitor.shtml

If you can get it to run long enough.

 

[RockIT Man]

As of now, it's been running for over 4 hours. I'm about to start really putting it to work.

I installed the temperature monitor a few hours ago. For a while, everything was staying at around 30 celcius. It's about half way through a Sophos scan and my CPU temps are around 60-65 celcius now.

 

[FremontPC]

How's the gpu doing?

 

[RockIT Man]

How's the gpu doing?

I'm not getting a specific reading for the GPU. I'm pretty sure that this Macbook doesn't have a separate heat sensor for the GPU.

 

[anonymous Mac Tech]

As of now, it's been running for over 4 hours. I'm about to start really putting it to work.

I installed the temperature monitor a few hours ago. For a while, everything was staying at around 30 celcius. It's about half way through a Sophos scan and my CPU temps are around 60-65 celcius now.

Is the machine fully reassembled or sitting and running half apart? It makes a difference. Might even be a cold boot issue were at warmup the machine will run forever, but it will fail to POST or shut down soon when cold. Also, like I mentioned about the original macbooks and heatsinks is true. Wasn't specifically any special symptom a bad heatsink machine had, but we were replacing them like crazy back in 2006. If it's any model later than an original, the heatsinks were usually fine.

 

[RockIT Man]

Is the machine fully reassembled or sitting and running half apart? It makes a difference. Might even be a cold boot issue were at warmup the machine will run forever, but it will fail to POST or shut down soon when cold. Also, like I mentioned about the original macbooks and heatsinks is true. Wasn't specifically any special symptom a bad heatsink machine had, but we were replacing them like crazy back in 2006. If it's any model later than an original, the heatsinks were usually fine.

It's a 2009 model. The machine is reassembled minus the case screws. So far, it's working as it should. I'm thinking it might be a positive delayed reaction to reapplying the thermal grease. Any thoughts on this?

I'm going to leave it on through the night and tax it a bit more tomorrow.

Thanks everyone for your feedback on this issue!