Macbook pro - wont boot, need to backup data help!

[guysy]

Hoping those who are more familiar with OS X can help me, I have a friends MacBook Pro which was running fine until updates where installed and somehow now it will not boot, it hangs with the apple logo and the loading logo.

Ive tried everything with my limited know how, it wont boot into safe mode, I've tried to repair the disc, it tells me to backup erase and install. tried to boot from recovery mode but that doesn't show up.

Also tried to install through utilities but the discs are locked, and there are no time machine backups that show up.

Possibly the hard drive is failing? I'm looking for a way to backup just the documents side of things onto an external but not too sure how to do this, have tried creating an image onto an external HD but it fails.

Help please !

 

[Paprika123]

Can you boot it in FireWire mode as an external disk?

 

[guysy]

As in boot up holding "T" ? it loads up with the two icons floating around the screen but I cant do anything else, I don't have another mac to connect to im afraid.

 

[jam.]

Tried restring PRAM/NVRAM? May not help - but I'm pretty sure it's how I accessed a dying hd a while back.

• Shut down your Mac.
• Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command (⌘), Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
• Turn on the computer.
• Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys before the gray screen appears.
• Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
• Release the keys.

 

[guysy]

Thanks tried that, only difference is I was asked what language to use when going back into utilities, hard drive still seems to disappear when im trying to create an image.

Anything else I can try?

 

[guysy]

If I turn the mac into "target disc mode" like above, is it possible that I connect the mac to my pc ? so I can find the files on it and back them up ?

I have a firewire port on my pc case but im not too sure if its connected up inside.

 

[Paprika123]

You could but windows may have issues reading the Apple file system.

 

[guysy]

Yeah it doesnt look straight forward at all, I don't own another mac so im a but stumped for ideas at the moment, Ideally I need to get the files off before I overwrite them.

If I remove the back panel and remove the hard drive and then plug it into my pc as an external it should be read fine ?

 

[Ben]

Long winded and I'm not sure if it would work but you you remove the HDD and put it into a caddy to see if it can be backed up as an external drive?

 

[guysy]

Yeah im going to try that soon I think, hopefully it works. tried everything else.

After Ive done that if that works I want to do a fresh install of Lion, previously the hard drive came up as locked, if there any way I can get it into a setting ready for an overwrite install?

Thanks.