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How to Fix Folder With Question Mark Issue in Mac – Guide
Your Mac can’t be instantly turned on today, after it’s been running fine for years. You just see a Mac showing a folder with a question mark on the screen. What to do now? To fix the question mark folder problem on mac before asking for professional help, follow this article.
Mac question mark folder problem can be caused by several reasons. All of these elements can be classified into software related and hardware related.
Resolving question mark folder
If the Mac folder blinking with a question mark only appears when you boot the device, it means the Mac is looking for a bootable volume because the default volume is not set correctly. Try these two fixes that may help resolve the issue.
Reset NVRAM
NVRAM is a type of memory that retains data without a power supply. This includes basic startup information, so restarting it can help resolve the issue of the blinking question mark folder if it appears for a brief moment and the Mac continues to start up.
To reset NVRAM, simply turn off the laptop by clicking on the Apple menu and selecting Shut Down. Then turn your Mac back on up and immediately press Option + Command + P + R. Release the keys after about 20 seconds.
Check system boot preferences
Make sure your Mac is using the correct startup disk by going to System Preferences through the Apple menu. Click Startup Disk and you will see the disks available to use at startup.
Make sure the correct disk is selected (usually this is Macintosh HD) and if any changes need to be made, click the lock in the lower left corner, select the correct disk, and click Restart.
Now, let’s solve the issue of the question mark folder that won’t allow your Mac to load.
The dark screen with a single solitary folder with a question mark is stuck to the screen and there’s nothing you can do about it. Is it time to go to service?
Depending on the seriousness of the problem, it can be resolved with some of the solutions below or it requires professional help. Keep in mind that you could lose your Mac data in the process, so if you don’t have backups and you really need the files, take yours. laptop serve.
If you want to try fixing the question mark folder yourself, let’s take a look at some of the solutions available.
Diagnose in recovery mode
To diagnose the problem and try to fix it with the built-in Mac application’s Disk Utility, you need to load your laptop in recovery mode and run the application. Here it is how to do it.
As your screen is stuck in the question mark folder, press and hold the power button button until your device is turned off. Then turn your Mac back on and press and hold Command + R. This should take you to Mac recovery mode.
There, select Disk Utility in the pop-up window on your screen. In the app, click First Aid.
In the window that appears, select your startup disk and run First Aid to see if the application can find and repair any damage.
If Disk Utility Terminates up unable to fix the error causing the boot disk error, there are some other steps you can follow. You can try formatting your startup disk, reinstalling your Mac OS, or using Time Machine to return to a up version of your disk – proceed with caution as formatting the disk and reinstalling the operating system will result in data loss (the disk will be erased) and using Time Machine will revert your Mac to a previously recorded image, which also means that you will lose data on your Mac.
If your boot disk doesn’t show up in Disk Utility, you need to put it into service.
Format Startup Disk and Reinstall Mac OS
If Disk Utility cannot resolve the issue with the disk, you may need to format the disk and install Mac OS from scratch.
This process will erase all data from the disk, so have your Mac serviced if you need the data restored and you don’t have backups.
To start formatting, load your Mac into Recovery mode and open Disk Utility as instructed in the previous section.
- Select Macintosh HD and click Delete.
- No pop-up you will see an option to change the name and format of the disc.
- Confirm the action by pressing Clear Volume Group (or Clear). This will remove all data from your hard drive.
Now to use this disk as a boot disk for your Mac, you need to reinstall macOS on it.
To do this, open the utilities window in rescue mode and select Reinstall macOS Big Sur (by default the operating system is set to the one you installed previously). Do not close your Mac’s lid or put it to sleep during installation.
Restore files with Disk Drill
After being forced to erase the boot disk, you might need some of those files back. Disk Drill is an excellent file recovery application that you can use to try to restore lost files and data. Run the app to find and restore files.
As your files are not actually deleted, but the path to them is erased, applications like Disk Drill can restore the files as long as no new information has been written about them to your disk. This means that the sooner you run the application after factory reset or disk wipe, the better the chances of recovering your files.
Backup your data
As you can see, an unexpected error can lead to data loss that can be difficult to recover and sometimes not even possible. This means supporting up Important data is regularly vital in your daily digital life.
Return up your data, you can store important files on cloud storages and come back up your Mac on external storage using the built-in Time Machine app.
To use Time Machine, go to Apple menu > System Preferences > Time Machine.
Once in the app, select your external storage disk.
If you want to reduce the size of the Time Machine image, clear up Unneeded files using CleanMyMac X. The app will optimize your Mac by clearing your cache and unneeded files, finding large old files for you to review, removing local copies of email attachments, and even shrinking your Time Machine snapshot.
You can also create comprehensive backups of your data with Get Backup Pro. This app offers a variety of tools for your backups, including simple copy, cloning, incremental backups, versions. Back up your data and restore it on any Mac, not just yours.
Get Backup Pro allows you to select files back up, compress your backup, sync folders and even schedule your backups.
Now you know that a Mac screen with a folder with a question mark on it means your computer can’t find a bootable disk. Sometimes it’s a small error that can easily be fixed with an NVRAM reset or a disk utility first-aid scan; other times the problem will require formatting the disk and reinstalling macOS.
Erasing the startup disk and reinstalling Mac OS will result in PC data loss. Use Disk Drill to try to recover some of the lost files and data. To avoid data loss in the future, choose a backup option that works best for you – cloud storage, Time Machine, Get Backup Pro, etc. – and make copies of your important files and documents, as well as system settings.
Final note
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