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2017 iMac can't start up, freeze at apple icon and half of the progress bar.

Things I tried:

(1) First Aid, all scanned and no problem found.

(2)I tried Recovery to reinstalled Monterey and got the following message: Com.apple.Buildinfo.preflight.error error21. I changed to differnt Wifi, same error message; Connected directly to ethernet, still got same error message.


(3) I tried to add volumne and install Montery, no problem, but I still can't access to the Macintosh HD.


(4) I tried to backup, create image of the Macintosh HD, but it was greyed out.


Now really don't know what else I can do. I did search online for solution, I noticed someone else asked same question, but I didn't see any solution.


Please help! I have lot of files on the hard drive, can't lose them. No budget for a new iMac at this point.


Thanks in advance!


iMac 27″ 5K

Posted on Jun 11, 2023 8:28 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jun 11, 2023 10:47 AM

Regardless of the details displayed during each run, if Disk Utility finally reports the volumes, containers and startup drive have passed, then you can quit DU and attempt another normal restart of your iMac. With luck this will get you past the stall and back into the computer. 🤞🏽🍀


If the Mac still refuses to boot properly, then you might consider taking advantage of another Mac to access the internal drive via Target Disk Mode. Otherwise, things get more difficult and complex.

Please see: Transfer files between two Mac computers using target disk mode - Apple Support


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6 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jun 11, 2023 10:47 AM in response to DeeCollins1

Regardless of the details displayed during each run, if Disk Utility finally reports the volumes, containers and startup drive have passed, then you can quit DU and attempt another normal restart of your iMac. With luck this will get you past the stall and back into the computer. 🤞🏽🍀


If the Mac still refuses to boot properly, then you might consider taking advantage of another Mac to access the internal drive via Target Disk Mode. Otherwise, things get more difficult and complex.

Please see: Transfer files between two Mac computers using target disk mode - Apple Support


Jun 11, 2023 10:23 AM in response to DeeCollins1

Please remember when starting in Safe Mode this type of startup should be done with a wired keyboard, you can plug in the charging cable for your keyboard and that will make it wired. Also, continue to hold down the Shift key until the computer starts up, this can take up to 5 minutes.


Also, going forward never operate any computer without a sound backup plan. Without backup you are playing Russian Roulette with your data and eventually you lose. At the very least you should be using Time Machine to backup to a dedicated External Hard Disk.

2017 iMac can't start up, freeze at apple icon and half of the progress bar.

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