Macbook freezes while loading – what should i do

Computers working on the Mac OS are famous for their reliability. But this does not mean that they are completely protected from force majeure situations. As a Mac user you still may experience some troubles that are most often connected to the software. If you are facing an endless process of loading when turning on your MacBook or iMac, just use the tips from our article and maybe it will help you to solve this problem.

Table of contents:
1. Why MacBook freezes while loading 
2. What to do if MacBook freezes while loading 
3. Load your computer in safe boot 
4. Using Disk Utility
5. Save the backup copy
6. Reinstalling Mac OS 

Why Macbook freezes while loading

Reasons causing a computer working on Mac OS to freeze while loading are mostly quite common:

• Hardware malfunction. For example, there may be some disruptions in the operation of a hard drive (SSD) or the failure of RAM, processor or other components;
• Software malfunction. The most common reason for Mac to freeze is an unsuccessful update. The problem may arise, both after a major update of the system to a new version, or after a small system update that eliminates various problems and vulnerabilities.

What to do if macbook freezes while loading

First you need to make sure that your computer is really freezing. Check if the laptop battery is fully charged, and then connect it to the power source. If something is displayed on the screen, follow the steps below.

Load your computer in safe boot

The first thing to try is to load your computer in Safe Boot mode. When loading in this mode,  MacBook is accessing only the key utilities and system functions, excluding various third-party applications from the early load.

To boot your MacBook in Safe Boot mode, you must:

1. Turn off the computer completely (do not put it into Sleep Mode);
2. Hold down the Shift button while starting;
3. Now your computer should start loading in Safe Boot mode. It should be noted that loading in Safe Boot mode is a fairly long process. At the same time, if there are serious software or hardware problems, your computer may freeze even when running in safe mode.

If you succeeded to start your computer in safe mode, try reloading it using the top menu. That is, click on the apple in the upper left and select “Restart”. If after that your computer starts normally, you can assume that the problem was resolved.

Using disk utility

If the above option did not solve the problem, you can try to check the hard drive (HDD) status. It is possible that your computer freezes while booting due to some problems with the hard drive.

Mac OS has a built-in disk utility created to test the hard drive. You can run it from both from the Mac OS interface (if you managed to start your computer, and it freezes while loading from time to time), or from the Recovery Mode. To enter Recovery Mode, hold down the Command + R keys while the computer is booting. Loading in Recovery Mode will be marked by a screen with “macOS Utilities” written on it. Select “Disk Utility” from the list of available utilities and click “Continue”.

On the next screen, you need to select the hard drive and click “First Aid” to start the test.

If the utility finds any problems with the hard drive during the scan, it will suggest to fix them. When all errors are fixed, try restarting your computer again.

Save the backup copy

Mac OS has a Target Disk Mode. This is a special way to boot the computer, which allows you to have access to the hard drive and of course to the information that is stored on it. At the same time, access to information can be obtained without loading Mac OS itself.

To start the Target Disk Mode and copy the necessary information from the hard drive of the computer working on Mac OS, you will need:

1. Find a second computer on Mac OS;
2. Next, using a Thunderbolt cable, connect two computers together;
3. Ensure that the MacBook from which the information has to be transmitted is turned off completely (to completely turn off the computer, you need to hold the on / off button for more than 5 seconds);
4. Turn on the Macbook while holding down the T button. At this point, the boot will start in theTarget Disk Mode. This load will be indicated by appearance of the blue Thunderbolt icon on the screen.

After loading, you will notice that there is one more disk on the computer where the operating system is loaded. In fact, through Thunderbolt you can make the second MacBook just an external hard drive. Further through the Finder, you can transfer information from one computer to another.

Important: After the data transfer from the source computer is completed, perform the device removal through the Finder, rather than simply disconnecting the wire. If you do not do this, the copied information runs the risk of not being saved.

Reinstalling Mac OS

In case all methods mentioned above do not solve the problem, there still remains an option of reinstalling the operating system. Make sure that all necessary data has been saved, and then start your computer in recovery mode. To do this, hold Command + R while loading.

The screen with Mac OS utilities will load. Here you need to select the “Reinstall macOS” utility. Then follow the instructions until the operating system is reinstalled.