Terrifying Mac Harddrive Failure...

[zforrester]

... or atleast thats what I think it is. I'm using 600mhx G3 iMac running 10.4.3, and in the past few week, it's started doing the strangest thing: it crashes. It doesnt hang or freeze, but completely and abruptly shuts its self down, almsot as if the power cord had been ripped from it's socket. Afterwards, the glowing power button light kind of flickers, and I can hear something (I assume it's the hardrive) spinning like a stuck CD.
The computer will be running along fine, no real problems or slowness, and then this will happen, randomly and suddenly. It's been going on for a few weeks, like I said, but lately it's been happening more and more frequently. Since yesterday, it's happened 6 times! Also, I have noticed bizarre distortions in the monitor... a distorted, scratchy line will flicker across the screen of varying thickness and position.
I'm terrified! I don't know what to do! Am I screwed? I love my iMac, please, please help me save it!

 

[LimeiBook86]

I think either the CRT screen is dying or maybe it's overheating, which is causing it to die. Do you notice the iMac getting hot or warmer than usual?

 

[CanadaRAM]

On a G3 iMac it's more than likely the analog board - very common failure.

The good news is that other than corrupted data from shutting down while using the file(s), your hard drive is probably in good shape - it can be removed and the data recovered. THe bad news is that the analog board problem isn't going to fix itself. It'll be a couple of hundred.

 

[Counterfit]

On a G3 iMac it's more than likely the analog board - very common failure.

The good news is that other than corrupted data from shutting down while using the file(s), your hard drive is probably in good shape - it can be removed and the data recovered. THe bad news is that the analog board problem isn't going to fix itself. It'll be a couple of hundred.

I'll second this. A dying hard drive is usually accompanied by the Click Of Death, or a very loud whirring. The Click Of Death is when the drive has trouble reading. You'll most likely hear the drive heads clicking about trying to find their place (maybe they should use a map ) and the system will hang for a few seconds. If you ever notice this, back up everything immediately, and replace the hard drive.

 

[zforrester]

well, I just sat down to my computer, about an hour later, and it did it again. this is worrysome!
there is absolutely no warning, no freezing, stalling or any sounds at all coming from the computer before it crashes. It does not seem to be getting any hotter than normal, but I could be wrong.
Oh, my poor, poor computer

 

[LimeiBook86]

On a G3 iMac it's more than likely the analog board - very common failure.

The good news is that other than corrupted data from shutting down while using the file(s), your hard drive is probably in good shape - it can be removed and the data recovered. THe bad news is that the analog board problem isn't going to fix itself. It'll be a couple of hundred.

I personally don't think it would be worth replacing. A Mac Mini and a seprate monitor would be the best way to go at his point. I don't think it would be too smart to shell out a few hundred to get it fixed when for just a bit more you can have a much newer and faster machine. Who knows - someone here might even buy it for parts here in the Marketplace, just make sure you get your hard drive out before you give it away, if you do.

 

[CanadaRAM]

well, I just sat down to my computer, about an hour later, and it did it again. this is worrysome!
there is absolutely no warning, no freezing, stalling or any sounds at all coming from the computer before it crashes. It does not seem to be getting any hotter than normal, but I could be wrong.
Oh, my poor, poor computer

Well, yes. It's going to keep doing this, repeatedly, until one day verry soon it's going to quit and not come back on. You may also smell smoke.

You need to back up your data now, and make a decision whether to repair or replace this machine. Do not continue using it beyond backing up your critical data.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Well, yes. It's going to keep doing this, repeatedly, until one day verry soon it's going to quit and not come back on. You may also smell smoke.

You need to back up your data now, and make a decision whether to repair or replace this machine. Do not continue using it beyond backing up your critical data.

I second this! Get your data backed up and avoid using this computer.

well, I just sat down to my computer, about an hour later, and it did it again. this is worrysome!
there is absolutely no warning, no freezing, stalling or any sounds at all coming from the computer before it crashes. It does not seem to be getting any hotter than normal, but I could be wrong.
Oh, my poor, poor computer

I had a similar problem with a 266Mhz G3 iMac 3 years ago, and within a couple of days of the problem appearing it ceased to function. Apparently the analog board failed, and the power supply and CRT were damaged as a result.

I had to have the power supply, analog board and CRT replaced at a cost of over $400 (3 years ago, before the Mac Mini could have offered a decent alternative to repair ). Failure of CRT-related components can cause collateral damage to the logic board, so I would stop using the machine until you can get it repaired or replaced.