help with macbook

[FlyingCheeseSteak]

I was surfin' the web when suddenly everything froze, so I pressed the power button to turn it off; but then when I turned it on a while later, all I got was a blank gray screen with a flashing picture of a folder with a question mark in it.

Upon turning it on, I also hear an unusual "knocking" sound before the flashing folder appears. 3 knocks.

Anyone know what this means? And what can I do before calling for assistance, or reinstalling and maybe losing all my data?

 

[justgofaster]

I think your macbook wants to meet you in the hallway!

 

[SantaCBear]

That aint right, funny but not right

 

[looseliam]

WHenever I've heard a clicking or knocking noise, it has been an indication of impending hard drive problems.

Not to scare you, it's been my experience.

 

[tx_doc]

I think it's going to be something with your hard drive. Hopefully you have backed up what you have on your computer.

 

[jackoroe]

I gotta agree with the hard drive guess. It's the only thing that would make a noise like you described.

 

[miaedu]

I think your macbook wants to meet you in the hallway!

this is begging for a Senator Craig spoof!

 

[jb63]

Take it back to Apple. It's a hard disk problem. Been there, done that...get help quick.

 

[rotary]

You can try re-seating the hard drive (has been known to fix the problem) but the knocks indicate one that needs to be replaced.

Try re-seating first.

http://support.apple.com/manuals/en/MacBook_13inch_HardDrive_DIY.pdf