"Macbook not starting, spinning globe and flashing folder icon: [...]I was then faced with a spinning black-and-white globe for choosing a network, it never worked with my password and kept taking me back. Then I restarted and kept holding command R (about 5 separate times) and now I get a flashing question mark inside a folder icon. How can I get my laptop back on?"
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Troubleshooting Mac with a Question Mark:
Three Things...
A. Go here: If your Mac Starts Up to a Question Mark - Apple Support
B. Mount the Drive:
Boot into Recovery Mode: (Silicon Chip or Intel Clip): Then, using Disk Utility, see if the Hard Drive is seen. If it is, then see if you need to click the “Mount’ button for it. Try rebooting once more. If of no success, then click unmount button, and then the mount button. Try rebooting once more.
C. Reinstall the macOS:
Go Here: How to Reinstall macOS from macOS Recovery - Apple Support. Nothing would be lost; it's just that corrupt and lost system files would be replaced and relocated, respectively. Important: Be certain to create a backup of your Mac prior to all of this. That way, you can have something to restore from the Mac from, should anything go wrong with the reinstall. Once reinstalled, try this once more.
