Case Studies

Coventry Data Recovery – Coventry’s No.1 data recovery specialists – offer expert solutions for failed iMac systems, including the flashing folder with a question mark error. This issue is commonly linked to either hard drive failure or file system corruption, both of which require professional diagnosis and advanced recovery methods.

We provide iMac data recovery services for clients across all industries, including professionals, creatives, and small businesses who rely on Apple systems for critical operations.

🔍 Understanding the Problem: Question Mark Folder on Startup

When an iMac boots and displays a question mark in a folder, it indicates the system is unable to locate a valid system folder or bootable device. This can result from:

• Failed hard drive or SSD
• Corrupted macOS installation or partition
• Deleted or missing EFI boot record
• Damaged APFS or HFS+ file systems
• Fusion Drive disassociation

This is not a software fixable issue when the problem lies in physical media damage or file system corruption — especially if accompanied by clicking noises or prior system slowdowns.

🛠️ Step-by-Step Recovery Process

As professional iMac data recovery experts, our engineers follow a meticulous, hardware-based recovery procedure:

1. Drive Extraction and Initial Assessment

We carefully remove the internal drive(s) — which may be:

• Traditional SATA HDD
• PCIe SSD
• Fusion Drive (HDD + SSD paired via CoreStorage)

We perform:

• Electrical diagnostics to check PCB and motor functionality
• Firmware-level analysis using dedicated forensic tools
• SMART attribute readout for early indicators of degradation

2. Imaging and Write Protection

All media is immediately write-blocked and imaged using commercial-grade tools like Atola or DeepSpar:

• This protects your original drive from further damage
• The recovery work is conducted entirely on the disk image

3. File System and Partition Table Repair

If the issue is logical (corrupted partition or macOS system folder), we use macOS-compatible data recovery suites to:

• Reconstruct the partition table (APFS, HFS+)
• Restore journal entries, directory nodes, and catalog files
• Identify orphaned or fragmented files

4. Fusion Drive Reconstruction

If the iMac used a Fusion Drive (hybrid SSD and HDD):

• We identify each disk in the pair
• Use CoreStorage metadata to recreate the logical volume
• Rebuild the virtual container to access the user file system

5. Encrypted Volumes (FileVault)

In cases where FileVault encryption is enabled:

• We mount the volume using the user-supplied password
• If encryption metadata is damaged, we apply entropy-based recovery
• We check for file headers to validate file types and integrity

6. File Recovery and Integrity Testing

We extract:

• Documents (Word, Excel, PDF)
• Emails, Safari bookmarks, Calendar entries
• Photos Library, iMovie, Final Cut Pro projects
• Industry-specific formats (e.g. Logic Pro X, AutoCAD, Lightroom)

Recovered data is verified for integrity before being transferred to a new external medium.

💽 Supported iMac Systems & Configurations

We recover data from:

• iMac (2009–2021, Intel)
• iMac Retina 4K / 5K
• iMac M1 (T2 chip-compatible)
• Fusion Drives (SSD + HDD)
• 2.5”/3.5” SATA, PCIe SSDs, NVMe interfaces

🧠 Supported macOS File Systems & OS Versions

• macOS Ventura, Monterey, Big Sur
• macOS Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra
• OS X El Capitan down to Leopard (10.5)
• APFS, HFS+, CoreStorage, encrypted volumes

✅ Why Choose Coventry Data Recovery?

• 25 Years Experience Recovering Apple Systems
• Fusion Drive and APFS Recovery Experts
• Apple Logic Board & SSD-Level Diagnostics
• Cleanroom Facilities for Physical Drive Failures
• Dedicated macOS File System Recovery Tools

🆘 Emergency Turnaround Option

We offer critical 48-hour data recovery services for urgent projects and businesses impacted by iMac system failure. Our cleanroom and forensic imaging tools enable fast, secure data retrieval.

📞 Book a Free Diagnostic

Do not attempt to reinstall macOS or reformat the drive — this may result in permanent data loss.

Contact Coventry Data Recovery today for expert help from trusted imac data recovery experts. We provide free diagnostics and will give you a transparent, professional assessment before recovery begins.