Can an external optical drive be connected to an iMac?

I'm looking for and external optical drive to connect to an iMac using Mac OS X 10.5.7 (ONLY). If this is possible what are the options. Make, model...

Yes - check out OWC, they have a number of Mac-specific optical drives.
You can also buy a compatible internal drive (eg, the Pioneer DVR series) and an external 5.25" case and roll your own.
Matt

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External optical drive that works?

Hi, I have had an Imac 27 i5, its 3 weeks old now, I did the free Lion os upgrade before realising that Lion seems to be buggy.
I have had problems some of which I have got over thanks to this forum, some I have not I still cant get my isp set-up working but a work-around is giving me service, the wireless connection drops out regularly but using ethernet works. Mail wont send my emails and Itunes is problematic. The bluetooth trackpad, mouse and keyboard disconnects frequently but thankfully reconnects soon after. Neither of my two existing external hard drives or my external optical drive would work on this Imac, I replaced one hard drive and that works now, but tells me that I have 120gb free on a drive that is only 120gb and has a full Time machine backup on it?). I replaced the optical drive with a very cheap one and that works now.
My old optical drive used Llitescribe and I really want to carry on using it with the Imac, Can any of you guys recommend an optical drive with Litescribe that will work with the Imac and os Lion? I am getting tired of having to spend out money replacing things I expected to work with the Mac and dont!
I brought the Imac because I wanted a hassle free computer, I read and took in all the reasons for using Mac over Microsoft and to be hounest with you the Last 3 weeks have nearly driven me to send the Imac back! I expected it to "just work" and be easier to use but it has not turned out that way for me up to now, I have contacted Apple about the problems and they dont seem to be of very much help - up to now, but thanks to you guys and this forum I am getting things sorted, slowly. Apple need to get thier act together I think! What hurts the most is that my 3 year old £600.00. HP PC with windows 7 worked "out of the box" and has "just worked" to this day! I cannot say that about the £1650.00. Imac!

The external Apple superdrives are compatible only with the Macs that did not come with an internal optical drive. Take it back and get a 3rd party drive, preferably one with drawer loading. I have an 2011 iMac and bought this external drive: 24X OWC Mercury Pro. I do a lot of ripping of audiobooks for my iPhone so wanted one with a faster read throughput than USB 2 which is all my iMac has. So I use the FW port on the drive.
OWC is a very well know Mac supplier and has excellent reputation both for item quality and customer support.

External Optical Drive not working with iMac

I have a memorex external drive that I have been using to install Windows 7 with boot camp and have successfully used it on 2 mac-mini's. I am not trying to install Windows 7 boot camp on an iMac that has a broken internal optical drive but the external will not run.
I have tried:
- Startup Utility: Can see the external in there.
- External shows up on desktop with Windows 7
- External shows up in disk utility
- Windows shows up in startup menu with holding down Option.
I see iMac SSD Drive, Recovery HD Drive , Windows CD , EFI Boot cd as options.
If I select Windows it takes me to a black screen that says it doesnt see a boot CD clicking on EFI boot does nothing.
Anyone have any possible solutions into getting this to work?

Valen85 wrote:
I have a memorex external drive that I have been using to install Windows 7 with boot camp and have successfully used it on 2 mac-mini's.
Mac Minis without built-in Optical drives behave differently than iMacs with built-in drives for boot ability,
I am not trying to install Windows 7 boot camp on an iMac that has a broken internal optical drive but the external will not run.
I see iMac SSD Drive, Recovery HD Drive , Windows CD , EFI Boot cd as options.
If I select Windows it takes me to a black screen that says it doesnt see a boot CD clicking on EFI boot does nothing.
This is confusing. If you have the external Optical Drive (Memorex) connected via USB to the iMac and insert a Windows 7+ DVD in it, the Apple Bootmanager will see OSX, Recovery HD, Windows (if already installed on the iMac's internal drive) and possibly Windows and EFI boot from the DVD.
The Windows and EFI Boot will not work if you try to boot the iMac from the external. Test this from the internal Optical drive as well. If your iMac is a UEFI Mac (2013+) it will let you boot from the DVD directly (without Bootcamp).
Bootcamp Assistant will refuse to let you use the external Optical drive, if you try use it to install Windows. BCA only works with internal Optical drives as far as Windows installation is concerned, on Macs that have a built-in optical drive. The exceptions to this rule are 2012 Macs and some 2011 models.

Does Old imac support External optical drive

APple says that my imac mid2010 21.5" doesnt support external superdrive
but my iMac's built in optical drive has failed so can other external optical drives function on my mac beacuse there seems to be no way of using a disc in a mac whose internal drive has failed!. . . .

It doesn’t support Apple’s one but does support third-party SuperDrives.
(124155)

Can I connect an external Optical drive to Omni 10

I am thinking to buy an Omni 10 tab. I want to confirm thad does it support external Optical Drives via USB OTG.
I have found from other threads on HP Support that it supports External HDD bt I am not sure about External ODD.
I asume that External ODD Requires more power than External HDD.
This question was solved.
View Solution.

@ Ritaban: The micro-USB port on an Omni 10 is capable of supplying only a limited amount of power to operate attached devices (500 mA maximum). Most USB devices which contain motors (hard drives, scanners, optical drives) require substantially more sustained power than an Omni tablet can deliver. (for example, HP-branded portable DVD drives require 2 Amps — that's 4x what an Omni can deliver.)
However, there is a straightforward solution to attaching a wide variety of high-power USB peripherals to an Omni tablet, if they are connected via a Powered USB Hub. Although the Omni micro-USB port limits data transfers to USB 2.0 speeds, I recommend employing a USB 3.0 hub, because they typically are bundled with higher-output power supplies than their USB 2.0 counterparts.
Most low-power USB devices — keyboard, mouse, flash stick, card reader — can usually be connected directly to an Omni tablet, via a micro-usb adapter cable, and won't require any supplemental operating power. However, if you intend to operate an Omni tablet for sustained periods with any USB devices attached, time between charges will be substantially reduced, so attach the supplied charger as well, whenever possible ...
I hope to see you back here at some point, to tell us about how-much you're enjoying your new Omni 10 tablet! Your questions are welcome as well...
Enjoy!

Can not get external hard drives to connect to my computer 17" Mac book Pro 10.7.5

can not get external hard drives to connect to my computer I am using a 17" Mac book Pro 10.7.5.
I have 2 iomegas and 1 LaCie. Changed cables. I can feel the external hard drives running and
I can hear them running but I can not get them on the computer any more. They did work at one time.
Can any one PLEASE help?

Nothing appear on my desktop.
I did Repair and Verify the HDDs in Disk Utility>First Aid from the
Utilites App about a dozen times ans they all said everything was good
except for the last time there were erors found and I ran the
Disk Utility from the Start Up Disk and the repairs were made and everything
was subposed to te good and still Nothing on the desk top.
Ginger

What do i do when external optical drive doesn't show up in finder? how can i import software, music, etc. when the drive isn't recognized/mounted/whatever?

the internal optical drive on my early 2006 20"imac has mechanical problems ejecting discs. i've gone thru all the recommended steps to eject discs, and have luckily been able to eject the last 3 discs but only after spending 30-60 minutes going thru all of the steps over and over, and today just trying "eject disc" in itunes since i had itunes open. i don't want to put another disc in - the drive clearly has problems with the mechanical eject mechanism, and from what i've read that's not unique to my computer.
i bought an external optical drive: lite on, clamshell design to avoid problems with the eject mechanism; i contacted the mfr who said it's mac compatible.
the drive plays dvds, which is all i've tried so far, but doesn't show up in finder. so i don't know how to use it to load software, or music, or anything besides watch dvds.
is there something i can do to get the drive recognized/mounted/whatever? i would prefer to not spend the $220 which was quoted to me by an authorized mac repair company, even tho i think that's probably a reasonable cost given the delicacy of the operation as shown on ifixit.com.
thanks!

I have an external LaCie burner and it will not show up on my Mac unless I insert a CD or DVD - in that case, the media will show up (I have these settings in the Pref Pane):
If you want to burn files or music to blank media, you can use Finder or Disk Utility for files, but should use an iTunes playlist/iTunes for music and a movie burn app for videos/movies (such as iDVD, Roxio Toast, Burn, etc).
If you simply want to drag files over as a backup, an external hard drive is a much better solution than a burner.

Can "Refit" Be Used for USB Boot From External Optical Drive?

Since the new Mac Mini 2011 has no optical drive, how would one make a generic USB 2.0 optical drive act as a boot device? I have heard that a utility called "Refit" can alter the boot loading order and device choices in Macs. I suppose it is also possible that the new Mini may already be set up to boot first from USB. I would appreciate any comments. It would be nice to have some kind of optical drive boot option for Windows installation and other possible utilities that need to boot before the OS in order to work. Maybe I will have to take my external optical drive to an Apple store to find out. Hope not. I also suspect that a USB keyboard will be mandatory for "Refit" and the boot drive to be used before Mac OS X is loaded.

No utility should be needed.
You can hold the Option key down during the boot process to select which drive you wish to use as a boot device.
Also pressing and holding C boots to the optical drive.
There is reportedly a pretty broad number of USB optical drives that people have been able to use as a boot device, as inexpensively as $30. I don't know that there is a specific list though. I would research whichever model you wish to buy with a quick google search or searching that model here in the forum.
Or maybe somebody will have a recommendation which one they have.

WHAT is the use of a retina display when you can't watch DVD movies? what's the purpose of a super thin retina macbook pro when you need to buy an external optical drive? doesn't it defeat the purpose already?

i don't care if my macbook is a little thicker as long as i don't need to burden myself of an external optical drive just for a simple and common task of watching/listening to discs.

the hippie wrote:
i don't care if my macbook is a little thicker as long as i don't need to burden myself of an external optical drive just for a simple and common task of watching/listening to discs.
I'm confused, why did you choose to buy the retina model if you don't like it? This is exactly why Apple still manufacture/sell the 'old' style MBP which is thicker and has an optical drive built-in!

MBP Late 2010, How can I install Win7 Boot Camp using External Optical Driv

Hello:
I have a new MBP purchased in February. It's not the 2011 model. I replaced the Optical drive with an SSD drive and put the optical drive in an external enclosure. The Optical drive works great, reads, writes, etc. My Windows 7, Pro 64bit DVD works also, tested on a PC.
I use the Boot Camp assistant to create a partition. It them reboots and never starts up from the optical drive. I get an Apple logo alternating with a stop sign.
I have got back to OS X by starting with the Option key and choosing my OS X volume.
I tried booting to the DVD by using the option key, that did not work. I then choose the EFI option which allowed me to hit any key and appeared to boot from the external optical drive. Windows setup screen came up and I hit enter to start the file loading process. It eventually stopped when the progress bar was all the way across the screen. Then nothing.
Questions {Please give definitive answers, not guesses, thanks :)}
1) Is it possible to setup a boot camp Windows installation without an internal optical drive? Yes/No.
2) If yes, how?
3) I see the rEFIt utility has helped some but I read mixed reports. Will this help me boot and run Windows setup from an external optical drive? I don't want to install it if it's not known to be a certain fix.
4) Is my only options to reinstall the optical drive?
I chatted to OWC the vendor that sells the bracket. They had no idea how to install a Windows BC partition without an internal drive.
I am seriously discouraged by what seems to be Apple wanting to control everything. I had a Mac Pro and Air book in my future but now, it's on hold.
Thanks in advance,
Kevin

I tried what you are doing with a 2007 MBP, and could not get any Windows CD s to boot from an external optical drive, firewire or USB.
I think this is fundamental to Windows which won't boot from an external USB drive either even on a Windows machine (although I believe there may be complex ways of achieving this). I don't think this is Apple trying to control the world.
I ended up taking the MCE Optibay out and putting the original optical drive back in.
Just possible that something has changed between a 2007 MBP and 2010 MBP, but I doubt it.
If you want the second internal HD, you have two options:-
1. Put the Apple optical back in, install Windows, then take out the optical and refit the SSD. The external optical will still be able to install windows apps and data etc, just not boot any windows install CDs or utilities (like Paragon rescue disks). You will not be able to do a Windows repair install without refitting the optical.
2. Parallels, which has come a long way in the last two years. I am 99% certain that Parallels will install from an external optical.
Message was edited by: Mike Boreham
Message was edited by: Mike Boreham
Message was edited by: Mike Boreham

Installing Win7 on a macbook pro using a mac mini as external optical drive

hi everyone,
My 2 year old son watches movies on my macbook pro. He stuck something in the optical drive making it unusable. Repairing it is 200 to 300 euros (ouch).
I want to install win7 via bootcamp and I'm using my mac mini (october 2009) as an external optical drive. These are my steps:
1.hold the "t" on the mac mini
2.connect it to the macbook with a firewire 800 to firewire 400 cable
3.Power up and hold the "alt" on the macbook
4.I see the optical drive on the boot screen and I choose it
5.Then I get a blank screen and a few seconds later the "missing operating system" message appears.
Am I missing something? Is it possible to install win7 using a mac mini as an external drive?
PS1:I already have partitioned the HD with bootcamp.
PS2:I've upgraded the hard disk drive of the macbook with a seagate momentus 500GB hard disk. Don't think this is the problem, thought I should mentioned it.

Hi Mike,
For reference it is called "IP over Firewire".
Connect the two computers with a fire wire cable. System Preferences > Network > Configure IPv4: > Manually > IP address: 192.168.3.1 (and .2 on other) > Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0. Leave the other fields blank. Do this on both computers on the computer you want to allow access to or both for two way access go to System Preference > Sharing > Select a service to change its settings. Turn remote Login on.
On the MBP go to the Finder Menu > Go > Connect to Server > Type in the IP address of the Mini 192.168.3.2 (Whatever you gave it)
With this configuration you still have full use of the Mini and certain apps can use Xgrid and use the processor of the mini when it is not doing anything. I would keep the Mini as 10.4 unless you really need both machines running Leopard. As noted before you cannot boot the MBP from a HDD that is Apple Partition Scheme and vice versa you cannot boot the PPC from a Guide Partition Table.
Sweet Polly

Can I use optical drive on 2011 iMac to download to a 2012 IMac

Hello
I have a 2011 IMac and thinking about purchasing a 2012 iMac. I need an optical drive with the 2nd computer. Can I hook them together and use the internal,optical drive from the 2011 unit to down load to,the new unit.
Thank you.
John

It would mean having to either use one of the iMacs in target disk mode to access the drive from the newer iMac by restarting both computers in target disk mode.
It's easier to just buy an external optical drive for the new iMac.
If you need to share info between both iMacs, you could also purchase an external hard drive to share between both Macs and use OS X file sharing features to share files from the HD between the two iMacs.
Or even setup a Ethernet connection between the two iMac as a network to be able to share data between the two iMacs, also.
Once you have downloaded data from the older iMac's optical drive, you can easily transfer it to your new iMac.
Do a search for networking and file sharing between two Macs.

Booting from USB-powered External Optical Drive

Hey all,
I am looking to update my unibody MacBook as follows - I am swapping out my internal SuperDrive to replace it with an OWC Data Doubler bracket & Intel SSD. The Intel SSD will eventually be for the OS and apps and my original HDD will be for media.
It looks like there may be an Intel SSD firmware update I'll need to install and to do so I need to burn the firmware ISO image to a CD-R then boot from it to carry out the update. Since I'll have removed the internal SuperDrive I'll be getting an external optical drive for this and all future CD-related tasks.
So the question is, will I be able to boot from a CD in an external USB-connected optical drive? Will any possible limitation be the MacBook's fault or the external optical drive's fault?
Any other way around this if I can't boot from the external drive? I wanted to go the USB flash-drive route, but the Intel site (http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&DwnldID=18363&lang=eng) says a CD-R is specifically needed, or do they always say that? I know I've booted the Mac OS X installation disc from a flash drive before...
Thanks so much.
Message was edited by: lauber1322
Message was edited by: lauber1322

You should not have a problem booting from an external USB drive (the MacBook Air does this, for example). My recommendation is to buy an external drive from Amazon and try it. They don't have a restocking fee so you can return it if your plan doesn't pan out.
As far as installing the firmware to the intel drive, is it possible to install the SSD in the regular hard drive slot first before replacing the optical drive and running the update that way? (I don't know much about SSDs, sorry). Once the firmware itself is updated, then you could put it in the optical slot like you wanted.

New MAC Mini w/OSX Lion - will not boot from USB or external optical drive when attempting to use BootCamp to install Windows 7?

The University recently purchased 6 brand new MAC minis for deployment in classrooms I support. I am attempting to create a dualk--boot environment comparable to our existing computer systems, only these machines wil be running MAC OS X Lion and Windows 7. After following the procedures outlined in the BootCamp on-screen prompts, and attempting a few techniques I found in the tech support user-base, I am still unable to get the MAC mini to boot up from the USB flash drive, or from an external optical drive, so that I can complete the installation of Windows 7. When using the Boot option key at start-up, all devices are displayed suggesting that they are being properly recognized, however the computer boots to a black screen with an error message indicating that "No bootable devices are found - press any key to continue." I am able to boot into the computer's internal drive, but not from any external devices. I fully expected that the semi-automated BootCamp procedure properly prepares the USB device for booting, and for installing the Windows 7 OS.

Meh, with the price they take for a drive in Denmark, I don't think it's worth it... They take around 160 $ for the drive (that's the cheapest MacBook drive I could find), and I am not even sure that's the one I need.

Burn in itunes using external optical drive imac 2009

My Matsushita optical drive (2009 iMac) no longer works. Is there an external optical drive that I can purchase for burning music CD's?. I already have Maverick, but I believe the operating system is not the problem. The external optical drive has to be compatible with hardware that already has an internal (non-functioning) drive.

I have a PIONEER DVD-RW DVR-XD09.
It's worked on systems with or without optical drives for me since 2009.
It was $69 at Bestbuy.
It has a USB/Power combo cable that uses TWO USB ports, but I got a 5v AC adapter for $4.99 and now it only needs one USB port to function. I've burned with it under 10.8.4, 10.8.5 and 10.9.0.
They've upgraded it since I got mine (Link here) so it can burn Blu-Ray now

Can an external optical drive be connected to an iMac?

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