How to install Mountain Lion on blank hard drive

I bought a used macbook with the understanding that the hard drive crashed and I had to completely replace it. I've bought and installed a new, blank hard drive in the macbook and I was wondering if I could purchase mountain lion from the apple store and install it on a completely blank hard drive. When I first booted it up, it takes to to a screen that asks me for my wifi password and has an icon for internet recovery. I've clicked on it and after a while it shows me a globe with a question mark and the website for apple support. Please tell me I haven't already messed it up :S

You need to install Snow Leopard or Lion first to install Mountain Lion online via Mac App Store.
http://store.apple.com/us/search/snowleopard#!

Similar Messages

Unable to install Mountain Lion on my hard drive

I'm trying to upgrade my early 2008 mac pro from Leopard to Mountain Lion using a bootable usb drive but I'm having trouble doing so. When I try installing mountain lion to my hard drive (Mac Drive 1) - The hard drive is greyed out and says 'you can't upgrade this version of OS X'. Yet it looks like I can install mountain lion onto my second hard drive (Mac Drive 2) for some odd reason.
Here's the details for my mac drive 1 which I'm having trouble with (I noticed the volume format is greyed out on disk utility as well).....
And here's the mac drive 2 info which I don't want to install mountain lion onto but looks like I can....
Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks a lot.

I can't answer the bad hard drive question without some guessing. Not that smart.
Do you have a bootable copy of the Mountain Lion installer?
If not download the following. The site says it will work with 10.6:
http://blog.gete.net/lion-diskmaker-us/
That program will allow you to make a bootable DVD or USB with Mountain Lion on it.
You can boot off of it, erase the disk, and then install Mountain Lion.
I think you should be able to reinstall from carbon copy cloner, but I haven't used that program. During the setup it will ask you if you want to import files, but I don't know if it can read carbon copy cloner. I know it can read a Time Machine backup.
A clean install is generally better anyway.
If you get Mountain Lion installed, not everything works like it did in 10.5/10.6. For an example, scrolling is reversed, but you can change it back to the way it is in 10.5/10.6 in System Preferences. After spending some time in System Preferences, my computer acts pretty much the way it always did.

Installing Mountain Lion on BLANK hard disk that says I need more space

I'm trying to reinstall Mountain Lion to a blank hard disk. It stops during install and says I need 4.2G more space and suggests I free some up. It's a blank hard disk, all I have access to is Disk Utility. How do I free up space?

Did you format the blank disk and add a partition?
Can you provide a screen shot of Disk Utility?

Can't install mountain lion onto new hard drive after old one had to be replaced

My macbook pro, purchased 12/11, had a faulty hard drive. We thankfully were still under warranty and had it replaced. I then accessed the old drive via USB connector to reinstall my pictures and some file folders and apps to the new hard drive. Now I am trying to reinstall the mountain lion update, and it says I can't install the the hard drive that appears as a choice as I use it for time machine backups? Also, when the laptop tries to do a time machine backup, that stalls out as it says the hard drive is on the do not back up list, which incidentally won't let me select it to take it off of the do not back up list. Help!!!

Have you followed these instructions, specifically formatting your new HDD?
http://support.apple.com/kb/ph11273
Ciao.

How do I install Mountain Lion on a thumb drive?

How do I install Mountain Lion on a thumb drive when my computer is running Mavericks? I downloaded the Mountain Lion installer, but when I attempt to run it I get a message that says "You cannot install OS X 10.8 on this computer." I don't want to install it on the computer, I want to install it on the thumb drive—but it won't give me a choice of drives.
The reason I want to do this is I want to be able to boot my iMac into Mountain Lion in order to test a hardware/software combination I suspect might be incompatible with Mavericks.
(Note: there are plenty of instructions online for how to create a bootable thumb drive with the Mountain Lion installer, but that's not what I want. I want to install ML on the thumb drive itself.)

Sure you have a proper installer application. When I start it I get:
Clicking on Continue, then accepting the licensing stuff, gets me to:
If you click on Show All Disks, then all mounted disks will be presented including your flash drive.
Now the above is a Mavericks installer, but it's the same for Mountain Lion.

Currently i am using a windows7 installed machine with following configurations intel core i5 2.60Ghz with Ram 8gb.(64 byte).I would like to install Mountain lion osx in my windows machine.Pls tell how to install mountain lion osx in my windows machine?

Currently i am using a windows7 installed machine with following configurations intel core i5 2.60Ghz with Ram 8gb.(64 byte).I would like to install Mountain lion osx in my windows machine.Pls tell how to install mountain lion osx in my windows machine?

Please stop asking about that on this forum.
There are plenty of informations on the Internet if you want to do it but nobody here will help, because is against the forum's rules.
And, you can't buy Mountain Lion if you do not have a Macintosh with at least Snow Leopard installed.
There is no physical media. Mountain Lion is provided by Apple through the Mac App Store.

Cannot install Mountain Lion on my hard disc, as I keep getting the message" 'This disk is used for Time Machine backups'. Which it isn't - I don't use Time Machine

Cannot install Mountain Lion on my hard disc, as I keep getting the message" 'This disk is used for Time Machine backups'. Which it isn't - I don't use Time Machine

Check to see if you have a folder named "Backups.backupdb" at the root level of your hard disk. That can cause this error message.

How to install mountain lion with a different apple ID?

How to install mountain lion with a different apple ID?

More information would be helpful. If you are going to use a different Apple ID, you will need to buy Mountain Lion again. If you have a computer that has Mountain Lion installed, but Mountain Lion was purchased with a different Apple ID you must use the original Apple ID to download Mountain Lion.
Help us help You
I need to learn to type faster.

How to put mountain lion on a thumb drive?

How to put mountain lion on a thumb drive?

Make Your Own Mountain/Lion Installer
1. After downloading Mountain/Lion you must first save the Install Mac OS X Mountain/
    Lion application. After Mountain/Lion downloads DO NOT click on the Install button.
    Go to your Applications folder and make a copy of the Mountain/Lion installer. Move
    the copy into your Downloads folder. Now you can click on the Install button. You
    must do this because the installer deletes itself automatically when it finishes
    installing.
2. Get a USB flash drive that is at least 8 GBs. Prep this flash drive as follows:
a. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
b. After DU loads select your flash drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left
      side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
c. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one.
      Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the
      partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until
      the process has completed.
d. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side
      list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
e. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, check the
      button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
f. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to an hour depending upon the flash
     drive size.
3. Locate the saved Mountain/Lion installer in your Downloads folder. CTRL- or RIGHT-click on the installer and select Show Package Contents from the contextual menu. Double-click on the Contents folder to open it. Double-click on the SharedSupport folder. In this folder you will see a disc image named InstallESD.dmg.
4. Plug in your freshly prepared USB flash drive. You are going to clone the content of the InstallESD.dmg disc image to the flash drive as follows:
a. Double-click on the InstallESD.dmg file to mount it on your Desktop.
b. Open Disk Utility.
c. Select the USB flash drive from the left side list.
d. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
e. Select the USB flash drive volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
f. Drag the mounted disc icon from the Desktop into the Source entry field.
g. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
When the clone is completed you have a fully bootable installer that you can use without having to re-download Mountain/Lion.
Note: The term Mountain/Lion used above means Lion or Mountain Lion.
As an alternative to the above (you still have to do your own download of Lion/Mountain Lion) you can try using Lion DiskMaker 2.0 that automates the process of Steps 2 through 4.

How to install and reconfigure a new hard drive?

How to install and reconfigure a new hard drive?
I installed a new hard drive from best buy for my "vintage" MacBook laptop. When I turned on the laptop and the flashing folder appeared, I need help?
I looked online for some clues. I put in the software disk I received when I bought the disk but I cannot select a destination volume to install the software. I tired to partition the drive within disk utility but there was an input/output error. Should I just plug in my external hard drive and hope everything reboots like magic ?
Thank you for any help you can give

How to replace or upgrade a drive in a laptop
Step One: Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger, Leopard or Snow Leopard.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
Step Two: Remove the old drive and install the new drive. Place the old drive in an external USB enclosure. You can buy one at OWC who is also a good vendor for drives.
Step Three: Boot from the external drive. Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager appears. Select the icon for the external drive then click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Step Four: New Hard Drive Preparation
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
2. After DU loads select your new hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.
Step Five: Clone the old drive to the new drive
1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
2. Select the destination volume from the left side list.
3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
4. Check the box labeled Erase destination.
5. Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
6. Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the new internal drive. Source means the old external drive.
Step Six: Open the Startup Disk preferences and select the new internal volume. Click on the Restart button. You should boot from the new drive. Eject the external drive and disconnect it from the computer.

How to install archlinux2008.6 from the hard drive?

How to install archlinux2008_6 by archlinux2008_6_i686.iso in hard drive?
i get the booting files(archlive.img,vmlinuz26) in the archlinux2008_6_i686.iso and put them in c:\
in the grub command mode the use of these code:
root (hd0,0)
kernel (hd0,0)/vmlinuz26
initrd (hd0,0)/archlive.img
boot
i get those from : http://blog.chinaunix.net/u/31909/showart_1121360.html
but it stopped , some code printing on the screen...................it can not continue..
from the google i find :"this method must use the "vmlinz "and the "initrd.img",this files is from archlinux2008.03.iso
i don't understand .......
i must download the archlinux2008.03.iso?...........it's too much trouble.
How to install archlinux2008.6 from the hard drive? or who could give me the two files (the "vmlinz "and the "initrd.img") from archlinux2008.03.iso?
e mail: [email protected]
THS.
--------this is my topic for the first time in english, I hope that you can know what i said ~~~
Last edited by 自学linux (2008-08-29 03:14:54)

自学linux wrote:
http://blog.chinaunix.net/u/31909/showart_1121360.html
A waste of CD-ROM...........,in china, many people install linux just by iso,don't burn the iso,
could you give me the two files (the "vmlinz "and the "initrd.img") in archlinux2008.03.iso, those can't find in archlinux2008.06.iso
my email :[email protected]
Do you have a USB stick you could copy the image to? Where I live, a CD costs $0.50 at most. To put that into perspective. A coffee costs a $1.00. Either a CD costs a lot more than a coffee where you live or are you telling me you'd rather get a lot of grey hair than buy half a coffee?
Sorry I can't be of much help. I don't know how to do this method of installation. If you're desperate, you could try making an extra partition, and trying something with that. Take a look at these:
http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Fas … nux_System
http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Ins … her_distro
Last edited by solarwind (2008-08-27 04:37:59)

Looking to move data from OSX 9 to Mountain Lion using external hard drive?

Looking to move data from OSX 9 to Mountain Lion using external hard drive?

Thanks. I'd like to get rid of this OSX 9 after retrieving a few files. If I wanted to erase it's hard drive before I do so, would powering off then on again and immediately start tapping the F10 button do the trick as it does with a PC?

How I installed Mountain Lion on Un-repairable Hard Disk.

My Recommendations for Avoiding Trouble, Avoiding Risk, and Saving Time.
1) Make a boot clone first!!!
      http://www.bombich.com/
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html
2) Fix and repair your hard disk with Disk Utility and fsck_hfs before installing Mountain Lion!
    (Otherwise the installer will write-lock the disk preventing repair.)
Mountain Lion Aborted Installation—Claimed Hard Disk Failed, Couldn't be Repaired, and Should be Replaced
I have a 2011 MacBook Pro. Installation of Mountain Lion aborted claiming the hard disk could not be repaired by Disk Utility, should be backed up immediately, and replaced. It didn't make sense that the drive was booting up the computer for installation, but needed replacing. I removed the drive, put it in an external enclosure, and backed up the drive using a working Mac Mini, and Carbon Copy Cloner.
Hard Disk Was Write-Locked—Not Failing
Booting in Single User mode (hold command and S keys down while bootup is proceeding). I then typed in the fsck command given after Single User bootup. It informed me the drive was write-locked and read only. Now things were starting to make sense. Disk Utility couldn't repair the drive because it was write-locked! Maybe it could have been unlocked by the "chflags nouchg /Volumes/volume" or "chflags noschg /Volumes/volume" commands (http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20031017061722471), but I didn't try it. Unlocking the drive is really worht a try because it could save hours of coppying through a slow USB interface.
I formatted my laptop drive after copying it to another large external drive. Then I used Carbon Copy Cloner to clone Snow Leopard from my Mac Mini to my freshly formatted original laptop drive. I unsellected the "Users" folder so I would only get the operating system—saving lots of hours copying data I don't need. Then I put the drive back in my laptop, and it booted with Snow Leopard. Checked the volume with Disk Utility and was informed the drive is fine. I removed the drive and connected it externally to my Mac Mini and ran fsck_hsf a few times in the terminal, which showed problems were found and fixed.
sudo fsck_hfs -fy /dev/rdisk1s2
Password:
** /dev/rdisk1s2 (NO WRITE)
   Executing fsck_hfs (version diskdev_cmds-491.6~3).
** Verifying volume when it is mounted with write access.
** Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
** Checking extents overflow file.
** Checking catalog file.
** Checking multi-linked files.
** Checking catalog hierarchy.
** Checking extended attributes file.
** Checking volume bitmap.
   Volume bitmap needs minor repair for under-allocation
** Checking volume information.
   Invalid volume file count
   (It should be 550614 instead of 550591)
   Invalid volume free block count
   (It should be 175459733 instead of 175460263)
** The volume MacBookPro HD was found corrupt and needs to be repaired.
3) sudo fsck_hfs /dev/rdisk1s2
Password:
** /dev/rdisk1s2 (NO WRITE)
   Executing fsck_hfs (version diskdev_cmds-491.6~3).
** Verifying volume when it is mounted with write access.
** Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
fsck_hfs: Volume is journaled. No checking performed.
fsck_hfs: Use the -f option to force checking.
[karl_ihrig] 4) sudo fsck_hfs -f /dev/rdisk1s2
** /dev/rdisk1s2 (NO WRITE)
   Executing fsck_hfs (version diskdev_cmds-491.6~3).
** Verifying volume when it is mounted with write access.
** Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
** Checking extents overflow file.
** Checking catalog file.
** Checking multi-linked files.
** Checking catalog hierarchy.
** Checking extended attributes file.
** Checking volume bitmap.
** Checking volume information.
** The volume MacBookPro HD appears to be OK.
5) sudo fsck_hfs -fy /dev/rdisk1s2
** /dev/rdisk1s2 (NO WRITE)
   Executing fsck_hfs (version diskdev_cmds-491.6~3).
** Verifying volume when it is mounted with write access.
** Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
** Checking extents overflow file.
** Checking catalog file.
** Checking multi-linked files.
** Checking catalog hierarchy.
** Checking extended attributes file.
** Checking volume bitmap.
** Checking volume information.
** The volume MacBookPro HD appears to be OK.
6) sudo fsck_hfs -fy /dev/disk1s2
** /dev/rdisk1s2 (NO WRITE)
   Executing fsck_hfs (version diskdev_cmds-491.6~3).
** Verifying volume when it is mounted with write access.
** Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
** Checking extents overflow file.
** Checking catalog file.
** Checking multi-linked files.
** Checking catalog hierarchy.
** Checking extended attributes file.
** Checking volume bitmap.
** Checking volume information.
** The volume MacBookPro HD appears to be OK.
I put the drive back in the laptop and repeated the fsck commands after a Single User boot. (Omited the sudo commands and used /dev/disk0s2.)
Downloaded and Successfully Installed Mountain Lion on "Unreparable" Drive
I downloaded the Mountan Lion installation application to my laptop, ran it, and had a smooth install.
More Trouble Migraiting My Applications and Directory
I expect to use up more time changing my computer name, migrating applications and rsyncing my User Directory. I will post how I achieve this.
I Hope People Avoid Trouble and Problems are Solved
I hope everyone will avoid trouble by making boot clone of their whole disk before attempting an install of ML and repairing their disk with Disk Utility and fsck before ML installer prevents it with a write-lock. Please see the first section.
I hope this solves other peoples problems with 'unreparable' disks. I believe this proves disks are repairable when ML says otherwise.
Good luck everyone!

troca, you certainly helped dtigerbme! Isn't that encouraging?
I recommend you copy your drive as soon as possible. I really don't think the drive is bad, but you may have to format it and copy back to it. Hopefully not. Clone or backup the drive before trying this recipe. Any time you have errors on a drive, back it up. A failing drive has lmited life. However, I don't think these drives are really failing, but that is my opinion and I break a lot of things.
Let's try this recepie for you:
Start in Single User Mode. Power on while holding the Command + S keys.
At the prompt, type "fsck_hfs -fy" or "fsck -fy" and hit return.
Do it again.
Enter the command "reboot".
Just googled "volume count disk utility" and got the same recipe to fix it.
http://counterjumper.com/post/19265700171/how-to-fix-invalid-volume-free-block-c ount-error-in
So my recipe is to try to fix the drive without taking it out of the computer, which requires you can boot it up.
troca it looks like Apple has said that error is benign and can be ignored in 2010.
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2028?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_U
I do believe fsck will fix it though.
Some other results from the same search:
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1071850
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3635034?start=0&tstart=0

How do I download mountain lion onto new hard drive

My IMac 2.4 mid 2007 was starting to get very slow in opening applications. I rebooted the machine, it displayed the apple and then a circle with a line through it and would go no further. I have put it down to the hard drive, and have purchased a new one. My question is, how do I install mountain lion that I have already purchased to the new hard drive. I would appreciate any help on the matter

You need to get your computer up to at least 10.6, using the original installer for your Mac, or a retail copy of 10.6.3. Then update to 10.6.8, and using the App Store, sign in with your AppleID, go to Purchases, and re-download and install 10.8.
Matt

How can I reinstall Mountain Lion on new hard drive?

I've had to install a new hard drive as old one was failing.
Have loaded Snow Leopard from disc onto the new drive but can't install Mountain Lion which I was running prior to drive failure; very frustrated.
Have tried several options.
1. Tried to reboot from OS X Utilities but whenever I restart, holding the cmd + R keys, I can only ever get the standard screen. I've tried pressing keys early in restart, later in restart, keys on either side of the keyboard, cmd + alt/option + R but still can't get to the OS X Utilities.
2. Having given up on 1 I've tried to download ML from my purchase history in iTunes. I can see the purchase recorded but there appears to be no way to get to a reload option - at least not in the iTunes loaded from Snow Leopard
3. I tried downloading ML updates, hoping that might allow me to bypass 1 and 2. The download wasn't recognised by my machine.
4. I've be willing to just buy the **** OS again from scratch but iTunes won't allow me to do that either, at least not using my current Apple ID.
Does anyone have any bright ideas? I hate bloody computers.
Mike

enigmatix wrote:
Csound,
Do you have any suggestions why I can't open OS X Utilities.
Thanks,
Mike
How old is your Mac, if it came with 10.6 installed it is too old to have Internet Recovery (command-option-R) And as it has a new hard drive you won't be able to use Recovery (command-R) either until a new copy of Mountain Lion is installed and ceates a recovery partition on the drive.

How to install Mountain Lion on blank hard drive

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for