Boot Mavericks and Snow Leopard

Is it possible to have Mavericks and Snow Leopard installed and working on the same workstation?
I have three disks and VMWare Fusion already on my machine. I want to run a bunch of hardware/software no longer compatible on Mavericks.

If your Mac Pro can run both Mavericks and Snow Leopard and you install them on different partitions or different drives in your drive bays, you can run them both, just not at the same time. If you mean as virtual machines, you can do that too, though you'll need Snow Leopard Server for the VM. Check out the Fusion forum for virtualizing details.

Similar Messages

  • Can I dual boot Mavericks and Snow Leopard?

    Hello. I own a 2011 i5 iMac. I recently started working with some softwares that will only work properly on Snow Leopard, but I have Mavericks installed. My question is: can I create a new partition in my HD and use BootCamp to install Snow Leopard?

    If it is a Late 2011 model, then you cannot. The earlier models came with a special version of Snow Leopard on DVDs. You can install only that version of Snow Leopard. If you've lost those discs, then you are out of luck.
    You do not use Boot Camp for this. Rather, you will use Disk Utility.
    To resize the drive do the following:
    1. Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
    After the main menu appears select Disk Utility and click on the Continue button. Select the hard drive's main entry then click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
    2. You should see the graphical sizing window showing the existing partitions. A portion may appear as a blue rectangle representing the used space on a partition.
    3. In the lower right corner of the sizing rectangle for each partition is a resizing gadget. Select it with the mouse and move the bottom of the rectangle upwards until you have reduced the existing partition enough to create the desired new volume's size. The space below the resized partition will appear gray. Click on the Apply button and wait until the process has completed.  (Note: You can only make a partition smaller in order to create new free space.)
    4. Click on the [+] button below the sizing window to add a new partition in the gray space you freed up. Give the new volume a name, if you wish, then click on the Apply button. Wait until the process has completed.
    You should now have a new volume on the drive.
    It would be wise to have a backup of your current system as resizing is not necessarily free of risk for data loss.  Your drive must have sufficient contiguous free space for this process to work.

  • Want to Dual Boot Tiger and Snow Leopard

    I have 4 internal SATA drives on my 2007 Mac Pro, and my boot drive is Tiger 10.4.11. I just purchased Snow Leopard (Box Set), with the intention of creating a second internal boot drive that boots Snow Leopard.
    I mentioned this in passing to a senior Apple Tech who indicated he thought I could do it. However I seem to remember reading the second boot drive should be an External Fire Wire.
    The first question is, can I create a second boot drive (using Snow Leopard) on my Mac Pro on an internal HD?
    Second question is, can the second Snow Leopard boot be on a partition? I just bought a 2 TB WD that I'd like to split up.
    Thanks!

    can I create a second boot drive (using Snow Leopard) on my Mac Pro on an internal HD?
    Yes.
    Second question is, can the second Snow Leopard boot be on a partition?
    Yes.
    Note that Spotlight will reindex the drives each time you change OSes unless they're excluded in System Preferences.
    (50388)

  • Dual boot with Mavericks and Snow Leopard on Two different internal drives?

    I have a late 2009 quad core Mac Pro running Snow Leopard- it has 4 internal HD's.  I want to eventually upgrade to Mavericks.  Before I do a clean install of Mavericks on my start up disk that has Snow Leopard OS, I was hoping I could download Mavericks and install it on another clean internal hard drive to test it out before I commit to erasing my main drive and doing a clean install.  My Mac Pro meets the minium specs to run Mavericks. 
    If I install Mavericks on this second internal drive can I dual boot using the option key at start up and elect to either operate in Snow Leopard or Mavericks?  What are the concerns or issues I might face if this is possible?
    As I have Snow Leopard, I am also unable to produce a Mavericks bootable USB flash drive- the terminal commands don't work with Snow Leopard. With Mavericks installed on a second internal hard drive- will I be able to create a bootable Mavericks USB Flash drive?
    Thanks for any advice.
    KT

    1. Yes.
    2. The Spotlight indexes may be rebuilt every time you switch OSes.
    3. Yes.
    (94046)

  • Make dual boot Lion and Snow Leopard Mac ???

    I have a SSD for my MBP. I formatted it with two partitions and installed snow leopard on each. I also have a 400 GB HDD that has snow leopard on it. I'd like to trade out my optical drive for the SSD. I'd like to update one SSD partition to Lion, then use the software and data files from the HDD for both snow leopard and Lion. That way I hope to still use the snow leopard software that is not compatible with Lion (I still have some legacy PPC programs) and have the benefit of new Lion only software.
    Can I do this? If so what do I have to do? Any resources with HOW-TO for this sort of thing??
    2009 MBP with 10.6.8

    Do you have any tips for making your home folder stay on the HDD and still get the files I need on each SDD partition?
    I assume you are talking about application-specific data like preferences.  Most stuff is kept in your home dir.  You really have to know which apps are exceptions that put stuff in /Library and other boot disk related places (e.g., kexts).  I always keep careful records of what goes where from anything I add to my system so I know how to handle this.  Generally though I suppose Migration Assistant helps most users (I never used it).
    One scheme you might do is simply ignore the problems until they occur on a app-by-app-basis.  If you run from one of the boots and something you use needs a kext or registration because its not on your common home dir, then install as needed or reregister as needed.  Preferences can easily be respecified (or dragged from a backup if you know what to look for and where).
    Most of your stuff in your home dir will run as it did before if the stuff doesn't use any boot directories.  But as I said in my first post there is that risk that some apple-specific data bases might have changed going from Snow Leopard to Lion like those Mail and Address Book examples.  No way of know that until you try.  Hence the emphasis on backups.
    If there are some user-specific data that has changed between Snow Leopard and Lion (say, it's Mail or Address Book) then this whole common-home-for-both-snow-leopard-and-lion scheme needs to be rethought.   As I said earlier, it has always worked within a single OS family and I don't recall even having any problems up to Snow Leopard.  But the jury is still out on Snow Leopard to Lion.
    With respect to applications you want to put on the SSD, that's your choice.  What do you use the most and launch most often?  Put them on your SSD if you wish.    Thinking out loud -- maybe consider a relatively small third partition for these apps on the SSD.  It would appear as just another mounted volume on your desktop and then you would have only a single instance of those apps for both boots.  Most apps don't need to be in /Applications.  Those that do of course would have to have two instances, one for each boot.

  • Com port failed with boot camp and snow leopard - Please help!

    Hi. I have been a very happy leopard and macbook user for the last couple of years. This week I upgraded to a macbook pro with OS X 10.6 snow leopard. I set up boot camp with Windows XP SP3as I have a couple of windows only applications that I need to use and they both need serial port. I had a Keyspan USA 19-QW serial adaptor that worked fine with Leopard and my old macbook. I installed the driver that came with the Keyspan adaptor. Now when I plug the adaptor into the USB slot it finds new hardware and says it is ready to use and the adaptor is listed in my ports as being on COM3 in device manager in windows but when I try to run the programs I get the message 'the selected port could not be opened. Either the port is in use by another application, or the port doesn't exist'. I'd be very grateful for any advice you can give me to solve this problem. Do I need to buy a new adaptor? Is this a settings or driver issue? I'm a user and not a techie person so please can you leave me easy step by step help. Many thanks. Karen

    And was wodering if snow Leopard is pré installed
    Yes.
    And also which disc that came with thé machine has boot camp on it
    None. Windows is a separate purchase.
    i havé read that to install windows7 you need to pût thé snow leopard disc in to complete thé installation
    That refers to the Boot Camp drivers for Windows, not Windows itself.
    (53272)

  • Dual boot Lion and Snow Leopard?

    I have a first generation MacBook Pro unibody, and recently installed Lion on it.  I had been using Snow Leopard since it came out, and it works beautifully.  I had no idea (should have done my homework) that several of my programs would cease to function.  I have a Nikon Super Coolscan 4000 ED that I need Nikon Scan 4.2 to run, as well as Photoshop CS2 that I use to edit my images from the scanner.  I don't really want to pay for Silverfast as it is over $400 and see no need when Nikon Scan works beautifully.  I am planning set up a second partition on my hardrive and installing Snow Leopard on it to run those two programs.  My questions are this:
    How much space should my second partition be?
    Can I access the image files on Lion from the Snow Leopard partition?
    Thanks,
    Jared

    IMHO the Nikon software requires Rosetta and Lion doesn't have it. So you can't use it with Lion.
    Since I have PS CS3, I don't know about PS CS2 but I suspect it is also in the same boat.
    If you set up a Snow Leopard partition, my suggestion would be to make it at least 40 GB larger then your current photo library.
    Allan

  • Multi boot lion and snow leopard

    Hello everyone,
    I'd like to know, how to show boot screen at every mac's reboot... 
    In practice I would like that the screen below remains visible for about 10 seconds..
    Thanks for help!
    Alex

    as I understand it, what you're looking for is a boot manager
    this article might help: http://www.brighthub.com/computing/mac-platform/articles/75525.aspx
    EDIT: either that, or hold the option (alt) key down when booting to show that menu - though I guess you're looking for something more permanent?

  • What new MacbookPros will support dual booting Lion and Snow Leopard?

    I was looking at http://www.macmall.com/n/macNavLinks-305?q=8899071
    I need a system that can dual boot so that we can use older software that isn't supported by Lion.

    I was looking at http://www.macmall.com/n/macNavLinks-305?q=8899071
    I need a system that can dual boot so that we can use older software that isn't supported by Lion.

  • Can I have mavericks time machine on one partition of a WD  external hard drive and snow leopard data on another

    can I have mavericks time machine on one partition of a WD  external hard drive and snow leopard data on another

    If you want to and it is so large that it has room (350% is a good estimate for TimeMachine), then use a partition(s) to hold system restore images or bootable clones. Or VM images.
    Using SSDs most Mac Pro models can easily hold 6 or more storage devices inside, except the nMP cylinder 6,1's;  which do need external Thunderbolt and USB3.
    System drive / data / scratch / backup data / backups of system / ....
    I recommend a couple system backups, especially when faced with dual boot situations as well as an OS that is still undergoing updates and changes.

  • I just upgraded my 2008 macbook pro to OS X Maverick from Snow Leopard but my computer is running a bit buggy and slow. How do I downgrade back down to snow leopard?

    I just upgraded my 2008 macbook pro to OS X Maverick from Snow Leopard but my computer is running a bit buggy and slow. How do I downgrade back down to snow leopard?

    You would reinstall 10.6 using your installation DVD.
    Out of curiosity, how much RAM do you have? Recent versions of OS X really shine with 4GB or more.
    Matt

  • Dual boot drive - Mountain Lion and Snow Leopard - Correct order to load software /apps?

    Hi
    I want to create a dual boot drive for Mountain Lion and Snow Leopard as some of my hardware (is not supported in Mountain Lion). 
    I am happy how to do this, I just want to know if there is a correct way to install software and apps.
    My plan was to do a clean install of both using two partitions, the larger going to ML and smaller one for SL.  I was going to install SL from the DVD and then after updating from 10.6. to 10.6.8 and download ML from the app store and install on the larger partition.
    Do I install all the software I use like Final Cut, Aperture, iLife (for Garageband) etc on the ML or SL partition or on both.  Also, is there a better way / practise of the order software updates / apps and boxed software should be installed when doing a clean machine install.
    Thanks in advance.
    Matt

    Thanks mende1
    So, if I have software I need to use on both ML and SL - for example Final Cut as I have a Canopus AVDC box which is not supported in ML but only SL, do I need to install the same software in both OS?
    I usually open apps using spotlight and didn't know if it would software / apps would open if already installed on the other partition?
    Thanks again
    Matt

  • Upgrading to OS X Mavericks from Snow Leopard

    Hi, I am upgrading to Mavericks from Snow Leopard and after I downloaded the OS X from App Store, my MacBook Pro restarted automatically but unfortunately I am stuck in a grey screen with the apple icon in the middle and with the loading wheel turning underneath the apple. It's been so long as around 2 hours that I'm stuck in this screen. Can someone help me please??

    kevbon83,
    if Mavericks installed successfully, then it should have created a recovery partition on your internal drive. Are you able to hold down a Command key and the R key while booting, to see if it starts into the recovery partition? If that doesn’t work, then you’ll need to use the original model-specific grey installation DVDs that came in the box with your MacBook Pro. Put the disc marked “Mac OS X Install DVD” into your internal SuperDrive, and reboot while holding down the C key. You’ll then be able to run the DVD’s Disk Utility command to “verify” your internal drive.

  • Going from Mavericks to Snow Leopard?

    I'm trying to go from Mavericks to Snow Leopard on my 2011 Macbook Air (intel i7, 1.8 Ghz, 4 GB of Ram), but it won't let me. I tried going into Disk Utility and deleting everything off the hard drive itself, then booting from the disc itself, but it won't work. I tried restoring for a Snow Leopard back-up, it would work, although it did let me boot to a Lion backup. I even tried to simply set the start-up disc to my Snow Leopard retail disc, but it wouldn't boot. I could hear the disc moving in my USB superdrive for 15-20 sec, then it just stopped and the computer stays at the Apple logo. Any suggestions?

    You cannot run Snow Leopard on that model. You can reinstall Lion which is what came pre-installed from the factory:
    Install Mavericks, Lion/Mountain Lion Using Internet Recovery
    Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.
    Boot to the Internet Recovery HD:
    Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND-OPTION- R keys until a globe appears on the screen. Wait patiently - 15-20 minutes - until the Recovery main menu appears.
    Partition and Format the hard drive:
    1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.
    2. After DU loads select your newly installed hard 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.
    3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed. Quit DU and return to the main menu.
    Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion. Mavericks: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion, Mavericks and click on the Install button. Be sure to select the correct drive to use if you have more than one.
    Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet
                if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.
    This should restore the version of OS X originally pre-installed on the computer.

  • File and Account Management When Dual-Booting Mavericks and Earlier OS X

    I want to install Mavericks into a separate partition on my mid-2009 MacBook Pro so that I can still boot into Snow Leopard to run some essential legacy software. My question is: how do I configure everything so that I only have to install each app once and so that user accounts access one set of files?
    For example, I would like to be able to run, say, MS Office within either Mavericks or Snow Leopard, but I want to use the same software installation, the same preferences and other support files, and save to the same user file space.
    Would someone be kind enough to point me to instructions for setting something like this up? I am an experienced computer user, and I am capable of following instructions. However, I am not a power user, nor do I know the ins and outs of navigating through the terminal.
    Thank you in advance.
    David

    Hi Dave
    Have you found a solution yet? I have exactly the same issue, and same questions. Being able to continue to use 10.6.8 for essential legacy material and a few old programs is a pre-condition of my upgrading to 10.9.
    Installing 10.9 onto a new partition, or a new drive (as I shall do on my early 2008 Mac Pro) is mentioned as an option in virtually every article on the web on upgrading, but I can find nothing that explains precisely what you do about your user account.
    I'm not so worried so much about the applications. I'll just migrate all that work in 10.9 across to the 10.9 drive, but not delete them from the 10.6.8. drive. I can see too much chance of OS conflicts if you tried to run them in both OS from a single location.
    I initially thought it should be possible to access all my content through a single user account which is accessible whether I boot in 10.6.8 or 10.9. I can't find a convincing answer to whether that is possible or not anywhere, or instructions on how to do it if it is possible.
    I wonder if I'm not being too complicated about this?. Once 10.9 is installed, I suspect I'll use that for everything except the programs and content that only work in 10.6.8.  And it may be far better to have all the 10.6.8 stuff in a specific and separate user account in any case.
    But I'd be interested in what you may have found out or decided to do!

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