Booting Intel Mac Mini from PPC OS

I had a PowerPC Mac Mini that booted off of an external hard drive. I just sold the computer, and bought a new Intel-based Mac Mini. I would like to have the new Mini boot off of the external hard drive also, so I can keep all of my settings and extensions pretty much the same. Is there any way I could make this work?

You must erase and reformat the external hard drive. So Back Up anything of importance on that drive. The PPC Mac had to have the drive formatted with Apple Partition boot drivers in order to boot the Mac after a Mac OSX Install. An Intel Mac requires that the drive be formatted with GUID Partition boot drivers. This is all covered in the Disk Utility.app in the Utilities folder.

Similar Messages

It is possible to boot a mac mini from keyboard?

I need to boot my mac mini from Kb, it is possible?

keg55 but youyr suggestion uses the Power button too.
keg55 wrote:
Yes, it's possible (COMMAND+CONTROL+Power Button). OS X keyboard shortcuts.
With the Min Off, there is no power to the keyboard and thus you can't turn the iPod on only from the keyboard.

Retro Migration: Intel mac mini to PPC G4 powerbook

I have a perfectly good top of the range G4 powerbook sitting around and my partner wants to use it to to go mobile, is it possible to use the leopard migration assistant to move data from an intel mac mini to a G4 powerbook, is it all just a normal transfer or is there anything special i need to do?

You want to be careful about using the migration assistant when it comes to copying items from the user library. Rather than use the migration assistant, I'd do a Finder copy of the Documents, Pictures, Music and Movie files and install the programs manually. If you want to give her her bookmarks, contacts, and mail, you can safely copy the Safari folder from the Library to the G4's Library. I'd set up Mail Accounts on the G4 manually and then export the mail from each mail folder and copy them over for import. I'd export the contacts and then import them as well.

Unable to boot on Mac Mini from DVD burned from .iso image

I'm following the Beginner's Guide to try and install Arch on a Mac Mini "Late 2009".
I have downloaded archlinux-2014.10.01-dual.iso and associated .sig, and have verified it using the gpg2 command described in the guide (including the link to http://sparewotw.wordpress.com/2012/10/ … -sig-file/ which gave some assurance that the ambiguous answer produced by gpg2 was in fact legitimate).
I then used OSX's Disk Utility to burn the .iso file to a blank DVD. After verifying the burn, it ejected the disk.
When I re-inserted it, I received a message that the disk was unmountable, giving me the option to Ignore or Eject. I chose Ignore. Then I went to the System Preferences > Startup Disk, to see if it would at least appear there as an option, but it didn't.
(I should mention that I also burned the same file to another disk using a Windows machine, and when I inserted it into the Mac I got the same message, so I don't think it's corrupted media. (Bad reader, perhaps? eek.) )
That's where I stand. There are so many variables at play here (many of them Apple-induced, I think) that I've been unable to find a solution that fits my situation. Could someone please provide suggestions / pointers / answer?
Thanks,
Chap

Scimmia wrote:Ignore what OSX tells you, just try booting from it: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1533
Exactly right. Holding the Option key caused a display of various bootable OSes, including the one I had just burned from the Mac using hdiutil (weirdly entitled "windows"). I selected it, and it booted. I now have a console. Problem solved. Thanks.
UPDATE: note that this boot disk *cannot* be seen or selected via the OSX System Preference > Startup Disk panel. Holding the Option key during startup seems to be the only way to select it.
Last edited by clh (2014-10-17 21:01:14)

Intel Mac Mini from 2006 won't boot up! Shuts off by itself.

I stuck a copy of Snow Leopard into my computer to upgrade it before realizing that there were certain things I hadn't thought to back up before I did. I tried to exit the install process by selecting the appropriate start up disc and then restarted. It took forever and ultimately just shut down. I turned the computer back on and it kept taking me to the os install screen until eventually it started shutting itself off before I even got there. I finally got the disc out of the mini by holding down the mouse button as it turned on, but I still can't get it to boot up into the usual os. When i turn it on, I get a blank screen, eventually an apple with the round symbol that something's loading and then eventually it shuts off before I get anywhere.
Can someone PLEASE help me? It was a dumb mistake, but I really need to get back into my computer. I reset the PRAM, but that didn't make a difference. Thank you in advance if anyone has any advice.

If you have the 10.6.3 disk you're in luck.
All you do is pop it in the DVD drive, hold down the 'C' key and reboot.
You'll have to reinstall the OS (it'll probably note that a newer version exists, and ask you if you want to overwrite it. Say 'yes'), then after installation is finished immediately do Software Update to get the system up to 10.6.8. This can be lengthy if you do it through the 'Software Update' utility. A shortcut is to download the 'combo' update here:
http://support.apple.com/kb/dl1399
Just to be clear: you have to reinstall from the DVD BEFORE you try and download and run that combo update.
Once that's done, you should be good.
As a piece of general advice, never trash a system file and THEN try to update. You update with the file in place. Normally, just hitting 'software update' will do it. If you have a specific file that you think needs replacing, acquire the file first, then move it into place before rebooting.
Finally, never do anything like you did if you haven't got a backup. Use Carbon Copy Cloner to keep a regular clone of your entire internal HD. It would have taken you 5 minutes to boot into a clone and get the file off it that you trashed and saved you a whole load of headache!

Using External Boot Drive with New Intel Mac Mini

I have a 1st Gen MacMini and use an external 7200 RPM Lacie drive as the system boot drive along with all the applications.
If I were to purchase a new Intel Mac Mini, is it possible to use the current external drive as the system drive or is there some conversion steps that would be necessary ?
Thank you.

You can use the hardware, but will have to repartition and reinstall the OS from the disk shipped with the new Mac Mini.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=303220
If you create a disk image of the Lacie on your Mini, you can later use setup assistant to restore users and applications from that image.

Intel Mac Mini Core Solo - Kernel Panic on Boot

I was wondering if anyone who has purchased the Intel Mac Mini is having issues with Kernel Panics during the booting sequence?
I got a Core Solo from the local Apple store (couldn't wait to play, I'm waiting on the Core Duo I ordered online to come still ). The first thing I did was fire it up check it out for a few minutes, then I put the install disc in and reinstalled a clean OS, with less options because I'm planning on hooking it up to my TV so I don't need space hogs like Garageband etc on my TV computer. I got the updates that popped up, then shutdown the computer. I took it out to the living room and hooked it up to the tv and I got a black message about needing to restart (a kernel panic) right when the blue progress loading bar comes up on boot. I spent a while with it trying to figure out what was wrong, ran the Apple Hardware Test, booted it fine in Safe Boot. Finally I got tired of it and reinstalled the OS again.
It was fine for a day, working fine out on the tv. I brought it back in my room to play with a few things like Darwine, etc. Shut it down, came back an hour or so later booted it up and got the kernel panic on boot. Safe boot still worked fine. I spent some time trying to look for panic logs but didn't see any. I ran the disk utility and did a Full erase and it worked fine. I reinstalled the OS again. Ran MemTestOSX and it worked fine. I left it running the Apple Hardware Test for about 6 hours or more, and it performed perfectly.
This morning it still seemed ok, except sometimes on a cold boot when the blue progress bar screen should come on... my monitor just shows black and the light on the monitor goes inactive. So, I press the button on the back to sleep it, then bring it out of sleep with the keyboard and the OS is sitting there booted.
It seems like a weird combination of software and hardware problems, but maybe it's all hardware problems. I can't get past Safe Boot working when the OS stops loading. Right now the computer is working fine.
I'm waiting for my Core Duo to come in the mail and verify that it works flawlessly, then I'll take the Solo to the store and ask them to look at it.
Anyone have any similar experiences so far?

It seems like the mini is doing alright so far. I think maybe the full erase solved whatever issue it was having. I also got my Core Duo Mini yesterday in the mail and it's performing like a champ. Definitely a nice machine.
I'll close my question for now, since the Core Solo Mini seems alright. But, as a warning don't get on Front Row's bad side. I tried force quitting it because it was taking too long to load the videos folder and then tried shutting down from a terminal and ended up having to turn the machine off.

Someone tell me why is it so difficult to print from my Intel Mac Mini

I'm so frusrated at this Intel Mac Mini of mine. I wish honest to God that I never bought this evil little machine.
I have the following printers:
HP Photosmart 7550
HP Laserjet 1012
Canon MP830
I can't get anything to print! It so **** frustrating. I switched my wife from her WinXP to a Intel Mac Mini (10.4.6). She hates the Mac Mini because she can't print anything.
Why is it so difficult? Please someone enlighten me.
After months (not kidding) of searching on the web I was able to get the Photosmart 7550 to print using one of the gimp drivers, but I couldn't get it to change the paper type or quality. So that tells me I can't print any photos from my Mac. Need to use the WinXP box.
Then I was able to get the 1012 printing by selecting "open using rosetta" for the Printer Setup Utility, and selecting the "HP LaserJet 4 series - Gimp-Print v5.0.0-beta2". So now I could at least print BW docs. Great the Mac Mini is not a total waste. Then I updated software, which include the Mac mini SMC Firmware Update. I don't know what did it, but now I can't print to the 1012 anymore. ARGHH!
I tried deleting the Library/Printer/HP directory, Reseting the Printing System, Restarting the CUPs, Installing PDDs, Installing the gimp drivers. What the ****! Why do I need to do any of this? I thought the Mac was suppose to be so easy. With all those **** commercials talking about how the Mac can do anything a PC can do, you would think one of those things is being able to print.
Those people making those commericals should try using the "Printer Setup Utility" program. That will change their tune. First you have to search for your printer, then pick the Printer Model, and then pick the specific model. And God forbid you click to fast, oops you've now picked a generic printer, needs to start all over again. There's no back button. You've already committed to the generic printer type. Now you have to open the Printer Setup Utility again and delete the generic printer and go search for your printer again. Lame.
Don't get me started with the Canon MP 830. I thought, ok maybe its because the 1012 and 7550 are older printers. I'll go buy a new printer - they must have current drivers for that. Canon tells me that the MP 830 is only a single OS machine, meaning you can only connect it to a windows machine and only other windows machines can print from it, or connect it to a Mac, and only other Macs can use it - Again, Lame.
Really I wanted to love the Mac OS. When I first got it, I was loving it. But what good is it if I can't print. I searched the web and it seems I'm not the only person having issues with printing.
I hate this Intel Mac Mini with every fiber of my being. Ok, maybe my printing woes are only because it's a Intel chip, and the PPC macs are golden. But come on, if you can't print from a computer, what good is it?
Please, someone help me. Otherwise, anybody want to buy a Intel dual core Mac Mini?
mac mini duo core Mac OS X (10.4.6)

You have two different issues: HP and Canon.
I don't know if I believe the Canon people. Windows XP has lots of different print options. Try installing Bonjour on Windows and then setting up a networked, Color Apple Laserwriter PS printer using "http://macmini.local:631" (assuming macmini is the name of your Mac). I have done this before (though not on a Canon). I am sure Canon will only support a standard configuration and this is not quite standard. Give it a try. It doesn't sound like it can hurt anything in your current setup.
For the HP, you might have to just wait for an updated driver from HP. HP has always had this problem. They are a huge printer company and I'm sure they get Apple hardware and OS versions before anybody else in the world. And yet, it seems as if they don't even begin working on their drivers until Apple officially releases a new OS. HP drivers are always the last to show up for a new OS and the first to break. If you get it working under MacOS 10.4.6, and then upgrade to 10.4.7, it is very likely that the HP drivers will stop working.
Unlike some of the other big companies, HP seems to have made the transition from Classic MacOS to MacOS X seamlessly. Their printer driver software works just as well on MacOS X as it did under MacOS.

Can't Migrate from G4 to Intel Mac Mini

Hi
I have been unable to migrate files from my old G4 destop to my new Intel Mac mini. I wonder if anyone could help.
I first tried first using the migration assistant on the Mac mini and used the G4 as a fire wire drive. Failed twice, the process froze both times.
Erased Intel Mac mini and tried to do a restore from G4 using Disk Utilty. Failed twice. Didn't complete process.
I then tried the same twice using Supe Duper. Completed process (took hours) but in both cases couldn't boot Mac mini. Get the folder icon on boot indicating can't find system (I think).
I though I would then clean re-install system files from restore disks that came with MIni mac and start a fresh, but won't allow me to do this !! Spent two days and no further forward.
Any suggestions ?
Would erasing Mac mini and and trying Carbon Copy Cloner work ?
Can I add files manually from G4 to mac mini ?
Thanks in advance.
G4 ibook. G4 desktop, mac mini (intel) Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Exactly which model G4 tower do you have? The
PCI-graphics G4 towers do not support FireWire Target
Disk Mode.
If FWTDM works, have you replaced the hard drive that
came with the G4? Technically, Apple claims FWTDM
will only work with the OEM (original) hard drive
that came with the G4 tower. If you've replaced it or
added a second drive, it might not work correctly in
"target" mode.
If you do have a new hard drive, you should be able
to put it into a FireWire (or USB) external hard
drive case and use the Migration/Setup Assistant to
copy your files over.
If you're still having trouble, you can copy your
files over manually. Do you know which files you're
interested in copying? If your G4 tower works in
"target" mode, but the Migration/Setup Assistant is
having trouble, you can usually just drag all the
files and folders from your user's old home folder to
the new folders on the new computer. (Macintosh
HD/Users/YourUserName/Pictures > NewMacintosh
HD/Users/YourUserName/Pictures)
-Doug
Yes I did change the hard drive to a bigger one so that may be the problem.
When I use the Traget mode I do see my "old" drive (both partitions) on my desktop so it suggests firewire is working.
Won't take everything across including applications, library etc.
Will let you know how I get on.
Thank you for your time. Geatly appreciated.

Intel mac mini wont boot after system restore

Hi,
I ran the system restore on my intel mac mini using the genuine leopard cd that came with it.
Now it wont boot. When you press power the light comes on but it does not chime and there is not video output to any monitor.
Anyone know what could be wrong?

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
You picked 10.4.1 in your profile.
Intel Mac Minis at minimum came with 10.4.4.
If it came with a 10.5 genuine DVD, it most certainly was not running 10.4.1 or 10.4.4. Perhaps you mistook one Mac Mini install DVD for another? Does your Mac Mini have 4 USB ports on back? What does the 10.5 installer disc you used look like?

Can't find Laserwriter 4/600 on network from Intel Mac mini

Problem: Cannot find/print to networked LaserWriter using Airport network.
Kit: Mac mini 1.66 GHz Intel Core Duo, 512 MB running Mac OS 10.4.5; Silver Apple Airport Base Station unExtreme; Netgear 814 combined switch/router/DSL modem; Asanté LocalTalk-to-Ethernet Adaptor; Apple LaserWriter 4/600PS.
Method: Airport bridges from wireless (Mac mini) side of network to wired (LaserWriter) side via hub/router.
This setup worked perfectly for many years but did not survive the encounter with Intel Mac mini.
Resolution attempted: Carried out detailed instructions involving switching devices off and on in strict order, using Printer Setup Utility etc.
These instructions are posted on Asanté website:
http://www.asante.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3164
Getting this to work requires that the Ethernet connection be switched from AirPort to Built-in Ethernet and that the computer be physically connected to the hub by an ethernet cable. The unwanted effect of this is that it denies wireless access to network/internet services formerly enjoyed by Mac & PC computers.
Running the identical Asanté routine with AirPort rather than Built-in Ethernet as the connection method results in the loss of the LaserWriter to the network.
Any ideas?

You can rest assured that printing to a AppleTalk
printer through wireless network is way down on the
list of things that is ever going to be tested in the
labs.
Point taken. I'm just curious about what might be going on.
Since I can't test here - the only thing I can do is
think of possible differences between your two
networks (wired and wireless)
I'm not an expert but as I understand it the Intel Mac mini should "see" the network as a single contiguous entity. In other words the AirPort Base Station that bridges between the wireless and the wired parts of the network should be entirely transparent, so I think the answer to your next question is yes.
Is your network flat (sameIP address range and routes
wireless as wired)? I could see issues if there were
a firewall or you had separate networks set up (you
can have different networks that talk to each other
through gateways and routing - but things like
Bonjour/Rendezvous and if my rusty memory is to be
trusted - Appletalk too - depends on things being in
the same "network" for broadcast packets to get to
everyone.)
Again, I don't know if it proves anything but when I had another computer on network here, the IP address assigned to it by the router was within the specified range. This machine is getting on for three whole years old, has begun to self-destruct and so it's gone for repair under the last gasp of its AppleCare warranty extension.
The Intel Mac mini can also "see"/print to a Bonjour wireless printer. This may also answer your question about the possibility there being two networks here rather than one. On the other hand, I guess that the ability to print to the Bonjour device does not involve any bridging between the wireless and wired parts of the network, so this may not be relevant.
If the concept of different networks does not make
sense - open up the Network Utility application and
post the results of your "Display routing table
information" from the netstat section...
Finally, here's what Network Utility, Netstat comes up with:
Routing tables
Internet:
Destination Gateway Flags Refs Use Netif Expire
default 192.168.0.1 UGSc 20 55 en1
127 localhost UCS 0 0 lo0
localhost localhost UH 17 199665 lo0
169.254 link#5 UCS 0 0 en1
192.168.0 link#5 UCS 2 0 en1
192.168.0.1 0:9:5b:46:64:3 UHLW 19 17 en1 1177
192.168.0.3 localhost UHS 0 0 lo0
192.168.0.255 link#5 UHLWb 1 12 en1
Internet6:
Destination Gateway Flags Netif Expire
localhost link#1 UHL lo0
localhost Uc lo0
localhost link#1 UHL lo0
link#5 UC en1
ray-thomsons-compu 0:14:51:ef:99:b1 UHL lo0
ff01:: localhost U lo0
ff02::%lo0 localhost UC lo0
I hope it makes more sense to you than it does to me!
Kind regards,
Ray
PowerBook G4•1GHz•512MB•15•AirPort unExtreme Mac OS 9.2.x

Intel Mac Mini stuck in reboot loop

I just upgraded the hard drive in my 2007 intel mac mini core duo. Drive formatted successfully, contains GUID Partition Table.
OSX 10.5 installed successfully.
Machine rebooted, I ran software update to 10.5.7 successfully.
Upon installing Adobe Flash Player, Adobe Acrobat Reader, machine began to react slowly to commands.
Rebooted machine, went to Grey Apple Screen with spinning dash wheen icon.
Machine rebooted itself, once again going to the grey apply screen with the spinning wheel.
After about 15 minutes of letting the continual reboot cycle happen, I inserted the installation DVD for 10.5, held the power button in to power off the machine, and booted from the disk.
I ran disk utility. Disk Utility shows the hard drive, shows the partition (GUID Partition) correctly.
I Verified Disk, which verified as "OK"
Repaired permissions.
Restarted machine.
Once again, it loaded to the grey apple screen, stayed there with the spinning dash wheel for about 3 minutes then continued to reboot over and over (everytime it reboots it sticks on the grey apple screen for 3 minutes before rebooting.
I once again powered off the machine and reset the PRAM.
Machine stuck again on reboot cycle.
I powered off the machine and reset the mini's SMC.
Machine is still stuck in reboot cycle.
I have also taken the mini back apart and verified that all RAM and connections are seated properly.
Any advice on what to do at this point will be very helpful.

+And I promise I will not download and install a hundred different programs this time.+
Good idea.
Any time you install software in OSX, there is a small, but finite, chance that the installation process won't be able to access a needed file because it is in use. This can mess up pre-binding, or even prevent files from being updated.
So the best advice is not to run any other programs while doing software installs or updates. And when in doubt, run DiskUtility afterwards and fix permissions one more time.
I cringe whenever I think of a post I read a while back about a Mac user who boasted about what music he likes to run in iTunes while doing system software updates. Not a good idea. It's "Russian roulette" with maybe 99 blanks in the "gun", but one real bullet that can kill your Mac's installation.

Bluetooth Not Available on Intel Mac mini

I keep losing the Bluetooth wireless connection between my Apple wireless mouse and keyboard and my Intel Mac mini (which is running Mac OSX 10.5.5)
Tried re-booting but it doesn't always come back.
Looked in System Preferences, but if the connection is lost, Bluetooth has disappeared as if not installed. If the connection is present then all seems OK. You can check battery levels etc.
Left to itself Bluetooth can re-appear sometime later as mysteriously as it disappeared, maybe after half an hour or so. Very annoying as I have to result to using an Apple USB mouse and keyboard when the connection is lost.
Tried running Bluetooth Updater but it says I haven't got Bluetooth if the connection is lost! But it came pre-installed on purchase. Problem only seems to have started since upgrading to Leopard. Never had this problem with Tiger.
Any thoughts would be most welcome.
regards,
BJ

Ok, I've resolved this on my machine, at least for the time being.
Here is what I did. I am not advising anyone else to do this and I am in-no-way stating this will fix your problem. I'm just relaying what worked for me. If anyone chooses to try this then it's on their own head!
I opened my Mac Mini and located the Bluetooth circuit board just in front of the rear power button. I removed the small phillips screw holding the board in place and noticed that the connector that connects the board to the main motherboard was not seated well. I removed the connector and reattached it, making sure I felt the 'click' as the connector was pushed home.
I had also read on the net that the routing of the bluetooth ariel cable may cause problems due to interference from the USB ports. I took the opportunity to extract the ariel and run it over the disk and away from the USB ports. Before putting the lid back on I booted up to check Bluetooth was working again.
So, I now have my Mac Mini with Bluetooth working again. We shall see how long this lasts - perhaps the root cause was a loose connection, in which case it may be fixed permanently now. I shall report back in a few weeks.
Be aware that opening your Mac is going to invalidate any warranty. Mine was out of warranty anyway so I was not bothered. I've also got a degree in software and electronic engineering so know my way round the insides of computers. Please make your own assessment of your level of expertise before deciding to try what I did. It may not work for you anyway!

Intel Mac mini and widescreen TV output (analog)

I just replaced my 1.25 GHz mini with a dual-core Intel one, and are really disappointed that the wide-screen resolution options are nowhere to be found. I'm using the Apple DVI-to-Video adapter with an S-Video cable.
On the G4 Mac mini, I would get 640x480 (NTSC 4:3), 800x480 (NTSC 16:9), 768x576 (PAL 4:3) and 1024x576 (PAL 16:9). Together with Overscan and Best for Video, I got a really nice picture on my 16:9 CRT TV (can display PAL and NTSC in either 4:3 or 16:9).
With the Intel Mac mini, I only get 640x480.
(The other available resolutions do not match with the actual NTSC or PAL frequencies or aspect ratios. For example, 720x480 or 720x576 is used as the pixel format for some digital media, but the pixels are not square, and so far, all software expects display pixels to be square. So it's actually quite useless.)
Is there a trick to get those resolutions to show up in Displays and become usable?

1.) I am using either 1920x1080 (interlaced) which is the resultion that has the worst problem with text sharpness. Now, I have discovered the Zoom feature in OSX and I can use it to some degree to make things readable. This may be my best option.
2.) I have done the calibraton and it does look quite a bit better. Those the DVD output is good but not great.
3.) Apparently, from what I have read, this is a common problem. Maybe a driver upgrade from Apple or Intel could fix?
I bought a Philips DVI cable. I know it's not the best but it should suffice. Monster cables seem to be overpriced. I plan to hook my PC to my HDTV with the same cable. My ATi card supports HD resolutions as well.
I also hooked the mini to my CRT that I have on my Dell and it looks very good there. I am impressed that OSX adjusts the resoltions that it can display upon boot. Even which switching displays.
Intel Mini Duo Core Mac OS X (10.4.5) 512MB RAM

How can I tell if I have the right restore disks for Intel Mac Mini

I have an "early 2006" (confirmed by S/N YM609***) Intel Mac Mini 1.66mhz Core Duo. I bought it used and the hard drive had been wiped. Both the HD and the DVD drive seem to work fine; hard drive passes SMART tests. I was able to boot using "Drive Genius" and can access the pre-install items like Disk Utility (and know that I need to use GUID formatting to create a bootable disk). Not knowing I could order restore disks from Apple I bought a set on eBay, p/n AHT VERSION 3A102 DISC VERSION 1.1 2Z691-5828-A, copyright 2006 on disks and included documentation (OS 10.4.6), but the install always fails 10-15 minutes along. I got the same results when trying to install via internal optical drive to a FW or USB external HD (told it to use GUID for the external HD), or external FW optical drive both to internal HD and to external USB hard drive. A friend tried to install full retail versions of 10.5 and even 10.6 for diagnostic purposes, using the built in HD and DVD drives, but those installs did not complete either; they did not try external drives. Is that the wrong restore version for this model, or even if the right "generation", does a set of restore disks only work with the specific Mac mini they were issued for like for example XP restore disks would? I've been told I can provide my s/n to Apple and for about $30 they will send me the "right" restore disks... anyone know anything about this? Could there be a hardware/firmware explanation for why the install fails like that? PS ran the extended version of the Apple Hardware Test with that restore disk set and it reported "no problems."
<Edited by Host>

Thanks. Actually I got the Mini from a computer recycling company I work with so I knew it might have problems and that I was taking an "as-is" risk. If the original disks were turned in with it, they'd been lost (that outfit took in huge piles of stuff every day; it was often luck of the draw for me to find something before it would be buried, damaged, etc., and not everyone who worked there had any idea of the possible value of things they received) for me to find things. The disks I got on eBay apparently were separated from the mini they'd been packaged for. An Apple Store rep said I could order restore direct from Apple just by providing my serial number; just wish I'd known that before I went to eBay. Since posting this I've seen another seller specifically claiming that the same-part-numbered-as-mine disc set they are selling will work with my specific type of Mac mini. I have an appointment tomorrow morning at the Genius Bar at an Apple store near me in case they have more suggestions. Will share what I know as things develop.

Booting Intel Mac Mini from PPC OS

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