Cannot boot from installed disk on Intel Xserve

I have an Intel Xserve.
I have had it for some months,it has been working fine, it is a standby backup machine to others and is used as a testbed.
I have just installed from the supplied DVD 10.4.8.
The installation goes smoothly, however after the first reboot. The system is trying to install from dvd again.
I have tried installing a known working Intel boot disk, and this just gives a folder with the flashing question mark.
I have tried formatting the disk and partitioning making sure to use GUID partition and it doesn't boot.
I can however boot from a external FW drive with 10.4.10 installed.
I can then go into Startup disk and set the boot disk as on of the installed drives, but this has No effect.
I am currently trying to Clone from the FW drive to an installed drive.
Has anyone seen this behaviour?
Can someone tell me what I can try to resolve this.
All I have read regarding Flashing Question Marks is to ensure disks are using GUID partion and when booting from another disk to set the boot disk in the System Prefences.

Welcome to the forum!
You're missing the first disk which is "Rescue and Recovery", followed by CDs 1-7.
Make sure to re-align the partitions before or after OS installation in order to get the proper utilization of that SSD.
Good luck.
Cheers,
George
In daily use: R60F, R500F, T61, T410
Collecting dust: T60
Enjoying retirement: A31p, T42p,
Non-ThinkPads: Panasonic CF-31 & CF-52, HP 8760W
Starting Thursday, 08/14/2014 I'll be away from the forums until further notice. Please do NOT send private messages since I won't be able to read them. Thank you.

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Installation good, but now cannot boot from install disk

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OK, so let us suppose that you have the correct disk, the possibilities are:
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cornelius

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Equium L300 - Cannot boot from recovery disk or other CDs

Equium L300
bought new used 3 months the left for 9 months. Dead flat battery.
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boot from hard -> disk Bootmgr is corrupt will not boot
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Hi buddy,
> But still think bios is corrupted
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Here you can search for one:
http://eu.computers.toshiba-europe.com > Support & Downloads > Find an authorized service provider

Can't boot from install disk and I need to reinstall OS X 10.4

I am trying to boot from the install disk by restarting the computer and holding down the c button. It won't start up from the disk. I get a white screen and an icon that is a circle with a line through it. I am having that problem on all my iMacs in my lab and I don't know why. Help Please!!! thanks.

Sorry for all of the posts.. but it could be possible that the firmware is password protected - disabling users in the computer lab from corrupting programs? I found this article and it might help.. (http://www.fif3.com/howto/archives/001983.html) Some of the article is below....
ALSO: if you use open firmware password... you'll need this:
Startup Manager -accessed by pressing the Option key during startup
Enter commands after starting up in Open Firmware -press Command-Option-O-F key combination during startup.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106482
How to troubleshoot a computer with Open Firmware Password enabled
If you cannot access the Open Firmware Password application and need to troubleshoot your computer by:
Resetting the PRAM
Starting up in Single-user mode
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Start up into Open Firmware by pressing and holding the Command-Option-O-F key combination during startup.
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IBook on 10.4 won't boot from Install Disk

Hi - Somewhere along the line I lost DiskUtility from my iBook running 10.4.11. I thought I could run it from the Install Disc but I find the iBook won't boot from the Disc and DU won't run from the Disc (when I do manage to track it down there).
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The installers are machine-series specific. And the Intel disc won't work
in the PPC Mac, additionally. If you have the correct disc for that iBook,
then you can boot the computer with the disc inside the optical drive
and hold the C key down, until Installer appears on the screen; a second
screen after the initial language screen has a full menu bar and Installer
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If you do not have an iBook G4 disc or an OS X disc retail version capable
of doing the job, you really should get the correct disc. In a few instances,
another path may work, but is not recommended. And you could lose the
content of the hard drive in the computer you are hoping to save.
However, you may be able to use Pacifist to get Disk Utility from the PB G4
installer disc to be made available on the desktop of the iBook, and use
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This does not use the installers on the disc media, so Pacifist is used to do
the process. The iBook ideally needs a replacement disc set, and that may
be available from Apple online store's sales support (see online phone#)
and the product would be matched by serial number. A fee is involved.
The original software disc set would have the correct Apple Hardware Test
and the software kit as included when the computer was new.
If Tiger did not ship with the computer in question, then a full retail disc 10.4
installer could probably be used; since it would be newer than, say 10.3.9.
In natural progression, the newer disc of correct kind & type supported by
the computer is a possible path; however a Leopard disc won't help fix Tiger.
You could also use Disk Utility in one PPC Mac, via FireWire Target Disk
mode, to repair the drive of the iBook. It would only appear as a hard drive.
So, repairing disk permissions would not be possible, on a non-boot volume.
This, only within limits; differences in build versions of OS and custom installs
done to a computer configuration may make doing so very limited. I would
not expect an Intel-Mac's version of the same OS to help a PPC in any way.
Good luck & happy computing!
{ edited 2x }

Can't repair disk/Won't boot from install disk

Apologies in advance for how not-tech savvy I am.
I was trying to create a partition using bootcamp but the partition failed and it told me to repair disk using disk utility.
When I try to boot from the install dvd by holding down C the computer just gets stuck in a loop. It turns on, chimes, makes a whurring noise and then restarts again. I can select the install disk by holding down the option key but it does the same thing. If I try to safe boot it comes up with a flashing folder and a question mark.
(Also, the install disk I'm using is not the one that came with this computer, but a OS X 10.5.4 that came with our iMac. Don't know if that would make a difference?)
I downloaded the techtool deluxe that comes with applecare, and it says there's a problem with the volume structure, but when I try to repair using techtool it says the disk cannot be repaired and only gives me the option to start over.
Message was edited by: lizrd91

You would have to be booting from either a newer version retail OS X 10 install DVD
than whatever your computer shipped with, or that original specific disc set it first had.
No other computer's model/build specific restore-install disc set can do this job, since
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There may be some way to attempt to boot into Single User mode and try fsck...
• Resolve startup issues and perform disk maintenance with Disk Utility and fsck:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1417
• OSXFAQ - Technical stuff for OS X: how to use 'fsck'
http://www.osxfaq.com/dailytips/07-2002/07-31.ws
There are odd instances where users have applied incorrect use of Boot Camp
to install a Windows version in their Mac, and in so doing, erased or damaged
the OS X partition on their computer's hard disk drive. This is why it is a great
idea to perform maintenance and also keep a complete bootable OS X clone
on an externally enclosed hard disk drive, of the Mac's system & apps.
If you had a current version of DiskWarrior on its own disc media, that may be
able to help fix or restore some file system issues in a hard disk drive.
Perhaps there is more you can do, but frankly if I wanted Windows, there are
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Good luck & happy computing!
+{PS: Hi there in the down-under ... from here, in the up-over!}+

Cannot boot from startup disk.

I have an iMac (intel) that I just archived and reinstalled leopard on. After the reinstall the computer will only boot to the sign in screen but it rejects my password, which has been the same since I bought the computer. I have tried holding "c" while booting up, holding the power button until it beeps, resetting the PRAM, all of this results in the sign in screen where my password will still not work.

For anyone still keeping up here I have finally figured it out. After some research and help from friends I found that another way to access the drive selection screen is to hold the menu button on the apple remote. By doing this I was able to boot from the start-up disk and reinstall the OS again. It acted as if the OS was not installed at all so I am guessing that there must have been a problem with the last install that I had attempted and did not show up during the install as the computer started to the login screen as it should after an archive. Thanks for your help in trying to solve the problem. Pass this on.

Cannot Boot From Internal Disk After Failed Firmware Update

Xserve 1,1 (Late 2006)
After a failed firmware update the server will not boot from an internal volume.
I have tried the firmware restoration CD 1.4 without success due to the following:
I press the sleep LED but only get the initial three fast blinks, not the next slower three blinks, and the last three fast blinks.
I can boot in Target Mode, NetBoot, from an installation CD. The volume with the OS (10.5) is recognized by another machine, but the server will not boot from it.
I have tried reinstalling the OS on another drive, and repairing the drive.
I would appreciate any suggestions.

I read somewhere that it might have to do with the fact that it says "S.M.A.R.T. not supported" on DU. Is there any way to fix this? does it mean I'll need a new drive soon?
I think something else is afoot. I believe that, when you boot from the the system/install and run DU from there, DU does not recognize SMART reporting.
Before I recently updated my MBP to 10.5.7, I ran DU from the DVD to verify the disk before applying the update (I'm cautious about those updates). It gave the same report you are seeing. Once I was booted from the hard drive, the SMART status report returned to normal. SMART will typically report "failing, not "not supported" if the drive is going bad.

How to undo boot camp, wont boot from install disk in dvd drive

A few months ago I went through trying out boot camp and parallels. Now, I think something is messed up. I dont need either right now, so I just want to wipe out the whole system, repartition the drive, and restore to a blank new install of os x 10.5 leopard.
But when I put in the install disk, it wont boot up off it.
I tried holding down the c key while powering it up, and it just cycles through: hearing the drive whirl, a bling sound, and then repeating it again while the screen is blank. Finally, I held down the click button on the touch pad so it would eject the install disk.
Maybe this will help someone recognize part of the problem. Ever since messing around with boot camp and parallels, my machine wont "reboot". To reboot it, I tell it to reboot, then it hangs on the star like screen, then I have to hold the power button down, then if I do nothing, it tries to boot, but ends up in a dos looking screen saying no bootable device. So when I power it back up, I hold down the alt key, and then I have one choice: the hard drive. I pick that and it boots up ok.
So... I thought, well, maybe the boot camp is still messed up; maybe I should undo boot camp. When I start the boot camp assistant, there is only a "partition" and "back" button; nothing to "restore" the hard drive to just one partition.
What can I do? I want to wipe the drive and install a fresh install from my install disk.

Forgot to specify:
Im using an older Unibody Macbook (back when they were not all macbook pro's) 2008ish with Snow leopard 1.6.8
The thread you linked me to, Eric, shows the guy 'Niganit' with the eXACT SAME PROBLEM as me! He seems to have found out the problem but I dont see his resolve.
I just dont have the option to install windows 7 in any other form that a cd
a picture;

Pismo won't boot from install disks

Hi! I've looked to find the answer elsewhere, but no luck... apologies if this has already been answered.
I have a Powerbook G3 Pismo which I now need to use to run Hypercard. (Yes!)
It has been sitting unused for over a year.
It didn't start up.
I found an article that explained how to remove the PRAM battery. I did so. It starts up fine when connected to power.
I have ordered a new PRAM battery, but it hasn't arrived yet. I decided to go ahead and try to get it to boot.
When I powered up, I got the alternating icon saying it couldn't find an installed system.
I guessed that the hard drive had become corrupt, so I rebooted into Target Disk mode. It worked!
I connected it via FireWire to a MacBook Pro. The Pismo did show up as an external firewire hard drive. Good!
Using OS X Disk Utility, I erased the Pismo drive.
I couldn't decide whether to use OS X Extended, or OS X Extended (Journaled).
I didn't know about any options to install drivers for OS 9, so I probably did the wrong thing. (Pismo can boot into either OS 9 or OS X, I think.)
I tried to fix this later (see below).
I disconnected the Firewire and shut down.
I finally got the Pismo to boot up from a MacWarrior CD (a 3rd-party disk utility that fixes directory problems). I used it to fix the directory.
It still wouldn't boot from the original disks that came with the Pismo. The optical reader whirred away, I got a blank gray screen, it whirred again, I got another blank gray screen, but the cursor never showed up in the upper left corner. After half an hour, it had made no progress.
I reconnected the Pismo to the Macbook Pro using Firewire.
I tried to install Tiger on the Pismo using my officially purchased, large-box Tiger software. The Macbook Pro mounted the disk, but when I ran the installer, it told me I couldn't install Tiger on this machine (the Macbook Pro, duh!) and only gave me the option to quit.I thought that I could use an all-model install disk to install OS X on ANY external hard drive! What gives???!???
I tried to boot from the AppleCare Protection Plan's TechTool Deluxe.
It seemed to be booting fine into 9.1. Yippee!
It halted with a System Error (address error) telling me to restart holding down the Shift key.
I do so. It seemed to be booting fine into 9.1 again, Extensions Off.
But it halted with the same System Error.
I read about OS 9 drivers and went back into Disk Utility using the Macbook Pro.
Using Firewire to access my Pismo hard drive, I re-erased everything and made the partition have an Apple Partition Map.
I did not see any option to check or uncheck that mentioned installing OS 9 drivers. Did I miss it? Was it not there because I'm using a recent version of Disk Utility?
Same problems. Can't boot from the original Pismo "Software Restore" or "Software Install" disks, nor the TechTool Deluxe...
VERY FRUSTRATING! Have I tried everything? Has the hard drive gone bad?
Any help would be appreciated.

My new PRAM battery has been installed. I reset PRAM by doing a command-option-P-R.
The problem remains, but it's getting more consistent, which I guess is progress. With the Pismo connected to AC power (all my batteries are, of course, dead by now), the following has happened:
When I start up with the Tiger installation disk, everything goes smoothly, the gray Apple logo appears, and then, suddenly, a flurry of white text on an irregular black background floods the screen. Darwin says there's a kernel panic and they're in a loop ("we are hanging here").
When I start up with the original Software Restore disk, the blank gray screen blinks, turns a different shade of gray, the cursor arrow shows up in the upper left-hand corner, and it hangs. The cursor arrow doesn't respond to the trackpad; it's frozen.
When I start with the original Software Install disk, the same sequence takes place, but there is no cursor arrow that shows up. It just has the gray screen, a blink with a slightly different shade of gray, then it hangs.
The behavior is exactly the same for all 3 disks (respectively) when I use the MacBook Pro to start up:
Insert Pismo or Tiger disk into MacBook Pro (counterintuitively).
Start up the Pro in Target mode. Connect to Pismo using Firewire cable.
Start up Pismo. Pismo takes awhile to notice the Firewire disk, but eventually does.
Then it tries to use the disk in the Pro, but ends up acting case-by-case as it did when each disk was in the Pismo's drive (kernel panic hanging, gray screen with arrow, gray screen without arrow).
Helllllp!
My last chance will be to take a hard drive from a defunct ice iBook (dual USB) and use it to replace the factory-supplied Pismo drive. That iBook was a G4; the Pismo is a G3 (I believe). If there has developed a deep, difficult problem with the Pismo's hard drive, hopefully this will solve it:
I will try to boot from the iBook-drive-in-the-Pismo. I doubt this will work. If it does, great! If not...
I will try to boot from the Tiger installation disk, and if that works, try to install the Tiger software on it.
If that doesn't work, I will try to boot from the Software Restore and the Software Install disks.
If that doesn't work, I give up!!!! Unless someone here has a better idea.

Problems booting from install disk

Somehow, my hard disk has been corrupted, or something. First symptom I noticed - when booting up, I get stuck on that blank blue screen for, oh, 5 minutes or so, before flashing back to the grey Apple logo screen, then finally getting to the desktop. I tried repairing permissions via Disk Utility; it spun for 10 minutes without doing anything, so I stopped the process. The "Repair Disk" function in Disk Utility was not available for some reason, so I tried "Verify Disk." This failed. I forget the exact wording of the error message, but it said, in essence, that the disk was corrupted and I should run Disk Utility from the system install disk.
Here it gets interesting. I have an MBA SuperDrive, so I first tried booting from there. I'd forgotten about holding down "c" I just held Option, selected the disk, and tried to boot from it. I got a grey screen with the grey Apple logo and a spinning gear; then the Apple logo was replaced by a grey circle with a diagonal line through it (like, from a "no smoking" sign or something) and a spinning gear... this persisted for another 10 minutes or so without going anywhere, so I forced a shutdown.
Thinking the problem might be the SuperDrive, I tried to do the same procedure via Remote Disk (from an iBook G4 running 10.5.5). I followed the instructions, connected the MBA to my wireless network, it found the remote disk, tried to boot from it - but I got the same behavior. Grey Apple screen giving way to grey circle with a diagonal line through it, and an endlessly spinning gear underneath.
What in the world is going on here?

Hi,
Sounds like your hard drive might be the problem here, sometimes when a hard drive is faulty, it can prevent a system from booting, even to the CD. Unfortunately, with the macbook air, you can't remove the hard drive to test this, and in any case, I would certainly take it in to have it looked at.

Problems booting from install disk with MacBook Air

(I'm posting this here b/c it's been three days since I posted this in the /MacBook Air/Networking section and no one's touched it...)
Somehow, the hard disk in my MBA has been corrupted, or something. First symptom I noticed - when booting up, I get stuck on that blank blue screen for, oh, 5 minutes or so, before flashing back to the grey Apple logo screen, then finally getting to the desktop. I tried repairing permissions via Disk Utility; it spun for 10 minutes without doing anything, so I stopped the process. The "Repair Disk" function in Disk Utility was not available for some reason, so I tried "Verify Disk." This failed. I forget the exact wording of the error message, but it said, in essence, that the disk was corrupted and I should run Disk Utility from the system install disk.
Here it gets interesting. I have an MBA SuperDrive, so I first tried booting from there. I'd forgotten about holding down "c" I just held Option, selected the disk, and tried to boot from it. I got a grey screen with the grey Apple logo and a spinning gear; then the Apple logo was replaced by a grey circle with a diagonal line through it (like, from a "no smoking" sign or something) and a spinning gear... this persisted for another 10 minutes or so without going anywhere, so I forced a shutdown.
Thinking the problem might be the SuperDrive, I tried to do the same procedure via Remote Disk (from an iBook G4 running 10.5.5). I followed the instructions, connected the MBA to my wireless network, it found the remote disk, tried to boot from it - but I got the same behavior. Grey Apple screen giving way to grey circle with a diagonal line through it, and an endlessly spinning gear underneath.
What in the world is going on here?
Message was edited by: Jonathan Kussmaul

You seem to have a lot of problems, the last being a kernel panic. This is often attributed to a hardware failure including the possibility of defective RAM.
They are not easy to track down but here are some suggestions to assist you.
What is a Kernel panic?
Resolving Kernel Panic's by Dr Smoke
However, try once again to boot from the install DVD and perform Repair Disk, otherwise, start on the troubleshooting.

Cannot boot from installed disk on Intel Xserve

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