Disk ejects

I am trying to upgrade to snow leopard and my computer just ejects the installation disk

If the machine is older than 4 years, it may need a new PRAM battery.
If you don't have at least 1 GB of RAM, upgrade first.
If you don't have the retail installer disc be sure the one you get looks like what is in this user tip:
https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-2455

Similar Messages

  • At a complete loss. Worried data is gone for good. Trying to fix disk by booting Disk Utility from installation DVD but disk ejects. Help!

    Hello Comunity,
    I'm at a complete loss and I hope you could help me.
    The machine I have is I believe an early 2006 iMac model. (Model identifier 4,1 if I recall correctly).
    Awhile ago I installed Snow Leopard on the machine but have since begun encountering serious problems (but I think it's due to the hardware and it's age rather than the software, Snow Leo was running smoothly) and now the computer won't start - I'm faced with a grey screen and a flashing folder with a question mark on it. I tried booting using the various key combinations and as I understood it, my last resort at fixing it myself would be using Disk Utility on the installation DVD.
    This is what happens:
    I boot the computer, insert the disk, press down and hold C (also tried Option). I hear the computer trying to read the disk, but after a considerable aount of time holding down the key and a grey screen, the disk ejects and the flashing folder returns.
    Could anyone offer an insight or advice?
    At this point I'm not even that interested in fixing the machine, but there are some extremely valuable files that I need to recover (the machine gave out just days before I got my extrenal HDD to back them up).
    I'm worried about taking the machine down to the Genius Bar - I'm a completely self-supporting student and I imagine the recovery cost would be huge (if anyone could provide any information on the potential cost of the repair and/or recovery that would help).

    One thing to try without needing the install disk: reboot holding down cmd-S. It should reboot to a black screen and text prompt. Type the following, with spacing exactly as shown, hit the return key after each line:
    mount -uw /
    fsck -fy
    Then type
    reboot
    and see if that helps.
    Do you have any other Macs in the household (or cna use a friend's) that you can try connecting to it with a Firewire cable? If so, reboot the iMac holding down T, you should see a large Firewire symbol moving across the screen. Connecting to another Mac with a FW cable will show you the iMac's hard drive mounted to the other Mac's desktop.
    You can also try Diskwarrior, which fixes drive filestructure problems. It's around $100.
    Professional data recovery cost would depend on a) whether the hard drive is actually at fault, b) if it's physically damaged or just has a filestructure problem. A physically damaged drive can go into the thousands of dollars for data recovery; a drive with filestructure issues usually costs a lot less to recover files.
    Matt

  • A magnet fell on my macbook "late 2007 series black" and it stopped working. When i start my macbook up it sits on the white screen. i tried inserting the snow leopard disk to do a clean install but the disk ejects and all i see is the pointer.help please

    A magnet fell on my macbook "late 2007 series black" and it stopped working. When i start my macbook up it sits on the white screen. i tried inserting the snow leopard disk to do a clean install but the disk ejects and all i see is the pointer. i even bought a new hard drive to do the clean install but the same thing happens. Please Help

    Your problem is not Boot Camp, in fact, is your optical drive. Win XP requires indeed sp2, but also the internal drive, does not work from external optical drive.
    For other possible tricks, please use the appropriate Boot Camp forum, not here. Mac OS X may be installed from both external and internal optical drive and/or internal/external partition of a disk, any disk. Windows is not so generous.

  • How do I erase my hard drive? My initial operating system was Snow Leopard but I have upgraded to Mavericks OS. My Snow Leopard install disk ejects when I try and use it.

    How do I erase my hard drive? My initial operating system was Snow Leopard but I have upgraded to Mavericks OS. My Snow Leopard install disk ejects when I try and use it.

    Do a backup,  preferable 2 separate ones on 2 drives. Boot to the Recovery Volume (command - R on a restart or hold down the option/alt key during a restart and select Recovery Volume). Run Disk Utility Verify/Repair and Repair Permissions until you get no errors.  Reformat the drive using Disk Utility/Erase Mac OS Extended (Journaled), then click the Option button and select GUID. Then re-install the OS.
    OS X Recovery
    OS X Recovery (2)
    When you reboot, use Setup Assistant to restore your data.

  • Disk eject sound every 30 seconds

    For the past 3 weeks, my iMac is making the 'disk eject' sound every 30 seconds. It's maddening. It persists whenever the machine is not asleep and in both user modes. Any thoughts?

    If it's a click click, it may well be the sound of a dying hard drive. Back up all your data to a firewire external as soon as you can, I use SuperDuper! to make a bootable clone.

  • Disk ejecting when trying to format

    I inherited an older iMac that dates back to 2004 which will not boot up correctly. When I tried to format it with OS X 10.4 (PPC), the disk ejects while holding 'C'. If I press/hold alt/opt during boot-up, it only shows me the Macintosh HD and not the optical drive. Could it be that the optical drive is bad? ...or might this be happening if it's an Intel that I mistook for a PPC?

    Here's an update -- I put in an older O/S install disk for Leopard 10.3 (PPC) and the optical drive recognized it; however, the setup screen was hardly viewable. Is this possibly an Intel imac?

  • I am having trouble trying to boot from my lion osx install disk on a 2007 macbook.  The disk ejects when I start up with the option key depressed.  Anyone have any ideas?

    I am having trouble trying to boot from my lion osx install disk on a 2007 macbook.  The disk ejects when I start up with the option key depressed.  Anyone have any ideas?
    Thank you.

    How did you get a Lion OSX install disc? They don't exist. Do you mean the gray disks that came with your 2007 MacBook?
    If you mean the gray disks, try starting up with the "c" key held down.
    What version of OSX is on your MacBook now? Have you tried booting from the Recovery partition?

  • What do I do about disk ejection error when resuming from sleep?

    Hi folks,
    I have a FW800 2.5" HDD (powered through FW port).
    When I close the lid on my computer it goes to sleep. If I leave it that way for a longer period of time, I get the disk was not ejected properly error when I bring the computer out of sleep. I am not sure how long it takes, as I've not sat here testing different time periods. But I do know that if I just hit sleep in the APPLE menu, the computer sleeps fine. I can then bring it out of sleep and HardwareGrowl shows me the (pre-sleep) Device Disconnected message and then the post sleep Device Reconnected message. I get know error.
    I don'k think I should have to manually eject my HDD each time I wish to talk away from the computer for an extended period, yet I am wondering if this disk eject error is something to be concerned about. The disk is formatted in Mac Extended Journalling.
    With thanks,
    Jonathan

    Alright, I'm slowly getting ready to do this. Apparently I do not need an install DVD but I can just press CMD+R to get to the option to do a fresh install, that's why my Mac didn't come with an install DVD (that's what I've read and what I've been told at least).
    Now I'm wondering... do I need to copy those items from the User folder at all? I mean, I have a complete backup on an external hard drive. I could just go there in the folders and select what I would like to copy to my Mac again, suchs as my music library or photo library. Is there any risks? I'm worried about even the smallest things, like creation dates changing and stuff like this. They mean something to me

  • Leopard installation disk ejects before installation begins

    When I attempted to install Leopard after the initial screen and the reboot, my iMac chugged a bit then ejected the install disk. After several attempts which resulted in the same thing, I called Apple and, during the hour I was on hold, kept trying. At the end the install started and so I hung up. However, I am not sure the installation was quite Ok since there appear to be some anomalies. For instance, the little close, minimize and expand "LEDs" at the top left are all grey, no color although, on my PowerBook, where the installation went fine, they are the usual red yellow and green. ALso, when I rebooted the iMac after the install, my wall paper was gone although, again, when I did the same on the PowerBook, it was back again. I decided to try to reinstall on the iMac but again encountered the same problem, the disk ejected before the install started. Any ideas?

    Premature disk ejection can be caused by bad RAM or a "greasy" disk.
    Take a careful look at the disk for a shiny film. If it's there, use a damp soft cloth and wipe from the center to the outside, radially. DO NOT ever wipe a DVD in a circular manner.
    If the DVD is OK, then it might be your RAM or some other hardware problem.
    Many have had marginal DVD readers and had success using an external DVD drive.
    If you have another Mac, see how the disk behaves in it.

  • My Seagate external 250GB hard drive ejects improperly without command.  I am trying to use Time Machine to backup my macbook via usb cable...  I keep getting the message that the disked ejected improperly...  Any solutions...

    My Seagate external 250GB hard drive ejects improperly without command.  I am trying to use Time Machine to backup my macbook via usb cable...  I keep getting the message that the disked ejected improperly...  Any solutions...

    You are not alone. Thousands have this problem, on various models of Macs. Short answer, it has something to do with the disk going to sleep (possibly?). You can't do anything about it and Apple won't address the problem. Maybe you should buy a time capsule. Just keep giving them money and use their proprietary equipment.
    For a more complete answer, see this thread (all 65+ pages of it with NO SOLUTION IN SIGHT... except for some 3rd party solutions that sometimes work, sometimes don't): Disk Drive ejecting itself

  • Sudden Disk Eject

    I have macbook pro Installed with mavricks version 10.9.2.
    i am facing a sudden disk eject from my superdrive.
    First i was not facing this problem but suddenly it apeared. Is it Hardware or Software Problem. Because i use hardly use my superdrive.
    Please help me.

    Hey prash2526,
    Thanks for the question. I understand that you are experiencing issues with your SuperDrive. The following resource may provide a solution:
    Apple Computers: Troubleshooting the slot-loading SuperDrive
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2801
    Note: definitely check out the “Specific troubleshooting” section.
    Thanks,
    Matt M.

  • Disk Eject Button Delay - OS related?

    I'm not sure if this is related to my recent udate to 10.4.9, but I thought I'd start here since the issue didn't occur until after the update.
    I used to be able to just tap the Disk Eject button my keyboard and my CD or DVD would just pop out. Now I have to hold down the button for about a second or two before the drive responds.
    ...Granted, a second, or two is nothing major, but after being able to get a response by jut tapping that second or two feels like forever.
    I've repaired my Permissions and run TechTool... but neither seem to aide or offer any insight.
    Anyone have any thoughts?

    Apple discusses this in a Knowledge Base article. The general consensus seems to be that this is a feature, to prevent accidentally ejecting CD/DVD, HD, .dmg images, etc. simply by brushing the Eject key. However, Apple's note ends with "We'll update this article as we learn more", which almost implies that this might not have been intended to be released in 10.4.9 or something.
    Basically, just hold the Eject key down for half second or so, both to eject something or in the various Eject-key shortcuts for things like sleeping or bringing up the restart/shutdown/sleep dialog.
    Doug

  • Disk ejected warning

    I'm getting "disk not ejected properly" warning and don't know why, there was no disk ejected.  This has happened several times.  Has anyone else had this problem and what do I need to do to correct this.

    I was trying a long bet  - the Western Digital drives are somewhat notorious for symptoms like you describe.
    Anyway, is your OS in fact Lion?
    I have LaCie (Firewire) and it works great. Is your drive connected via firewire or USB?
    I will suggest two things to consider and then let others have a whack at it.
    (1) In System Preferences, Energy Saver, do you have "Put disk(s) to sleep...." checked? If so, does this behavior persist when this box is unchecked?
    (2) It is possible that the cable used to connect your drive is faulty and this is causing your symptom.
    charlie

  • Upgrade from 10.2 to 10.4 on iMac G3 600 MHz ? OS install disk ejects.

    I am trying to help my friend with this one. I gave her my old iMac G3 600 MHz. it has 384 MB memory and currently has Mac OS 10.2.8 which I had installed previously. Now she has a new iPod nano and so the iMac needs the OS system upgraded to be able to use the iPod. I have the install discs for Mac OS 10.4 from an iMac G5 however when I simply put the install disk(s) into the drive slot, after about 20 seconds or so it ejects. Do I need a different install disk?? Cause I don't think I have another 10.4 disk anywhere. I really want her to be able to use her iPod Nano on her iMac! If I can do something on the iMac to be able to upgrade it I would really appreciate any suggestions or help. Thank you.

    Thank you. I might try that with the iMac G4 I am using right now.
    Are there any other suggestions??
    This is random, but I have an extra iMac G4 which has been unused for a while. if I could get Tiger onto it, does anybody think it would be worth it to let her use the G4 instead and go through with transferring all her data? I guess what I'm asking if I get this iMac G4 to work would there be a significant difference running Tiger on it compared to the iMac G3 she already has?
    I hope I've made sense. I really want my friend to have a decent computer with Tiger on it so she can use her iPod Nano.
    Thanks for all your help.

  • Time Machine disk ejecting

    Hi guys,
    My Time Machine disk keeps ejecting itself.  Once it has ejected itself I cannot write to it or even format it, I usually have to boot Yosemite/Mavericks off a USB and in disk utility there, repartition and format the disk.  It will then backup and be fine, but a few days later it will fail again.
    I have tried this with 2 drives, a WD 340gb and a 1TB seagate and get the same results, although the seagate DOES seem to be more temperamental.  I have looked around the net and found threads with these issues but never a total solution.  I know that Linc Davies is an expert on these things so if you're around Linc, any help you could give would be amazing!
    I read in one of Lincs previous threads to go to console and then system and filter "backup".  I have done this and dumped the log.  I will paste it below.
    I look forward to any help you can offer.
    regards.
    hardtofin
    Oct 22 17:31:26 iMac.home com.apple.backupd-helper[43]: Attempt to use XPC with a MachService that has HideUntilCheckIn set. This will result in unpredictable behavior: com.apple.backupd.status.xpc
    Oct 22 17:31:56 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Starting automatic backup
    Oct 22 17:31:56 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Backing up to /dev/disk3s2: /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb
    Oct 22 17:32:03 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Will copy (14.2 MB) from Macintosh
    Oct 22 17:32:03 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Found 211 files (14.2 MB) needing backup
    Oct 22 17:32:03 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: 1.26 GB required (including padding), 764.24 GB available
    Oct 22 17:32:15 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Copied 523 items (14.2 MB) from volume Macintosh. Linked 2471.
    Oct 22 17:32:32 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Created new backup: 2014-10-22-173232
    Oct 22 17:32:33 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Starting post-backup thinning
    Oct 22 17:32:39 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Deleted /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb/Matt’s iMac/2014-10-21-170452 (11.2 MB)
    Oct 22 17:32:39 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Post-backup thinning complete: 1 expired backups removed
    Oct 22 17:32:39 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5293]: Backup completed successfully.
    Oct 22 17:34:40 iMac.home SystemUIServer[229]: Attempt to use XPC with a MachService that has HideUntilCheckIn set. This will result in unpredictable behavior: com.apple.backupd.status.xpc
    Oct 22 17:42:31 iMac.home com.apple.backupd-helper[43]: Attempt to use XPC with a MachService that has HideUntilCheckIn set. This will result in unpredictable behavior: com.apple.backupd.status.xpc
    Oct 22 18:07:24 iMac.home com.apple.backupd-helper[43]: Attempt to use XPC with a MachService that has HideUntilCheckIn set. This will result in unpredictable behavior: com.apple.backupd.status.xpc
    Oct 22 18:32:39 iMac.home com.apple.backupd-helper[43]: Attempt to use XPC with a MachService that has HideUntilCheckIn set. This will result in unpredictable behavior: com.apple.backupd.status.xpc
    Oct 22 18:33:09 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Starting automatic backup
    Oct 22 18:33:09 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Backing up to /dev/disk3s2: /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb
    Oct 22 18:33:16 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Will copy (33.1 MB) from Macintosh
    Oct 22 18:33:16 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Found 588 files (138.8 MB) needing backup
    Oct 22 18:33:16 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: 1.41 GB required (including padding), 764.24 GB available
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Device not configured
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error: (-36) SrcErr:NO Copying /private/var/db/gkopaque.bundle/Contents/Resources/gkopaque.db to /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb/Matt’s iMac/2014-10-22-183310.inProgress/4AD7A638-AC36-46AC-8786-E5503DD0910E/Macintos h/private/var/db/gkopaque.bundle/Contents/Resources
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Stopping backup.
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Input/output error
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error: (-8062) SrcErr:NO Copying /private/var/db/gkopaque.bundle/Contents/Resources/gkopaque.db to /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb/Matt’s iMac/2014-10-22-183310.inProgress/4AD7A638-AC36-46AC-8786-E5503DD0910E/Macintos h/private/var/db/gkopaque.bundle/Contents/Resources
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Copied 354 items (111.6 MB) from volume Macintosh. Linked 418.
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Input/output error
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Copy stage failed with error:11
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Input/output error
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Input/output error
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Backup failed because the destination disk was ejected or disconnected unexpectedly!
    Oct 22 18:36:34 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Backup failed with error 27: The connection to the backup disk was interrupted.
    Oct 22 18:37:13 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Starting manual backup
    Oct 22 18:37:13 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Error -35 while resolving alias to backup target
    Oct 22 18:37:13 iMac.home com.apple.backupd[5554]: Backup failed with error 18: The backup disk could not be found.

    Booted into recovery mode, repaired disk, verified it.  Said all was fine.
    Booted into OS X, started time machine backup, failed after about 400mb.
    Oct 27 19:49:03 localhost com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.apple.backupd-status): The HideUntilCheckIn property is an architectural performance issue. Please transition away from it.
    Oct 27 19:49:03 localhost com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.apple.backupd.status.xpc): The HideUntilCheckIn property is an architectural performance issue. Please transition away from it.
    Oct 27 19:49:03 localhost com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.apple.backupd-helper.status): The HideUntilCheckIn property is an architectural performance issue. Please transition away from it.
    Oct 27 19:49:03 localhost com.apple.xpc.launchd[1] (com.apple.backupd-auto): This service is defined to be constantly running and is inherently inefficient.
    Oct 27 19:49:16 Matts-iMac.local backupd[174]: Property list invalid for format: 200 (property lists cannot contain NULL)
    Oct 27 19:49:18 Matts-iMac.local backupd[174]: Property list invalid for format: 200 (property lists cannot contain NULL)
    Oct 27 19:49:22 Matts-iMac.local backupd[174]: Property list invalid for format: 200 (property lists cannot contain NULL)
    Oct 27 19:49:31 Matts-iMac.local backupd[174]: Property list invalid for format: 200 (property lists cannot contain NULL)
    Oct 27 19:49:31 Matts-iMac.local backupd[174]: Property list invalid for format: 200 (property lists cannot contain NULL)
    Oct 27 19:49:42 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Starting manual backup
    Oct 27 19:49:42 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Backing up to /dev/disk3s2: /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb
    Oct 27 19:49:43 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Forcing deep traversal on source: "Macintosh" (device: /dev/disk2 mount: '/' fsUUID: 3323BB60-44F3-3EF1-8CFB-6A6C2C4BAEFD eventDBUUID: F21BDEC4-6F3B-4049-8FA5-A18ADECC8ECF)
    Oct 27 19:49:46 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Total content size: 251.56 GB excluded items size: 56.63 GB for volume Macintosh
    Oct 27 19:49:46 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Found 569903 files (194.93 GB) needing backup
    Oct 27 19:49:46 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: 216.4 GB required (including padding), 999.2 GB available
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Device not configured
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Error: (-36) SrcErr:NO Copying /Applications/1Password.app/Contents/Resources/license-icon.icns to /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb/Matt’s iMac/2014-10-27-194943.inProgress/A69E81A9-CBFA-4D00-AC19-3F4777874F61/Macintos h/Applications/1Password.app/Contents/Resources
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Stopping backup.
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Device not configured
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Error: (-8062) SrcErr:NO Copying /Applications/1Password.app/Contents/Resources/license-icon.icns to /Volumes/Time Machine/Backups.backupdb/Matt’s iMac/2014-10-27-194943.inProgress/A69E81A9-CBFA-4D00-AC19-3F4777874F61/Macintos h/Applications/1Password.app/Contents/Resources
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Copied 1615 items (42.1 MB) from volume Macintosh. Linked 0.
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Input/output error
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Copy stage failed with error:11
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Error writing to backup log.  NSFileHandleOperationException:*** -[NSConcreteFileHandle writeData:]: Input/output error
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Backup failed because the destination disk was ejected or disconnected unexpectedly!
    Oct 27 19:52:34 Matts-iMac.local com.apple.backupd[174]: Backup failed with error 27: The connection to the backup disk was interrupted.
    Oct 27 19:54:35 Matts-iMac.local SystemUIServer[227]: Attempt to use XPC with a MachService that has HideUntilCheckIn set. This will result in unpredictable behavior: com.apple.backupd.status.xpc

  • Windows XP Home w/SP2 disk ejected before recognizing

    After partitioning my 100GB hardrive (25GB partition for BOOTCAMP) I put in my XP disk, the drive spooled approx 3 times then ejected the disc. The disc itself is clean, just out of the packaging (OEM version) and I have not had any previous problems with my drive. Any tips?

    Success!!!
    OK I have no idea why is is suddenly working but it is!
    As I mentioned in my earlier post I could not get vm fusion to recognise the windows vista DVD either. I thought I would post this problem to them so I tried it one more time. The only difference is that I was logged on to my mac as a non-admin user. I meant to put the copy dvd in (see my post above) as I did not expect the original disk to mount on the mac - it had not done before. However I got a little confused and put the original disk in. I realised and then waited for it to automatically eject but it mounted!!!
    As I had aleady started to use the bootcamp assistant the hard drive was already partitioned so I just hit the install windows (or whatever) option. It was not exactly as I expected - the partition had to be reformatted to nfts for vista and the install seemed to loop and start again and again but after quitting it seems to have installed without issues (perhaps an xp install will be easier). I loaded osx and then started fusion and it recognised my bootcamp partition and not I have vista under osx too! I have not had time to test things properly but it seems OK.
    Like I said at the start I have no idea why this started to work (other than perhaps a different user) but it did so I am happy. One final note, I have restarted as 10.5.1, logged in as the admin user and this time the disk mounts too. From this I assume the user does not matter - perhaps there is some 'coating' or something on the disk and this needs to wear for the imac dvd drive to recognise the disk???? sounds like BS I know but I can't explain this any other way.
    My advice is try this again and again - also try reading the dvd in a windows pc if possible.
    Good luck with your install!

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