Force Reinstalling OSX Tiger

My powerbook g4 titanium recently started booting up to a black screen on it saying I had a bad file descriptor. Since I have nothing that is extremely important on my hard drive how do I go about just forcing my powerbook to reinstall osx tiger from the error screen. I have the osx tiger disc so all I need to do is reinstall it and everything will be ok, right?
Powerbook G4 Titanium Mac OS X (10.4.8) Broken

Boot from the install disc, and open Disk Utility from the menu. If you really don't have anything on the main HD you want to save then reformat it. Then continue with the installation.

Similar Messages

Reinstalling osx tiger from external dvd drive

I bought a new imac 27. I want to give my old power PC to a friend in need and want to erase and reinstall operating system, however, the optical drive on the power PC does not work so I purchased an external DVD drive and trying to install disc from that. I get to the part of where it asks me to restart the computer, the computer restarts, and the same message is there again, restart the computer. I am stuck in a loop and not sure what to do.
I cant seem to erase all my info and re install the disc. any thoughts or ideas of what i might be doing wrong or what I can try?
Regards
DH

Boot while pressing the Option key, then select the DVD.

Reinstalling OSX tiger--erasing disk--security setting?

I have a 12" powerbook G4 and I had read in another topic to choose to write zeroes to the disk. should I do that, and should it take an absolute eternity?

It's only recommended when preparing a new drive or changing the drive format from another platform such as Windows or replacing another operating system such as Linux. And, yes, writing zeroes may take hours depending upon the drive size. Only one pass is needed, however.
Extended Hard Drive Preparation
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder. If you need to reformat your startup volume, then you must boot from your OS X Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger or Leopard.)
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID (only required for Intel Macs) then click on the OK button. Set the number of partitions from the dropdown menu (use 1 partition unless you wish to make more.) Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the volume(s) mount on the Desktop.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.
Steps 4-6 are optional but should be used on a drive that has never been formatted before, if the format type is not Mac OS Extended, if the partition scheme has been changed, or if a different operating system (not OS X) has been installed on the drive.

Reinstall OSX Problem

My daughter has an Intel iMac early 2006. Upgraded to Leopard early 2008. While doing a routine update, power was cut. On rebooting, computer never got past screen with spinning ball. Using grey install disks, my daughter used disk utility to check disk. No problem, but computer refused to reboot. Finally, she reinstalled OSX Tiger using grey install disks but discovered that all of her data, folders, and programs had gone (e.g. no Final Cut, etc). She has some folders backed up on an external drive but not all.
Question: Are the data/programs that she had before now irretrievable? Will she need to reinstall all the additional software (FC, Office for MAC, etc) or is it still there and she can't see it? Will Disk Warrior be able to retrieve the lost data?

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
Disk Warrior typically only repairs the directory.
To recover lost data you need Prosoft Data Rescue, or Subrosasoft Filesalvage and a Firewire external hard drive at least as large as your internal drive.
Check for content inside any Previous System folder. It may be stuck in there. Applications you can't find should be installable from their original system discs. If those discs are lost, contact the vendor who created those applications for replacement discs. Those discs may cost money, but typically less than full retail.

Reinstalling osx startup manager does not recognize cdrom

I have a macbook pro and It will not boot all the way it gets stuck at the blue background screen with my airport icon and gmail icon in the upper right and get nothing else. I have tried every solution I can find and nothing has worked. I wanted to try to reinstall osx but cannot boot from the cd. I have tried holding c on boot and also holding option but startup manager only shows the macintosh hd. I also tried connecting an external usb cd drive and got the same result. Is there another way force it to boot from the cd.

You may have some bigger problems, but...
Tough without the Install disc, but some things to try...
Does it boot to Single User Mode, CMD+s keys at bootup, if so try...
/sbin/fsck -fy
Repeat until it shows no errors fixed.
(Space between fsck AND -fy important).
Resolve startup issues and perform disk maintenance with Disk Utility and fsck...
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214
Tough without the Tiger Disk problems, but try fsck...
To use fsck, you must run it from the command line. Unlike using your mouse to open an application to do something, you'll need to type a text command at the prompt (#) to tell fsck what to do. The Terminal application (/Applications/Utilities) and single-user mode are two examples of command-line interfaces in which you can type such commands. To use fsck:
1. Start up your computer in single-user mode to reach the command line. Hold CMD+s keys down at bootup. Note: If necessary, perform a forced restart as described in the Emergency Troubleshooting Handbook that came with your computer. On desktop computers, you can do this by pressing the reset/interrupt button (if there is one) or holding down the power button for several seconds. On portable computers, simultaneously press the Command-Control-power keys. If your portable computer doesn't restart with this method, you may need to reset the Power Manager.
2. At the command-line prompt, type /sbin/fsck -fy
(SPACE between fsck AND -fy important)
3. Press Return. fsck will go through five "phases" and then return information about your disk's use and fragmentation. Once it finishes, it'll display this message if no issue is found: 
The volume (nameofvolume) appears to be OK  If fsck found issues and has altered, repaired, or fixed anything, it will display this message: *** FILE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED ***   Important: If this message appears, repeat the fsck command you typed in step 2 until fsck tells you that your volume appears to be OK (first-pass repairs may uncover additional issues, so this is a normal thing to do).
4. When fsck reports that your volume is OK, type reboot at the prompt and then press Return.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214
Then Safe Boot, (holding Shift key down at bootup), & use Disk Utility from there to Repair Permissions, reboot once more.

MPEG2 codec not working in Final Cut Pro on Mac OSX Tiger

We have been using the File-export-Quicktime Conversion-MPEG2 codec for exporting of files from Final Cut Pro to DVD Studio Pro. On the new mac system that was just bought, the option does not show up.
Currently the system is running Quicktime Pro 7.1.2/ FCP 5 and DVD Studio Pro 4 and it is a new mac system running Mac OSX Tiger.
This problem has happened before on a mac running on an older system, but that was solved by reinstalling FCP and then DVD Studio pro and making sure that the QT Pro was of the latest version.
Right now, we have reinstalled everything the same way, tried installing DVD Studio Pro after, we have also done a full software update of the software over the net.
The codec is still not working, all the macs in the office are supposed to be upgraded to Mac osx tiger, but right now we can't do so, cos then we wouldn't be able to burn any DVDs.
Please help, thanks.

The installation of QT 7 is the culprit behind the missing MPEG-2 Export Component. But during upgrades, it doesn't always get rid of the file ... probably what happened on your older system when you upgraded to QT 7 or Tiger. Either the new system came with QT 7 preinstalled, therefore not including the Export Component, or if it was upgraded, the upgrade missed it.
-DH

White screen of Death. Reinstalled OSX Maverick but data is missing. HELP!

Help! i had a white screen of death on my iMac. Did a check via disk utility and the hard drive seems to be fine. I have partioned the hard drive into two volumes previously.
However, when I tried to reinstall OSX Maverick on the first partition, where it was originally installed, it was pointed out as being full and I was forced to reinstall it on the second partition. No problem with that.
However, when I start up the iMac, there are no files to be found. And this is really very upsetting to me as they contain memories of my family which I really treasure.
Am I doing anything wrong? When I go in to the set up utility and try to select partition 1, it will still give me the white screen of death and that the disk is full
Kindly advise if there is anyway for me to "force" install it on partiton 1 and regain access to my files.

If you reinstalled onto the second partition and used the same username/password combo for your admin user account, then you can boot into the voluime, open up the original volume, and drag your data from it to the same places on the second volume. To reinstall, you need to remove stuff from the full volume.
The following articles have some good tips:
Freeing space on your Mac OS X startup disk and
Freeing Up Hard Disk Space

Do I need to reinstall OSX?

I had been using iChat on a daily basis with no problems for the last year, then about a month ago, it refused to connect. The icon would bounce in the dock for a long time and the little spinning beachball icon would appear, and nothing would happen. Sometimes it'd just crash, but I'd usually have to force quit. I tried reinstalling it from the file in the library folder, but it kept giving me an error message as soon as it would get to the last part of the install. I suspect the only way to get it working again is to reinstall OSX, is this the case, or is there something else I could try? Any suggestions would be appreciated - I'm sick of the blah interface of AOL instant messenger!
Thanks.

First of all, you can't "reinstall it from the file in the library folder". If you're referring to the iChat.pkg in /Library/Receipts, that isn't going to help you.
I would suggest isolating the iChat.app launch/connect issue to your particular user account first by creating a test user in System Preferences > Accounts. Once you've created that, you can login and test. If it doesn't work there, that confirms you will likely need to reinstall iChat, which is incidentally only available by reinstall of OS X.

Reinstall OS Tiger and keep all of appleMail??

hi gang,
i tried to look through the posts to find this, but didnt.
im looking to reinstall my OSX Tiger, and i want to keep all of my email. can i just copy something from my apple mail folder and replace after the install? what do i do about permissions or preferences? can i copy those too?
thanks in advance.
.fondue

You may be able to do an Archive and Install which does not erase the hard drive:
How to Perform an Archive and Install
1. Be sure to use Disk Utility first to repair the disk before performing the Archive and Install.
Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.0 for Tiger) and/or TechTool Pro (4.5.2 for Tiger) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. Do not proceed with an Archive and Install if DU reports errors it cannot fix. In that case use Disk Warrior and/or TechTool Pro to repair the hard drive. If neither can repair the drive, then you will have to erase the drive and reinstall from scratch.
3. Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When you reach the screen to select a destination drive click once on the destination drive then click on the Option button. Select the Archive and Install option. You have an option to preserve users and network preferences. Only select this option if you are sure you have no corrupted files in your user accounts. Otherwise leave this option unchecked. Click on the OK button and continue with the OS X Installation.
4. Upon completion of the Archive and Install you will have a Previous System Folder in the root directory. You should retain the PSF until you are sure you do not need to manually transfer any items from the PSF to your newly installed system.
5. After moving any items you want to keep from the PSF you should delete it. You can back it up if you prefer, but you must delete it from the hard drive.
6. You can now download a Combo Updater directly from Apple's download site to update your new system to the desired version as well as install any security or other updates. You can also do this using Software Update.

Trouble Upgrading to OSX Tiger

I've searched the forums but can't find an answer to my problem. I have a Power Mac G4 (tower). It was runing 9.? and I wanted to install Tiger onto it. The computer meets all of the system requirements but when I put the install disk in and clicked install, then restart, I get a blue screen...or a "you need to restart your computer" message. I went throug the trouble shooting (making sure there were no third party hardware installed...it's just like it was when it arrived from Apple...thowing away the fonts, etc.) I ran Norton Utilities and found no problems, then did something stupid, I erased the hard drive thinking I could start up from the OSX Tiger instal disk. But that was a mistake. So, I went back to my OS( install disk and reinstalled OS9. I did an erase install to make sure that the only things on the computer were OS9 things, no software, no additional stuff, etc.
Now I restarted the computer, it's running on OS( just fine. I can access the internet, etc. But when I insert the OSX install disk, I get the same result...the apple icon with a spinning icon below it, then a blue screen with an arrow cursor...and nothing. I tired again and got the "you need to restart your computer" error. I cannot get Tiger installed. Can anyone help? (By the way it's a multiple lisence install disk, with 5 installs on it, and I've only used two (g5 powerbook laptop and new g5 imac.)
I can be reached at [email protected] or [email protected]
Thanks,
Sean Riley

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
Norton is unsafe to use with Mac OS X.
There is no such thing as a Powerbook G5.
It sounds like you may have some hardware on your machine that does not jibe well with Mac OS X's installer. First make sure that the firmware is updated while you can boot the machine into Mac OS 9. To find out which PowerMac G4 you have see this article:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58418
And that will tell you from this article which firmware needs to be updated if any:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=86117
If the firmware is updated, and you are erase and installing Tiger, and no third party peripherals, drives, or cards are in the tower and you are getting a four language screen (called a kernel panic) starting to boot from Mac OS X, then you might assume the hardware on your machine is damaged in some way. One of the most common four language you must restart causes is bad RAM. RAM may be good under Mac OS 9, but not work at all under Mac OS X. Make your you have at least 512 MB of RAM, and it is to system specifications.

Reinstalling OSX Problems

I am in need of reinstalling OSX and i'm trying to boot up from the Install disk to get to Utillities to wipe the heardrive clean and reinstall. (Too much "Junk" build up. Need to start fresh.)
I'm holding down "C" key and it is not booting from the disc. I hold down the Apple button and the Disc is not given as an option to boot up from.
Currently i'm trying from both the "Harddrive Test" disc and "Install 1" disc. Neither work.
I have the Dual Intel iMac with both Windows (using up only 5 Gig) and MacOSX. I bought the computer a year ago, and I have not wiped a Mac harddrive in a 'long' time. (Since i owned my G3 iBook).
What can I do? Do I need to find copies of new discs? or am I even using the right ones?
Thx in Advance,
Arie
iMac Mac OS X (10.4.8) Dual Intel

hi there
can you help i have an i mac g3 in blue with a 550mhz ppc, 256ram and a 120 gb hd. i had mac os x tiger running sweet on the system (did a erase and install on install) then upgraded to 10.4.8. then it all went wrong after my girlfriend had a go.. i thought i could fix whatever it was by re installing but that didnt work. i now cant start or find the hd on the computer but do have the install screen saying i need to update my frimware before i can install tiger. in disk utility on install page the unknown and hdd drive are there but after restore and verify it still wont go.and i dont think it has 9 classic on the computer please help.

Reinstalling OSX-rescuing safari/iTunes/address book

Kernel Panic is forcing me to reinstall OSX. I am rescuing files to my laptop via firewire. What a trainwreck.
How do I retreive my:
Safari faves
address book
iTunes playlists
mail
Anything else I am forgetting?
I'd be happy with links to the appropriate pages here at the apple site, but I can't find them . . .
Big thanks in advance
Troy

Hi Troy,
Best to save your entire users if you have the space.
Here is a list of where your important data is stored ("~" stands for "home"):
Your data in ~/documents
~/library/application support/addressbook (copy the whole folder)
~/library/application support/iCal(copy the whole folder)
Also in ~/library/application support (copy whatever else you need)
~ /library/keychains (copy the whole folder)
~/library/mail (copy the whole folder)
~/library/preferences/com.apple.mail.plist *This is a very important file which contains all email account settings and general mail preferences.
~ /library/itunes (copy the whole folder)
~ /library/safari (copy the whole folder)
~ /library/imovie (copy the whole folder)
~/pictures/iphoto library
~/music/itunes
~/movies/imovie
If you want cookies:
~/library/cookies/cookies.plist
~/library/application support/webfoundation/HTTPcookies.plist
For Entourage users:
Entourage is in documents/microsoft user data
Also in ~ /library/preferences/microsoft
internet explorer favorites are in ~/library/preferences/explorer/favorites.html
-mj
[email protected]

Reinstallation of OSX Tiger

I reintalled OSX Tiger 10.4.3 onto my G4 laptop. During the reinstallation I elected to "Erase and Install" all of the data and programs in order to start over with a cleaned out computer. Everything went well until the new reintalled operating system tried to update itself. The "ITunes update and the "OSX 10.4.9" update would not install. The reason given popped up in a window that stated that the "Digitl Signature" could not be verified or the software was corrupt. I know the software is not corrupt and I know the OSX 10.4.3 operating system worked fine, and updated with no problem, prior to the reinstallation. What did I do wrong during the reintallation and how can I fix the problem? I have all of the original software that came with the computer, including the "Powerbook G4 "Mac OSX" install discs, the Powerbook G4 "Mac OS 9" install discs, and the "Mac OS X 10.4.3" install DVD. I hope someone can give me some direction.
Naz14

Hello naz:
Welcome to Apple discussions.
If I were you, I would clear my HD and then reinstall OS X 10.4.3. You will need to, as you know, update your software from there. I think I would download the OS X 10.4.9 Combo and install it and then update the rest of the software.
Barry

Help Installing OSX Tiger on iMac G4, seems HD Volume Structure corrupted

I need help Installing OSX Tiger on an iMac G4 800MHz 17" Flat Screen LCD, 80 GB Hard Drive, 256MB RAM, DVD-R/CD-RW Super Drive, model# M8812LL/A. I have a Tiger install DVD and i put it in the drive and everything is fine....I go through the steps and when it gets to "Preparing the Disk" - "Verifying destination volume"....it just sits and nothing happens. It will go on for 20+ minutes or so and then the installer will quit saying there was errors during the update. Anyone got any idea what is happening? I'm running OSX 10.3 Panther currently. I just tried running Disk Utility using the install DVD.....it attempted three times and couldn't repair --- I then went out and purhased DiskWarrior --- I boot from that disk, it begins to run; then as it is repairing the volume it freezes and stays frozen for hours. I've rebooted and tried it numerous times with no luck. Is the HD no good? Should I just do a complete reinstall of Tiger and erase everything? I'd rather not, but I backed everthing up in case I need to. Also, when I ran TechTool Deluxe from the booted CD, it said the Volume Structure was corrupted. My Tiger disc is a retail full install disc that I purchased.
Thanks for your help!!!

Use Disk Utility to Restore to a FW drive.
Use one of your FW drives, and create a 24GB partition - later you can reuse this for your emergency boot drive). Restore the DVD to FW volume. Boot from there to install with - very fast.
Low level format is what you probably want/need and the only way to do that is ERASE with the option to ZERO-ALL (after you backup any files you don't now have on disk or DVD.... and where are the backups?).
When you install it will also verify the DVD install disk itself.
Have you tried using FSCK from the command line? Or do you no longer have a valid system on the boot drive? Nothing to lose it seems at this point from trying. Just hold down COMMAND + S on startup. At the prompt, follow direction to type:
/sbin/fsck -fy

Harddrive from a powerbook g4 17 into a powerbook g4 1.33 ghz with OSX Tiger already installed.

Hi,
Quick question.
I have put a harddrive from a powerbook g4 17 into a powerbook g4 1.33 ghz with Tigeralready installed.
Was this and is this a bad idea or is it ok if I just check/repairpermisions or wil this cause lots of problems and I should reinstall OSX?
I know with windows this would never work but I don’t knowif OSX really controls how the mac runs of if its just the firmware alreadythere.
First boot it worked and I was in Tiger for about 5 min but then I added ram and it just try’s to boot into OSX now but after 20min of waiting I reset the powerbook.
thanks.
Sam

thanks, I think your correct normnod but Im not sure if it includes updates and if they are machine Specific.
It was from 17 inch 1.67ghz to a 12 inch 867Mhz and like a say it boot the first time but now I get a small
blip sound when I press the power button and no dong sound so maybe I did mess something up.
I did try pulling the battery and using shift > control > option andpower and I got no boot and blank screen again
(this is model A1010) sorry its wrong title.
and then the second time I got fan sound a dvd rom drive running but nothing on the screen and again no dong.
seeing if leaving it without its battery overnight will help by resetting everything.
I might have apple jack installed on the harddrive already if thet will help? but i still need a dong to get into that.
Sam

Force Reinstalling OSX Tiger

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