How to clean install/upgrade from9.1/9.2.2 to Panther and make HD space

Question

Dear group,
After reading many posts looking for answers to my iMac problems, I've decided to make a post. I've an iMac from the 500 series (which came with 128Mb, 20GB HD and 500MHZ and a slot for cd's) which I bought in 2001. From the start I prefered using OS9.1 instead of the OSX 10.0.3 that also came with it. But during the years there were many conflicts between programs and a lot of websites are not viewable now. I added 512mb to the 128mb working memory, but since I added more programs too, the 20GB HD was getting rather full:-(. Also upgraded Os 9.1 to 9.2.2.
My idea was to buy a external HD and to copy the intern HD to the external HD. This way I wouldn't lose any programs (of which 1 I broke the cd of) and then install programs I want to work with on the internal HD. After informing with several Mac-stores, they said this is not possible:-(. So I could only use an external HD for files and docs. When I finally saw an external HD of my choice (WD) it said that minimum OSX 10.3 was needed. This I don't have on my Mac, so didn't bought it. Also my HD was almost full. So I've been copying files to cd's to make some space. Here I read about "firmware" and found out mine does not need update anymore.
Online I bought the Panther software. It's Mac Os X 10.3.2 cd version however it says "eMac" on the cd. The person who sold it said it would be no problem to run on an iMac though. Reading some posts here, I wonder..
So to my questions:
How to proceed from here?
Did I understood right that Os 9.1 or higher is needed to upgrade to Os X (Panher) ?
Should I do a clean install of 9.1 again to avoid future conflicts? Or should I chose another type of install (or maybe remove parts or all and if so, how)?
And how to remove other programs from the HD without forgetting plugins or other files of that program that are spread in different folders on the HD?
Or was the Mac store wrong and is it indeed possible to move all to an external HD? And which external HD's are compatible with Os 9.1/Os 9.2?
I've many more questions, but since my post is already lenghtly I'll leave these for another time;-0.
Kind regards,
'Vonne

Answer 1

Hi, Vonne -
Now how do you 'boot' /make an ext. HD a boot drive?
A boot drive is the drive containing the OS from which the the machine boots. If you install a valid OS (an OS of adequate version and one whose install is compatible with that machine) on a external drive, and the machine is capable of booting from that kind of drive, all you need do is one of the following -
• select the OS on that drive in Startup Manager (control panel in OS 9, or control pane in System Preferences in OSX) and Restart.
• use Startup Manager to select the OS/drive which you want to use for that startup at the start of the boot process. This article describes using Startup Manager -
Article #HT1310 - Startup Manager: How to Select a Startup Volume
I used the phrase "one whose install is compatible with that machine" carefully. It is certainly possible to replicate (via copying in the case of OS 9, or cloning in the case of OSX) an OS from another machine onto an external drive, and then connect that drive to your machine. However, if the machine that was used as the source for the replication is not the exact same model as yours, it is unlikely that the OS will be viable - although the OS may be of adequate version, OS installs are usually tailored by the installer to match the hardware of the machine upon which it is being installed. A different model will probably have different hardware, and so the replicated OS will not have files in it to support the different hardware.
So I can also chose to remove the whole Os 9 and only put Os X on it? I thought I read somewhere you need to have Os 9 on it before you could
Correct. An install of OSX is stand-alone. Using a full-install disk set for OSX, there is absolutely no requirement at all that any prior version of any OS already be there.
Note, though, that most OS 9 programs are not compatible with OSX. This means that if you remove OS 9, you will not be able to run those programs which are not OSX-native. Some few are compatible with both OS's, such as later versions of AppleWorks 6.
The reason for this is that OS 9 and OSX are not written in the same language, do not have the same roots. OS 9 shares its roots with previous OS's, all the way back to OS 1. OSX is a new critter, written from scratch (although it is, I understand, based somewhat on Unix). The way OSX handles stuff (processes, routines, toolbox calls, etc., as well as the concepts of extensions and control panels and more), are not at all like OS 9 and earlier.
There is a solution for that - OS 9 can be used in the Classic mode under OSX. As Classic, OS 9 is used as a program (not as an OS) in order to provide an environment in which many OS 9-only programs can be run. To be used as Classic, OS 9 must be OS 9.1 or later, preferrably OS 9.2.x.
An install of OS 9 can be used for Classic and still retain its ability to boot the machine as an OS. Many folk have found that when possible it is better to have two installs of OS 9 - one dedicated for use as an OS, the other dedicated for use as Classic. This necessitates having more than one volume available. since it is near impossible to have two installs of OS 9 on the same volume and have them usable without conflict. In this context, a "volume" = an unpartitioned drive, or a partition of a partitioned drive.
Do you've brand names for me? The Mac stores only have the newest types that go from Os X 10.3 or greater
The brand names I have are somewhat outdated. At present I have four bootable firewire drives, three connected full time (the fourth is set up as an emergency boot-and-repair drive for both my G4s). Of those, three are VST brand; VST was bought out several years ago by SmartDisk. The fourth is even older, a FireDrive from MacTell - I have no idea what became of that company.
I have a hunch that most any drive that is connectable via FireWire 400 will be suitable for OS 9, provided that it is reinitialized after receipt. The requirement for OSX 10.3 may pertain to any formatting or backup software that is bundled with the drive. With regard to compatibility with OSX, I understand that using a drive with an Oxford chipset is preferred.
Perhaps someone else more familiar with current drive offerings will post in with more specific info.
How do I verify the drive works as a boot drive?
Same way any piece of hardware is verified - by trying it out. Boot the machine to the drive to verify it is bootable.
They said drag and drop can't be done.
They're wrong, with regard to OS 9. They're right, with regard to OSX.
OS 9 stuff - programs as well as OS's - is eminently copyable via drag and drop.
OSX stuff needs to be cloned using a cloning utility.
Have you experience with booting an internal drive to an ext. drive?
Yes. As I mentioned, I have four bootable firewire drives. Three are connected full time to my G4/500 AGP model; the fourth is an emergency disk. All have bootable OS's on them, of various kinds - a recent duplicate (via drag and drop) of the OS 9.1 on my primary internal drive; OS 9.2.1; and OSX 10.1.5 (which I have rarely used); and (on the emergency disk) a universal install of OS 9.2.1. How do I know they are bootable? Because I tested them by booting the machine to them.
Os X 10.0.3 is on my internal drive, so why should I use the OsX install CD to boot? Or do you mean the install cd of the new OsX (Panther) version?
Because the later versions of OSX have a better version of Disk Utility. The one that came with OSX 10.0.3 may be adequate; however, OSX 10.0 was a public Beta version - the first real release (one classed as a complete OS, not a Beta, i.e. trial, version) of OSX was 10.1.
I wasn't able to see the new cardreader I bought (which should be for Os 8.6 and higher). Could it be something is broken within Os 9.1/9.2.2 and it would be wise to do a reinstall anyway so to fix bugs like that?
If the card reader was not connected when the OS was installed or updated, the set of drivers needed by the card reader were probably not installed. OS 9 installers are sometimes too clever - they read what hardware is available, and install any software available which is needed by that hardware. This means they often do not install software which is not needed at that time; later changes or additions to the hardware can result in an apparent incompatibility, but that oes not mean something is broken. A re-install of the last version installed will sometimes take care of it.
Specifically, see this User Tip (although it addresses USB PCI cards, the same set of extensions is often needed for things like card readers) -
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=607556&
Ok, so it looks like I don't the right Panther software. So maybe good reinstall Os 9? In the 'Help' I find the option to re-install parts or remove parts of the systemprogram. Another option is the so called 'clean install'. And there's the possibility to use the recovery cd. I've no clue which option is best.
As Allan mentioned, it is unlikely that the eMac OSX 10.3.2 disk you got will work - disks that are shipped with a machine are usually model-specific to that machine model. If a disk states a model name on it, it is intended for use with that model. The retail disk sets, those for both OS 9 and OSX, contain a universal installer, one which has assets available to it which allow the installer to place a full, complete OS on any machine model supported by Apple for that OS version.
A Clean Install of OS 9 can be performed only using an original Software Install CD for a machine, or by using a retail OS 9 Install CD of adequate version. A Clean Install neither disturbs nor removes anything - it installs a brand new OS 9 System Folder, renames any previous one to Previous System Folder, installs a standard set of utilities if those are not already present, and does little else. A Clean Install is the only relatively convenient way to change the inherent language of an OS 9 install, or to downgrade the OS version. This Apple KBase article disusses it further -
Article #TA43881 - Mac OS 8, Mac OS 9: Performing a Clean Installation
A Software Restore CD can be a dangerous disk to use. The primary purpose of an OS 9 Software Restore CD is to return the drive to its original "as-shipped" configuration. Although its installer can be set to retain all info already on the drive, it is very easy to accidentally erase the entire drive. I do not think that a Software Restore CD will serve the purposes you have described.
The main difference between a Software Restore CD and a Software Install CD is that a Software Restore CD uses a disk image of the drive as originally shipped as its source, while a Software Install CD uses a library, an archive, of individual software components from which the installer selects as needed to match the machine's hardware configuration. In this context, a retail OS 9 Install CD is much the same as a Software Install CD, except that its archive of software somponents is usually more extensive.
A Software Install CD (and a retail OS 9 Install CD) can also be used to install or re-install individual OS software components. This is accomplished by selecting the Custom button on the Start page of the installer, then the group, then individual items as needed. The requirement here is that the version of the OS 9 on the hard drive must match the one the CD is intended to install.