Installing OS to MacBook without the original install discs
I'd been having performance issues with my late-2007 MacBook, purchased in January 2008, for some time. At the recommendation of a friend I backed up my important data to an external hard drive, and subsequently wiped the MacBook's hard drive clean. When I went to reinstalI OSX, I discovered that what I thought were the original install disks were in fact from a relative's MacBook purchased some time later, and when I attempted the install anyway I got the error message "OS X cannot be installed on this computer." I tried re-partitioning the drive through Dual Utility, but that did not solve the issue. How can I get my MacBook working again without the original install discs?
So you didn't clone your hard drive prior to erasing it, you just selectively backed up important data?
What operating system level are you running? If OS X 10.7 Lion or 10.8 Mountain Lion you can boot to recovery mode by holding the command and r keys down when you boot and redownload the operating system. If OS X 10.6 or 10.5, you can contact Apple support to see if they still have the original OS X disks available, or you could buy OS X 10.6 from the Apple online store (I'm told you can order them online once again or you can all them, which in the US is 800-MY-APPLE).
Similar Messages
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Erasing a MacBook WITHOUT the original install disks??
I am selling my MacBook. I no longer have the install disks BUT I have a new copy of Snow Leapard.
How can I erase my stuff from the computer WITHOUT the original install disks?The "buyer" is my sister. She is not very tech savvy and will just be emailing and web surfing until the Mac book dies.
Still, the original startup discs contain things like the Apple Hardware Test that may come in handy.
Will installing SL erase the stuff on the computer??
If you want to, yes. If not, no. -
I am trying to install a brand new WD 500 gb sata internal hd in my macbook pro. the original install dvd does not recognise the hd. all hardware is ok. any help?
For some reason OS X disks (whatever edition or flavors) that are supplied with Apple products only seem to contain a limited knowledge of available hard drives on the market at the time of thier publishing. This (rather opportunistically) creates a "Best Before" stale-OS X-software-copy situation where upgrading to or replacing a defective internal SATA hard drive with a newer, better or larger one is a largely hit and miss affair.
If you buy the latest and greatest disk drive available for any older Mac you are likely to run into unresolvable problems making a clean re-install of your own, old edition or flavor of OS X onto any newer or larger hard drive since the OEM (gray) "OS X Install Disks" that Apple supply with retail products seem to contain only time-sensitive lists/mapings of then-known target drives that the Drive Management Tool in the then-published old "Installer Software" will support.
Presumably new (colorful "X") retail versions of OS X (10.whatever.whatever) also contain time-limited Installers with limited knowledge of and adaptability to/compatability with a limited number of old hard drives then kicking-around on the market.
This is especially a problem nowadays since the countless "puny old" hard drives that have been on the market are largely obsolete in a few months time, as manufacturers continue to produce larger and cheaper units, discontinuing older puny products... So if your drive fails you need an exact old (or similar familial) replacement drive for your "backup copy of OS X" to do a fresh, clean OS X re-install. Otherwise you need to purchase a new retail version of OS X, since yours is now effectively obsolete. Purchasing an old, puny drive to re-install your version.flavor of OS X to avoid buying a new version of OS X is a rather false economy.
If you still have a working old hard drive with your old polluted 10.version.flavor of OS X still working on it you apparently must clone it with Time Machine or the newest version of Disk Utility (disk image copying) to most newer, larger drives, and a clean reinstall to such new hard drives is not possible. -
How can I format my intell based imac without the original Tiger discs? I have a user account on it that I dont want. I have upgraded to Snow Leopard but I want to to start affresh. Thank you. I have tried loading the Snow Leopard disc whilst holding down th C key but it goes straight into install mode. I am new to Macs and I have inherited this machine.
Hello, many options...
1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
*Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.*
3. Click the Erase tab.
4. Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
5. Select your Mac OS X volume.
6. Highlight the drive, select Partition Tab, then Format type... MacOS Extended Journalled, select the Security Options button, choose Zero Out Data, Erase... after completion do a new install.
Or...
Open System Preferences>Accounts, unlock the lock, click on the little plus icon, make a new admin account, log out & into the new account.
In the same pref pane highlight your old account, click the little minus icon, then use Disk Utility to Secure Erase Free Space. -
How to you wipe the harddrive of a Mac Book Pro without the original install CD?
I want to sell my Mac Pro but first need to wipe the contents. I have misplaced the original install disk, is there an alternative way to wipe all content?
ThanksYou can use a retail Mac OS X 10.6 DVD or phone Apple Support and order replacements.
(62279) -
How do I start my MacBook without the Battery Installed
My battery has started to Bulge and I am having the usual problems I have read about with this issue, the trackpad isn't working, premature shutdown, etc. I am living thousands of miles away from an Apple Store so I have given the battery to a friend to either get replaced or buy a new one. In the mean time I want to use the MBP without the battery. How do you start the MBP without the battery being installed?
I know there will be a reduction in performance but I am not worried about that at the moment as I need some of the info of my hard disk. It can't run any slower than it is at the moment, it's dead.Kappy Thanks I have started it again. I actually found this thread and tried it yesterday before my question but nothing worked. I left the computer uplugged over night and thought I had nothing to lose so I tried it agian this morning and it actually worked this time. I only had to use the Restart (Control-Command-Power) option not the SMC reset. Leaving the power disconnected must have cleared something somewhere.
Thanks again. -
How do I install Boot Camp drivers without the Mac OS disc?
When I installed OS X Lion for my Macbook Pro, I purchased it off the Apple Store (so I don't have the disc.)
Is there any way possible to download the drivers I need without the disc?there is a guide when you launch boot camp assistant, and the faqs articles how-to and manual are
http://www.apple.com/support/bootcamp
In fact the above and change the last /..... to product name is usually your best first stop for help. And Help menu in program, like Boot Camp Assistant of course, will as well!! -
Removing data without the original OS discs?
I'm trying to loan out my never used iBook G3 with OS X 10.2.8, but I'd like to remove any trace of my personal data on it. Obviously the best thing to do would just be to reinstall the OS, but I don't have the original discs any longer. Any help? I'm incredibly frustrated b/c I have no idea how to do it.
Thanks!Hi, and welcome to Apple Discussions.
Here is what I would do:
I would add a "Guest" account with the name of the person to whom you're lending the iBook. Set the iBook to log in automatically to the borrower's account.
I would put a password on my own user account so that the borrower would not have access to my files. Then you can log out of your own account and log in to the new account.
Now, if you really want to absolutely delete your data, never to be retrieved again, you can give the new account administrative privileges (VERY IMPORTANT), then log in to the new account and delete your own (old) account.
That's what I would do.
Good luck.
P.S. I'd also be hunting for those original CDs, because whoever is using the iBook is bound to need them eventually. -
Selling MacBook (MA701LL/A) 2006-Lost the original Install Discs
I am selling MacBook (MA701LL/A) 2006 but I misplaced the original Install Discs. They will probably show up after I sell the laptop. Is there any way the wipe the hard drive, install Mac OS Snow Leopard (these discs I have) so that the laptop would be fully operational.
ThanksInstall no, not without functional installer discs.
Wipe yes. Clone the internal drive to a bootable external drive. Boot from the external then wipe the internal. The problem is, this leaves you with a computer with no operating system which nobody will want to buy. I don't think they can even install an upgraded system without Snow Leopard on that machine.
Options.
- Try selling it as-is with trashing all personal files you can find, then secure empty trash. Still, it is supposed to have those OS discs because as soon as the buyer starts having system problems they are going to want them. They are part of the computer+system package that Apple sells, unlike hardware alone.
- I assume these are upgrade discs, not the original OS. Frankly the buyer likely will not really want the original OS (though I do because it may have bundled software or utilities!). You could just buy a set of Snow Leopard discs by calling Apple Sales.
- Wipe as above and give a big discount on machine without system. Not good. As buyer I want to see it can boot. -
I have two questions...
1) If I do a clean install on my MacBook Pro will I be able to re-install apps (FCP, Aperture, MS Office etc.) from a Time Machine backup, or will I need the original install DVDs with authorization codes? (because I don't have them)
2) Has anyone ever seen anything like this before on their computers?
The Apple Genius' were stumped by my laptop issues and said they'd never seen anything like it before and recommended I did a clean install. Below you can see my trash bin, and if you look at the "Empty" button it reads "N201" and then there's the "N39" to the left of it. You can also see these numbers over by the folder area--"SD5, SD6, SD7." But that's not all...
When I right click on items I see the numbers again. Instead of "Open with" I get "N152" and there's an "N35" and "LB1" towards the bottom.
I have no idea what's going on so I'm just going to do a clean install on my machine but I don't want to lose my apps. I don't have the original install DVDs for them anymore. If you have any suggestions please let me know. Thanks!You don't lose them. You can always redownload them from the app store after you log back in with your Apple ID.
"Buy, download, and even redownload.
You can install apps on every Mac you use and even download them again. This is especially convenient when you buy a new Mac and want to load it with apps you already own." -
I'm hoping to install my Adobe CS5.5 onto my new iMac from an older Mac-- can I do this without the original installation disks that I first installed my CS5.5 with?
You can download/install it from Download CS5.5 products
Note:- Make sure that you are deactivate it by launching any product from the suite going to help and than deactivate just to make sure that you are not exceeding your allowed Activations -
How do I reactivate and install Adobe Acrobat on a new computer without the original disk?
I am moving to a new computer and the Acrobat disk I used to have got lost somewhere in the office environment... so, how do I deactivate Acrobat on my old computer and activate/install it ion my new computer without the original disk?
If you were using the same serial number then, yes. You are only allowed two installs and they should be on computers used by the licensee (you).
You would need to deactivate on any additional computers if this is the case.
Just an FYI, you are in the Adobe Reader forum. If this doesn't work, you'll want to head to the Acrobat forum where you'll find more experienced users.
Acrobat
Good luck. -
When I begin to attempt to download the windows support software in boot camp, it says the windows support software is unavailable. Is there any other place I can download it for a Macbook Pro 5,5 intel core 2 duo with snow leopard without the original CD?
Hi,
apart from the MacBook Air this feature is of no use for other Macs right now.
Simply ingnore it (click "I already have the Drivers...) and continue with the installation.
Sorry to say but you need the OSX Install DVD for the BootCamp Driver installation.
The 3.0 version of the BootCamp Drivers is only avaiable on the disc.
Later updates (3.1 and 3.2) can be downloaded from Apples Support website.
Call Apple and ask for a replacement and they usually send you one for a small fee.
And have the Serial-Number of your Mac at hand when calling.
And since the OSX Install DVD can also be vital for maintenance and repair it is best to have one.
The needed BootCamp Drivers are on the OSX Install DVD 1 that came with your Mac.
Insert that disc while in Windows after the Windows installation to install the drivers.
Regards
Stefan -
How can I fix an invalid sibling link error message without my original install disk?
How can I fix an invalid sibling link error message without my original install disk?
Hi Jeff,
It's not even likely the Install Disc could fix that, but if you want 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
You must repair the HD, your best bet is likely DiskWarrior.
BTW, you might enjoy these DiskWarrior review/recommendations...
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9645801�
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10541019#10541019
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=11918925�
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12684129#12684129
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12744794�
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12912879#12912879
Finally, you should run DiskWarrior if your Mac explicitly warns you of a problem with your disk in the form of an error message. Most of these errors are reported by the built-in Disk Utility whether your Mac OS X version is 10.3 Panther, 10.4 Tiger, 10.5 Leopard, 10.6 Snow Leopard or 10.7 Lion. Here are some of the most common messages:
Disk Repair: The disk was not repairable by this computer. It is being made available to you with limited functionality. You must back up your data and reformat the disk as soon as possible.
The underlying task reported failure on exit.
Invalid node structure.
Keys out of order.
Invalid key length.
Invalid directory item count.
Invalid extent entry.
Invalid record count.
Invalid index key.
Invalid sibling link.
http://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/details3.html -
I'm running 10.6.8 Snow Leopard fine on my MacPro1,1, Dual-Core Intel Xeon, 2.66 GHz Mac, but I need to install Lion 10.7.0 to run a program I need.How do I install OS 10.7 NOT 10.7.5, because I get this message when I try to install 10.7.5, which I've downloaded:"This update requires Mac OS X version 10.7." on a mac running Snow Leopard 10.6.8, So i need to install the original 10.7.0 over the 10.6.8 i.e. where can I find the original install app for Lion OS 10.7.0? The original Lion 10.7. is not avaialable for purchase from the App store or anywhere, even C-Net . Where can I find it to purchase?
Also it seems I cannot install Mountain Lion over 10.6.8 as advertised. When I go to purchase I get this message: "We could not complete your purchase. OS X Mountain Lion is not compatible with this computer." I think my computer can handle it (specs above) Are there any workarounds to this?If you're getting a "This update requires Mac OS X version 10.7" message, than you have the updater and not the full installer. Go to your Purchases section of the Mac App Store and you should see the full version there. But it may be 10.7.5, though in my system is shows as being from 2011 which would appear to be the original version.
As to Mountain Lion, that's supported only on the Early 2008 Mac Pro or newer.
Regards.
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