Locked Install Disk, Fails to Erase or Partition

For starters, I was having issues with the logic board/graphics of my 2007 Macbook Pro, (Model # A1226), currently running Mac OS X 10.8, (Mountain Lion). I managed to find a replacement logic board which I successfully installed. The laptop ran much smoother on OS X 10.7 (Lion) and that's what I've been trying to downgrade to, and that's where my problem continues.
I've got a downloaded install image on a usb stick, the file is "InstallESD.dmg". At some point, I was having issues with every option and did a recovery/restore of the hard drive from the usb stick. Surprisingly, at startup it brings me to the "Mac OS X Utilities" options which shows Lion being available as an install option, however after that point of selecting it, I get the message that the disk is locked. That is most likely because I restored the hard drive from the usb drive containing the bootable installer.
Whenever I try to partition or erase the drive, I get a "Fail to Erase" or "Partition Fail" message through Disk Utility. Even if I do a Cmd + R and try to reboot from the Recovery Disk for 10.8.5, (putting me back into Mountain Lion), I still get a "Locked Install Disk" message leaving me nowhere but stuck.
Ideally, I'd like to get back to Lion. I'm fine with erasing the hard drive, I have all my necessary files backed up, just not through Time Machine. I've also got what I thought was the bootable copy of Lion on the USB drive, but when I try to boot from there, the laptop is in a constant loading cycle with the apple logo replaced by one of those "no" symbols, (circles with the diagonal line), so I assume I didn't set it up correctly as a boot disk.

I think our problem is also hardware failure although without re-imaging a working surface pro 3 I can't be sure.
I tried what imfusio suggested in this thread.
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/d31384bc-4e96-4a5b-a400-637bd6006d81/failure-5456-unable-to-determine-destination-disk-partition-and-or-drive-surface-pro-3?forum=mdt
Unfortunately the deployment failed with the same ZTI Error - Unhandled error returned by ZTIDISKPART:
Object required (424)
I then rebooted into WinPE and ran diskpart, I could see the two volumes (EFI and OSDisk). I then tried to format the OS disk volume using diskpart. I got a paramater is incorrect error and the disk was no longer visible with a 'list disk' command. So it's
like the format is putting the disk offline. I'm going to try restore one of these surfaces, apply all firmware updates then re-image. If that doesn't work I'm out of ideas.

Similar Messages

Very sick Macbook Pro OS v 10.6.8 - initially running slow so I tried backing up to Time Machine and reloading the OS but the install disk failed. I was able to recover from the Time Machine back up but many applications are not working properly. Help!

I am also no longer able to back up using Time Machine (backups fail), can't access iPhoto (which was a problem before attempting to reload OS) and I suspect other apps are no longer working. The computer is however running faster in Safari and Mail...any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

If there are any files you can transfer to a regular storage drive do that first and then disconenct all drives.
Hold c boot off the 10.6.8 disk and use Disk Utility to Erase with Zero option the hard drive, takes some time, let it complete as it's mapping off any bad or failing sectors.
Then install 10.6. log in and update to 10.6.8 (important!)
Now use Migration Assistant to transfer over just your user files, we need to rescue those first out of TimeMachine's EVIL clutches, once you've got that, transfer them to the regular storage drive and disconnect.
Note: if your 10.6 disk fails, call Apple for a replacement, you need the machine specific version, the 10.6.3 retial doesn't have iLife and only works for machines pre 10.6.3 release, not afterwards. Factory installed 10.6.4 machines and afterwards need machine specific disks.
Then either:
Log into the admin/first set up user on the machine and delete the Migrated user, then reboot and use Migration assistant again to TM everything this time
Or
Just install all your programs again from fresh sources.
If your TM drive is really hosed, then you'll need Data Rescue $99 to read the TM files directly and transfer the results to another regular storage drive (not the first one just in case), then pick through the debris and locate your files and transfer them to another drive.
I don't like TimeMachine, but for newbies it's better than nothing.
(I prefer cloning my entire OS X parititon instead, I can access it from any computer (Linux, Mac or PC) and I also can boot my Mac from it. I use Carbon Copy Cloner, but that's for later once your all better. )

How can I reformat my hard drive if erase and partition don't work in disk utility and I get an error when I try to erase and install from the Leopard install disk? I have had several kernel panics, but the volume shows up in startup disk.

I have had several kernel panics on my iBook G4; the panic message shows up just after the desktop appears. Although the startup volume shows up in Startup Disk, the installation disk reports an error when I attempt an erase and install. Disk utility is unable either to erase or partition the hard drive. The hard drive shows up in disk utility, but the startup volume doesn’t HELP!!!

Do you have the original system discs that came with the iBook when it was new?
Which exact iBook model is it?
You can choose from this list:
http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/ibook/index-ibook.html
Erasing the disc and installing Mac OS X 10.5 will result in loss of the other applications (such as the iLife applications) which came pre-installed on the iBook.

HT3910 i have erased my partition completely. now i am not getting the installation started when i quit the disk utilities..instead i get an option to restore my system. and i have no restore points on my system so eventually my mac dosent get installed..

i have erased my partition completely. now i am not getting the installation started when i quit the disk utilities..instead i get an option to restore my system. and i have no restore points on my system so eventually my mac dosent get installed
please help me out

I can't do that since I do nothing with Windows.
It sounds like it was hacked to run XP and then makes it not run OS X now.
Only thing I can suggest is to repartition the hard drive to a single HFS+, GUID partition and see if that allows you to install OS X.
Allan

Trouble installing disk locked

Hi all,
I downloaded and attempted to install Mountain Lion. Unfortunately, it failed. The error says my disk is locked. I looked at my partitions, and I do not have any. I really need to use my machine, and feel pretty frustrated at this point. Can somebody help? Thanks!

Do a backup with Carbon Copy Cleaner in an external disk and open this to burn the installer in a DVD or USB > http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/07/how-to-create-a-bootable-backup-mountain-li on-install-disk/
Press Option key and boot from the USB. Open Disk Utility, select the volume and erase it. Then, install Mountain Lion

How do I erase and install iMac to factory settings using Install disk?

Once in a while I like to do an erase and install to boost performance and get rid of extra unused files/applications on my computer that are inevitably slowing things down. I have already tried disk repair and that isn't helping.
The problem is now that Lion/Mountain Lion no longer support PowerPC applications, I can't figure out how to use the Install Disk that came with my computer. My computer came with 10.4 (Tiger). I have been unable to erase and restore my computer to it's original factory settings.
I have read a bunch of threads that say to hold down the "C" key, but nothing happens when I do this. The computer just starts up like normal.
The reason I want to do this is because my computer is going slower and slower all the time. I have the "Free Memory" app and I can see my memory decreasing slowly day by day. It goes from about 3GB to less than 1GB in a few days. If I restart, I'm back up to 3GB again.

You had to use Snow Leopard to install Lion or Mountain Lion, so you can downgrade to Snow Leopard:
Downgrade Lion/Mountain Lion to Snow Leopard
1. Boot from your Snow Leopard 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 Utilities menu.
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. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Quit DU and return to the installer. Install Snow Leopard.
This will erase the whole drive so be sure to backup your files if you don't have a backup already. If you have performed a TM backup using Lion be aware that you cannot restore from that backup in Snow Leopard (see below.) I suggest you make a separate backup using Carbon Copy Cloner 3.4.1.
If you have Snow Leopard Time Machine backups, do a full system restore per #14 in Time Machine - Frequently Asked Questions. If you have subsequent backups from Lion, you can restore newer items selectively, via the "Star Wars" display, per #15 there, but be careful; some Snow Leopard apps may not work with the Lion files.
Booting From An OS X Installer Disc
1. Insert OS X Installer Disc into the optical drive.
2. Restart the computer.
3. Immediately after the chime press and hold down the "C" key.
4. Release the key when the spinning gear below the dark gray Apple logo appears.
5. Wait for installer to finish loading.

Trying to erase hard drive on MacBook before resale, but dvd player not working for install disk. Is there a work-around?

I have a new iMac running 10.6 if that helps.

If your MacBook and your iMac have firewire ports you can install by Target Disk Mode. You'll need a retail version of a Mac OS to do this if you don't have your MacBook's gray install disks.
Start up your iMac with your install disk. After you get to the install screen on your iMac connect your MacBook to your iMac in "Target Mode" with a firewire cable http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1661
Then open "Disk Utility" from the "Utilities Menu" on the Menu Bar from the install disk on your iMac. You should see both your MacBook and your iMac hard drives in there. Erase and partition your MacBook drive and then choose that drive when you go back to the install screen.

How to erase old macbook HD without install disk

I have an old macbook that im looking to donate. Its running on os x 10.5.8
Id like to format my HD to delete all of the information on it.
I dont have the original install DVD.
Ive tried using Disk Utility. When i go to erase, the buttons are greyed out.
Please help!
Thanks

If both computers have Firewire ports, then connect them with a Firewire cable and useTarget Disk Mode to boot the old computer. Boot your computer normally. The disk drive of the old computer will appear on the Desktop of your computer. You can then use Disk Utility to erase the drive. You will want to do this:
Drive Partition and Format
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Apply button and wait until the process has completed.
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 Security 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.
This will assure that nothing on the drive could ever be recovered. However, you will not have an operating system to install which is a problem. Ideally, you should purchase replacement discs for the computer and install the original system with which it came.
Apple Store Customer Service at 1-800-676-2775 or visit online Help for more information.
To contact product and tech support: Apple - Support - Contact Apple Support.

HT3777 if i restore my macbook back to its factory settings with the grey install disk that came with my macbook, will this wipe out the bootcamp partition? (i don't want it to)

i have asked this question a few times now, but i have not got the answer i was looking for:
my macbook is currently on v10.6.8 (a snow leopard version)
the factory settings of my macbook is v10.5.6 (a leopard version; i know that using the grey install disk that came with my macbook will restore my macbook back to this version)
i know that by restoring my macbook to the factory settings, some apps will go (e.g. flash player 12, app store) and other apps will be downgraded (like itunes)
but i am talking about BOOTCAMP. it isn't an app, it's a partition of my hard drive.
my question is, will i still have the BOOTCAMP partition after i restore my macbook back to its factory settings? if so, will all the folders and files in BOOTCAMP still be there?

Hello there, Timmayy24.
The following Knowledge Base article provides the information you're looking for:
Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard: How to Erase and Install
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3910
Important: This procedure will completely erase your hard drive. If you have installed Microsoft Windows using Boot Camp, or have multiple partitions, this procedure will erase the partition you select.
Thanks for reaching out to Apple Support Communities.
Cheers,
Pedro.

Can't install OSX Mountain Lion, on the disk selection screen i cant select the Macintosh HD to install OSX giving a message (This disk cannot be used to start up your computer).only have one disk to select and my partition map scheme is GUID partition

just bough OSX Mountain Lion, my laptop operating with v10.6.8. Can't install OSX Mountain Lion, on the disk selection screen i cant select the Macintosh HD to install OSX giving a message (This disk cannot be used to start up your computer).only have one disk to select and my partition map scheme is GUID partition table. 24.44gb disk available.

Verify your computer can run Mountain Lion:
Upgrading to Mountain Lion
To upgrade to Mountain Lion you must have Snow Leopard 10.6.8 or Lion installed. Purchase and download Mountain Lion from the App Store. Sign in using your Apple ID. Mountain Lion is $19.99 plus tax. The file is quite large, over 4 GBs, so allow some time to download. It would be preferable to use Ethernet because it is nearly four times faster than wireless.
     OS X Mountain Lion - System Requirements
       Macs that can be upgraded to OS X Mountain Lion
         1. iMac (Mid 2007 or newer) - Model Identifier 7,1 or later
         2. MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer) - Model Identifier 5,1 or later
         3. MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later
         4. MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer) - Model Identifier 2,1 or later
         5. Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later
         6. Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later
         7. Xserve (Early 2009) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later
To find the model identifier open System Profiler in the Utilities folder. It's displayed in the panel on the right.
Open Disk Utility and verify the drive is partitioned using GUID and formatted Mac OS Extended, Journaled. If it is then do this:
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard 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 Utilities menu. 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 click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro 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.
Now try installing Mountain Lion.

Boot Disk Failed to load even though I've delted Windows Partition?!

Hi All,
I had a few problems installing Windows (mainly not being able to eject the CD during installation...) and decided to wait a while until I purchase Vista. I've deleted the partition through Disk Utility, and it now shows that it's not there.
However, when I start up my Mac, I'm faced with a screen saying "Boot Disk failed to load, press any key to restart."
I can get into my Mac by holding down the Alt Key, but don't really wanna do that every time I turn it on!
Does anyone have any suggestions?
Happy New Year!
Simon.

Check System Preferences > Startup Disk and make sure it is set to Mac OS. See http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.5/en/8240.html

I tried partitioning my HD to install linux, the installion was not successful and now I can't boot my mac, I tried internet recovery, it was not helpfull as the disk utility cannot delete the partition I created.

I tried partitioning my HD to install linux, the installion was not successful and now I can't boot my mac, I tried internet recovery, it was not helpfull as the disk utility cannot delete the partition I created. It was only showing me an error message "EFI files are missing", I realized that it is trying to boot from the new partition I created for the installation of the linux I intended to do.

It sounds like you may have multiple problems, but none of them are likely to be caused by malware.
First, the internet-related issues may be related to adware or a network compromise. I tend to lean more towards the latter, based on your description of the problem. See:
http://www.adwaremedic.com/kb/baddns.php
http://www.adwaremedic.com/kb/hackedrouter.php
If investigation shows that this is not a network-specific issue, then it's probably adware. See my Adware Removal Guide for help finding and removing it. Note that you mention AdBlock as if it should have prevented this, but it's important to understand that ad blockers do not protect you against adware in any way. Neither would any kind of anti-virus software, which often doesn't detect adware.
As for the other issues, it sounds like you've got some serious corruption. I would be inclined to say it sounds like a failing drive, except it sounds like you just got it replaced. How did you get all your files back after the new drive was installed?
(Fair disclosure: I may receive compensation from links to my sites, TheSafeMac.com and AdwareMedic.com, in the form of buttons allowing for donations. Donations are not required to use my site or software.)

Help First Aid Fails From Install Disk

My I-Mac G-5 crashed and on restart is displaying the grey screen with the question mark instead of finding the os / hard drive. I rebooted again from the install disk holding down C and when I went to verify and repair the disk... the repair option wasn't selectable and when I select verify i get this message
"First Aid failed
"Disk Utility stopped repairing permissions on '(volume name)' because the following error was encountered: No valid packages"
The Apple support on this topic here
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25704
only covers when the application disk utility fails from your OS... But its failing for me from my INSTALL Disk.
Thanks in advance!

That error occurs because either the /Library/Receipts/ folder has been deleted or its contents were deleted. Without that DU will not function. This is because when you repair permissions Disk Utility uses the Receipts folder on the OS X volume being repaired.
However, it cannot fix your problem. Your problem results from damaged or corrupted system files required during startup. The only solution is to reinstall OS X. You may be able to do this without erasing the drive by doing an Archive and Install:
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.

Erased Hardrive and now OS install disk will not work?

Yesterday I tried to erase the hardrive on my macbook (Mac OS version 10.4.6) with tiger. I heard from previous users and an apple specialist that I could go into disk utility and delete the hardrive. I inserted the Macbook Mac OS X install disk 1, restarted with C and from here I went to disk utility. I clicked erase the hardrive and from here I exited disk utility and started the Mac OS X installation. It failed halfway through the installation and asked me to restart. Now when I restart my computer it just flashes the question mark inside the folder. I tried inserting the install disk 1 again and it took me to a gray screen with the apple logo and the downloading spinning icon. It stayed this way for several hours till it eventually moved to a blank white screen and then a blue screen with spinning downloading icon. This went on for probably 10 hours before I decided to just shut it down again. Where do I go from here? All I wanted to do was delete the contents of the hardrive and reinstall the operating system because I am giving the computer to a friend. I really don't want to have to take it in to repair it. It was working pretty well before I erased the hardrive. Any help would be appreciated here. Thanks.

The Canon app probably isn't designed to run in Mavericks, check with Canon to see if they have a more up-to-date version. If they do not then simply use Image Capture to scan.

I have a copy of Windows 7, and I am trying to bring up Boot Camp on my MacBook with Snow Leopard. But my Snow Leopard install disk is too old for Windows 7, so attempted Boot Camp install of drivers fails.

I have a copy of Windows 7, and I am trying to bring up Boot Camp on my MacBook with Snow Leopard. But my Snow Leopard install disk is too old for Windows 7, so attempted Boot Camp install of drivers fails.
I have hand-installed the NVidia graphics driver, and I have keyboard, minimal trackpad, and hardwire to internet all working. So the WIndows machine is usable. But I am hurting for wi-fi, better trackpad, and whatever else is delivered by Boot Camp. I can't use any of the Boot Camp upgrades because I do not have XP or Vista.

While we all have MacBooks in this forum not all of us use Boot Camp. There's a Boot Camp Support Community where everybody uses Boot Camp. You should also post this question there.
https://discussions.apple.com/community/windows_software/boot_camp

Locked Install Disk, Fails to Erase or Partition

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