Missing install disc (Snow Leopard) for OS X upgrade

Hi, I am going to upgrade to Mountain Lion OS X from Snow Leopard 10.6.8 when it releases, however, I DO NOT have the original SL Install Disc.
I read that there are certain steps that one needs to take to prepare a computer for this upgrade so that it goes smoothly. One of the things on the list is to do a hard drive verification for errors. I can do this in Utilities but it prompts me for the Install Disc in order to repair. It shows two minor errors (Invalid Volume File Count, Invalid Volume Directory Count) that need to be addressed and repaired but I can not continue without the Install Disc. Any suggestions?
Also, a friend has the same SL version install disc. Can I use his or do I need the ORIGINAL one that was originally installed with my iMac? I don't know if the MODEL INDENTIFIER, BOOT ROM VERSION and SMC VERSION will be affected since they are two different machines. Please help!
I can always contact Apple but was trying to avoid any additional costs of replacing the disc since I plan on purchasing a disc for the upgrade to Mountain Lion.
FYI, my iMac runs flawlessly right now and is loaded with software. I am so afraid I will have issues with software if I use another disc and I don't want to go through reinstalling all my software programs. It is a lot. I am hoping it will be okay but I wanted to ask anyone on here first.
Can anyone advise?

Firstly, order the Snow Leopard DVD from Apple's Online Store even if you don't currently need it. Download and save the Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1 updater in your Downloads folder.
Secondly, you can use your friend's Snow Leopard DVD to do disk and permissions repairs, but not to install OS X on your machine.
Thirdly, follow these instructions:
How to Install Mountain Lion Successfully - You must have Snow Leopard 10.6.7 or 10.6.8 Installed
A. 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. Then select Disk Utility from the Utilities. 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. Now restart normally.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.3.) if DW cannot fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall Snow Leopard.
B. Make a Bootable Backup Using Restore Option of Disk Utility:
Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
Select the destination volume from the left side list.
Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
Check the box labeled Erase destination.
Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the backup volume. Source means the internal startup volume.
C. Important: Please read before installing:
If you have a FireWire hard drive connected, disconnect it before installing the update unless you will boot from this drive and install the update on it. Reconnect it and turn it back on after installation is complete and you've restarted.
You may experience unexpected results if you have installed third-party system software modifications, or if you have modified the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation, use the standalone installer (see below) from Apple Downloads to update. While the installation is in progress do not use the computer.
D. To upgrade to Mountain Lion:
Purchase the Mountain Lion Installer from the Mac App Store. The download will start quickly. Mountain Lion is around 4 GBs so a fast internet connection is essential. Download time could run upwards of 4 hours depending upon network conditions and server demands at the time.
The installer will start automatically after the download is complete. You should save a copy in your Downloads folder because the installer will delete itself automatically after the installation is complete.
Follow instructions for installation.

Similar Messages

Can I use install discs (Snow Leopard) from MBPro to upgrade desktop?

I'm having issues with my iMac (mid 2007) which has been upgraded to Leopard so far (when Leopard came out). I have Snow Leopard discs that came with my Mac Book Pro. If I do a clean install of my iMac, can I use the Snow Leopard discs to do the new install? What worries me is that the discs specifically say "13 inch MacBook Pro" Mac OSX Install DVD. Does this mean I can't use them on my desktop? Are their install discs specifically for laptops vs desktops?

Nancy Alineri wrote:
I'm having issues with my iMac (mid 2007) which has been upgraded to Leopard so far (when Leopard came out). I have Snow Leopard discs that came with my Mac Book Pro. If I do a clean install of my iMac, can I use the Snow Leopard discs to do the new install? What worries me is that the discs specifically say "13 inch MacBook Pro" Mac OSX Install DVD. Does this mean I can't use them on my desktop? Are their install discs specifically for laptops vs desktops?
You can not use the disks intended for the MBP on your iMac. Buy a retail copy of SL ($29) or contact Apple for a replacement of the original disks for the iMac.

I have been installing the Snow Leopard upgrade for 3 hours. Is this normal?

I have been trying to install the Snow Leopard uprade that I received from Apple Inc., but it has said that it will take 45 minutes for the last 3 hours. Is this normal?

Are you referring to the Snow Leopard DVD? What specific model are you installing it on? Are you upgrading an earlier version of OS X? Did you do this before attempting to install the upgrade:
Repair 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 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.
An upgrade can take a couple of hours but usually 45-50 minutes would be normal.

I am trying to do a clean install of Snow Leopard on an Intel Macbook Pro. (Need to partition for Boot Camp) I have done it in the past so I know it works but whenever I select the install disk as the boot device it gets stuck on the Apple logo/pinwheel.

Prety much what the question says. HELP!

stephenfromlynchburg wrote:
No the mac had come with Leopard. Then I bought the snow leopard DVD and did a clean install of snow leopard.
If you just stuck the disk into the Leopard Mac and run the upgrader, you didn't do a "fresh install" you basically upgraded from 10.5 to 10.6 leaving all the programs and files intact.
The white Snow Leopard disk was the right one for that machine as it had Leopard (10.5) on it previously.
So you already have Snow Leopard installed, if you want to erase the entire drive (along with all your programs, files and OS X) and want to install Snow Leopard again, you hold the c or option/alt key down and boot the machine off the disk. Then use Disk Utiltiy to erase the entire drive, then quit and install Snow Leopard.
How to erase and install Snow Leopard 10.6
Once Snow Leopard is installed you log in and use Apple Menu > Software Update until clear to get to 10.6.8 and fix security issues.
Now I can't get it to do the install again.
To install Windows into BootCamp, you read and run the BootCamp Assistant located in the Applications > Utiltiies folder
It's important to change the drive format from FAT32 to NTFS before installing Windows using the Windows disk.
Windows is rather complicated to install, if you boot to a blinking line with "press any key to continue" you need to press and hold the power button down and reboot holding the Option/Alt key down to get back into OS X.
https://www.apple.com/support/bootcamp/
If your Windows programs are not going to be as CPU/GPU demanding, you may rather prefer to use a virtual machine instead
Windows in BootCamp or Virtual Machine?

I did a clean install of snow Leopard and now my iWork 09 will not work. does anyone one know where I can download the version for snow Leopard?

I did a clean install of Snow Leopard and now when I reloaded iWork 09 from my timemachine it will not open anything. any ideas.

iWork '09 is still available from the likes of Amazon.
Your experience is why I never trusted downloaded versions when there's a physical DVD available.
It may be possible to reactivate with your code, but I can't advise you as to how.

Microsoft Office 2004 (Word) unable to save files I have been running Office 2004 on my Intel iMac with Snow Leopard for some time and all of a sudden I cannot save a document. Word just stopped responding and I have to force quit. I can open Word and cr

Microsoft Office 2004 (Word) unable to save files
I have been running Office 2004 on my Intel iMac with Snow Leopard for some time and all of a sudden I cannot save a document. Word just stopped responding and I have to force quit. I can open Word and create a new document but I cannot save it. I reinstalled Word but that didn’t help. Then went to the Internet and found at least one other Mac user having the same problem which it suggests is caused by a recent Mac Security Update:
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/mac/forum/macoffice2004-macword/word-2004-wil l-not-open-or-save-documents/b04eb870-9b0d-4f3b-bb47-b122301e36f6
So I check for a new Mac Security Update and sure enough there was one. I downloaded it and now Word seems to be working, as it should. I can both open and save files. The only problem remaining is that when I open Word I get the following error message “An unexpected error occurred while trying to load the Microsoft Framework library”. I contacted Apple but they were unable to help.
How can I get rid of this error message?

Look, I realize you might have to get your machine working, so this is how you revert back.
Restore proceedure to pre-Security Update 2012-001 v 1.0 & v 1.1
#1 Backup your personal data off the machine.
Backup files off the computer (not to TimeMachine). If you don't have a external drive, get one and connect to the USB/Firewire port and simply drag and drop copy your User folder to the external drive, it will copy all your files. It's best to have two backups of your data off the machine when trying to restore.
Disconnect all drives now to prevent any mistakes from occuring.
#2 Reinstall OS X 10.6 from disk
Get out your 10.6 install disk and make sure it's clean and polished (very soft cloth and a bit of rubbing alcohol, no scratches) If your disk is borked, you'll have to order a new one from Apple with your serial number.
Hold c boot off the 10.6 disk (wired keyboard, internal optical drive), use Disk Utility First Aid to >Repair Disk of your internal drive (do not format or erase!!), Quit DU and simply re-install 10.6.
Note: Simply reinstalling 10.6 version from disk (without erasing the drive) only replaces 10.6.8 with 10.6.x and bundled Apple programs, won't touch your files (backup anyway) or most programs, unless they installed a kext file into OS X itself. (only a few on average do this)
#3 Update to 10.6.8 without Security Update 2012-001 v1.0 or v1.1
Reboot and log in, update to 10.6.8 via Software Update, but EXCLUDE THE Security Update 2012-001 by checkinig the details and unchecking the blue check box.
#4 Reinstall any non-working third party programs
When you reboot, make sure to reinstall any programs that require kext files installed into OS X, you'll know, they won't work when you launch them or hang for some reason as they are missing the part they installed into OS X.
If for some freakish reason you get gray screen at any time when booting (possible it might occur when you reinstall older programs), hold the shift key down while booting (Safe Mode, disables kext files) and update your installed third party software so it's compatible with 10.6.8.
https://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
That's it really.

Do I have to get a hard copy of Snow Leopard for my iMac if I already have it for my MacBook?

I have Leopard on my iMac, and Snow Leopard on my MacBook (both with all available updates)~I tried to use the Snow Leopard Install DVD from the MacBook to upgrade the iMac, but it said "Mac OS X 10.6 cannot be installed on this computer." Why??? Do I have to get a hard copy of Snow Leopard for my iMac? Are there different upgrades for the iMac vs. MacBook?
I think I understand that once I have both computers on Snow Leopard, the Lion upgrade would be ONE upgrade for BOTH computers {I'm guessing I would need the client version for at home use}. Also, once Lion was on one computer, would I just go into the Mac App store on the other one and download the upgrade on the other one? But no additional fee would be charged? Lastly, I read about the combo option that includes all updates to Lion since it's release~would that be the main Lion upgrade on the Mac App or would I have to search for it?
Thanks for your help!

The disc you used would have been the install disc that came with your Mac. These can only be used on that as they are made for that specific model.
Make sure your machine meets requirements
Macs with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Intel Core i3, Intel Core i5, Intel Core i7, or Xeon processor.)
At least 2GB of RAM
Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later (Mac OS X 10.6.8 is recommended)
7 GB of free hard drive space is recommended
Once you've purchased it would be a good idea to create a bootable DVD or USB
http://www.macworld.com/article/161069/2011/07/make_a_bootable_lion_installer.ht ml
But you can also go into the purchased section and download again

I had this imac 27" two years ago,updated to snow leopard 10.6.8 and suddenly the imac shut down and able to start again from the beggining,i had the leopard 10.5.8 and my problem is i cannot re-installed my snow leopard.Do i have to update my old leopard

I had this imac 27" two years back(leopard 10.5.8) and no problem was encountered so far! (thanks 4that),i always made an update as far to snow leopard 10.6.8. Unfortunately when i did some application /downloading,the system was off and when i turn it On the logo of an apple only came.So what i did is to start all over again,now i am two years old back with Leo-10.5.8,My problem is i cannot install my snow leopard,it reads that i have to clean tha disc which i did and thru utility disc.Any help please and i really appreciate to every1 helping me to solve the problem.I will keep in touch.
Many thanks! - Angel

BTW,I purchased the SL by retail and originally installed for the first time in my IMAC 27" ,unfortunately during the upgrading of the system,suddenly it was totally gray.then off as it killed my imac.i switch it On but only the apple logo came and waiting for so long.I tried to start from the very beginning,installed the DVD installation that was originally came from imac..it works and i have now the latest version of Leopard 10.5.6...then .8 thru updates. My problem is i cannot re-install my SNOW LEOPARD that i purchased from retail store..proceeded to install in my imac but everytime it ends with 'FAILED-pls clean the disc" i did the cleaning but still the same,:installed failed!-The installer could not copy the necessary support file",i tried booting from the disc holding C down but no luck at all. Anybody can help me please. Many thanks ..

Lion and snow leopard bootcamp, after installing lion snow leopard bootcamp with windows 7 does not boot

Just installed Lion OS on my 2nd mac (on the 1st without an issue) but as I had a partition with windows 7 (installed with Snow Leopard bootcamp).
It seems that Lion OS renamed the Bootcamp partition but I am not able to rename it through OS.
Is there a solution for this or do I need to re-install?
Many thanks for your help
Rui

Hi Jack.........ok ive managed to create a link to that video on how to install bootcamp.....this is the tutorial i used and i managed to gain 100% completion on bootcamp 1st time no messing......like i said in my previous reply did you save the windows support files from apple....(Critical).....ok no point in messing about i suggest you start again from scratch........these are the things i used and YOU will need to complete bootcamp
mem stick or cd-r / dvd-r......original copy disc of win 7 ...i never used an iso i used original disc....allow a minimum of 30gb of space for your win 7 partition.....if you want bootcamp so you can use big programs like windows based games i.e.....Crysis/Call of duty etc etc ..then you will need to consider that you will need to allow a bigger partition to allow your HD to store the files.....this is the reason i installed bootcamp and so i made my partition i have a 750GB HD so i made a partition of 300gb for windows 7 and left the other 450gb for Mac....so you need to partition enough for what you want bootcamp for remember once you get bootcamp working you will need to install ALL Important Windows updates Including Win 7 SP1......once everything is installed you will have bootcamp up and running lovely.....u can then boot up with either win7 or mac......click this link and watch carefully and do exactly as shown ok and you should be fine...if you have any probs contact me again ok.....let me know how you get on ok..:)...http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=fvwp&v=QFIWtXTl4d0&NR=1

Juniper networks VPN: Network Connect will not install under Snow Leopard

Created different thread based on the topics from http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2130935.
With new install of Snow Leopard i get the following when trying to log into SSL VPN "Could not launch. Please restart the web browser and try again"
can not do the workarounds from the above thread since none of the directories exist. Has anyone found a fix for this?

I ran into this too (made matters worse by cleaning out the old juniper install). What I understand clearly now, which other discussions with all the happiness from people saying they fixed it seem to miss completely: Juniper only works if you installed it prior to upgrading 10.6. If you did not, you are possibly hosed.
Now, I was hosed, but I found a workaround. Find a stand-alone installer .dmg out there. As of a couple days ago it was there. I'm sure it still is. Google it. NetworkConnect.dmg.
It is version 6.0.0. It installs correctly. My company runs 6.4.0, which means the first time you open NetworkConnect after installing it prompts you to upgrade. The upgrade worked fine, so long as I was running as root.
Which brings me to my original problem which I've not seen anyone else complain about, which has me worried: after installing, NC only actually connects and functions when I run as root. I'm not talking about su - root or using sudo, I mean having to graphically switch users and log into the computer as the root user (after enabling it...using the scenableroot I think, something like that).
Has anyone else seen this behavior? I can launch Network Connect as my real user but it immediately fails with a software error. 'ncproxyd.error: Failed to gain root privileges'. Driving me batty.

Can't open Virtual Machines after "Archive and Install" of Snow Leopard OS

Hi all,
Please bear with me while I provide a bit of background info for my issue:
I just installed a copy of Adobe Photoshop CS5, during which I was actually forced to archive and install my Snow Leopard because of an installation error. So, I inserted my Snow Leopard disc and let the OS X installer do its thing. I remember, somewhere along the way, an admonishment that this process may somehow corrupt any virtual machines that may be installed, but throwing caution to the wind, I went ahead anyway.
Well, turns out it did indeed corrupt my installation of Parallels 6 somehow, and now none of my VMs work. When I open Parallels, and select File -> Open, then select whichever VM I want, a screen flashes so quickly I can't see it (I assume it says something like "Opening XYZ Virtual Machine"), and then.......nothing.
Thus far, I have tried to uninstall and reinstall Parallels 6 (using the KB article that directs you to delete a bunch of files via Terminal after running the packaged uninstaller) and I deleted my VMs and restored backup copies of them from several months ago.
I'm now at a loss - any ideas what I can do to get Parallels to function again? I don't know if somehow permissions were modified, or if there are any other particulars that the reinstall of Snow Leopard may have made to cause parallels to be unable to open my VMs.
Appreciate any advice in advance!

I think I would look at if you have the latest Parallels;
clone and backup your system and files before doing anything;
boot off 2nd hard drive and run Apple First Aid + (Disk Warrior or DG3 or TechTool Pro 5).
Always be prepared to be able to restore your system to prior point, that could even mean keeping 10.6.4 around for a month until you know 10.6.5 and 3rd party software and drivers all play nice together.
Bottom line: invest in two backup sets and methods; a copy of SuperDuper or CCC; and Disk Warrior.
I've used VBox, Fusion but not Parallels, plus Windows XP Mode, VHDs and VMs under Windows Vista/7.
I'd go back to ERASE and INSTALL and then do all your updates, then start on 3rd party with main packages first (CS5 and others). Off load, save, backup everything and anything you might need first of course.
Last but actually #1: a small 30GB OS X 10.6.5 drive volume (can take the 30GB from one of your backup drive is fine) so you can run the latest DU plus other system maintenance (DVDs get old, out of date, slow to boot, can't use Finder and other programs).

Wiped my entire macbook drive and now snow leopard won't install over snow leopard server, HELP!

I ordered, what I thought, was Snow Leopard a while ago because I was running Leopard and I wanted to get the app store so I could move onto Lion and then Mountain Lion. I ordered the disc over the phone and the woman sent me the Snow Leopard Server instead of just Snow Leopard, I didn't think much about it so I clean installed it and ran it on my unibody macbook for a while. I didn't see much use for the disc anymore seeing that everything was downloadable at this point, so I sold the disc on Ebay and carried on. The server edition started to slow my computer down due to all of its excess applications and what not, and I read online that Lion and Mountain Lion are also very slow on the old unibody Macbooks so I ordered a regular Snow Leopard disc, now available online, and tried to install it. My computer said Snow Leopard cannot be installed over Snow Leopard server so I went to disc utitlity and wiped my entire drive while the OS X Snow Leopard disc was running and trying to install. I went back to the install window and it still said OS X Snow leopard cannot be installed over Snow Leopard Server so I shut down my computer and tried to turn it back on and I all I got was a blinking folder with a question mark in it, what do I do????????
P.S. All of my content is backed up on an external harddrive so I am all good with that.

Drive Preparation
1. 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 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. 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 Partition 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.
7. After formatting has finished quit DU and return to the installer. Complete the Snow Leopard installation.

Installing osx (snow) leopard?

I recently received a powerbook g4 (1.7ghz, 1.5gb ram, although only 512mb is being recognized at the moment) and for some reason, I do not have terminal. I do alot of programming, so the mac is just about useless to me without it. So i was thinking I would just upgrade it to 10.5 (leopard) with the install disc i have for my imac.
Will this work?
My gf also has a brand new imac with snow leopard, so would i be able to use her install disc on this powerbook?
Or, even simpler, is there some way I can simply re-download Terminal? I dont have the original install disc for this powerbook, as it is only on loan to me.
Thank you for any help.

Mac OS X on orange or gray discs that list a specific type of Mac, (e.g., iMac) are customized for that Hardware and do not include the drivers for every Mac. They were shipped with, and will only install on, the listed hardware model type.
"Full Retail" CD/DVD (with artistic designs like Jaguar-fur Big X, black background with large Silver-white X, or White with Snow Leopard face) contain drivers for all supported hardware that can run that version of Mac OS X.
"CPU Drop in DVD" requires the complete, working previous system installed. They allow you to upgrade your already-installed system to the next version. These are shipped with a new Mac when a new Mac OS is released after the new Mac was built. No one at Apple will support these discs for other than their intended use. I suggest you avoid these also.

XCODE 3.2 INSTALL ON SNOW LEOPARD FAILED.

I have just upgraded my Mac Pro 8-Core computer with the new Apple RAID card. I have two 1 TB hard drives created in a mirror RAID 1 with two 500 GB volumes.
Snow Leopard installed just fine on the new RAID set. I have green lights on all raid components as shown by the RAID Utility.
I tried to install XCODE 3.2 off the Snow Leopard install DVD (five pack version) and it acts like it is installing the package until you are down to the final 1 minute of the install and then comes up with a window stating "The Installation Failed". I don't know what the issue is.
I then decided to download XCODE version 3.1.4 off the Apple website, and that package installed successfully without any problems. I then decided to go back to the install DVD and install the "other optional software packages" and of the packages that I installed they installed just fine.
Is there some work around to the XCODE 3.2 install?
Thanks
Don-L

I FIXED IT.....
ALL WORKS FINE NOW.
WHAT I HAD TO DO.
1) INSTALL THE OLD OPERATING SYSTEM (INSTALL DISCS THAT CAME WITH THE COMPUTER) ON TO MY NEWLY CREATED RAID DRIVES.
2) PATCH THE OPERATING SYSTEM UP TO CURRENT PATCH LEVELS.
3) INSTALLED THE OLD XCODE THAT IS ON THE ORIGINAL INSTALL CD'S.
4) INSTALL THE NEW SNOW LEOPARD OPERATING SYSTEM.
5) INSTALL XCODE 3.2 PACKAGE INCLUDED WITH THE SNOW LEOPARD CD.
6) ALL SHOULD WORK FINE.
I SUSPECT THAT IN THE PACKAGE INSTALL ROUTINE THE INSTALL CHECKSUM DID NOT CONFIRM A VALID INSTALL OF SNOW LEOPARD OVER THE ORIGINAL COMPUTER OPERATING SYSTEM.
THIS WAS TIME CONSUMING BUT EVERY STEP PRODUCED A "BIG GREEN CHECK MARK" CONFIRMING THE INSTALLS WORKED CORRECTLY.
I NOW ALSO HAVE WINDOWS XP RUNNING UNDER PARALLELS DESKTOP 4.0 FOR MAC RUNNING CORRECTLY ALSO.

Can't install snow leopard on partition after upgrading to lion

I rushed out too early to install Lion via Apple Apps store. Now, I realize that Rosetta is gone and so are my options to use older apps. As I was reading on the web and Apple Support, I have tried various things and get a window saying that I can't install snow leopard.
I have never partition my hard drive, but using disk utility I created a partition called "Snow Leopard." It divided my HD in half which is okay. I closed the disk utility window, rebooted holding down the "C" key, and saw the OS X Install DVD. When I select it a window pops up saying, "You can't use this version of the appl inst Mac OS X with this version of Mac OS X. You have installed Mac OS X 23.1.1."
Before downloading lion, I made a backup of my existing HD using Time Machine to an external HD. When I open up a saved version dated a month ago, I see that the applications that were working in snow leopard now have the icon circle saying that it is not supported by lion. This is strange since I used Time Machine to back up my HD, then turned off the app before downloading lion. Even older versions saved on the external HD show the circle.
I read about lion and the "Recovery HD," but when I hold down the Command-R key nothing happens when I restart my computer. It also talks about using the option key but that does not work. It talks about reinstalling lion using this system, but I don't see it working.
How can I install snow leopard on my new partition, then I would go to "Software Updates," to get the latest version, or use one of the versions on my external HD to have both operating system.
Thanks,
DaisyMay

Hi Scottiemn,
As I was trying different things to make a partition on my HD, I made notes as to what I did, and I finally got it to work. I will try to explain what I did.
Before installing “Lion,” I backed up Snow Leopard using Time Machine to my external Seagate HD. I installed “Lion,” and found out that I could not use some of my old apps, so I did the following.
Since I am running “Lion,” I opened up disk utility and selected my MacHD (1TB), then I selected partition, and it showed “Macintosh HD” under the partition information name. I believe I selected the plus, + and it divided my HD space in half, and I named it Snow Leopard.
I then installed the Snow Leopard DVD, and restarted my computer holding down the “C” key, I held it down for about 30 seconds or more and then took my finger off of the key. As I waited I finally saw that I was on the install DVD, and on the top menu bar I saw “Utilities.” I had my external Seagate HD mounted on my desk top before I restarted my computer, I selected the “Utilities,” on the menu bar and it gave me the option to back up from Time Machine, I selected my external Seagate HD to the newly created partition I named Snow Leopard and I said “Yes.” I followed the instructions and after it was done, I went to the menu bar and selected System Preferences, System, Startup Disk, and selected to start up with Snow Leopard. On my desktop, I can see two Hard Drives, one is Macintosh HD with “Lion,” and the other is Snow Leopard.
Then, I started up my computer and I was on the Snow Leopard partition and I saw all of my apps working. I then went back to the menu bar and selected System Preferences, System, Startup Disk, and selected to start up with “Lion,” and restarted my computer and I was running “Lion.”
I am not sure why I was not able to use the DVD of SL before, but somehow I got it to work, and I hope that I have explained what I did above.
One thing, when I installed “Lion,” from the app store, I did not make a bootable DVD of the application. I went back to the app store and downloaded “Lion” again and kept it in the dock until I got Snow Leopard to work. I burned a DVD of “Lion,” and so I have a backup of it.
Since my Seagate HD has only 250 GB of space and it is an EIDE HD 7,200 rpm using an OWC Mercury Elite FW400/USB2 with the Oxford chipset 911 enclosure which I bought in 2008, I decided that since I now have my 27 inch iMac quad core i5 with 1TB that I needed a larger hard drive.
I researched the web and decided to go back to OWC and just bought a 2.0TB OWC Mercury Elite Pro “Quad Interface” 64MB with eSATA/FW800/FW400/USB2.0 with 7,200 rpm speed for $219.00. I partitioned it for Time Machine, and Carbon Copy Cloner.
I ran Time Machine, and both partitions “Lion, and Snow Leopard” are on the Time Machine partition and both HD’s are under the Carbon Copy Cloner.
I am self taught on my many iMac’s over the years, and I go to the forums to ask questions and follow the helpful hints to resolve my problems. I carefully try different things and write down what I did so I don’t repeat things.
I hope that I have explained what I did, and hopefully it will work for you.
When I want to run SL, I select in the System Preferences to start up from that disk, when I want to run Lion, I go back and select that and start up my computer running Lion.
Since I have many old apps that Rosetta uses to open them up in SL I wanted to keep that operating system. I will go back now that I have everything working and see if I really need them. I won’t rush to remove my SL partition that I created, but in time if I don’t need the older apps then I may clean out my system and just run Lion.
I run Lion now all of the time, but when I need to go back to SL, I now have the option.
Good Luck,
DaisyMay

Missing install disc (Snow Leopard) for OS X upgrade

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