Quicksilver won't start up from 10.3 install disks...sort of

I have a Quicksilver/Dual 800/1.5G RAM/OS 10.2.8 that I am trying to upgrade to 10.3. I have the retail install disks, but when I try to restart from them, the computer whirs and spins, the power light comes on...then nothing happens. Nothing ever comes up on the screen, good or bad. I need to upgrade to install some newer software. There are supposedly no firmware updates needed. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Jeff

Chris:
I just had the same issue on my son's MacBook. As long as you have a wired keyboard, the following will work.
1. Shut down the computer if it is on.
2. Press the power button to start the computer.
3. Immediately press and hold the Command (Apple) key and the "s" key for single-user mode.
4. Type mount -uw / (then press the Return Key) wait for next line to appear with # root/
(there is a space between t and - and another space between w and /)
5. Then Type "passwd" (without quotation marks then press the Return Key)
6. Enter new password (this will be for the root user account) (watch your fingers when you type because it doesn't show what you are typing, then hit the Return Key after you type it.
It will prompt you to retype the new password again, so retype it again and then hit the Return Key) wait for next line to appear...
7. Then Type "reboot" (without the quotes and hit the Return Key)
after the computer restarts and comes up with the login window....
8. Login with any of your usernames just to get the desktop up.
9. After desktop comes up choose System Preferences, then choose accounts. Unlock if you have to and using the username: root ..... and the password you just setup in the single user mode You now should be able to make users including your existing user account an admin.
After you log back in under your real account, it is advisable to deactivate the root user account. To do this,
1. Click the Finder icon in the Dock.
2. From the Go menu, choose Utilities.
3. Open Directory Utility.
4. Click the lock in the Directory Utility window if you need to unlock the utility.
5. Enter an administrator account name and password, then click OK.
6. Choose Disable Root User from the Edit menu.
Hope this helps.
David

Similar Messages

  • Can't start up from 10.5 Install Disk, but can from MB Pro Install Disk?

    Many thanks in advance for your attention.
    1. I was going to Verify (and then maybe Repair) HD by starting up my computer from the OS 10.5 install disk, but my laptop just blacked out (froze) each time I tried to start up from the 10.5 install disk. I tried starting up holding down the "c" key, the "option" key, and the "shift" key.
    Each time my laptop just blacked out and froze. Odd as the 10.5 install disk has very rarely ben used and has no visible scratches, etc. I think I haven't used it since the original install.
    2. So I tried instead the original Install Disk 1 that came factory specific with the MacBook Pro (which also has 10.5 and iLife, etc. on it). Held down the "c" key and I was able to boot from the Disk (and do a Verify Disk, etc.). No problems at all.
    Anyone know what could be up with my OS 10.5 Install Disk? Is there a way to test if the Disk itself is somehow damaged?
    Thank you.

    Thanks again for your response.
    I am all for these forums in helping people out. I know some questions/ answers can't be all black and white.
    But - in the interests of clarity for others out there -
    1. Again, I was not trying to INSTALL from the 10.5 Install Disk.
    2. I was merely trying to insert it and use it to VERIFY my HD.
    3. I know one cannot do an "update" INSTALL from (for example) a 10.4 Disk if one already has 10.5 installed.
    4. But - through the incarnations of 10.1, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4 - I had always been able to use the OS X retail install disk (no matter how old) to check out my HD, even if my HD had (for example) 10.3.5 on it and my Install Disk was just 10.3.
    According to the link William posted, this may be different (I would guess on rare occasions), starting with Leopard.
    5. But, given my history through all the incarnations of OS X, I was puzzled when it seemed my laptop could not read my very unused, mint 10.5 OS Install Disk. A mystery. But when I washed a seemingly flawless disk, it worked afterwards. So something must have been on it I couldn't see.

  • G4 won't start unless from a restart or pmu reset

    my G4 won't start unless from a restart or, if the computer has been shut down, I have to reset the pmu - with inside button or by removing battery.
    Can anyone think of why this happens? What goes on with a shut down that doesn't with a restart? With the problem, nothing happens after the chime and I must hard shut-down, unplug and reset pmu, then it's fine.
    Thanks for any thoughts or suggestions.
    Henry

    well, I can't find anything wrong with it. maybe my logic board is shot. i guess i'll take it in to tek serve or an apple store and see if they can figure it out.
    thanks for the suggestions, tom.
    henry

  • My ibook g4 won't start anymor from the harddisk. so I tried to reinstall the system from the orginial system cd. Doesn't work. It says the system cd is damaged. What should I do?

    my ibook g4 won't start anymor from the harddisk. so I tried to reinstall the system from the orginial system cd. Doesn't work. It says the system cd is damaged. What should I do?

    I would question that error message if the Mac OS X 10.5 DVD doesn't work, either.
    What error message(s) did you get with the Mac OS X 10.5 DVD? Is the Mac OS X 10.5 DVD the full retail install DVD, an upgrade DVD, or a DVD that came with another Mac?

  • My startup DVD that came with my Imac wont mount so I cant start up from it to run disk utility

    my startup DVD that came with my Imac wont mount so I cant start up from it to run disk utility

    Check that your computer is compatible with Mountain Lion/Mavericks.
    To check the model number hold down the option/alt key, go to the Apple menu and select System Information.
    iMac (Mid 2007 or newer) model number 7,1 or higher
    MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer) model number 5,1 or higher
    MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer) model number 3,1 or higher
    MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer) model number 2,1 or higher
    Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer) model number 3,1 or higher
    Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer) model number 3,1 or higher
    Xserve (Early 2009) model number 3,1 or higher
    Your Mac needs:
    OS X v10.6.8 or OS X Lion already installed
    2 GB or more of memory (More is better - 4 GB minimum seems to be the consensus)
    8 GB or more of available space
    Check to make sure your applications are compatible. PowerPC applications are no longer supported after 10.6.
    Application Compatibility
    Applications Compatibility (2)

  • Can't startup from OS9 retail install disk on iMac G3 DV

    Hi All,
    I'm trying to bring my old iMac DV (slot load) back to life and am having a problem trying to install OS9 from the retail install disk (I don't have the original disks that came with the system). Hardware-wise, all is ok with the iMac. However, when I try to start the system from the OS9 install CD (by holding down C during startup) the machine refuses to start from the CD. The disk is is good shape and I am able to startup from CD if I use any of my OSX install disks, but I can't get it to start for the OS9 install disk. As I said, it is the retail version of OS9 so I don't know if that has something to do with it.
    Any help would be appreciated.
    Thanks - Josh

    Hi, Josh -
    An iMac DV (Slot Loading) model originally came with OS 8.6, which means that it should be able to use any version retail OS 9 Install CD (white label with gold 9).
    Since it boots okay to an OSX install disk, that the machine's firmware has almost certainly been updated, and that the optical drive is okay. Nonetheless, I would suggest using an audio CD cleaning disk in the drive to clean its lenses.
    That pretty much leaves the OS 9 Install CD as the problem. Check it carefully - unlike audio disks, the Mac is far more fussy about a data disk such as an install CD. Make sure there are no scratches, no smudges or dirt on it at all.

  • Can I boot up an intel imac running os lion from a snowleopard install disk so that I can run my old power pc software

    Can I boot up an intel imac running os lion from a snowleopard install disk so that I can run my old power pc software

    If the Snow Leopard install disk came with or otherwise is compatible with your iMac, you can boot from it, but that won't allow you to run software (other than the utilities that are part of the installation set). You will have to install Snow Leopard, either on a partition on the iMac's internal hard drive or on an external drive, before you will be able to run applications.
    Regards.

  • Reinstalling MacOS from the original install disks

    I have a late 2009 Mac mini which I want to sell, so trying to install the original OS (Snow Leopard) from the original install disks. When loading the disk and either trying the option key or the C key the disk simply runs for 10 secs then ejects itself.
    I've tried other disks in the drive with no problems.
    Any ideas?
    I've done this procedure several times over the years on other macs and had no problem, so fairly sure I'm doing it correctly!

    Well it took 12 hours to free the space on the hard drive, but completed fine. But still I have the same problems, so borrowed a friend's superdrive, and, it worked, to a point! I know find running through the installation disc setup, when I get to the point where you select your hard drive to install to it the HD has a yellow triangle over it and it says you can't install to this drive!
    I ran the repair function on the drive and it says all is OK.
    Sorry about this but any further ideas? I'm on the verge of taking to a Apple repairer but would rather sort it myself it possible.
    Thanks for your help

  • Quicksilver won't start after crash

    Intermediate Mac user with a significant problem...
    So, my Quicksilver started having problems a few weeks ago - when I would startup, I would get a message saying I needed to restart the computer. After finally getting the Leopard install disk back (we had a family pack), I diagnosed and fixed the problem (it was an invalid leaf count, whatever that means). The computer ran fine again for a day or so, but soon after I sent the install disk away to my brother-in-law, I'd get the folder with the question mark when I tried to startup. After trying to hook it up to my MacBook as a Firewire drive or to use the Disk Utility that came with the MacBook install DVD for a few days, now the computer won't startup at all.
    I tried zapping the PRAM but had no luck. At the Apple Store, they told me that the power supply was dead and that they no longer supported computers this old. I wouldn't be too hurt if the computer were dead (I was getting ready to replace it anyway), but I'd like to get the data without paying for a data recovery service if possible. So, here are my basic questions:
    1. I made a Time Machine backup to an external drive when I upgraded to Leopard, but my External Drive filled up and I stopped the backup. However, I still have the Backups.backupdb folder on my External Drive. Is there anyway to extract the files to the External Drive or to my MacBook? (I also posted this in the Time Machine forum, but have not heard a reply yet).
    2. What options do I have for recovering the data? Keep in mind that my power supply seems defunct. I discussed some options with my brother-in-law and he suggested buying an external partition for the drive (or something) - is this a good idea or is there a better solution out there?
    Grant

    You may have one or more fans that are not working. My Quicksilver recently would not start up. Two of three internal fans were dead (CPU fan and PSU fan). With only the case fan left to cool everything, the processors quickly became too hot to function reliably. Replacing both fans got the machine working again.
    If the Apple employee who diagnosed your machine saw that the PSU fan was not turning, that may have led to a diagnosis that a new PSU was needed. But the PSU fan can be removed and replaced on its own, for perhaps 10% the cost of a new PSU.

  • G4 MDD won't start up from a shutdown...

    If I shutdown the MDD G4 from the Shutdown menu, it shuts down normally. However, if I push the button to start it again, it won't start up. No light, nothing. I have to pull the plug, plug it back in, then the power button will start it up.
    Battery is good. I have reset the PMU, the PRAM. No change. Any thoughts anyone?

    Can't say how to go about repairing it.
    Replacement sources are:
    We Love Macs
    eBay
    Part not listed, but contact Mac Pro
    Check with LEM (Low End Mac Swap)
    Just to add, the three most likely sources of the trouble are, the 3.6v battery, power supply, and the power button panel. Power panel reports are almost as common as power supply problem reports.
    Good Luck!

  • Won't start up from 'Install Disc'

    I ran Disk Utilities because my iMac's fan kept running. Disk Utilities said I had HD problems and needed to start up from the Install Disc. I have tried holding down 'D' and tried changing the start up disk settings, even starting up pressing C and as a final go... Command-Option-P-R..... still not starting up on the install dvd. All I get is a white screen and the DVD clicks for a bit and then gives up.
    I just can't seem to get past that white screen!
    Please give me a hint!
    P.S. I have even tried different install DVD's!

    I am having very similar problems.
    iMac has worked fine for 3 years. Today, it suddenly froze while I was on the web. I had to force it down by holding down the button on the back. When I tried to start, it would just sit on the Apple icon + progress icon. Or it would get to the blue screen and then just freeze at the blue screen. No system at all.
    I was able to restart in safe mode once. Things seemed to be working fine. But the second I started Safari, the progress icon came up (the one for my mouse), would never go away, and I couldn't do anything. Had to once again shut down by holding down the button on the back.
    After that, it will not restart in safe mode (hangs at the apple icon or never even gets to the apple icon). It will not restart from the Install disc. Same thing, just hangs at the apple icon.
    We don't use this machine for anything except browsing the web. No big programs. No games. No movies. Nada. It's so frustrating to have this problem.

  • Windows 7 Won't Start Up from Boot Camp

    I got a new 21.5" iMac and set up a boot camp partition for a Windows 7 64-bit installation. It worked. I installed the latest boot camp drivers into the Windows 7, which was wonderful because it fixed the display to match my iMac's specs. Then I installed the latest Parallels 5 and had it recognize that Windows 7 system, and have been using it without problem. But I tried this evening to use boot camp to start up the Windows 7 system by itself and although I got a choice of Mac OS or Windows via the option-startup process, and selected the Windows startup, Windows 7 won't start up that way. I just get a black screen with a blinking white horizontal line in the upper-left corner. I keep waiting but it never gets past this. Tried turning it off and starting again, still no luck. Booted back into Mac side and Parallels VM of the installation still works.
    Any help appreciated. I should still be able to boot into Windows 7 straight using boot camp, no?

    I should add that I just installed 8GB of RAM to the 4GB the iMac came with. Possibly now that the total machine has a 12GB of RAM the Windows 7 system is confused and can't start up?

  • 9500 just won't start up from CD

    I have an old 9500/132 with a 500Mhz G3 processor, ATA card, USB cards and 368Mb of memory. I started to clean the machine up with Tech Tool so I could send the machine to one of my sons. It took absolutely forever to optimize the HDD that contains OS9.1 (two other HDDs are blank). Afterwards the machine didn't want to start, so I inserted the OS disk to reinstall the system. The machine froze partially through the reinstall and refused to start again, giving an error message (sorry, I didn't write it down and now can't remember). So I unplugged the HDD and tried to install OS9.1 on the 2Gb SCSI drive. There was no G3 card software loaded and the machine didn't want to load the OS. So I replaced the G3 Sonnet processor with the original 132 processor, removed the USB cards and the ATA card. Now the machine is essentially in its stock conifguration.
    But I still can't get the OS to load. The machine will start and get the Mac happy face and go no further. I have to force restart and then it gets past the happy face to the welcome screen and stops. Another forced restart and it gets a little further in the start-up process and quits. After numerous restarts I can get to the install screen and even get through the agreements, but after clicking start to install 9.1 the machine quits, just freezes. I've even tried installing OS8.5, but with no success.
    I've pulled every bit of memory, re-installed some of it, moved it from slot to slot, cleaned all the connectors, reset the CUDA switch probably 12 times and nothing seems to make any difference. I've had the mother board out at least 15 times moving memory around. What am I missing?
    Thanks for any ideas!
    Jon

    Jon
    As a fellow-sufferer from having dragged a 9500 into the third millennium (400MHz/1MB/1024MB, with SCSI-2 and -3), I can sympathize with your problems. There are two observations that I can recommend to you for the future. An 'Apple' HDD is only a function of a Macintosh-style drive partitioning recognition (presumably in a drive's ROM), and in an OEM drive, it refers to the presence of the necessary partitions when the machine arrives in your hands. Most disk utilities (ATTO, FWB, Intech, LaCie) are perfectly capable of doing a Mac (Apple) partitioning when they are directed to do so, if that is not already present. That is, the utility can overwrite a FAT or other scheme and provide one for Mac, and also provide a suitable driver on the drive. Apple's native software (Drive Setup) is not quite so adept when it finds that another driver is already present.
    Although the Sonnet extension for G3-in-place-of-a-604 upgrade requires no configuration (as opposed to the software for a MAXpowr upgrade), it is necessary in both cases that the extension should load first after the EM Extension. For that to happen, there must be a space as the first character in the extension's name. That ensures that the upgrade card is active from the outset, which is shown by an extra component ('Sonnet' or 'MAXpowr') attached to or within the OS's splash screen. If you haven't been seeing that, the extension may be loading far too late in the process, and thereby occasioning much of the reported trouble. You may be being too harsh in your judgment of the Sonnet daughtercard, and thereby throwing away a useful card. I use a Sonnet G3 card in a PB1400 and several L2 G3 cache cards in 5400/5500s, with perfect satisfaction, as well as MAXpowr cards in several other machines.

  • Won't start up from 10.5 DVD after Leopard install to add Admin user

    I have just installed Leopard (10.5) on my G4. Now, I cannot upgrade to 10.5.1 or make any changes because I am now just an ordinary user without any Administrator privileges. I try to start up from the 10.5 DVD but it asks for Administrator password (of which there is none). I am totally locked out of my own machine because of this Leopard (cool name--useless software, very upset about it). What now?

    Chris:
    I just had the same issue on my son's MacBook. As long as you have a wired keyboard, the following will work.
    1. Shut down the computer if it is on.
    2. Press the power button to start the computer.
    3. Immediately press and hold the Command (Apple) key and the "s" key for single-user mode.
    4. Type mount -uw / (then press the Return Key) wait for next line to appear with # root/
    (there is a space between t and - and another space between w and /)
    5. Then Type "passwd" (without quotation marks then press the Return Key)
    6. Enter new password (this will be for the root user account) (watch your fingers when you type because it doesn't show what you are typing, then hit the Return Key after you type it.
    It will prompt you to retype the new password again, so retype it again and then hit the Return Key) wait for next line to appear...
    7. Then Type "reboot" (without the quotes and hit the Return Key)
    after the computer restarts and comes up with the login window....
    8. Login with any of your usernames just to get the desktop up.
    9. After desktop comes up choose System Preferences, then choose accounts. Unlock if you have to and using the username: root ..... and the password you just setup in the single user mode You now should be able to make users including your existing user account an admin.
    After you log back in under your real account, it is advisable to deactivate the root user account. To do this,
    1. Click the Finder icon in the Dock.
    2. From the Go menu, choose Utilities.
    3. Open Directory Utility.
    4. Click the lock in the Directory Utility window if you need to unlock the utility.
    5. Enter an administrator account name and password, then click OK.
    6. Choose Disable Root User from the Edit menu.
    Hope this helps.
    David

  • Need help. Mac won't start up from HDD

    My problem is: I went to system preferences, chose network startup from the Startup menu. My mac rebooted itself and tried to connect from a network drive. After it didn't find any network drive I force restarted it. When it booted up again it was the flashing question mark folder on the start-up gray screen. I followed everyone i knows advice to try to start it up from the start-up disk.
    I also tried holding Apple-s. I held down the command button, option button, and control button for a least 45 seconds each. Nothing has worked.
    I am 100% positive that it is because the computer will not start up from the Internal Hard drive, Which i am also 100% possitive is not broken or corrupt. I can use all the advice and solutions you guys will give me.
    Thank You,
    Brody6786
    p.s. the following keys don't work on my keyboard:
    both shifts, z, a, q, 1, f1, delete.
    I have an external keyboard but it seems it doesn't turn on until the gray screen appears.

    HI,
    When it booted up again it was the flashing question mark folder on the start-up gray screen.
    That can mean several things. One, your Mac can't find a System Folder to boot from. Or two, the hard drive is failing or failed.
    Go here: A flashing question mark appears when you start your Mac
    Carolyn
    Message was edited by: Carolyn Samit

Maybe you are looking for

  • Adobe Bridge CS5 is frozen and will not open files?

    Adobe Bridge CS5 is frozen and will not open files?

  • Error Code 0x80070035 - The network path was not found, Windows Server 2008 SP2

    I have bee receiving following "error code 0x80070035 - The network path was not found" when trying to open file shares in both directions using Windows Server 2008 Standard SP2 at both ends. The issue is identical to the KB article KB958285, however

  • Restored emac / itunes missing

    Just restored my emac as I wait for my new mac mini to arrive. I have a partioned EHD with a clone of the emac content and the other half with 100 GB of itunes. What would have to be moved from the EHD clone to get my itunes to play. The emac recogni

  • Duplicating An Account inside Mail

    I have a perfectly good GMail setup inside Mail that I want to duplicate inside the client to use for another account. What's the best way to go about this? Cheers.

  • TREX - ECC 6.0 searches in different tables

    Hi, have some search related questions: - Is it possible to use TREX for combined searches from non-indexed tables in ECC 6.0 (where data is stored in different areas such as material, classification, BOM, customers, vendors, address data and so on)?