This is the best method to install a new version of Studio!

Question

Do it cleanly. By this I mean create a new fresh startup disk for the install of Studio. Whether for Studio 1 ,2 or 3, trust me. this method will get you to a really stable FCS system.
1. Backup everything you want to keep if you're using the same drive you've been using as your startup disk. Clone it if you'd like to save time digging around for the files you want to keep. Or buy a new drive for your tower and use it as a startup disk, keeping the earlier one until you've transferred all you need from it. (I have no less than 3 startup disks for my single tower here) One is a 250 gig drive, the other two reside on their own partitions of a second physical drive. I use one system for beta testing, reinstalling the OS each beta test, and one "working" system for daily real work environments, and yet another "backup" system which is there just in case I need it. (but never really do actually).
2. Load your latest OS disk, and restart your computer from it holding down the c key during a boot up, or selecting it from the startup disk control panel in the apple system prefs.
3. Once your computer starts up from the OS disk, select "optional installs" from the button you'll see in the window. From there select "erase and install" and install will begin.
4. After the OS install, run Software update and go all the way with it. There's nada out there that's not OK to install.
5. Install Studio. If it's an upgrade version, no problem to not install the earlier version you're upgrading from. Just have it's serial number handy because FCS will ask for it as well as the upgrade serial number.
6. Run Software upgrade again to make sure all of your FCS apps are up to date. INSTALL EVERYTHING that Software Update proposes to install.
7. You'll be a very happy camper.. it will also feel like your whole computer is faster because of this clean install of the OS you did...
It's not impossible to get a fine upgrade done without doing it as I've described above, but with the latest round of problems being posted about a new install, I gotta say that this clean method will fix all the problems being posted here and elsewhere. Why even bother taking the risk? What I've posted above will be THE WAY to make sure you're system is running right.
I've espoused this method of install any time you upgrade your OS (i.e., Tiger to Leopard or the upcoming Leopard to Snow Leopard upgrades about ready to hit us all) OR any time you install a new version of FCS or even a FIRST install of the studio. It's not all that time consuming, and running pro level software really demands that the system install is totally clean.
I oversee about 75 FCS stations at the Colorado Film School, we do this clean install every semester (4 months) on the systems there, and really have incredibly stable setups. Never really having the problems that get reported all over the forums... not only that, they boot fast, run fast, and just work.
When software companies test new versions of their software in beta, it's always asked by all software manufacturers to install their beta over a clean fresh OS... always... so there's a lesson here to learn from them, and also a hint: nobody chooses the "upgrade" button for a new version of said software, rather they are testing over CLEAN installs only. Makes perfect sense then to install new versions of software as complicated as this is over a clean new OS install.
Jerry

Answer 1

I fully support Jerry's advice. Though it is a little like the old auto repair manual I once had. If you looked in the section under "clutch replacement", it started out like this ...
*Clutch Replacement procedure.*
• elevate car - be sure to use jack stands to support vehicle
• remove engine
• with clutch pressure plate exposed ....
Of course, they never spelled out all that was involved in the "remove engine" step. So, in the interest of adding more detail to Jerry's advice on the "erase and install" process for those who have not done it before and might be intimidated - read on.
• Make a list of all Applications to install. Which ones do you need? Go through your Applications and Utilities folder and note which ones you'll want to reinstall. Note the version.
(I don't know about you, but I had a shocking number of apps I downloaded, used for a few times and never used again. Forget installing these disused apps.)
• If you are upgrading from a PPC to an intel machine, you'll want to know if the apps are UB or PPC. Upgrading your PPC software to UB can be a significant cost in a PPC to intel conversion. Know what you are getting into - do a search before installation to see if there is a UB version available. You can find out whether an app is PPC or UB by looking in System Profiler>Software>Applications. This window will also tell you the current installed version number. Generate a .pdf file of it and have everything listed for your records.
• In the list, note whether is was a download or you have a disk. If it was a download, find the DMG or installer package and copy it to an external firewire drive. Put it in a folder titled - Apps to be installed - or something easily identifiable.
• If you need to go back to a previous version (e.g. QT 6.5.2) download the dmg file BEFORE you start the installation process.
• In the list, note if the application is a full install or an UPGRADE. If an upgrade, make sure you have the previous version's disks (as well as the serial numbers - see below).
If the UPGRADE version does not require the previous version to be present - eg when installing the upgrade version of FCP 7, DO NOT install earlier software. All you'll need is the previous serial number. The way to figure this out is to try to install the newest version. If it needs the previous version present before proceeding, the install process will tell you that.
Some upgrades will require that a version of the previous app is on the disk. If this is the case, when you install the first version, simply install the minimum so the app will be on the hard drive. You will need to do this because there will be NOTHING on the disk after you do your clean erase.
• Referencing your list, find ALL your disks before you start. This includes previous versions if you are unsure whether they will be needed.
• Spend some time looking through this forum for Professional Application installation issues. The classic example is a conflict between Logic and FCP. Install FCP first and you'll have no issues.
• Sort your list into an installation sequence. Lay out your disks in that order.
• Referencing the list, make sure you have ALL your serial numbers including those you've downloaded. I've purchased a number of programs on line and the only documentation of the serial number was an email. All those are kept in a dedicated folder in Mac Mail. For serial numbers that arrived via electronic means, use cut and paste instead of re-typing whenever possible. This will prevent errors in transcription.
In making the list, TEXT EDIT works ok, (I use Excel). Text edit has the benefit of being easily readable on any mac. Print the list out for reference, put a copy on a flash drive or a firewire drive where you can access it to cut and past serial numbers during the installation process.
• Recognize this is going to take some time. Ranting, drinking too much coffee, swearing, sitting in front of the computer watching the progress bar, etc will not make things go faster. All it will to is put you in a really bad frame of mind. Do it over a weekend when you can be multitasking. While you are cleaning off the mountains of paper on your desk or raking the yard, you can take regular breaks to check on progress.
Process -
• Download Carbon Copy Cloner or one of the other backup utilities and do a full backup of your existing system drive to an external firewire drive. Make the drive bootable. *Do not* cheap out on this as this is your insurance policy. If you forget something or can not find a serial number, you often can find it and copy it from the backup system to the newly installed version. Or, if things go horribly wrong, you can simply copy the old system back to your computer and pick up where you left off.
If you have a MacPro or G5 tower, an alternative to cloning your existing system disk is to pick up a new hard drive to use as the clean new system disk. Your existing system disk will be the clone.
• Once you have gathered and organized all the materials and backed up the drive or installed the new system drive ...
• Insert your OSX installation disk and boot the computer from the disk (Jerry explains how)
• Erase the hard drive. Use the ZEROs option as this will map out any bad sectors. This will take time. See the note above.
• Install the OS. If it is an upgrade install, see the note above regarding upgrade installs. Repair Permissions and then run the updates. Repair Permissions.
• Install your applications following your list. Make sure to Repair Permissions after each install and update..
Have fun, be prepared for a few minor glitches. If you multitask, you can get the garage/ or office cleaned out and your computer rebuilt. In all honesty, this process took all weekend plus time in the next week as I discovered apps that needed additional updates, configuration settings, etc. No doubt it would have been faster if I was sitting at the console the whole time, but I was able to get the office cleaned up and organized (which also makes ME much faster). Overall it was a very slick process.
When you have a fully functioning system again (you have tested all applications and everything works), CLONE the new system and put your info, your notes and the disks in a safe place - once you've done this once, why go through the pain of organizing this stuff again ...
Now, rejoice in a much faster machine with a lot more free disk space.
Cheers,
x