Unable to boot PowerBook G4 (15-inch Aluminum) in target disk mode

I wanted to move some files from my G4 AGP to my faster G4 Powerbook. When I try to start the G4 Powerbook in target mode I get the t on the screen and then see a bar along the bottom center of the screen which contains a little red bar and then it shuts down.
When I try to restart, the Powerbook is dead and I have to reset the PMU. It will then start up normally.
There is currently no battery for the Powerbook and I am running with the power adapter only. Could this be the problem?

The 15" Powerbooks have two batteries. One is the one you can remove from the bottom of the machine without any screws, the other you need detailed instructions of the computer's interior and special parts to replace. The user accessible battery will only impact Target Disk Mode if you have no A/C power to connect to the wall outlet, and it also is out of juice. The non-user accessible battery if it gets more than 4 years old, can impact Target Disk Mode accessibility even if you are plugged into A/C power from the wall outlet. If your power brick is frayed, it may not be giving power to the computer, or if the power manager is damaged it may not give power to the computer. See my FAQ*:
http://www.macmaps.com/frayguide.html
Consider how old your machine is, and likelihood of one problem versus the other. If you are in the U.S., these places may be cheaper to replace the non-user accessible battery than Apple or other authorized service technicians:
http://www.dttservice.com/
http://www.powerbookresq.com/
http://www.microdocusa.com/
http://www.macspecialist.com/
http://www.techrestore.com/
If you feel up to the challange, you can order the parts and replace that battery yourself with instructions from http://www.ifixit.com/
- * Links to my pages may give me compensation.

Similar Messages

Can I boot an iMac from my PB in Target Disk Mode?

I'm housesitting at my parents this weekend, and would like to know if I can bootup my Powerbook G4 in Target Disk mode and then use it as the Startup volume on my parents Intel iMac. In System Preferences it doesn't give my Hard Drive as an option for a startup volume.
I think I just answered my question... OS X on my Powerbook is the PPC version... and probably can't use the PPC version as a Startup on the Intel....

Hi Joel Jenkins;
I would say NO.
First of all since they have an Intel and you have PowerPC The code will not be compatible. Secondly there the problem that the Intel machine has to have the disk formatted differently. So I don't think this idea will work for you.
Why pray tell were you thinking of doing this any way? Exactly what did you hope to accomplish?
Allan

Boot up from target disk mode doesn't work. (Why?)

I have a 2010 Macbook Pro, and a 2013 iMac. I connected the Macbook pro with the firewire cable to the iMac, and enabled target disk mode on the laptop. (It is successful because I see the hard drive appear on the iMac desktop.
I restart the iMac and hold 'option' to show the hard drive list, and sure enough the Mac Book Pro hard drive appears. I select it, and this lovely icon greets me.
From this point, I have no idea what to do.
Would you happen to know why it doesn't work and/or how to fix it?

I am able to do that... this is not the problem.
I have seen people boot up from the hard drive using target disk mode. When I try to do it, it doesn't work. Does this feature still exist?

User Contributed Tips, PowerBook G4 (15-inch Aluminum) Power & Batteries

*The following User Contributed Tips are located in the PowerBook G4 (15-inch Aluminum) > Power and Batteries on a PowerBook G4 15-inch Aluminum forum:*
None at this time.
*The following related tips are located in other areas of Apple Discussions:*
neuroanatomist - Apple notebook batteries – maintenance and troubleshooting
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1764220
Publish date: Oct 23, 2008
See Also User Tips Library

The 15" Powerbooks have two batteries. One is the one you can remove from the bottom of the machine without any screws, the other you need detailed instructions of the computer's interior and special parts to replace. The user accessible battery will only impact Target Disk Mode if you have no A/C power to connect to the wall outlet, and it also is out of juice. The non-user accessible battery if it gets more than 4 years old, can impact Target Disk Mode accessibility even if you are plugged into A/C power from the wall outlet. If your power brick is frayed, it may not be giving power to the computer, or if the power manager is damaged it may not give power to the computer. See my FAQ*:
http://www.macmaps.com/frayguide.html
Consider how old your machine is, and likelihood of one problem versus the other. If you are in the U.S., these places may be cheaper to replace the non-user accessible battery than Apple or other authorized service technicians:
http://www.dttservice.com/
http://www.powerbookresq.com/
http://www.microdocusa.com/
http://www.macspecialist.com/
http://www.techrestore.com/
If you feel up to the challange, you can order the parts and replace that battery yourself with instructions from http://www.ifixit.com/
- * Links to my pages may give me compensation.

Disk startup full- can't boot normally. Now in target disk mode.

Hello all, so here's my dilemma-
My disk startup is full and now I am unable to boot my computer past the apple logo and the loading circle.
Here's what I've tried,
I am now in target disk mode attempting to transfer over my files to an external HD via a good computer and then wipe/restore the OS on my bad computer THEN transfer my files over to the bad(now good) computer however..... some of my files won't transfer, especially in my iphoto library (It's HUGE 82 gigs) & my very elaborate final cut pro projects that have taken me h o u r s to do.... For example, some video icons don't show up with a snapshot of the video as they are suppose to but instead they're shown with a a default video icon which almost makes me think they're damaged files but the thing is- I was just working with these files.. My comp passed all HD tests. I don't think it's damaged...I don't know what's going on. If I could just find a way to delete some files...especially from my trash(30 gigs in there) so I'm able to at least boot properly, that would be great
Is there anyway to retrieve these stubborn files via target disk mode or another option?
Also do you maybe have an easier way for me to go about this entire process instead of transferring 500gb of data back and forth? I tried to access my trashcan via target disk mode and delete the 30 gigs I have in there but I was unable to delete it- and I do have "read and write" switched on.
Thanks in Advance!! ANY help is appreciated. I'm at wits end here.
Details
-I have a mid 2012 macbook pro connected with the mid 2012 imac that I'm running on target disc mode via thunderbolt cable (I also tried a 2013 air- same issues)

Before you spend a lot of money with a professional recovery service, look over these links:
http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201583
http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html
Ciao.

Mac Mini won't Boot after Target Disk Mode

We just bought a new iMac and used target disk mode via firewire from our older Mac Mini running OSX 10.4 to transfer data. Now when we go to restart the mini, the grey screen appears with apple logo and it seems to try to boot up but after a long time alway just ends up with a blue screen. I don't think I "ejected" the mini properly from the imac after the target disk mode transfer. Could the mini be stuck in target disk mode? I've tried to restart in different modes eg. safe mode, pram by holding down keys on start up but doesnt make a difference at all almost as if the keyboard isn't registering (and its a wired keyboard). Any ideas???
Thanks

Try starting up from the Recovery Partition holding the Option (Alt) key and see if you can Repair your Macintosh HD, as per > OS X: About OS X Recovery

Mini won't boot - tried many methods, disk visible in Target Disk Mode

I have a PPC Mac Mini running Leopard. It stopped booting last week. It goes to the point where the Apple appears and then stops. No moving ring at the bottom of the screen.
I've done the following w/ no luck to get it booting.
1) Put it in Target Disk mode and run Disk Utility. Repaired permissions and did a Repair Disk. No issues found.
2) Put it in Target Disk mode and ran Tech Tool Pro. Checked volume/file structures and sectors. Nothing found.
3) Reset PRAM.
In Target Disk Mode, I can see the files. But I want to get it running one last time to archive some program configuration files. I know I can erase and restore from a TM backup but I'm using that as a last resort. Other than trying Spinrite, any other ideas?

You must be very keen on those config files. You are going thru a lot of work to get them. But if you must ...
If you have an extra firwire external drive free, that you can partition with APM (Apple Partition Map) and format, then you could use your original install disc or Leopard install disc to install a bootable version of OSX on that external.
Boot from the external, and then download the latest combo update for Leopard and install it on the internal drive. Hopefully that will fix the the internal enough to make it bootable.
Another approach is to pay $100 for DiskWarrior. Most of the time it can fix a problem like yours ... but no guarantees. It is a worthwhile program to own anyway, however.

Won't boot, recognise superdrive or startup in target disk mode

I've been trying to help a friend with his iMac G4 that crashed. Of course he hasn't backed up his hard drive in years. I've searched the forums and have tried several methods to get his machine running or at least recover his data but with no luck.
Here's what happens:
When I turn on his computer I can hear repeated clicking which eventually stops. The screen comes up grey and eventually a flashing icon appears, alternating between a folder with a Finder icon and a folder with a question mark.
Here's what I've tried:
I've tried booting in target disk mode but that doesn't work.
I've tried booting holding down the mouse button but the superdrive tray doesn't open.
I've booted into Open Firmware and typed "eject cd". The system pauses for a long time then gives me the message "can't OPEN the EJECT device".
I've manually opened the superdrive tray, loaded a disc, then booted while holding down the "c" key. I can hear the drive spin, but the computer doesn't boot from the disk. I've tried loading a Tiger DVD, a DiskWarrior CD and an OS 9 CD.
I've tried removing the Airport card and additional RAM.
I've tried resetting the PRAM.
I've tried resetting the PMU.
I've booted into Open Firmware and typed "reset-nvram" then "reset-all".
Nothing has worked. The computer always returns to the flashing Finder/question mark folder.
I'd really appreciate any suggestions on where to go from here.
Thanks!

When you can't boot from any method it usually signals that one of 2 things (maybe both) have failed:
Motherboard
Hard drive - Some hard drive failures lock up the ATA controller so badly that the Mac can't boot from any device.

Help: Windows XP on MacBook Pro Boot Camp Partition via Target Disk Mode

Firstly, let me lay out my situation. I have an old MacBook Pro (2,2) with a broken disk drive. It was dropped in its youth and can no longer read from or write to CDs or DVDs of any kind. I have just recently bought a new MacBook Pro to replace it (6,2) and am currently trying to convert the old computer into an XP machine through Boot Camp. I'd like to be able to do so without having to buy an external disk drive.
After a clean install of OS X (10.6.3) onto the old machine, I successfully partition 85GB of space (although I previously attempted the same with a 32GB file system to no avail as well) for XP to be installed upon. Because I cannot boot my XP install disk directly from the broken disk drive, I then close Boot Camp Assistant and shut down the computer. I start it up in Target Disk Mode to be accessed from the new MacBook (6,2).
Once the old MacBook is connected, I insert my XP install disk into the new MacBook (6,2) and boot from the disk. After allowing the XP (Professional) boot to load the install files, I arrow-key down to my 85GB partition (FAT32, named standard as "BOOTCAMP") on the old MacBook (2,2)'s hard drive and select it as the partition I would like to install to. This is where I am directed to a new boot window that tells me in a series of paragraphs that the XP installer cannot reach the selected partition for what seems to be a number of reasons. What it seems to be trying to say to me is that it cannot do a remote install of XP on a Target Disk Mode-connected machine, while not "knowing" that I am trying to do so. It's a similar message to the one that Boot Camp Assistant shows when one tries to create a Boot Camp partition on a machine that is being accessed via Target Disk Mode (Apple puts it much more clearly than Microsoft).
I'd be perfectly content, albiet slightly vexed, to conclude here that it is not possible, shuttle over to the nearest Best Buy, and purchase an external disk drive if it weren't for one thing: I tried the same thing two weeks ago with Ubuntu 10.10 and it installed perfectly on the Boot Camp partition I had created then (I have since wiped all and installed OS X cleanly on the laptop).
Here comes the point/questions:
If the Ubuntu boot disk can access the partition, why can't the XP boot disk?
Is there some way to convince the boot system that the drive is local, rather than being accessed via Target Disk Mode?
Is there an easy solution that doesn't even require that, and will allow me to install to the disk over a firewire connection?
If anyone's knowledgeable and/or brave enough to tackle this one, I'll be eternally grateful. Heck, I'll be grateful if anyone even attempts to tackle it.
Thanks,
-Alec Page

Windows XP will only install from the optical drive. Target Disk Mode does not work with Windows volumes. Windows will not install from any external device.

Can a Mac Pro boot off a MacBook Pro in Target Disk Mode?

Summary: "Are you able to boot a Mac Pro off of a Mac Book Pro in Target Disk Mode?" OR "Will a Mac Pro boot off an OS X install that was made on a MBP?"
Details:
I'm finishing a music project that was created on a PPC G5 Quad computer and going to a studio in Santa Monica to complete the final mixdown. My 3rd party software plug-in configuration is unique, and the studio doesn't have all of the software instruments that I do on their 8 core mac pro. My G5 software installation is mirrored to my MacBook Pro, but the MBP doesn't have enough CPU power to play the project back.
Is it feasible to have the studio's 8 core Mac Pro boot from my MacBook Pros hard drive? Essentially, we'd be using my OS and software on their powerful CPU / hardware. I figure, since they are both Intel builds of OSX, this should be do-able.
I don't have access to the Mac Pro until I show up to start working.
Thanks for any input / suggestions!

The MacBook Pro boots fine in 10.5.8, and loads the Logic project without any faults. The only issue is that a CPU shortage occurs when you attempt to play the sequence.
Like you suggested, I performed separate UB installations of all the needed software on the MBP solely so I could move Logic projects from one computer to the next without a hitch. (Actually, DropBox does this for me). Migration assistant was not employed in this process due to the PPC / Intel issues you noted.
I didn't need to mention the G5 as it appears to have caused some confusion based on Kappy's reply, but I did want to explain my work flow thoroughly.
It sounds like booting the MacPro from my MBP is feasible. I'll mark this topic 'solved' and head over to the studio tonight. I'll post here any anomalies from the session (if any).
THANKS~!

Hard disk not recognised - will not boot from cd & No FW Target Disk mode

hi,
some help would be greatly appreciated.
Some time ago i was switching internal hard drives around and wound up with a kernel panic of some sort (see my previous posts).
following on from this I have tried FW target disk mode with no success, and it will not boot from a retail Tiger install disc (this machine has tiger installed (i think!). I can't force a boot from the optical drive and i also can't even force it to eject the disc inside to try another install DVD/CD (I have panther discs lying around also).
when i start up with the c key nothing happens, but when i start up with the alt/option key i get a closed padlock symbol, password entry field and a "right facing arrow" button.
anyone got any clues with this? i'm guessing it could either and/or be an internal hard drive ribbon failure (i have swapped internal HDs multiple times in this machine, which can't be good for it) or the familiar PRAM problem (although why would it not boot from an install DVD if this was the case?). I have changed the power supply unit in the past due to having a power cable snap off inside the original one - damage to PRAM caused by this?
help would be muchly appreciated!
Jesse

Hi, Jesse. Remove the hard drive and its cable, then see whether you can start up from a CD or DVD. If that works, replace your hard drive cable.

Target Disk Mode with G4 PowerBook

This week I'm installing a new hard drive in my 2003 867Mhz PB. I plan to do a fresh install from the original CDs so I will have a computer clear of much data for a trip I'm going on next week. I will apply all updates to 10.4.11 to match my Mac Pro.
1. Can I install my '08 iLife apps onto my PowerBook? I'm the only user of both machines and normally I wouldn't care that the PB still has '06 since I rarely use it. However, the purpose of my trip is to take photos for five days. My PB doesn't meet the minimum requirements for Aperture. I want to start culling some of the photos on the trip so I won't have too many to import to Aperture when I return. Taking a bunch of DVDs isn't an option because the PB doesn't have a SuperDrive.
2. If I can install iPhoto '08, will Aperture see the PB's iPhoto Library in Target Disk Mode? If I can't install '08, will Aperture see the '06 iPhoto Library in Target Disk Mode? I will not be editing any photos in iPhoto on the PB - only viewing them to delete the bad out of the collection so I won't have to import a huge collection. Obviously iPhoto won't be running on either machine when I connect them in Target Disk Mode, so technically I won't have more than one copy in use at any time.
I have a wireless home network. I could set up file sharing on my PB to transfer the photos, but I think that would be much slower than using Target Disk Mode. Since I'm taking photos for my job, and knowing the schedule of events and shoot list, I'm estimating 10G of photos minimum. That's a lot of time with a pokey old PB for transferring. I won't be taking a Firewire hard drive because it's too bulky with all the other equipment considering that the 120G hard drive I'm installing in the PB won't have many apps. I also won't have internet access so I can't upload the photos to my iDisk.
3. Does anyone know if Target Disk Mode can be used with my PB when I upgrade my Mac Pro to Leopard? I'm not planning on installing Leopard on the PB (don't know if it meets the minimum requirements) because I don't see myself using the PB too often. By the time I need to be portable more frequently, I will buy a MBP. I hadn't turned the PB on for over a year until last week to make sure it still works for this trip. It would be more useful to buy an extra iPod to store photos than to buy Leopard for the PB.
Sorry if that seemed like a confusing bunch of questions. I tried searching the forums and Apple's support site and now I'm too exhausted to think too clearly. Thanks for any help or pointers.

I have to answer my own post as this question probably isn't allowed here. After installing the new hard drive I read the license agreement while waiting for the restore DVD to finish. I didn't bother with upgrading 10.2 which is what the PB had when new. I immediately installed Tiger and after it's done updating I'll see what software I need/want besides iWork. I'm sure Tiger isn't different in the license than Leopard. (So I'll have to plan on getting a new portable soon as I think the Target Disk Mode is faster for transferring unless I get another Firewire drive.)
But at least the new hard drive and maxed RAM has made my PB a bit more peppy. Or maybe I'm not remembering how slow it was because I haven't yet used it. I'm currently still waiting for Tiger to finish installing. I'll hold off a little longer before upgrading my Mac Pro to Leopard to find out if there are any network gotchas I should know about with my PowerBook. If I'd been using the PB, I'd know all these answers. I've just been so thrilled with my Mac Pro and 23" monitor that the PB hasn't had much appeal. But maybe I'll try to wring a little more life out of the PB.

How to use a target disk mode to boot my iMac

My iMac won't boot up. I think its HDD is dead . Is there a way for me to use target disk mode to boot from my laptop HDD so that I can rescue my iMac HDD?

If both computers have a FireWire or Thunderbolt port, yes, but you're probably better off putting the iMac in that mode instead of the laptop.
(112442)

Grey screen on Target Disk mode boot up

I have a home iMac, Late 2012, OSX 10.9.1, 32GB, and a corp MBP, Late 2011, 8GB. I would really like to use Target Disk Mode to boot the MBP on the faster iMac - it worked once or twice and was fabulous, but that was when both were on Lion.
Now after upgrading both to Mavericks, Target Disk mode bootup isn't working anymore. I get to the Login Screen on the MBP bootup, but after logging in i just get a grey screen. Nothing else.
Pretty sure i'm doing everything right. Connect both, boot target with cmd-T, boot host with "alt", select startup disk, login ..... then nothing.
Fix is probably simple - any help would be great.

Ok this is a guess.
Are you trying to use the system files etc on the iMac to run the MBP?
If so I am surprised it worked in Mountain Lion, the Video cards probably have different drivers and that could be why you cannot login but the login screen with standard resolution works.
You could try and match the resolution on the iMac with one that suits both machines but running it that way is not something I would do.
Perhaps I understand your question incorectly, if so apologies and disregard my post.

Firewire Target DIsk Mode Mac partition not Boot Camp partition

Hi I'm having issues starting up my Mac and would like to Firewire mount the drive then image it. However, when I do so the Boot Camp partition mounts instead of the Mac partition. I've tried using Disk Utility on the host machine to mount the Mac partition (it does show up in Disk Utility) without success, Is there anything I can do.
(Yes I have yesterday's Time Machine backup, but would still prefer to do a full image before wiping and installing the OS).

Are you talking about starting up one computer in Target Disk Mode and then seeing it with a second computer (and if so, which model computer and which OS)?
[How to use FireWire target disk mode|http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1661] includes description of hardware and software requirements.
[What to do if your Mac doesn't enter FireWire Target Disk Mode|http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75414], also read about [Open Firmware Password Protection|http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/openfirmwarepassword.html] which can disable Target Disk Mode.
[Technical Note TN 1189|http://developer.apple.com/technotes/tn/tn1189.html#TargetMode] - driver details for TDM

Unable to boot PowerBook G4 (15-inch Aluminum) in target disk mode

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