Want to run an archive and install, but can't empty trash to free space

I don't know where to begin... at some point recently something caused problems with several applications, so after trying to repair permissions and repair disk with no luck, I decided to archive & install. Now I want the old problems back: Word/Excel/Photoshop will not open because of some library error (Carbonlib?), and my network settings keep going screwy such that if my computer goes to sleep, I couldn't pick up my wireless signal anymore without restarting (and then ta-da, there it was like there was never any problem).
So in trying to archive and install I keep stalling at the very beginning... I'll leave it for hours hoping it would proceed but it wouldn't. I've repaired disk several times, with the same errors ultimately coming up. So without being able to archive and install I figured I'd better back everything up and do an erase & install. Started backing things up in prep for moving them onto a server, but when I plugged the server in, my computer said it couldn't get on. Same exact server wire had just come out of my work computer which connects just fine. So now I've got duplicates of all my files on the desktop, so I try to trash them and when I select 'empty trash' or 'secure empty trash', I get the box that says "preparing to empty trash" and then everything except my wallpaper goes away, and eventually comes back as if I've restarted. Now I definitely can't archive and install because with duplicate copies of all my files I have only 1.7gb available and need 1.9 to install just the required files.
I'm at a total loss! Incidentally, my ipod won't mount if I try to plug it in.
Are there other options in disk utility that I can try? I don't know enough to feel comfortable just trying something, and I don't know what the "Restore" option does.
Oh goodness, I hope somebody knows something that can help me out of this.

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=3366422
Odd, the link works for me.
-mj
[email protected]

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Archive and install but still no right or left scroll

HI I have Archived and installed but also did preserve users and network setting and Safari is still the same with no right or left scrolling available. I am using Safari 4.0.3(5531)
Help
George

Even tho you did an Archived and Installed, you'll still using the old user account. Something in your user account might be corrupt preventing the scroll from showing up in Safari. Make a new user account in your System Preferences/Accounts and see if that new account brings back the scroll bar.

"archive and install" button can't be clicked, already have Mac OS 10.4

i cannot start up my laptop and i see the apple logo and it doesn't go to my desktop and i would like to do a "archive and install" but the button isn't an option for me even though i have Mac OS 10.4 already installed when i bought it.
should i go through all of the disk utility and repair/verify everything and see if then i can archive and install?
and does anyone know if the archive and install saves iTunes/iPhoto files?
if anyone can help please do!!

How to Perform an Archive and Install
1. Be sure to use Disk Utility first to repair the disk before performing the Archive and Install.
Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.0 for Tiger) and/or TechTool Pro (4.5.2 for Tiger) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. Do not proceed with an Archive and Install if DU reports errors it cannot fix. In that case use Disk Warrior and/or TechTool Pro to repair the hard drive. If neither can repair the drive, then you will have to erase the drive and reinstall from scratch.
3. Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When you reach the screen to select a destination drive click once on the destination drive then click on the Option button. Select the Archive and Install option. You have an option to preserve users and network preferences. Only select this option if you are sure you have no corrupted files in your user accounts. Otherwise leave this option unchecked. Click on the OK button and continue with the OS X Installation.
4. Upon completion of the Archive and Install you will have a Previous System Folder in the root directory. You should retain the PSF until you are sure you do not need to manually transfer any items from the PSF to your newly installed system.
5. After moving any items you want to keep from the PSF you should delete it. You can back it up if you prefer, but you must delete it from the hard drive.
6. You can now download a Combo Updater directly from Apple's download site to update your new system to the desired version as well as install any security or other updates. You can also do this using Software Update.

Changed mbox but can't empty trash...

Hi,
Following advice, I've put my Mail directory on an external drive and used an alias on the internal drive to point to it. I then deleted the Mail directory that had been on /Users/me/Library/ but when I try to empty the trash, I get, +impossible to complete the operation: element "Messages-1" is being used+. When I do 'continue', I see the same error for every folder that was previously used by Mail.app.
Anyone know how I can delete these folders? Anyone know why Mac OS-X is telling me that I can't delete 'em? Are they really being used? If and when I finally get rid of them, is Mail.app going to keel over and die on me again (strictly speaking, this shouldn't happen as I have multiple back-ups of the entire Mail directory)?
Oh and a strange thing happened. I logged out and back in and when my session opened, Mail.app opened with the +Welcome to Apple Mail+, but when I hit cancel and then opened Mail.app manually, I got all of my mailboxes back.
Any advice would be welcome. Thanks.

Use "TinkerTool System 1.72" to delete the folders and files.
<http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/13662>
-put all the folders and files in one folder on your desktop
-launch TinkerTool System and click on "Files" - then "Force Delete"
-check-mark "Allow deletion of bundle or folder containing files"
Good luck,
Tom

Archive and Install of OS X. Help!

My macbook has been stuck at the loading wheel and grey screen for a couple weeks now. I've tried a series of things from re-setting the PRAM and SMC, to booting with the install disc and running the DU, verified and ran disc repair and permission thing. Now that these haven't worked I'm attempting to archive and install, but after i select my language after booting up from the install disc it tells me i can't install OS X. Supposedly this is where you would pick a destination for where you want to install, but it seems I'm kind of stuck. Any help would be much appreciated!!!

Right after I boot from the install disc, I get to the select a language screen and hit the arrow to continue, then a box appears saying "preparing to install" followed by the box disappearing and the message "Mac OS X cannot be installed on this computer. The software can not be installed on this computer."

Is "erase and install" better than "archive and install"

I have heard its best for permormance purposes to do an erase and install, but is that really true? it seems like much less of a hassle to just do the archive and install. any thoughts?

Jeff,
To me, there is not much difference in doing an Erase and Install as opposed to an Archive and Install but NOT preserving user settings...
An erase and install might be a little better but not much plus you would need to reinstall everything.
With an Archive and Install and NOT preserving user settings, you still have a brand new system with nothing from the old system installed... However, you do have a folder called "Previous Systems" which has all your stuff in it... If you want some stuff out of that folder, you can get it.. Otherwise, if you throw that folder out, it will be just about as good as an Erase and Install....
Now, an Archive and Install and preserving user settings is a little different because it does bring things over from the old system....

Archive and Install

I installed 10.4 and followed the directions to select 'archive and install' but now everything is gone. Well, not gone, just not where I can find them. ITunes is wiped clean. All of my Safari settings. Mail. Gone. Any ideas on how I can restore these items? According to the space available on my disk, everything is still here. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Drag them back from the Previous Systems folder on the hard disk; once you've retrieved everything you want from it, that folder can be deleted if desired.
(50703)

HT1710 If I click archive and install and it says moves existing system files to a folder named previous system , will this save my photos tol

I have to restore my Mac mini and i want to click on archive and install and it says it will move existing files to a folder but I need to know wether my photos will be moved too because I have 5 years worth of photos on there. If my photos will not be moved could I take it too a store and they could put them onto a USB stick for me.

"Archive and install" is an option in early versions of OS X installers. It moves some parts of the previous system to a folder called "Previous System" and installs the new OS.
There is also an option to presever user data and settings. See this document. http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1710
If you have 5 years' worth of photos and you do not want to lose them, then you NEED to have a backup. Hard drives can fail. Suddenly. Particularly on aging hardware. Computers can get stolen, set on fire or have drinks spilt over them.
If you do not have a backup, you should EXPECT to lose your files.
You should not need a store to make a copy of your files. Get an external drive, or use DVDs and move the files in the Finder. If you're using Leopard already, then you have Time Machine.

Archive and Install problem

So the mouse on my computer didn't work and, following the directions on the website, I went ahead and tested the mouse (which worked) so then the page recommended I put in the startup disk and do "Archive and Install" but whenever that process starts it says, "Preparing Disk" (or something like that) it says "There were errors installing the software." I tried the Disc Repair utility and tried to archive and install again, with the same results.
ANY IDEAS?!?! I don't want to erase my hard drive completely!!
Thanks,
John

Steve,
It's a USB optical mouse I believe. The issue started when my Norton anti-virus program expired now every time I boot up the cursor appears in the upper-right hand corner of the screen, but I cannot move it (althought the light on the bottom is on). Using keyboard shortcuts I dragged the Norton folder to the trash, but have been unable to empty it and there is still this QuickProtect program that tries to load at boot-up every time I use the system.
Essentially when i boot up it looks normal, but I cant use my mouse...and there is always an error message about Norton AntiVirus being old!
John

Failed Archive and Install - Have I lost all my user files?

In another thread I have reported printing problems while running OS 10.4.11 on a Cube http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1401894&tstart=0. Tonight I decided to do an Archive and Install to try to fix the problems. I got a message saying that the installation had failed and that I should try to reinstall. When I did so I was given the option to Archive and Install but the check box for Save Users and Network Settings could not be checked. Rather than trying to reinstall I quit the installer and specified an OS 9 system folder for booting. After booting into OS 9 I examined the Users folder and found no folders corresponding to my two user accounts, only a shared folder. The OS X Applications folder appears to contain all my applications.
It seems that the failed installation erased my user accounts. Is that correct? If so, how can I recover them?
Of course I did a backup of my user files before installing, right? NO!!!! My last backup was eight days ago.
John Link

Yes, an Archive and Install will not erase the disk or your files. If you use the option to preserve user accounts and preferences those will be transferred into the newly created system. However, your existing system is a failed installation so if you do another Archive and Install it cannot transfer your user account because it is not in the existing system. Plus you will need sufficient free space on the hard drive for yet another system - about 6-8 GBs.
Once you backup your personal data and your Home folder, I would suggest you just erase the hard drive, reinstall OS X from scratch, then copy your Home folder backup to the newly installed system. These articles, How to get files from a previous home directory after Archive and Install and Mac OS X- How to recover a home folder (directory), explain the process. Although written for an Archive and Install scenario it is essentially the same procedure you would have to follow.
How to Clone Using Restore Option of Disk Utility
1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
2. Select the backup or destination volume from the left side list.
3. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (journaled, if available) and click on the Erase button. This step can be skipped if the destination has already been freshly erased.
4. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
5. Select the backup or destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
6. Select the startup or source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.

Archive and Install - not enough space?

I'm trying to do an Archive and Install on a MacBook 2.1 that will not start up because of Kernel Panic errors that I have not been able to resolve. When I try to do an Archive and Install I get a message that says "You cannot install Mac OS X without changing your install settings. A newer version of Mac OS X is installed." I then click Options, select Archive and Install, but eventually I get a pop-up that says "You need about 13.3 GB more free space on the destination volume. Deselect some packages or quit the Installer to make more space available..."
When I click OK I get a screen that says "Custom Install on Macintosh HD." It tells me that it requires 15.5 GB and that -13.3 GB is remaining. Even by unchecking everything except "Essential System Software" it still says Space Required 2.5 GB / Remaining -329 MB. My only option at that point is to Go Back. This brings me to the Select a Destination screen, but when I select the HD and click Continue it just loops me back to the Custom Install screen.
It seems like it's asking me to make room on a hard drive I can't access because of the Kernel Panic errors. Any ideas? Thanks.

Have you tried booting to your Install DVD and running the Apple Hardware Test (hold 'D' as startup)?
If you've backed everything up, perhaps a clean install is the better way to go.

Problem with Archive and Install - Second disc won't complete

I'm trying to run an archive and install for my iMac, OS 10.4.11. I get through the first disc fine, but after I put in the 2nd install disc, it gets all the way to the "finishing installation" and then won't move past "running GarageBand Demo Songs Installer Script". it says less than a minute remaining, and the downloading bar is swirling, but there is nothing happening and it hangs here for hours. I've tried reinstalling, but it will only ask me to load the 2nd disk again, and the same thing happens over and over. I even tried a different install disc 2, and the same thing happened. Is there a way to push past this, or start the entire archive and install again? when i reboot to the disc drive with the 1st install disk, it ask me to put in the 2nd disc.
This all started because iTunes was acting up after I got an ipod touch, no prior problems with the computer. Can anyone help?

I've seen this reported before. What some have had some success with is to do a custom install so the second disk is not needed. See BDAqua's tip to someone with the same issue in the Tiger forum.
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=9959537#9959537

Stop archive and install 2nd DVD

I had my MacBook Pro upgraded to a 200GB disk, and am having problems. I restored the disk with CarbonCopy, but started to have problems with Carbin apps - crashes, Carbinlib access etc. The second restore created the same problem. The system runs fine from the mirrored disk.
I finally decided on an archive and install, but the system hangs with an error in postflight after installing iWeb. This is not critical, but everytime I reboot it forces the system back in to the installer.
How can I reset the new OS to boot normally. I tried PRAM reset etc.
Very frustrating....

Hi admesko, and a warm welcome to the forums!
You hace little choice to but power it down & start over.
First...
"Try Disk Utility
1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc that came with your computer, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, *you must select your language first.)*
*Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.*
3. Click the First Aid tab.
4. Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
5. Select your Mac OS X volume.
6. Click Repair. Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk."
Then, Second install disk won't work or is missing...
A workaround is to reduce the number of Languages, Printer, Drivers, Fonts, and
APPs until it no longer needs Disk 2 for the install.
Then Safe Boot from the HD, (holding Shift key down at bootup), run Disk Utility in Applications>Utilities, then highlight your drive, click on Repair Permissions, reboot.

Need help with frozen Archive and Install

I'm trying to run an archive and install for my intel iMac, OS 10.4.11. I get through the first disk fine, but after I put in the 2nd install disk, it gets all the way to the "finishing installation" and then won't move past "running GarageBand Demo Songs Installer Script". it says less than a minute remaining, and the downloading bar is swirling, but there is nothing happening and it hangs here for hours. I've tried restarting, but it will only ask me to load the 2nd disk again, and the same thing happens over and over. Apple even sent me a new install disk 2, and the same thing happened, so I know it's not the disk. Is there a way to push past this?
I did a disk utility repair and it said everything was fine.
WZZZ suggested a custom installation, but I haven't tried it yet because I'm worried I might lose the data on my hard drive. (Stupidly) none of it is backed up. Any advice? Do you think I'll lose my data if I force it start over with disk 1 and do a custom install?
If not, is that the best thing to do?

Hi there, WZZZ is one sharp guy, go for it, (known him since he was knee high to a Grasshopper!
Do you think I'll lose my data if I force it start over with disk 1 and do a custom install?
At worst we should maybe only have complications with several Previous System Folders, but after forcing shutdown reboot do what WZZZ pointed to...
"Try Disk Utility
1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
*Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.*
3. Click the First Aid tab.
4. Select your Mac OS X volume.
5. Click Repair. Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk."
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214
That second Disk thing happens frequently, the best way around it is to do a Custom install, and eliminate enough Printer Drivers, Languages, Fonts, and Applications you don't need... then it may skip #2 altogether.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1442

Error at the end of Archive and Install; Need Quicktime reinstall quickly!

I got all the way through an Archive and Install and at the very end it said there was an error in the process. Everytime I do it, same thing.
I'm trying to reinstall Quicktime 6 because I've read Final Cut Pro 4 doesn't work well with QT 7—I downloaded it recently. FPC performance has been horrible ever since!
I followed the easy step by step process Apple provides for Archive and Install but it doesn't work in the end. I'm trying to reinstall Quicktime 6. Currently working with 10.3.9. My original disks are 10.3.
I'm running off the original disks; don't know why it won't do it.
Need Quicktime reinstall quickly!

I already had, the problem is not covered on that page.
I'd had no response within a few hours so I had to force the Powerbook to shut down. On rebooting, it only got as far as the Apple logo and the progress wheel. I left it for half an hour and it got no further. I reset the PRAM again (I'd already done it before the actions detailed in the original post). Nothing. I tried again to Safe Boot. Nothing - not even the login screen.
I then tried to re-install OS X 10.5 - this time the option to 'update' was available which I did. It automatically restarted but still would not proceed beyond the Apple logo and progress wheel.
That's how things stand now. I have given up for the day but I can't think of any other course of action apart from a complete erase and install but that would be far to drastic because unfortunately, despite my insistence last time there were problems, nothing has been backed up.
Incidentally, I tried to boot in target mode to recover their account folder - the disk mounted on my MacBook Pro but when I tried to open it, my Finder crashed.

Want to run an archive and install, but can't empty trash to free space

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