What are the current "Apple shipped/supported" optical drives?

[flatfoot]

I'm in the process of planning a hackintosh file server so I can source my data out from my Mac Pro in order to have the flexibility of replacing it with, say, an iMac, if I ever wanted to.

Though the server is not going to be my primary machine I want it to have an iApps-compatible DVD burner, which has to be SATA to allow for system installation on the hack box. So, which are the current "Apple shipped/supported" optical drives you guys and gals have in your 2009 Mac Pros? (I already searched the forums and the rest of the Net and didn't find an answer.)

Thanks a lot for your input!

[pdjudd]

It's shouldn't matter - Mac OS supports any SATA disc drive. The iApps care not what your make or model of optical drive is so long as the operating system can see it in system profile. They kinda have to because the drives are replaceable on the MacPro's.

I have reinstalled OSX bunches of times on different computers with retail OS discs with non standard components - if the drive worked properly (mechanically speaking), the installer discs will work.

[flatfoot]

Mac OS supports any SATA disc drive.

I'm aware of that. What I want, however, is a drive which shows up as "Apple shipped/supported" in System Profiler because otherwise you can't use it to burn from iApps (iTunes, iDVD, ...) but only using Toast or other third party burning software.

By saying

... which has to be SATA to allow for system installation on the hack box.

I just wanted to clarify that this is about SATA drives, not PATA.

[DualShock]

What I want, however, is a drive which shows up as "Apple shipped/supported" in System Profiler because otherwise you can't use it to burn from iApps (iTunes, iDVD, ...) but only using Toast or other third party burning software.

I thought that limitation was removed a long time ago :confused:

[flatfoot]

I thought that limitation was removed a long time ago :confused:

I don't think so, since then there would be no reason for System Profiler on my current system to say that its (PATA) Pioneer DVR-112 is "Apple shipped/supported". But maybe someone can shed light onto this...

[DualShock]

Found this article from 2006 over at Mac OS X Hints:

http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20060704113105205

Also, according to the info at the bottom of this (http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Pioneer/DVR118LBK/) page for a Pioneer IDE/PATA burner at OWC, 10.4.3 or later supports the drive natively. However, they don't specify what "natively" means; it could just be burning from the Finder or Disk Utility. But it would be pretty pointless for iTunes/iDVD/iPhoto not to use the same disc writing API in OS X that the Finder or Disk Utility uses.

[flatfoot]

Hm, OK, well then maybe I wasn't all up to date...

Anyway, after delving a bit deeper into the Hackintosh realm, I found out that installation on the board I chose is now possible using my spare Pioneer DVR-112 PATA drive. This saves me another 20 bucks. :)

[Mackilroy]

I thought that limitation was removed a long time ago :confused:
I was gonna say… I've burnt disks with my SATA drive in my hackintosh, and it doesn't say it's Apple-supported anywhere.

[flatfoot]

I was gonna say… I've burnt disks with my SATA drive in my hackintosh, and it doesn't say it's Apple-supported anywhere.

Are you using the Finder or iApps to burn or third party software like Toast?

[rickvanr]

Are you using the Finder or iApps to burn or third party software like Toast?

iTunes let's me pick which drive I want to burn with, either the shipped drive, or the BR drive I installed about a month ago.

I'm assuming you'd be good to go

[Mackilroy]

Are you using the Finder or iApps to burn or third party software like Toast?

iTunes and Disk Utility.

[flatfoot]

iTunes let's me pick which drive I want to burn with, either the shipped drive, or the BR drive I installed about a month ago.

I'm assuming you'd be good to go

iTunes and Disk Utility.

OK, so there don't seem to be any limitations anymore on what brands/models work with iApps.. good to know! :)
So if using my old PATA drive won't work I know at least that I can purchase more or less any SATA ODD.

Thanks a lot for everybody's help!