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Lion Clean Install options

S

Stures08

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 23, 2010
9
0
Lund, Sweden
I'm planning on doing a clean install of Lion when it is released. There is a few different ways to do this and I wondered which you think would be the best/fastest? I'm currently on SL.

1. Restore the .dmg in the Lion app to a USB and boot from it, wipe the drive and install.

2. Make a partition on my internal drive, install Lion on it, boot into lion partition and delete the SL partition (does this work without any issues?)

3. Boot from my external SuperDuper backup (SL) and wipe the internal HD and then install Lion from the default app.

Not really an option but I put it here anyway:

4. Clean install SL and then upgrade to Lion (takes too long time).
 
fastest & easiest is #1

but there's really no need to do a clean install. you can just perform an upgrade from SL to Lion so that you don't have to migrate all your settings and files..
 
If I wanted to do an upgrade I wouldn't have asked about a clean install, I know that upgrades work very well for most people I just wanted to start on a clean slate.
 
#1 Far and away is the best option! (assuming you want/believe in the benefits of the "clean install")

John
 
How do you restore the .dmg file in Lion to a USB drive if downloading from the App Store?

I'm putting a new HDD in my MBP and would rather just install Lion and not have to install SL.
 
1. Download Lion from the App Store
2. Right-click on the Lion application and choose “Show Package Contents”.
3. Navigate into the Contents/SharedSupport folder.
4. In there you will see a huge file called “InstallESD.dmg”.

InstallESD.dmg is Lion burn that to disk or usb and boot from it.
 
superstrikertwo said:
1. Download Lion from the App Store
2. Right-click on the Lion application and choose “Show Package Contents”.
3. Navigate into the Contents/SharedSupport folder.
4. In there you will see a huge file called “InstallESD.dmg”.

InstallESD.dmg is Lion burn that to disk or usb and boot from it.
Click to expand...

Lion still needs to download from the internet with this process, i wonder what it's downloading.
 
Definitely #1. Plus, I can have it lying around just in case something 'bad' happens.
 
seong said:
Definitely #1. Plus, I can have it lying around just in case something 'bad' happens.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the answers. #1 was the option I was leaning towards, now I'm certain I'll do it that way since you all say so :)

I read somewhere else on the forum that you should use "basesystem.dmg" that's on the installESD.dmg and then copy files from installESD to the basesystem USB... is there any truth to this?
 
Stures08 said:
Thanks for all the answers. #1 was the option I was leaning towards, now I'm certain I'll do it that way since you all say so :)

I read somewhere else on the forum that you should use "basesystem.dmg" that's on the installESD.dmg and then copy files from installESD to the basesystem USB... is there any truth to this?
Click to expand...

No need to dig deeper than you're supposed to. Just clone the InstallESD.dmg to a partition or external (flash) drive and you'll be good to go.
 
Novecento said:
No need to dig deeper than you're supposed to. Just clone the InstallESD.dmg to a partition or external (flash) drive and you'll be good to go.
Click to expand...

Cloning it to an internal partition will obviously speed up the process but will you be able to "clean" the internal HD just as well as with an external install disk? Clean meaning erasing and zeroing out the drive or partition.
 
Do not make a new, 2nd. partition to install on. You will not be able to merge the deleted space in the beginning of the drive with the new Lion partition, if the Lion partition is in the end of the drive. As far as I know, you can only resize a partition towards the end of a drive.

There's a cool way to clean install while keeping your data:

Open the terminal in the installer, type the following:

cd /Volumes/"Macintosh HD"
mkdir oldroot
mv * /oldroot

Should work, your drive will be clean, and your old stuff will be in a dir in the root.
 
Last edited:
AAPLaday said:
Number 1 is the best but as im too cheap to buy a USB drive im using option 3 :D
Click to expand...

If you have a external HD to backup on with superduper you might as well make a small 8 GB partition on it and clone the installESD image to it and install from that, which would essentially be the #1 option.
 
I'd love to use option #1, but for the life of me I can't get a the USB key to work. I've attempted multiple times. Disk Utility seems to restore the Install .dmg just fine onto my 8GB USB key, but every time I try to boot from it afterwards, I get the circle with a slash in it. Very frustrating.
 
"3. Boot from my external SuperDuper backup (SL) and wipe the internal HD and then install Lion from the default app."

I'd recommend this way.

I did that with the Lion GM and it went quickly and well.
 
BlackMangoTree said:
Lion still needs to download from the internet with this process, i wonder what it's downloading.
Click to expand...

Novecento said:
Guess what, it downloads Lion, the OS, and the upgrade application.
Click to expand...

superstrikertwo said:
I just told you what it downloads...

It downloads Lion. Once you download Lion from the App Store that's it. You have it. You get the full thing. InstallEDS.dmg IS Lion.
Click to expand...

Actually, if you are installing from the dmg file it downloads nothing. I installed from a USB drive with my Wi-Fi disabled. I just think the word "downloading" is hardcoded into the installer because that's how Apple intended the install to take place.
 
Stures08 said:
If you have a external HD to backup on with superduper you might as well make a small 8 GB partition on it and clone the installESD image to it and install from that, which would essentially be the #1 option.
Click to expand...

Yeah thats why im going to end up doing. Just want it to come out now, sick of waiting :)
 
If I go option #1 route (I plan on burning lion on a standard 4.7gb DVD) can I still use migration assistant and time machine from SL to restore?

I may just install lion right over SL from the app store like the millions of average customers are doing. If I think anything went wonky, then I'll boot from the lion disc and restore.
 
Is it essential?

My macbook pro isnt that old really (month or so) is it worth me doing a clean install?

As I can always do a clean restore later if I think its going a tad slow or if something is wrong.
 
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