Can't boot off external with older OS

[Vin3]

Hi,

I’m on an iMac (27in, late 2013) running Mojave 14.6. A couple of years ago, I stupidly updated to Mojave from my older OS and I lost access to important software and peripherals which wouldn’t work with the newer OS. With the help of some folks on a forum, I was able to create a boot disc on an external drive by restoring an older version of my backup on TimeMachine. Again, with help from forum counselors, I was able to boot off the external.

Now, I can’t. The external is visible and can be opened, but it cannot be recognized as a boot drive. Startup Disc only recognizes my main drive. I’ve tried all of the recommended fixes (command-R, PRAM, NVRAM reboots) but the boot drive never shows up.

It has occurred to me that maybe the external is somehow gotten corrupted. So then comes another problem: how can I make a boot drive using an older OS—one that will run 32-bit, PowerPc apps? I’ve tried to put an older installer on the external but Apple says it can’t open it.

Any help greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Vin

 

[KeesMacPro]

how can I make a boot drive using an older OS—one that will run 32-bit, PowerPc apps? I’ve tried to put an older installer on the external but Apple says it can’t open it.

The last OS that supports PPC apps is Snow Leopard 10.6
32-bit apps are supported up to (and including) Mojave 10.14

IINM an iMac 27inch late 2013 was released with Mountain Lion 10.8
Running a Mac OS version older than 10.8 on your iMac is only possible with VM software .

Mojave is known as one of the most stable OS, nevertheless if you prefer to install an older OS (10.8-10.13) , note that migrating data from a newer OS version will not work , so you'll have to copy all data and set all preferences manually.

Personally I would make a multiple OS setup by making 2 partitions on the internal drive or install an older OS on a external drive.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"Now, I can’t. The external is visible and can be opened, but it cannot be recognized as a boot drive. Startup Disc only recognizes my main drive. I’ve tried all of the recommended fixes (command-R, PRAM, NVRAM reboots) but the boot drive never shows up."

What happens if you try this:
(please follow my instructions exactly)

1. Power down, all the way off.

2. Connect the external boot drive

3. Press the power on button and IMMEDIATELY hold down the option key and KEEP HOLDING IT DOWN until the startup manager appears.

4. Do you see the external boot drive now?

Try this and get back to us.

What VERSION of the OS is on the external boot drive?

Final thought:
Mojave runs 32 bit apps just fine.
WHICH apps are giving you problems?

 

[Boyd01]

how can I make a boot drive using an older OS—one that will run 32-bit, PowerPc apps?

Do you really mean PowerPC apps? As @KeesMacPro has said, that is not going to be possible on your iMac. Perhaps you just want to run 32-bit Intel apps? Mojave should already be able to do that, although some older apps will not be compatible regardless.

I have some very expensive old 32-bit apps that won't run on anything newer than Mountain Lion. My solution was to create a Mountain Lion virtual machine to run them under Catalina.

 

[Hombre53]

I have the same issue, this solution works for me but is very unorthodox: The only way I can see external drives on the boot/login screen is to force an abnormal power down. Yes, power down your Mac by holding the rear button and force the power off. Upon re-boot, all of my external drives/devices are present. This started over a year ago after I updated my iMac (late 2013) with a security update. Apple changed the firmware, never been the same since but my work around keeps the machine functional booting with external drives. I don't recommend this method to anyone as it forces an abnormal termination of the OS, but it is the only way I can boot from an external device that is not the boot drive or recovery USB. Just explaining my experience, and how this works for me. Your results may vary.

 

[KeesMacPro]

I have the same issue, this solution works for me but is very unorthodox: The only way I can see external drives on the boot/login screen is to force an abnormal power down. Yes, power down your Mac by holding the rear button and force the power off. Upon re-boot, all of my external drives/devices are present. This started over a year ago after I updated my iMac (late 2013) with a security update. Apple changed the firmware, never been the same since but my work around keeps the machine functional booting with external drives. I don't recommend this method to anyone as it forces an abnormal termination of the OS, but it is the only way I can boot from an external device that is not the boot drive or recovery USB. Just explaining my experience, and how this works for me. Your results may vary.

Some brands/ models SSD are known for issues on some Mac devices , e.g. Samsung 860/870 QVO and 870 EVO.
Especially when used as an OS disk, there are some reports though of using them as external data disk works ok .....

BTW: a forced shutdown as a workaround is not really a solution IMO , and can (and will on the long term) lead to all kinds of issues ,at least data corruption ....

 

[avz]

The last OS that supports PPC apps is Snow Leopard 10.6
32-bit apps are supported up to (and including) Mojave 10.14

IINM an iMac 27inch late 2013 was released with Mountain Lion 10.8
Running a Mac OS version older than 10.8 on your iMac is only possible with VM software .

Mojave is known as one of the most stable OS, nevertheless if you prefer to install an older OS (10.8-10.13) , note that migrating data from a newer OS version will not work , so you'll have to copy all data and set all preferences manually.

Personally I would make a multiple OS setup by making 2 partitions on the internal drive or install an older OS on a external drive.

I believe Late 2013 Macs shipped with Mavericks already.

 

[KeesMacPro]

I believe Late 2013 Macs shipped with Mavericks already.

Religion is for another Forum....; )

 

[Vin3]

Hi,
Thanks for all the responses. I've had to be out of town so I couldn't reply until now. The apps I lost primarily are the Final Cut suite (an old version —5.0, I think) and the ability to use a Canon scanner. I'm pretty sure I was up to High Sierra when I upgraded to Mojave. I wonder whether a Mojave security update caused the failure to use the apps, since it worked initially. What I would like to do is install High Sierra on an external and boot off it and use the lost apps. But I cannot find an installer anywhere—certainly not from Apple.
I've seen on ebay that there are used drives pulled from macbook pros that are preloaded with High Sierra, so here's a question: can I use one of these as a boot drive and use the lost apps? Any compatibility issues? I guess I'd need to get housing for it to enable a USB connection.
I hope this thread hasn't died. I'm sorry it took so long to be able to respond. I appreciate all of the feedback.
Vin

 

[KeesMacPro]

I'd do a clean HS install on an external disk to avoid headaches with an OS originally installed on another Mac device.
A SATA to USB cable/enclosure is easy to find and inexpensive.

Not sure about the FC version and possible updates for Mojave , but a Canon driver might be available for Mojave (unless the scanner is too old ofcourse).


This is the link for downloading HS that works on a compatible Mac device and using Safari :
After downloading run the installer and choose the external drive.

How to download and install macOS - Apple Support

Download and install current or previous versions of the Mac operating system on compatible Mac computers.

support.apple.com

 

[Boyd01]

The apps I lost primarily are the Final Cut suite (an old version —5.0, I think)

The final version of Legacy Final Cut Pro was 7, I went as a far as version 6 but didn't bother with the 7 upgrade since the changes were very minor. However, you may be confused by version numbers here, the "suite" was called "Final Cut Studio" which included Compressor, DVD Studio, Color and some other stuff. But the final version of that was 3 and it included Final Cut Pro 7.

I gave up on FCP 6 after Mountain Lion, it was very crash-prone and that was getting frustrating. It did run on Sierra but I just didn't want to deal with the issues anymore and finally upgraded to the new Final Cut Pro X (which is a completely different program that I had to learn from scratch). Anyway, I don't think Final Cut Pro 7 will even run under High Sierra, so I'd be very surprised if FCP 5 would work. See this:

Apple Notifying Customers Using Older Pro Apps About Incompatibilities With macOS High Sierra

Apple today started sending out emails to customers who are using older versions of its pro apps to inform them about impending incompatibilities...

www.macrumors.com

Unless you are confused over the versions, I think the only practical way to run software that old will be on an old Mac that supports Mountain Lion (or maybe Sierra... if you can handle all the crashes). Pretty sure that FCP doesn't work at all in virtual machines. Sorry to say.... but I think it's time to move to Final Cut Pro X, Davinci Resolve or another app that works properly on newer versions of MacOS.

[edit]Just remembered another thing.... even though those old legacy versions of FCP were universal apps, the installer was not and that bit me when trying to install FCP 6 on Mountain Lion - it would not run. The only way I was able to install was to use Migration Assistant to move the original installation from my old Mac. This was discussed a lot "back in the day", I think somebody figured out a way to extract the files from the installer .pkg but it was complicated.