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Install OS X over USB

roadbloc

roadbloc

macrumors G3
Original poster
Aug 24, 2009
8,784
215
UK
My friend has acquired an eMac. The HDD was totally blank when he got it, the question mark folder appearing on startup. We tried installing a copy of Tiger on it, but unfortunately his CD drive is broken and the install would always fail.

I'm now attempting to do a USB install. Surly doing this (see picture) will work to create one? Or is that just too easy for it to possibly work?
 

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roadbloc said:
My friend has acquired an eMac. The HDD was totally blank when he got it, the question mark folder appearing on startup. We tried installing a copy of Tiger on it, but unfortunately his CD drive is broken and the install would always fail.

I'm now attempting to do a USB install. Surly doing this (see picture) will work to create one? Or is that just too easy for it to possibly work?
Click to expand...

That'll work. At least I'd be shocked if it doesn't. I'm positive that I've done the same thing on multiple occasions.

Might be slower than poop though if the eMac doesn't have USB 2.0 (Not sure). If you have another machine with a firewire port, I often connect them together, and put one in target disk mode. (boot with t down), then the disks on the one computer show up on the other. Then you can just install off the CD of the computer with the working CDROM drive.
 
It's that easy. Just make sure the partition you're restoring to is set as an "Apple Partition Map" and not "GUID Partition Table" or "Master Boot Record" or it will not boot on the machine. Then install via OpenFirmware. Literally just did it on an iMac G4 not 10 minutes ago. Good luck!
 
Regretfully, it didn't work. The boot firmware refused to identify it as a startup disk.

Would a USB CD drive work?
 
Did you go into open firmware to boot or hold C?

In order to boot PowerPC macs from USB your have to boot from open firmware and I think (don't quote me on this) it has to have USB 2.0.
I would give you the command to boot, but I am at work and don't have it with me.
 
Intell said:
Which model eMac is it?
Click to expand...

No idea. My friend has no experience with Macs at all and this is the first eMac I've ever seen in real life. Since it came without any packaging, manuals or software, is there any way to tell by just looking at it?
 
Bummer. Okay, thanks for the help! I'll look into some OpenFirmware commands and see if I can get it sorted.
 
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