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englishman

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 6, 2006
730
10
I've been trying all day to install Windows on a 2009 Mac Pro where I don't have a Windows DVD or blank to create one.

I would just be interested to see if I can get it to install via USB or other method (I want native Windows not virtual machine)

I managed to get a boot to a Windows 10 installation this morning then it kept crashing when installing graphics drivers so I gave up that method and thought I'd try Windows 7.

Since then I have managed to fiddle Bootcamp to create a USB but it is not recognised when rebooting to start the thing off. My feeling from googling around is that the USB is a 3.0 and my Mac Pro 2009 only supports booting from a 2.0.

On the other hand how did I get it to work this morning with 10 even then I couldn't get it to complete properly? (Maybe I've broken the USB drive somehow?)

if all else fails I guess I will have to get a blank DVD and create a Windows disk from my ISO image and try that way.

But if anyone has any experience with this or ideas for me to try I'd be grateful. It seems so backward to have to resort to physical media in 2015. My mini and MBA both installed via this USB.
 
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I haven't tried it but I have read that Windows 7 on a USB 3.0 always seems to give problems with older Macs like yours.

Its weird as with Windows 10 it started ok with my USB 3.0 but then Windows kept crashing once installed and booting was tricky. So USB 2 ports can definitely read USB 3 drives and boot from them (with W 10).

Anyway I decided to start from scratch even a clean install of OSX (having fiddled with Bootcamp sources) and get a blank DVD to burn a Windows 7 ISO so I am going through the Bootcamp process now with Windows 7.

Haven't burnt a DVD in years...
 
And breathe...
 

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lol :) - yeah its all tickety boo - a 50p (50c) investment in a DVD would have saved me a day - ah well.
 
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