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macbook hdd replaced Can not install mac os x

L

loda117

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 9, 2010
1
0
One of my friends gave me a macbook because the hdd was bad. I have replaced it with another SATA 160GB HDD which came out of a PC and has a NTFS format on it.
I have bought a mac OS X disks from ebay and ready to format the drive. There is the big problem i came across. Disk is in and i started the macbook it goes to gray screen and a folder with question mark in it blinking. I have looked up the key to boot it into the cd. I have tried holding the letter C on start up but yet it won't boot from the cd. It sounds like the cd is trying to boot but nothing happens keep going to the blinking question mark screen.

at this time I think the cd/dvd drive is bad because it won't eject the cd now.

If anyone have any suggestions or tips on how to fix this I would really appreciate it.

Thanks
oh the the cd im using is max osx 10.4.8
 
You can also try holding down the option/alt key on start-up and see if you can choose to boot from the DVD. Also are you sure you bought a retail copy of Mac OS X because sometimes people try selling off the OS disc that came with their computer.
 
If you get a question mark when trying to boot from the OSX disk, then it means the computer can't find a valid OS. Sounds like your OSX install disk is bad.
 
loda117 said:
I have bought a mac OS X disks from ebay and ready to format the drive. There is the big problem i came across. Disk is in and i started the macbook it goes to gray screen and a folder with question mark in it blinking.
Click to expand...

This is standard when a Mac with a blank/new HD is booted. Firmware is asking you, "where are the startup files"?



I have looked up the key to boot it into the cd. I have tried holding the letter C on start up but yet it won't boot from the cd. It sounds like the cd is trying to boot but nothing happens keep going to the blinking question mark screen.
Click to expand...

I've seen this too. Could be several problems. It may be a bad OS X install disc, made more likely by the fact it's an Ebay purchase. It may be the Macbook Pro optical drive doesn't like the disc.

at this time I think the cd/dvd drive is bad because it won't eject the cd now.
Click to expand...

1. Boot the mac and immediately hold down mouse key. Should eject. If this doesn't work,

2. Boot mac and immediately hold down command+option+F+O. Disc should eject.

Thanks. oh the the cd im using is max osx 10.4.8
Click to expand...

That is old. Why don't you just get a brand new Snow Leopard disc for like $30?

Another tip: does the macbook have a Firewire port? If so, you can boot the macbook into "target disc mode" and have another Mac (with a firewire port) control the macbook's harddrive. I've installed Snow Leopard this way on many iMacs, and it can be a quick way to troubleshoot HD problems if the computer won't boot.

Boot up and hold down T key for target disc mode. And once the macbook is in target disc mode, you can format the harddrive, install an entire OS on it, etc. Key is the macbook must have a firewire port and the proper firmware revision. I can't recall what firmware is needed, but this capability (a) comes standard on all the more recent macs that have Firewire, or (b) your friend flashed the proper firmware update on an older macbook with a firewire port.

But first thing I'd look to is a bad install disc.
 
Exactly which MacBook model is it? Does it have a PowerPC or an Intel processor?

It could be the 10.4.8 you bought separately won't boot your MacBook. Most Mac models come with bootable disks that are specific to that model.

Also, I don't think 10.4.8 was ever distributed on CD, only on DVD. So if your MacBook has only a CD drive, then it won't be able to read DVDs at all. Since you didn't identify what MacBook model it is, we have no way of knowing what kind of drive it has.

The other comments about reformatting the HD are correct. You will not be able to install a bootable OS on the drive without reformatting using Disk Utility. Disk Utility will be one of the options in the menubar after it boots from DVD.
 
loda117 said:
One of my friends gave me a macbook because the hdd was bad. I have replaced it with another SATA 160GB HDD which came out of a PC and has a NTFS format on it.
I have bought a mac OS X disks from ebay and ready to format the drive. There is the big problem i came across. Disk is in and i started the macbook it goes to gray screen and a folder with question mark in it blinking. I have looked up the key to boot it into the cd. I have tried holding the letter C on start up but yet it won't boot from the cd. It sounds like the cd is trying to boot but nothing happens keep going to the blinking question mark screen.

at this time I think the cd/dvd drive is bad because it won't eject the cd now.

If anyone have any suggestions or tips on how to fix this I would really appreciate it.

Thanks
oh the the cd im using is max osx 10.4.8
Click to expand...

Also, be aware that Apple never sold a retail version of Tiger for Intel Macs. The retail copies of Tiger were PowerPC only. OS restore discs included with Intel Macs were generally machine specific. Finding the correct OS X Tiger disc could be a bit of a challenge.

chown33 said:
Exactly which MacBook model is it? Does it have a PowerPC or an Intel processor?

It could be the 10.4.8 you bought separately won't boot your MacBook. Most Mac models come with bootable disks that are specific to that model.

Also, I don't think 10.4.8 was ever distributed on CD, only on DVD. So if your MacBook has only a CD drive, then it won't be able to read DVDs at all. Since you didn't identify what MacBook model it is, we have no way of knowing what kind of drive it has.

The other comments about reformatting the HD are correct. You will not be able to install a bootable OS on the drive without reformatting using Disk Utility. Disk Utility will be one of the options in the menubar after it boots from DVD.
Click to expand...

MacBooks are Intel only. When Apple switched from PowerPC to Intel chips the name was changed from iBook to Macbook. And the Powerbooks became MacBook Pros. So, any MacBook/MacBook Pro is an Intel Inside. ;)
 
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