No Access to Format or Erase Disk Buttons in Disk Utility?

[Guzaking]

I have a problem with getting access to the function buttons in disk utility because they are grayed out (and I am the admin) and I want to erase my hard drive or it’s 1 large partition completely. I did a repair and verify disk permissions, and still no access to erase disk or format buttons. Is there a way to fix this or startup from the dvd disk or any options to get access to these buttons?

 

[JTToft]

Are you perhaps booted from the volume you are attempting to erase? 'Cause that won't work.

Boot into Recovery Mode by holding Cmd + R at the startup chime and do it from there.

 

[Guzaking]

Cmd + R brings me to Internet Recovery Mode, but I use OSX 10.6.8 Snow Leop and was using an install disk to get to disk utility to wipe out the hard drive and do a fresh install, but I can't seem to get there because I just get gray screen and then it starts to beep 3 times at 3 second intervals and doesn't move from there. Not sure what to do now?

 

[JTToft]

Cmd + R brings me to Internet Recovery Mode, but I use OSX 10.6.8 Snow Leop and was using an install disk to get to disk utility to wipe out the hard drive and do a fresh install, but I can't seem to get there because I just get gray screen and then it starts to beep 3 times at 3 second intervals and doesn't move from there. Not sure what to do now?

- If it's possible it's 5 second intervals rather than 3 seconds, that means bad RAM.

But try from Internet Recovery. Also a good opportunity to update to a more recent OS.

 

[Guzaking]

I just made a 2nd partition of 10 gb's to install a new 10.6.8 on it to see if the disk utility in that will give me access to the buttons to wipe the main partition and do a fresh install there, it's installing at this moment. I actually do not want to update to a newer OSX as I have tried all the other ones after Snow Leopard and concurred that Snow Leopard was their last best and most stable OSX that they've ever made. So I'm going to stick on that one forever now. I'm not sure of the 3 to 5 seconds for the RAM but would I have to reset the NVRAM in this case? Could I use Target Disk Mode with a 2nd MBP and that disk utility would show me the bad MBP drive that I'm trying to wipe?

 

[JTToft]

I'm not sure of the 3 to 5 seconds for the RAM but would I have to reset the NVRAM in this case? Could I use Target Disk Mode with a 2nd MBP and that disk utility would show me the bad MBP drive that I'm trying to wipe?

- An NVRAM reset is never a bad idea, but if that's the error code it is giving, it has to do with system RAM. You should reseat it or replace it entirely.

I believe you should be able to do that with Target Disk Mode, yes.

(Everything is much easier with a newer OS. Especially because of the recovery partition, which SL doesn't have.)