Re-installing OSX for older Macbook

[thebiggestwinne]

Hi everyone!
I have a quick question, maybe a softball for the experts here.
I'm prepping my wife's older Macbook (white, 2006) for sale on eBay, as I have recently replaced it with the newest model. I'm going to wipe the computer and re-install OSX.
My question is this: Can I use the OSX Snow Leopard disc from her new Macbook to wipe/reinstall on her old one, thus having Snow Leopard installed instead of Tiger?

Thanks for the help,
JJ

 

[flopticalcube]

You can but legally you need to sell the disk with the computer as well although I don't think eBay will stop you. Do you not have the original Tiger disks?

 

[old-wiz]

Hi everyone!
I have a quick question, maybe a softball for the experts here.
I'm prepping my wife's older Macbook (white, 2006) for sale on eBay, as I have recently replaced it with the newest model. I'm going to wipe the computer and re-install OSX.
My question is this: Can I use the OSX Snow Leopard disc from her new Macbook to wipe/reinstall on her old one, thus having Snow Leopard installed instead of Tiger?

Thanks for the help,
JJ

no. the restore disks are machine specific. Besides, you only own a single license for Snow Leopard. Installing it on another machine would violate the EULA, plus the buyer would have no way to reinstall.

 

[flopticalcube]

Yeah, I forgot they were machine specific. I thought you were using the retail. No, it won't work.

 

[294307]

As far as I know the discs that are included with each Mac computer are custom made for the specifications in that machine, so installing it on another type of Mac (or potentially the same type of Mac just an older revision) may not work...not entirely sure though but the discs that are included which your wife's newer Mac probably can only be installed on one machine at a time.

The not-so-legal route would be to buy an upgrade copy of Snow Leopard for $29-ish, and install it on your wife's 2006 MacBook - as according to others this has worked (as far as the installation goes), from the start of the release of Snow Leopard, although I'm in no way endorsing and/or recommending that but that route is possible. But the upgrade copy of Snow Leopard was intended to upgrade from Leopard only.

Your best, recommended legal alternative would be to purchase the Mac Box Set of Snow Leopard - which being like $149-$169-ish (not exactly sure of specific pricing here) - is quite expensive - but that is the legal option to have Snow Leopard installed on your wife's '06 MacBook.

By the way, if you ever try and boot into the newer MacBook discs in the '06 MacBook, usually when they are not for the correct machine the icon keeps spinning at boot-up and will not boot into the installation setup process.

Edit - I realise people have already responded to your question, but when I was replying there were no replies to this thread

 

[thebiggestwinne]

Thanks so much!

 

[cjmillsnun]

As far as I know the discs that are included with each Mac computer are custom made for the specifications in that machine

Not strictly true, the OS is identical in all respects aside from one routine that checks the computer type (in my case MacBook 5,2) matches the machine it was supplied with.