Upgrading from 10.4.11 to 10.6.3

[nonarticulate]

Hello all.

I've been reading websites about this OSX upgrade process, but I feel there are too many variables for an amateur like me to take into account, so I wanted to ask specific questions about my specific computer.

I have a 2.16 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo Macbook. My OS is Tiger 10.4.11. I also have Adobe CS4 and Microsoft Office 2004.

And I have a brand new Snow Leopard 10.6.3 installation CD.

I've been told that I can upgrade straight from Tiger to Snow Leopard. However, in case something goes wrong, I don't want to lose Microsoft Office or CS4. I no longer have the installation discs for these programs, so if I lost them, I'd lose them for good.

I've been told that I can install Snow Leopard directly over Tiger, and my applications will just transfer. In conflict with that, I've also been told that I need to do a clean install if I'm going to skip normal Leopard, but will this make me lose CS4 and Office? Additionally, I've been told that no matter what I do, I must back everything up to an external hard drive; will this save my applications in the event that Snow Leopard crashes? And if so, how do I go about reinstalling CS4 and Office (and Tiger, for that matter, since I don't have Tiger installation discs)? If I have to do a clean install for Snow Leopard, can I move my backed-up Office and CS4 off the external drive and back onto my computer?

I do not have many funds to throw around, so repurchasing CS4 and Office is something I can't do. So basically what I'm asking is, what's the safest way to make the upgrade to 10.6.3, under my circumstances? I'd appreciate any help!

 

[Major.Robto]

I would back your system on to a portable hard drive with CCC. You can do a disk to disk clone

Then after you have clean installed 10.6 you use the migrate function to move you user folder and app folder over.


You should be fine if you install rosetta in the 10.6 setup.

 

[nonarticulate]

So if I back up my applications on an external drive and do a clean install for 10.6, I 100% will not need to worry about having the CS4 and Office installation CDs?

Another thing is that I don't own an external hard drive, so it would really be nice if I didn't have to do a clean install. Part of my original question, perhaps poorly worded, was to ask if this was possible. If I could just install Snow Leopard straight over Tiger.

Right now I'm guessing that's not advised.

If I do have to buy an external hard drive, do you have any recommendations? The cheaper, the better, because all the ones I've seen are quite pricey, and I can't afford that right now.

Thanks for the help!

 

[blueroom]

If you haven't backed up that old Mac to an external drive ever then it's just a matter of time before you lose everything from an HDD fail. Before you spend $29 on SL consider buying an external drive to backup to.

What do you consider expensive? What country are you in?

 

[Major.Robto]

You can not go from 10.4 to 10.6 because you need the 10.5 as a base or a clean install of 10.6

You could jump from 10.4 to 10.5 to 10.6

Or just clean install 10.6 (Best bet)

Externals can run from $80 USD (500gb)
Mine was about $90 CAD

I would get a Regular sized one and not a porrtable one. Because the macbooks tend to not like to power portable hard drives and have longer ipad charge times.

I would use CCC to make a complete clone of you hard drive to this new big one.

Then use the system Migration to move over from the external after you are done.

This is your best be about going around this.

I would not recomend a upgrade ever! They can be more problem matic.

Then after you have eveything in working order, you can whipe the 10.4 install off the external and use it for Time Masheen for your backups.

 

[nonarticulate]

I already have the $29 Snow Leopard install disc, so... yeah, that's done.

It sounds like what you guys are saying is that I absolutely cannot install Snow Leopard over Tiger. I must wipe Tiger and do a clean install of Snow Leopard. In which case, I must back up my files to an external drive, and then move them back onto my computer once Snow Leopard is installed. And I will not lose CS4 or Office in this process. Is that true?

Let's say that I back up everything. Then would it be possible for me to try installing Snow Leopard over Tiger, and if that fails, THEN do a clean install, instead? What exactly are the downsides of just putting Snow Leopard over Tiger?

Sorry for repeating myself here. I'm being told conflicting things by different people offline, which is why I'm asking for complete clarity. I have a friend who says you CAN install Snow Leopard over Tiger without a hitch, but then I go online and read that you can't do this, hence my uncertainty.

Expensive for me is any money at all, really. But $90 is much cheaper than the external hard drives I was looking at, which were over $200.

 

[blueroom]

You must go incrementally.

 

[Major.Robto]

The only way you can go from 10.4 to 10.6 is via clean install if you do not have 10.5


The installer with Snow leopard there is no upgrade when booted via dvd or archkive and install.

The only upgrade is if you have 10.5 as a base.


You will have to do a clean install.

I found a 3000 GB hard drive for about 140$ USD thats not to bad of a price for the amount of storage and the Drive its self is USB 2/3 so it will work on your computer.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148865

Its one sale at the moment so I would buy it right away.
Because the drive is so big you can partition it so you have the same size as you laptop drive For a Clone of 10.4 (And you can leave it there and boot if need be Would be a bit slower to boot from usb) for the clone on one partition, Then about 1000GB for time mascheen then the rest for pure storage.


Trust me its worth the money. I had no backupsystem and I lost everything. Its better to be safe then sorry.

Also because you have a macbook you Do need a external hard drive with a power plug. I have posted on that comes with the power plug. because is a desktop sized hard drive. But its worth it!


My hard drive I bought was a portable. I was lacking some coffee sorry about the wrong price. last time. This time you can look your self.

Also segate hard drive are top notch.

 

[birdhouse1575]

Copy your Adobe CS4 folder and Microsoft Office folders from your Applications folder to an external drive, as well as their folders in ~/Library/Application Support/

Fresh install of snow leopard, then drag the applications back to the Applications folder and their other folders back to Application Support.

This assumes you need to back up absolutely nothing else.

 

[Major.Robto]

Copy your Adobe CS4 folder and Microsoft Office folders from your Applications folder to an external drive, as well as their folders in ~/Library/Application Support/

Fresh install of snow leopard, then drag the applications back to the Applications folder and their other folders back to Application Support.

This assumes you need to back up absolutely nothing else.

Well with the apps he is talking about I am asuming he is useing files that he had made on his harddrive and there is no backups or backupsystem for him

So What im saying will provide the sotrage and back up he so requires. in the long run.

 

[nonarticulate]

Sorry I didn't come back sooner! It looks like that sale is over now, or at least, they're out of stock.

What about this?

http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-FreeA...f=sr_1_20?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1337272437&sr=1-20

That's affordable for me, and it's also Seagate (which you said was good). Would it work?

Something else I need to ask: I'm looking to buy more RAM. I've heard that my computer can go up to 3GB, so I'd need to buy one 1GB stick and one 2GB stick, right? Do you have any recommendations about what brands to purchase?

 

[Major.Robto]

That hard drive is just fine. its 1000GB. and USB


Depends for ram. I can have up to 6gb in my laptop but thats rather slower because you lose the dual channel something something, I went for 4gb my self.

I just got my2 2gb sticks from Macsales it costed me about 80bucks with shipping and the tools to add the ram it was well worth it.

Well worth it I say. If you use photoshop alot you should invest there.

Can you tell me what Macbook you have from system profiler it would be like macbook 4,1 (Mine is 4,1)
because Macbook 1,1 can only take 2gb
Macbook 2,1 can take 4 but only reads 3
macbook 3,1 and 4,1 can take 6gb (recommended 4 though)


Im on a limb and assuming you said that your system can only take 3gb then you have a 2,1 so this is the kit you should look at

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other World Computing/53IM2DDR3GBK/ 50 bucks plus tax and that fun stuff.
Do post the system number though it can help out alot.

Its under the blue apple (Where shutdown is), then about this mac then more info. should be the first or second line.

Also a note snow leo needs lots of ram like min 2gb, but I would get the most you can.
Im running lion and it takes abouta gig for the system its self then another 1gig for my mail,chrome,Adium,itunes, (my normal day)
By then thats two gigs eaten. just running basic things.