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Urgent!! Need Desperate Help With Computer!!

S

shinderhizzle84

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 23, 2010
36
0
Hello. If I seem a little pissy right now, I apologize. I have just lost all of the data and my important schoolwork and essays and scripts and everything that I have worked on because of a terrible mistake that I have just commited.

I also have 0 access to my computer, which is a problem, as you can imagine.

Basically, I just got Windows 7 and decided to partition my Mac Mini using Boot Camp. HOWEVER, of course, with my terrible luck, Boot Camp FROZE and CRASHED mid-way through the partitioning process.

My computer immediately restarted itself and when it did my 200 GB of free space was gone, and instead, I had only 4.6 GB of free space, which, as you can imagine, is a HUGE PROBLEM. So I tried to open the Boot Camp assistant to remove the partition, BUT, THE SECOND I OPEN THE PROGRAM, it says "This computer does not have enough space to partition it's hard drive."

So I'm frantic, now, and I'm getting terribly terribly frustrated and I don't know what to do. So I insert my windows installation disc, wipe the Mac Hard Drive (there is NO PARTITION LISTED in the Windows Installation part where you choose your hard drive.) and TRY to format it, but now it says that the new formatted drive is of the GPI format and cannot be installed onto.

All options besides "Load drivers" are GREYED OUT. When I try to load drivers there is nothing I can do.

So I say to myself, even MORE frustrated, that it isn't a problem. I'll just eject the windows disk by holding down the mouse key and re-install Mac OS X and then I'll re-partition the hard drive for Windows and get my computer back the way I want it to.

Of course, because I have a Mac Mini, I have to use a Windows mouse and keyboard and for some stupid reason no matter how HARD or how LONG I hold the left mouse key button down, the loading screen when I first power up my computer does NOT EJECT THE DISK.

So Now, here's my problem: I need to either get a working installation of either mac os x OR windows (preferably windows) on my computer WITHOUT ACCESS TO THE CD DRIVE (unless I am ONLY USING the windows installation disc, as that is COMPLETELY STUCK in the drive).

Any thoughts???? :mad:
 
Boy, I really feel for you. It sounds like you may be in a lot of trouble. If you have any hope of recovering any files, I would do this:

1. Get a friend's Mac and a FireWire cable. Connect your Mini through FW to the other mac. Start up the mini and immediately press and hold the "T" key. Your mini should show up on your friend's Mac as an external hard drive. Then you can see the contents.

You do know you cannot install Windows on a Mac from the disk, right? You need Boot Camp, if I recall correctly.

Good Luck.
 
shinderhizzle84 said:
Hello. If I seem a little pissy right now, I apologize. I have just lost all of the data and my important schoolwork and essays and scripts and everything that I have worked on because of a terrible mistake that I have just commited.

I also have 0 access to my computer, which is a problem, as you can imagine.

Basically, I just got Windows 7 and decided to partition my Mac Mini using Boot Camp. HOWEVER, of course, with my terrible luck, Boot Camp FROZE and CRASHED mid-way through the partitioning process.

My computer immediately restarted itself and when it did my 200 GB of free space was gone, and instead, I had only 4.6 GB of free space, which, as you can imagine, is a HUGE PROBLEM. So I tried to open the Boot Camp assistant to remove the partition, BUT, THE SECOND I OPEN THE PROGRAM, it says "This computer does not have enough space to partition it's hard drive."

So I'm frantic, now, and I'm getting terribly terribly frustrated and I don't know what to do. So I insert my windows installation disc, wipe the Mac Hard Drive (there is NO PARTITION LISTED in the Windows Installation part where you choose your hard drive.) and TRY to format it, but now it says that the new formatted drive is of the GPI format and cannot be installed onto.

All options besides "Load drivers" are GREYED OUT. When I try to load drivers there is nothing I can do.

So I say to myself, even MORE frustrated, that it isn't a problem. I'll just eject the windows disk by holding down the mouse key and re-install Mac OS X and then I'll re-partition the hard drive for Windows and get my computer back the way I want it to.

Of course, because I have a Mac Mini, I have to use a Windows mouse and keyboard and for some stupid reason no matter how HARD or how LONG I hold the left mouse key button down, the loading screen when I first power up my computer does NOT EJECT THE DISK.

So Now, here's my problem: I need to either get a working installation of either mac os x OR windows (preferably windows) on my computer WITHOUT ACCESS TO THE CD DRIVE (unless I am ONLY USING the windows installation disc, as that is COMPLETELY STUCK in the drive).

Any thoughts???? :mad:
Click to expand...

Need specific details.

1) Which Mac Mini
2) Windows 7 32 bit I presume (64 would support GPT)? Which edition (may make a difference).

B
 
okay, thanks for the speedy replies guys. I've definitely cooled down a bit.

I don't think there's any hope of me recovering my files. I've already wiped the mac partition of my hard drive. Thankfully most of my REALLY REALLY IMPORTANT files are all somewhere on my email inbox, haha!

Um, I'm using Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit.

It's the "new and revamped" mac mini. I've got a 256MB Nvidia 320M, if that helps at all...I don't BELIEVE there is more than one version of the mac mini but I've got the one with THAT video card, haha.

I think I just need a way to format my hard drive to NTFS for windows without using a disc. Is there a program I can use off of, say, a USB Storage Device, and how would I load that up on a mac mini??
 
rgarjr said:
don't u have a USB DVD drive u can use to boot off OSX from?
Click to expand...

Do you mean an external dvd drive that connects to the computer via USB?

Um, no....no offense but why would you assume I would have that? Nobody I've ever met has had anything like that since like, 2000, haha.

Is there a way to format my hard drive on mac using a USB Key? I've got a 4 GB one that I'm trying to load Gparted onto but I haven't the first clue how I am going to get the computer to load from the USB key. Do I just hit the alt key during bootup, like as if I was going to boot from a hard drive???
 
balamw said:
You might be able to do what you need with a gparted live USB key.

http://gparted.sourceforge.net/liveusb.php

What is your end goal? Do you want both Mac OS and Windows, just Windows.

Your Mac would be happier with a 64 bit version of Windows. Is there a particular reason you are sticking with 32 bit?

B
Click to expand...

Damn, thanks man, I actually had no idea that I could use 64 bit on my comp, haha!

Um, yeah, well I like NEVER EVER USE Mac OS X anyways, so I guess it makes more sense to just put Windows on.

Right now I've got something like 297.9 GB of "Unallocated Space" and I can't format it and I can't install Windows onto it. I have to find a way to format the hard drive to NTFS so I can install Windows onto it, but it does not seem like I can do that off of my Windows 7 Installation disc, unless there's some sort of feature that I'm completely missing.

Which is why I need an alternative to formatting the disc without using the disc drive. As I said before, if I re-boot and hold down the left mouse key, NOTHING happens (the disc does not eject like it's supposed to. If I could run Gparted off of a disc I would, but I can't figure out a way to eject the Windows Installation disc from my disc slot...
 
rgarjr said:
What happens when u reboot and hold the options key down?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I tried that just last night and forgot to post an update here. It doesn't work. I have the usb key loaded in and the light on it is flashing, meaning it's recognized by the computer, but when I load up with the option/alt button held down, the only thing that happens is that it gives me a list of what to boot up from (which is what I wanted) but the USB drive is not there--only the Windows disc.

NOW, if there was another way to eject my disc from startup BESIDES holding down the left mouse key (because, as I said before, for some stupid reason that just does not work on my computer with my mouse), then that would be a GREAT HELP.
 
It's been a while since I heard of this tip but I believe you can eject a disc by holding "Option", going to the Windows disc using the arrow keys or whatever, then pressing the "Eject" key. Try if that works.
 
tokyo77 said:
It's been a while since I heard of this tip but I believe you can eject a disc by holding "Option", going to the Windows disc using the arrow keys or whatever, then pressing the "Eject" key. Try if that works.
Click to expand...

Just holding the eject key down during boot will eject the disc, but since the OP has a Mini they may not have an Apple KB with the proper key.

B
 
Hmmm if OP doesn't have a Mac keyboard, you can also try holding down apple+option+o+f keys to boot Open Firmware, then type "ejectcd" press Enter then type "mac-boot" and press enter.
 
tokyo77 said:
Hmmm if OP doesn't have a Mac keyboard, you can also try holding down apple+option+o+f keys to boot Open Firmware, then type "ejectcd" press Enter then type "mac-boot" and press enter.
Click to expand...

Non mac keyboards won't necessarily have apple keys either. ;)

But yes, accessing the Open Firmware is another way to go. (Command usually maps to the Windows key and Option maps to Alt so that might be Alt+Windows+O+F on a PC keyboard.)

You can also use an Apple Remote to bring up the Boot Selector, either hold play or menu I never remember which. (EDIT: Wiki has the info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Remote#Boot_options)

B
 
These left-key eject posts have puzzled me since I used the right key of my USB wireless Logitech mouse to eject the CD.
 
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