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Can not install OS 9.2.2 on my machine running OSX - 2008/09/24 18:54Hello.
I've been searching all day and I've seen a lot of people posting similar problems, but I couldn't find a single answer that actually resolves this problem.
I have a Power Mac G4 450 mhz (AGP Graphics) that I bought used with OS X 10.2.8 already installed. I don't have the system disks. I have a Classic application I desperately need to use. When I try to run Classic it says there is no Classic system folder, and suggests installing OS 9.1 or newer.
So I bought an OS 9.2.2 installation disk. Under OS X, the OS 9 installer won't run because, well, it's a Classic application - and my computer won't run Classic. Duh.
So I boot up from the OS 9 cd, but it doesn't see my hard disk, so the installer has no volume to install to.
Please help! This is very frustrating.
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Michael B. in Cincinnati
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Posts: 10
Re:Can not install OS 9.2.2 on my machine running - 2008/09/25 11:28It sound as though whoever installed OSX did not install the OS9 drivers on the HD. Do you want to keep OSX? If my guess is correct, you will need to either partition the drive into two parts, and install OSX on the second and OS9 on the first; or simply install OS9 from your CD onto the drive and drop OSX. I believe that OS9 MUST run from the first partition.
Does your OSX installation support the OS9 simulation mode? On my DA, it's under the Apple icon/system preferences/system, but I also have OS9 installed on a second HD, and I frankly don't know if that's a requirement to run the simulation mode or not.
Good luck! - Michael B. in Cincinnati
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Cacicedo
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Posts: 332
Re:Can not install OS 9.2.2 on my machine running - 2008/09/25 18:45If you partition the drive, you'll erase everything on it. So back up if you are going to go that way. I suspect that whoever installed X on the drive didn't check the "install classic environment"--or whatever the option is called that allows for the installation of OS 9 on the same HD as OS X.
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krowmagnum
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Posts: 793
Re:Can not install OS 9.2.2 on my machine running OSX - 2008/09/26 19:37No need to partition anything. OS X and OS 9 live happily together on the same partition
Since you don't have OS 9 drivers installed on the OS X drive you could add a 2nd drive, install OS 9 on that and you would be good to go with classic mode or booting OS 9.
Otherwise you will have to erase the drive, install OS 9 drivers while erasing and re-install OS X, then OS 9.
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universe
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Posts: 292
Re:Can not install OS 9.2.2 on my machine running - 2008/09/26 21:40Krow I hate to disagree re running OS 9 and 0SX. On the original G4 HD OS 9.2/X are run. OS9 is partitioned and runs as Classic. It's the format supplied when getting the machine new. There have been problems with the original HD and am now using an External HD. Tried to install OS9 on the External and a message came up that OS9 could not be run on the Drive. I'm wondering if newer Drives are formatted or whatever from the original HD. Rex
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krowmagnum
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Re:Can not install OS 9.2.2 on my machine running - 2008/09/26 22:54universe wrote: Krow I hate to disagree re running OS 9 and 0SX. On the original G4 HD OS 9.2/X are run. OS9 is partitioned and runs as Classic. It's the format supplied when getting the machine new. There have been problems with the original HD and am now using an External HD. Tried to install OS9 on the External and a message came up that OS9 could not be run on the Drive. I'm wondering if newer Drives are formatted or whatever from the original HD. Rex
I'm not sure I understand Rex but you can run OS 9 on the same partition without problems, and it will boot into OS 9 or run as classic in OS X. The 2 OS's are completely different and do not cause problems on the same partition. Apple may have partitioned some G4's that way but it's not necessary.
In fact I'm pretty sure the OS 9 driver option during the OS X format is only for booting into OS 9 and has no effect on installing OS 9 or running classic mode. It's been a while but it's all slowly coming back to me now ;-)
When installing OS 9 on a drive that has OS X on it you will get a message about "an OS on the drive already" and you must check the clean install option. (that will not replace the OS X on the drive, just adds OS 9, but would replace an OS 9 system folder if there was one) I'm going from memory and haven't done this for a few years so the exact wording may be different on the actual messages you get.
The original drive's format will not affect anything on a second drive unless it's been cloned or something like that.
I'm not sure why the OP's OS 9 installer is not recognizing the drive but now that I think about it, the OS 9 driver, or lack of OS 9 driver during the OS X formatting and install should not matter. I'll do a little research and see what I can find but I'm 99.9% sure the OS 9 driver is only for booting OS 9.
The easiest solution for the OP is to just get a 2nd IDE drive to install as a slave drive in the G4 and install OS 9 on that. Any old 2GB or larger IDE drive should work. That way it will be bootable in OS 9 also just in case the classic app he wants to use will not run in classic. Since some apps won't run correctly in classic this would be the best option all around.
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