Roy Miller

Q: HowTo revert new MacBook Pro, Mac Pro or iMac to Snow Leopard

Hi all,

 

the following instructions were provided to me by our Apple Enterprise tech, and I've successfully performed these steps on a newly purchased MacBook Pro.

 

Please note the following - as of 15 Aug 2011:

- this technique will work on new MacBook Pro, Mac Pro or iMac computers UNTIL Apple modifies the hardware in these computers

- this technique will NEVER work on currently shipping MacBook Air or Mac Mini computers

- this configuration of Snow Leopard installed on a computer that shipped with Lion is not supported by Apple Support.  It is entirely possible that after a trip for an AppleCare support incident, or the Apple Genius Bar, that the computer will return with Lion installed.

 

with these caveats, here are the step-by-step instructions:


---------------------------------------------------------------------

 

HowTo - NetRestore - Install Mac OS X 10.6.8 on new Mac delivered with Mac OS X 10.7.0

 

    note:  this only applies to Macbook Pro, Mac Pro, and iMac computers that originally shipped with Mac OS X 10.6.x. 

               Current Macbook Air and Mac Mini computers cannot be downgraded.

 

Required resources:

    - another computer, running Mac OS X 10.6.8

    - spare external disk

    - Snow Leopard installation disc  (Mac OS X 10.6.0 or 10.6.3 Box Set)

    - Snow Leopard 10.6.8 Combo image file  (download from Apple Support Downloads page)

    - System Image Utility 10.6.8  (download Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1.dmg from Apple Support Downloads page)

 

 

Procedure:

 

A. Create the NetImage:

1) mount the base source image  (Mac OS X 10.6.3.dmg - created from Box Set Installer)

2) launch System Image Utility  (from Server Admin Tools)

3) when source (from mounted image) appears in SIU screen, click Custom button

4) drag "Customize Package Selection" from Automator Library window to location

        between existing "Define Image Source" and "Create Image"

5) drag "Add Packages and Post-Install Scripts" from Automator Library to location

        between "Customize Package Selection" and "Create Image"

6) in the "Customize Package Selection" section:

    a) expand the "Mac OS X" triangle

    b) select options desired

    c) collapse the "Mac OS X" triangle

7) mount the appropriate update image  (Mac OS X 10.6.8 v1.1 Combo.dmg)

8) copy the MacOSXUpdCombo10.6.8.pkg package to a new local directory  (Desktop/parts/)

9) drag the MacOSXUpdCombo10.6.8.pkg icon from local directory to the

        "Add Packages and Post-Install Scripts" section of the SIU window

10) in the "Create Image" section:

        a) select the type "NetRestore"

        b) set the "Installed Volume:" field to "Macintosh HD"  (no quotes, can be any name)

        c) select the "Save To:" location

            (will be faster to a second local internal disk)

            (not faster to another partition on the same disk)

        d) set the "Image Name:" field to "Snow Leopard 10.6.8 NetRestore"

        e) the fields "Network Disk:", "Description:", and "Image Index:" don't

            matter unless one is going to use results on a NetBoot Server

11) click the Run button

12) when the dialogs appear, ignore the text and click OK for proper completion

            Dialog text:    "Image creation in progress. 

                            Cancel the image creation to proceed"

 

B. Post-process to create Restore Image:

1) find the directory created in the above process, named as in A.10d above

            (Snow Leopard 10.6.8 NetRestore.nbi)

2) in this directory are three files:

    - i386

    - NBImageInfo.plist

    - NetInstall.dmg

3) mount the NetInstall image  (double-click the NetInstall.dmg file)

4) navigate into the Contents of the package, to:  System/Installation/Packages/

5) copy the System.dmg file out to desktop or other work location

6) rename System.dmg to meaningful name, such as "Snow Leopard 10.6.8 System.dmg"

7) copy this .dmg file to external, bootable, Snow Leopard 10.6.8 system disk  (install in /Users/Shared/)

 

 

C. Install Snow Leopard 10.6.8 on new MacBook Pro or Mac Pro

 

via command line:

1) boot MacBook Pro or Mac Pro from external source prepared in B.7

2) open Terminal

3) find the restore target device specification

        a) run the command  "diskutil list"

        b) look for a 650 MB partition, labelled "Recovery HD" (likely disk0s3)

        c) the target partition should be immediately prior to the "Recovery HD" partition

        d) for a new computer with a 500 GB drive, this partition should be

                labelled "Macintosh HD", with a size of 499.2 GB

        e) make note of it's Device Identifier, likely disk0s2

4) issue the following asr (Apple Software Restore) command

    sudo asr restore --source "/path/to/restore.dmg" --target /dev/disk0s2 --erase

        (replace "/path/to/restore.dmg" with the path to the location and name used in step b.7)

5) this process proceeds and completes quickly, about 3-5 minutes. This is due to

        the "--erase" parameter; it indicates a block-copy operation

        If the process seems slow, likely the "--erase" option was omitted and

        the copy is being done as a file-copy operation.  Quit (ctl-c) and

        examine the command used...

 

 

via DiskUtility GUI:

 

1) boot MacBook Pro or Mac Pro from external source prepared in B.7

2) launch /Applications/Utilities/DiskUtility.app

3) select the computer hard drive  (typically "Macintosh HD")

4) click on the "Restore" tab

5) click on the "Image..." button to specify the "Source"

6) navigate to /Users/Shared/ and select the "Snow Leopard 10.6.8 System.dmg" file

7) drag the computer hard drive volume (Macintosh HD) to the "Destination" field

            (note: grab the volume, not the disk!!)

8) enable the "Erase destination" checkbox

9) click the "Restore" button

10) in the ensuing "Are you sure?" dialog, click the "Erase" button

11) authenticate with the local admin credentials

 

 

Apple Tech recommends leaving the Restore partition alone, and installing in the "Macintosh HD" partition only

 

commands to know:

    - asr

    - diskutil      (diskutil -list to see partitions)

    - hdiutil

Posted on Aug 15, 2011 9:00 AM

Close

Q: HowTo revert new MacBook Pro, Mac Pro or iMac to Snow Leopard

  • All replies
  • Helpful answers

first Previous Page 6 of 25 last Next
  • by Tech Harmony,

    Tech Harmony Tech Harmony Sep 9, 2011 2:57 PM in response to zirkenz
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 2:57 PM in response to zirkenz

    Hi zirkenz... what step are you stuck on? I imagine my explanation of Roy's instructions might have confused things but there must be a specific step you're stuck on. I went through each of his steps, I reread your posts, and then I tried to tailor everything that you would see to your computer. It would help me a lot if you would let me know how far you can get. I don't have much time to devote to a video although that's a nice idea

     

    While you are waiting for his stuff to finish, you can read my thoughts/answers below

     

    1. Booting from an i5 iMac 2011 disc: Maybe that chart I posted with all the restore disc releases would say which discs come with which machine... but usually the restore discs didn't differentiate between processors, just years and models. There would be one for all the Macbook Pros of a given release... or all the iMacs of a given release. So if your i7 iMac is from the same release period as the i5 discs you've got, you should think they would work. Of course, the whole reason this is a unique situation is because of the TYPE of i5/i7 these are... sandybridge right? But I would think they should work. I received the factory disc for my MBP from Apple but it's not your typical grey restore disc.... it's like a white factory disc... so it doesn't give me any extra clue as to what originally shipped with my i5 MBP 2011.

     

    2. I don't know if I used a 10.6.3 base but the way this works, the clone you're making doesn't have any clue or preference or designation for the kind of computer you are making it on... it is a pure virgin master combining all of your base 10.6.x disc with all the the new 10.6.8 updates. So it doesn't run on anything until the first time you run it on your target machine. So that would be the first time this 10.6.8 master would even know what kind of computer it was running on: first boot. Then it could decide which drivers it needed to keep for your i7 or whatever.

     

    Thing is,that's not how OSX has EVER worked. For a decade you could install OSX on an external hard drive and then boot that hard drive on any computer that could handle that version...all the drivers were always there... random awesome feature of Macs. So I'm not sure they would cripple this feature now....so sure, your method should have worked. But it didn't. And you don't see where you could have made a mistake

     

    In my opinion, it's better when your problem is the result of user error than something out of your control. You really should WANT to have made a mistake in your install process. If you didn't make a mistake, then either your computer is busted or you can't put Snow Leo on period. So what would I rather? I'd rather it turn out that I made a mistake and try again, or try another method. I know you can't see how Roy's method would yield different results from what you did, using your logic. But using your logic, you can't figure out how to actually DO roy's method So sure, while your theories are sound, so should your iMac be working perfectly. Any way you cut it, something went wrong ....and I'd always rather it be MY error than require a trip to the Apple Store. That's my pragmatism, YMMV

     

    3. If I understand you correctly, this should work... but so should what you originally did. Sure, do it... try it... why not? Thing is, I don't know if anyone in this thread tried a pure Target Disk method... it's a step in the method, but I don't know if anyone in this thread did a full target disc route like you originally did.... so for all I know there's something different about it this time. It seems like it should work but I would think there must be a thread about it then.

     

    4. Apple always locked the restore discs to the product family... they just say "Macbook Pro" or whatever... you couldn't boot them on any computer but an MBP.... I have no idea if using a disk image of a restore disc in the Roy method would work... I wouldn't bother with it if I was already having problems or unless I had a lot of time to run experiments. It might work perfectly and turn out that booting-for-install is the only thing the restore discs controlled. It's never been practical for me to figure out a workaround for the restore disc limitation so, unless you have no other choice or a lot of time, it's not something I would complicate matters with. If it booted on your iMac, then you wouldn't bother with any of these methods, you'd just boot it!

  • by zirkenz,

    zirkenz zirkenz Sep 9, 2011 4:56 PM in response to Tech Harmony
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 4:56 PM in response to Tech Harmony

    hi

     

    thanks for the response. I want to be clear that i am in no way trying to undermine roy's method rather i'm just trying to understand how this all works. I truly respect roy's and your intelligence, skills and advice and am profoundly grateful for all the guidance. I agree avoiding an apple store visit is a good thing which is why i will do everything i can to make this work. A friend said he would let me borrow his 2011 i5 imac restore disc, which is why i asked.

     

    I think i got part A processing. Just got a dialog box saying something about creating an image file with just an ok button, clicked on it and it is still running. So far 2 files created a system.dmg 4.82GB and a Tempimage.sparseimage file 6.6 gb. green check marks on "customize package selection" and "add packages and post install scripts" (bottom of those windows). At the bottom of "create image" a spining disc showing its still running. it sure is taking a while.

     

    Question i have is if i download the combo updater on a macbook or an imac does that make a difference? Meaning does the website know what mac i'm on and hands me the installer for that computer?

     

    2 people on this forum did exactly what i did and got SL running but none of them have responded with geekbench scores.

  • by Roy Miller,

    Roy Miller Roy Miller Sep 9, 2011 5:02 PM in response to zirkenz
    Level 1 (30 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 5:02 PM in response to zirkenz

    argh, my reply post got wiped (operator error) just as I was finishing it up.

     

    okay zirkenz, here is the short version:

     

    1. the "Mid 2011" i5 and i7 iMacs (http://support.apple.com/kb/SP623) have at least different graphics cards as well.  End of story - they are not the "identical except for the upgraded processor" - the difference in graphics cards alone would likely be a show-stopper.

     

    4. because a) there is no known restore disc for the models of computers we are discussing, b) I don't know how to do so, and c) this process does not create an installer.

     

    This process creates a bootable system disc image, which is copied to the target hard drive.  It will run the current Mac Pro, MacBook Pro, and iMac computers, and likely all previous models that are capable of running SL 10.6.8.

     

    3. if you are booting from a clone of a system, it is no different than booting from the system itself, other than the protected boot disk is now no longer the internal hard drive. 

     

    2. I can't retain all your specific details in my head.  However, if your new i7 iMac can run correctly from an installed Sl 10.6.3 system, then you can simply boot it from the SL 10.6.3 retail box set, perform your installation and upgrades, and away you go.

     

    please - try booting your i7 iMac from the 10.6.3 box set install disk.

     

    if it boots, proceed.

     

    if it doesn't boot (big bet here), then if you want good results, I suggest that you follow the procedure specified in this thread. 

     

    You are welcome to attempt to find other procedures that work - my understanding is that there are few to none, other procedures that is.  If you decide to follow this procedure, then please post a checklist-type post, something like:

     

    A.1 - complete

    A.2 - complete

    .....

    A.6.a - what triangle do you mean?  I don't see any triangle

     

    something like this will help us answer your questions and provide feedback to keep you going.  But you're going to have to try the procedure on faith, and many of the steps will become meaningful as you try them.

     

    without reading back through all your posts, I believe that you had installed 10.6.3 on your iMac internal hard drive when the iMac was booted in Target Disk Mode on a MacBook Pro.  If this is correct, then the system that was installed is one for the MacBook Pro, not the iMac.

     

    are your geekbench 5xxx scores by any chance appropriate for the version of the laptop that you used, assuming I'm correct in the previous paragraph?

  • by Roy Miller,

    Roy Miller Roy Miller Sep 9, 2011 5:10 PM in response to zirkenz
    Level 1 (30 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 5:10 PM in response to zirkenz

    zirkenz,

     

    I think i got part A processing. Just got a dialog box saying something about creating an image file with just an ok button, clicked on it and it is still running. So far 2 files created a system.dmg 4.82GB and a Tempimage.sparseimage file 6.6 gb. green check marks on "customize package selection" and "add packages and post install scripts" (bottom of those windows). At the bottom of "create image" a spining disc showing its still running. it sure is taking a while.

    Great! it does take a lot of processing time.  it took some hours (??) on my Mac Pro.  However, step C is literally 5-10 minutes!

     

    Question i have is if i download the combo updater on a macbook or an imac does that make a difference? Meaning does the website know what mac i'm on and hands me the installer for that computer?

    it doesn't matter.  The updaters all handle all systems, unless they specifically have a model name in the filename.  you're good to go

     

    please see my previous post about the "identical" (not!) nature of the i5 & i7 iMacs.....

     

    good luck, I'm going home for a weekend - hooray!

     

    thanks for the response. I want to be clear that i am in no way trying to undermine roy's method rather i'm just trying to understand how this all works.

    I get it, I appreciate it, and this is one of those where they say in the movies:  "Just have some faith my son!  All will be revealed in time."  Really, it takes going through this complicated-looking process to find out that it isn't quite as complicated as it appears.  And, I'm a huge fan of "understanding how it all works" - just sometimes this gets in the way of getting things done.

     

    good luck, please let us know how it goes for you!

  • by Tech Harmony,

    Tech Harmony Tech Harmony Sep 9, 2011 5:17 PM in response to Roy Miller
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 5:17 PM in response to Roy Miller

    Good show!

    "many of the steps will become meaningful as you try them"

    This is what happened for me. I had a hard time wrapping my mind around the big picture until I'd finally completed a run-through of this....

  • by zirkenz,

    zirkenz zirkenz Sep 9, 2011 6:28 PM in response to Roy Miller
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 6:28 PM in response to Roy Miller

    hi

     

    okay i got to step:

     

    b7) copy this .dmg file to external, bootable, Snow Leopard 10.6.8 system disk  (install in /Users/Shared/).

     

    Don't understand what this means. Right now i copied to my imac desktop and renamed the system.dmg file (from the netinstall mount, system/installation/packages) as you said to Snow Leopard 10.6.8 System.dmg. This file is ow sitting on my imac desktop. What do i do next? I dont understand part b7. Where is the external bootable snow leopard system disk and where is install in /Users/Shared/ ?

     

     

    by the way the renamed system.dmg file to Snow Leopard 10.6.8 System.dmg is 4.82gb (actually they both are) is this right?

  • by Tech Harmony,

    Tech Harmony Tech Harmony Sep 9, 2011 6:43 PM in response to zirkenz
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 6:43 PM in response to zirkenz

    Sweet! For B7, forget about "install in /Users/Shared" ... Sounds like you pulled out the System.dmg file to your iMac desktop and renamed it. This means that you've now got your perfect 10.6.8 clone master! Congrats!

     

    Since the iMac is the computer you are going to repartition as one partition, you obviously need to drag this clone master onto your MBP's desktop, one way or another. I saved the other working files for this whole project on a spare drive too just until I had everything working. But you basically just need to get the System.dmg onto your MBP or somewhere off the computer you're about to reformat!

     

    Here's my explanation from page 4ish:

    Get that far? That was the longest part, you're almost done.

     

    Your goal in following Roy's "Post-Process (B)" is to extract the actual System.dmg from the thing you just made... Roy's steps tell you where to look for it and pull it out.... you can put it in your working area but it would be fastest/best if you dragged it onto the MBP that you're going to use to wipe your iMac. It's basically going to be your master 10.6.8.

     

    For me, I just left it named System.dmg.

     

    For "Install (C)" ... you're going to skip the command line steps and do it via DiskUtility GUI...

     

    Since you have your Macbook Pro, boot your Macbook Pro normally into MBP-land... 10.6.7 is fine for this part. 10.5.8 is fine for this part! Then connect your iMac in Target Disc Mode.

     

    Now when you fire up Disk Utility, you're going to be dragging your destination iMac Sleo partition into the target area (C3).... you will lose everything on this partition and this will become your shiny new Sleo iMac...so get whatever you want off of it. Think you already knew that part Your source is the System.dmg that you might have renamed per Roy. You should be pretty good from here... follow the steps... sometimes you have to mount images before restoring them but Roy didn't say and I don't remember if I did that... so stick with the plan, don't panic, one way will work, and it will restore a pristine 10.6.8 build to your waiting iMac.

  • by zirkenz,

    zirkenz zirkenz Sep 9, 2011 8:04 PM in response to Tech Harmony
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 8:04 PM in response to Tech Harmony

    instead of using the macbook can i use the clone i made of the imac and boot of that.Sould all these files be copied to the clone or just the system.dmg file?

  • by Tech Harmony,

    Tech Harmony Tech Harmony Sep 9, 2011 8:13 PM in response to zirkenz
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 8:13 PM in response to zirkenz

    Sure, you can boot off the clone... you just need a working Disk Utility and your files on a drive other than the one you're going to reformat/repartition.

     

    System.dmg (or whatever you renamed it) is the only file you use in the actual restore step (check out the steps).

    I personally kept the other files around in case I screwed up extracting System.dmg or needed to retrace my steps later.  Just how I roll, out of habit.

  • by Roy Miller,

    Roy Miller Roy Miller Sep 9, 2011 8:43 PM in response to zirkenz
    Level 1 (30 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 8:43 PM in response to zirkenz

    Fantastic Zirkenz!

     

    b7) copy this .dmg file to external, bootable, Snow Leopard 10.6.8 system disk  (install in /Users/Shared/).

     

    Don't understand what this means. Right now i copied to my imac desktop and renamed the system.dmg file (from the netinstall mount, system/installation/packages) as you said to Snow Leopard 10.6.8 System.dmg. This file is ow sitting on my imac desktop. What do i do next? I dont understand part b7. Where is the external bootable snow leopard system disk and where is install in /Users/Shared/ ?

    since Tech Harmony has filled in the "how to go from here", I'll take a small stab at fillling in some of the "understanding how it alls works".

     

    in b7 - the Unix side of my roots are showing. I also have very strong Mac OS roots, dating from about System 6.  Anyway, on the Unix side, the "root" partition starts with the symbolism "/".  This is why in the Terminal, your home directory (read "Folder" in Mac speak), is displayed as the path:  /Users/your-user-name/.

     

    In the Mac OS, from the GUI (Graphical User Interface), which is the view we see from Finder, your home Folder (read "directory" in Unix speak) is located in the path "Macintosh HD:Users:your-user-name:".  Your Desktop is located in the path "Macintosh HD:Users:your-user-name:Desktop:".  This assumes that your system uses the default name for the internal hard drive, which Apple has decided to be "Macintosh HD".  As a note, I always rename my hard drive to the same name as the computer, such as naming my computer "Sam" (instead of "Roy Miller's Computer") and then changing the name/label of the hard drive to "Sam" as well.

     

    Anyway, I digress.  If you open a Finder window, and click on your hard drive icon in the top left of the window ("Macintosh HD" if not renamed), then you should see a folder named "Users".  Open this folder and you should see a folder with the name/label of your account user name (often "miller" for me).  The icon will look like a small house.  In this same Users folder, there should be another folder named/labeled "Shared". 

     

    In Unix-speak, this "Shared" directory is /Users/Shared.  The purpose of this folder/directory is to provide a place where any user account has the ability to read and write files.  For most Mac users I suspect, this is likely un-necessary.  However, for computers with multiple accounts on them, like I have here at home with a family of 4, I can ask my wife to drop a file in the Shared directory, and I can then copy it to mine.  She can't directly put files in my home directory, nor can I in hers. 

     

    anyway, hopes this makes some sense....

  • by Photonomadic,

    Photonomadic Photonomadic Sep 9, 2011 8:46 PM in response to Roy Miller
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 8:46 PM in response to Roy Miller

    So I'm running into this problem and need to get it fixed on two brand new Mac Pro's (literally bought two days ago) by Monday. Im doing a live stream event and need the software to work properly but it is buggy with Lion as of now. I tested on a Mac Pro running snow leopard and the software worked fine.

     

    As I was brainstorming on how to solve this problem with a friend we talked about buying an additional drive to install into the tower and make it the boot up drive and install snow leopard from there with brand new snow leopard install disks. Shouldn't this work as a work around for Mac Pro users?

     

    Thank you!

  • by Roy Miller,

    Roy Miller Roy Miller Sep 9, 2011 8:58 PM in response to Photonomadic
    Level 1 (30 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 8:58 PM in response to Photonomadic

    Hey Photonomadic,

     

    you just caught me about to log off!!

     

    the new Mac Pro's you bought 2 days ago came with Lion installed, correct?

     

    if so, there are absolutely no pre-existing Snow Leopard discs that will boot these machines, outside of those which you might be able to convince Apple to send you.  They were the discs that the same Mac Pro's shipped with immediately prior to Lion's release.

     

    So,

    a) there is no problem with installing another internal hard drive to use a Snow Leopard boot drive.

    b) short of the above-mentioned rare discs, there is no other way (of which I'm aware) to get a "proper" Snow Leopard system installed on a 2-day old Mac Pro delivered with Lion than following this procedure.

     

    Of course, you can use whatever filenames you want for the System.dmg file, and use a different directory/folder besides /Users/Shared from which to deploy the system image, but basically the steps must be followed to achieve the desired result of installing a "proper" Snow Leopard system on a Mac Pro delivered with Lion installed.

     

    more in a bit...

  • by Photonomadic,

    Photonomadic Photonomadic Sep 9, 2011 9:04 PM in response to Roy Miller
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 9:04 PM in response to Roy Miller

    Mac Pro's came installed with Lion, that is correct correct.

     

     

    I bought a family pack snow leopard disc brand new from a certified mac seller today. not an actual mac store. I called a mac store and know they have pulled all the discs from their retail stores. should these discs work for me?

  • by Roy Miller,

    Roy Miller Roy Miller Sep 9, 2011 9:10 PM in response to Photonomadic
    Level 1 (30 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 9:10 PM in response to Photonomadic

    so, it sounds like you have a Mac Pro already running Snow Leopard.  This is good news, as this is a good fast system on which to perform the long Part A of the process. 

    ...install snow leopard from there with brand new snow leopard install disks. Shouldn't this work as a work around for Mac Pro users?

    It is highly likely that you don't have a system install disk that can install a "proper" system on a 2-day old Mac Pro.  If you do have an installer that will boot the new Mac Pros, then you probably should use that.

     

    I suggest that you make sure your Snow Leopard system is up to 10.6.8, then download and install the Server Admin Tools 10.6.8 on it.  Follow the steps in Part A, let it simmer for a couple hours, and you'll be able to extract a system image file in Part B that you can use for each of your 2 new Mac Pros.  Please note - this is not an installer!  This is an image of a system that will replace the contents of your second internal hard drive on the 2 new Macs, using the methods in Part C.

     

    hope this helps...

  • by Roy Miller,

    Roy Miller Roy Miller Sep 9, 2011 9:19 PM in response to Photonomadic
    Level 1 (30 points)
    Sep 9, 2011 9:19 PM in response to Photonomadic

    I bought a family pack snow leopard disc brand new from a certified mac seller today. not an actual mac store. I called a mac store and know they have pulled all the discs from their retail stores. should these discs work for me?

     

    no.

     

    The only version of Snow Leopard that will run 2-day old Mac Pros is version 10.6.8.  No such retail discs were ever distributed by Apple.

     

    The family pack likely has either Snow Leopard version 10.6.0 or 10.6.3.  These are the only retail versions of Snow Leopard that I'm aware Apple has released.  Since these versions of the OS software won't properly run the 2-day old Mac Pros, due to changes in hardware, such as video cards, processors, etc., you need to somehow get Snow Leopard 10.6.8 onto your new Mac Pro boot disks.

     

    Therefore this procedure.

     

    As I've counseled others, the procedure seems complicated and is hard to envision, until you've actually gone through it (once or twice).  I recommend you try to get through Part A, taking some of it on faith, and recognizing that the initial post gives the wrong name of the source file for the package contiaining the System Image Utility.  It should say "Server Admin Tools 10.6.8.dmg".

     

    give it a shot...

first Previous Page 6 of 25 last Next