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Q: Is it possible to boot a 7300 with a PCI USB card with OS 8.5 on a flash drive? Thanks

Just wondering if it's possible to run a PowerMac 7300/180 with the operating system installed on a flash drive which fits into a USB PCI card? The old hard drive finally went bad and was just wondering if there was any form of flash storage alternative to purchasing a new SCSI hard drive. I have an original OS 8.5 installation CD, would that install onto a flash drive if the computer is able to recognize it? Thanks!

Posted on Feb 3, 2015 9:47 AM

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Q: Is it possible to boot a 7300 with a PCI USB card with OS 8.5 on a flash drive? Thanks

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  • by Don Archibald,

    Don Archibald Don Archibald Feb 3, 2015 11:56 AM in response to cloverfarm
    Level 10 (101,435 points)
    Feb 3, 2015 11:56 AM in response to cloverfarm

    No.

     

    USB booting (the ability to boot from a USB-connected volume) first became possible with the G4 (AGP) and iMac Slot-loading models, ca. 1999. Your PM 7300 is too old for that capability.

     

    USB Info and Benefits of Dual-Channel USB

  • by Jeff,

    Jeff Jeff Feb 4, 2015 9:46 PM in response to cloverfarm
    Level 6 (11,559 points)
    Feb 4, 2015 9:46 PM in response to cloverfarm

    Unfortunately, USB support in the older "PCI" Power Macs isn't firmware-based, so it won't be found in the 7300's ROM code.  If available, it's through the addition of a USB PCI card and is driver-based.  You can't boot from a device, if the drivers needed for recognition of the bus (on which that device is connected) are loaded after the boot sequence has been initiated.  USB flash drives are very useful for extra data storage in those old Macs, but you really need to be running OS 8.6 and download/install the "USB Adapter Card Support 1.4.1" for recognition of the PCI card itself.  If running OS 8.6, I've found that the optimal database of supported USB peripherals is contained in the USB Support files, that are included in the OS 9.1 Update.  The files need to be extracted with "TomeViewer" and placed in the OS 8.6 Extensions Folder.  Again, this will only help with the recognition of a USB device when the computer is up and running.  It cannot make a connected USB flash drive capable of booting the computer.