Kian Brose Brito

Q: Old iMac OS download. Please help!

Ok, so here is the thing, I have a very old iMac ( about 10 years old ) and the hard drive died. It is unusable and no information can be recovered. The OS is lost. I tried to look on internet how to make a new OS X drive from a Blank Drive. All of them require a Mac and access to the troubleshooting menu (CMD + R when turning on computer). I tried everything but nothing worked. Just a blank screen. Is there a way to download any OS X Snow Leopard, Mountain Lion, Mavericks, Yosemite  anything that can work from windows to a blank drive that would just be replaced in the old slot of the old broken drive so it can turn on and work?

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Aug 28, 2016 12:51 PM

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Q: Old iMac OS download. Please help!

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  • by Niel,

    Niel Niel Aug 28, 2016 12:56 PM in response to Kian Brose Brito
    Level 10 (311,763 points)
    Aug 28, 2016 12:56 PM in response to Kian Brose Brito

    On that Mac model, you need a disk.

    If it's an Intel Mac, buy a Snow Leopard DVD from the online Apple Store.

    If it's a PowerPC Mac, buy a retail 10.4 or 10.5 DVD from a source such as Amazon or eBay; the compatible DVDs depend on its exact model.

     

    (144304)

  • by Kian Brose Brito,

    Kian Brose Brito Kian Brose Brito Aug 28, 2016 10:35 PM in response to Niel
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 28, 2016 10:35 PM in response to Niel

    Are you sure this will work? I cannot even access the alternative options menu when I turn the iMac on and hold the ALT key. I tried everything in an apple online chat support conversation. Nothing is working and the cd slot is broken. So a cd would be useless. Can this snow leopard OS X cd be installed on a hard drive from a Windows PC or a virtual Mac?

  • by BobHarris,

    BobHarris BobHarris Aug 29, 2016 5:38 AM in response to Kian Brose Brito
    Level 6 (19,272 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 29, 2016 5:38 AM in response to Kian Brose Brito

    You cannot use a Windows PC.

     

    You could make a Genius Bar appointment at an Apple store and ask them to install an OS X version on your system.

     

    It is possible to get an external DVD drive and install Snow Leopard that way.

     

    If your Mac supports Lion 10.7

    <System requirements for OS X Lion and Mac OS X v10.6 - Apple Support>

    or Mountain Lion 10.8,

    <OS X Mountain Lion system requirements - Apple Support>

    AND you have a friend with a Mac, you may be able to use their Mac to login to your Apple ID account, and purchase a Lion or Mountain Lion redemption code.  Then take that code to the Applications -> App Store on your friends Mac, and still logged in with your Apple ID, redeem the code and download Lion or Mountain Lion (quit the installer when it starts).

     

    Once you have a copy of Lion or Mountain, you can use DiskMaker X to create a bootable USB installer

    <http://diskmakerx.com/>

     

    If you have a friend with a Mac capable of running a version of OS X that will also run on your Mac, you could have them format and install the copy of OS X you downloaded on to your new disk in an external enclosure, then transfer the disk into your Mac.

     

    If Snow Leopard is going to be installed, if you have a friend that can run Snow Leopard, you can have them use their DVD drive to install Snow Leopard onto your new disk in an external enclosure, then transfer the disk to with Snow Leopard to your Mac.

  • by Kian Brose Brito,

    Kian Brose Brito Kian Brose Brito Aug 29, 2016 9:33 AM in response to BobHarris
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 29, 2016 9:33 AM in response to BobHarris

    I Have the OS X CDs that came with the computer when I bought it. But the cd rom drive does not work on the Mac so I cannot install the OS on the old Mac. Is there a way to install the OS x using these CDs using a Windows with a blank drive? Or maybe formatting a USB drive for a Mac and then copy the contents of the cd to the mac? Are these CDs useful or do I still have to buy new ones?

  • by Phil0124,

    Phil0124 Phil0124 Aug 29, 2016 9:48 AM in response to Kian Brose Brito
    Level 7 (26,860 points)
    iPhone
    Aug 29, 2016 9:48 AM in response to Kian Brose Brito

    As has already been stated, you cannot, use a Windows PC to do this. It will not work from a Windows PC.

     

    You can use an external DVD drive to bypass the internal one if it does not work.

     

    There is no internal recovery menu in a Mac that old without a functional OSx installed hard drive,  which you say is unusable. You absolutely need to do it from Discs.

     

    No other way.

  • by BobHarris,

    BobHarris BobHarris Aug 29, 2016 4:08 PM in response to Kian Brose Brito
    Level 6 (19,272 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 29, 2016 4:08 PM in response to Kian Brose Brito

    The CD/DVDs are useful, but only if you get an external USB based CD/DVD drive to read them, or if you have a friend with an identical Mac (as install DVDs shipped with a Mac are machine specific), then you could use that Mac to apply the install disks to your boot disk stored in an external enclosure.

     

    Or one of the other ideas I presented above.

  • by BobHarris,

    BobHarris BobHarris Aug 30, 2016 6:00 AM in response to Kian Brose Brito
    Level 6 (19,272 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 30, 2016 6:00 AM in response to Kian Brose Brito

    I DO NOT KNOW if this will work, but the following Apple support article

    <Use the CD or DVD drive from another computer with your Mac - Apple Support>

    describes how to share another computer's DVD drive, including a Windows PC.

     

    What I do not know is whether your specific Mac when booted holding the "Options" key will see the remote DVD drive.

  • by Limnos,

    Limnos Limnos Aug 30, 2016 7:42 AM in response to BobHarris
    Level 9 (53,622 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 30, 2016 7:42 AM in response to BobHarris

    BobHarris wrote:

     

    I DO NOT KNOW if this will work, but the following Apple support article

    <Use the CD or DVD drive from another computer with your Mac - Apple Support>

    The thing about that article is it does not state the cabling necessary. All it mentions is network access which means it may not be like in old days when you could boot from another computer's drive with a Firewire cable: Installing 10.4/10.5 on a Mac with a broken/or incompatible optical drive - https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-1020  I suspect to get network access the computer needs higher level functionality, i.e. it has to be booted to an OS.  With modern Macs you can use Internet Recovery and that article is likely written with modern Macs in mind.

  • by BobHarris,

    BobHarris BobHarris Aug 30, 2016 8:09 AM in response to Limnos
    Level 6 (19,272 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 30, 2016 8:09 AM in response to Limnos

    Limnos wrote:

     

    BobHarris wrote:

     

    I DO NOT KNOW if this will work, but the following Apple support article

    <Use the CD or DVD drive from another computer with your Mac - Apple Support>

    The thing about that article is it does not state the cabling necessary. All it mentions is network access which means it may not be like in old days when you could boot from another computer's drive with a Firewire cable: Installing 10.4/10.5 on a Mac with a broken/or incompatible optical drive - https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-1020  I suspect to get network access the computer needs higher level functionality, i.e. it has to be booted to an OS.  With modern Macs you can use Internet Recovery and that article is likely written with modern Macs in mind.

    I agree, but if wants to try it, then an Ethernet cable, from the iMac to the network router's Ethernet switch ports, would be the minimum.

     

    Configure the other computer to share its DVD drive according to the article.

     

    Boot the iMac holding the "Option" key, and see if the iMac sees the remote DVD drive.

     

    It will either work or it will not, but it will not cost anything to try, except some time.