cant access security options or erase from disk utility for secure erase

Hi irori, and a warm welcome to the forums! 🙂

The Disk name is on top & set to the left, the Volume name in below & inset a bit to the right, click on the Volume, see if Erase Free Space button is available, or are you wanting to Erase the whole Drive?

when i access disk utility either direct from computer or from the start up disc the 'security options' button and 'erase' buttons are both frozen or un-clickable.

This would be normal when booting from the working Disk, but I suspect that it didn't actually boot from the Install Disc.

Just in case...

1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc that came with your computer, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
*Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.*
3. Click the Erase tab.
4. Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
5. Select your Mac OS X volume.
6. Highlight the drive, select Partition Tab, then Format type... MacOS Extended Journalled, select the Security Options button, choose Zero Out Data, Erase... after completion hopefully you'll be able to install.

after highlighting the drive, click on the Partition tab, Options button will be down below...

Great news, thanks! 🙂

Help, please. I'm trying to erase the HD on my old 15" iMac, which is running OS 10.4.11. When I insert the Mac OS Install Disk 1, with OS version 10.4.6, and do a restart holding down the C key, I get a "panic" message with several lines of stuff I don't understand that cover the screen. Underneath all that is something telling me I need to restart the computer by holding down the power button, at which point the message reappears. Any ideas? Thanks!!

Hi Chris, I think that's perhaps a Gray Machine specific Install Disk from another Mac, you need either the one that came with that iMac, (X 10.2.3 or 9.2.2 & X 10.1.2, depending which iMac/G4/15" it is), or the Black Retail Tiger install Disc...

2Z691-5811-A is the Install Disk for PPC Macs, G3, G4, and most G5s. This is another retail dvd. That means it will install on ANY Mac with a G3, G4, or G5 ppc processor along with Xcode 2. (256 megs of RAM min)

The DVD is black with the X on it and has this number on it - 2Z691-5305-A

Thanks for the reply! I probably discarded the Tiger disks once I upgraded to newer machines and progressed thru Leopard. Where does one get the Black Retail Tiger Install disk these days?

In the last few hours I've made matters worse by erasing the hard drive (and its OS) using an OS 10.5 disk, which of course will not install on this older machine. So that DVD is stuck in the Superdrive and the computer wants me to pick a startup disk -- any idea how to eject the DVD and/or create a network startup? Thanks in advance.

Where does one get the Black Retail Tiger Install disk these days?

See Tom's, (Texas Mac Man), great info on where/how to find/get Tiger...

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9755670&#9755670

Or Ali Brown's great info on where/how to find/get Tiger...

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10381710#10381710

any idea how to eject the DVD and/or create a network startup?

Hold the Mouse button down as you boot it up. You need OSX Server to do a Network startup/install.

Thanks very much!!!!!!!

🙂