Installing OS-9 and OS-X to be dual bootable

You can install OS 9 and OS X on one volume or you can install each on separate volumes. If you install on separate volumes then you can boot permanently into one and temporarily into the other using the boot manager (restarting the computer and holding the OPTION key down until the boot manager screen appears.) Or you can boot permanently into either using the Startup Disk preference pane (OS X) or control panel (OS 9).

If you install them both on the same volume then you can only switch between them using Startup Disk.

It doesn't make any difference which you install first. If you want to use the first option above, then you have to partition the hard drive into at least two partitions - one for OS X and one for OS 9. Both partitions would be formatted Mac OS Extended (HSF+).

In OS X you use Disk Utility to format and partition drives. In OS 9 you use Drive Setup. However, you should use Disk Utility in OS X.

Kappy,

For someone who has similar needs to Bernie your answer was helpful. However as I've never formatted a disk despite 20 years of Mac use it raises a further, very basic, question from me.

I am assuming that if formatting one disk into two volumes, one for OSX and one for OS9, you use Disk Utility running in OSX to create both volumes. You would only use Drive Setup if creating a wholly OS9 disk from OS9. Is that correct, please?

Michael

G4 733 512 MB Mac OS 9.2.x

Yes, you are correct. To do this in OS X do the following:

1 a (If this is the startup drive.) Boot from your OS X Installer Disk. After the installer loads select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu if using Tiger.) Be sure to use the installer disk for the version of OS X you intend to install.

1 b (If this is a non-startup volume or external drive.) Open Disk Utility in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder.

2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.

3. Set the number of partitions from the dropdown menu (use 1 partition unless you wish to make more.) Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled, if supported.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the volume(s) mount on the Desktop.

4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.

5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled, if supported.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.

6. Click on the Erase button. The format process will take 30 minutes to an hour or more depending upon the drive size.

Repeat steps 4-6 for each partition you create.

I hope this helps. I find it quite amazing that someone with your years of experience with Macs never had to format a disk, not even a floppy disk! Obviously you've had some extremely reliable hardware.



HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Kappy

Kappy,

Many thanks.

I wasn't counting initializing floppies - you just clicked 'Yes'!

Until a recent problem I've only lost one HD and that was a new MacBottom 20MB about 1987 which was replaced. Everything else worked out of the box, including a Frog 120MB I still use as additional backup for small stuff, and that hasn't missed a beat in 13 years. (I hope that isn't tempting fate.)

Michael

Michael,

Truly amazing!! Although a hard drive that's still running clean after 13 years is indeed tempting fate. Considering that the MTBF of the best hard drives made today (Seagates) is five years under "typical" use. I bet the maker of the one you have would be tickled to know they made a drive that's lasted this long.



HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Kappy

Michael:

OS 9 and OS X can reside very happily on the same partition. No need to install them on separate partitions. However, yes, you would use Disk Utility to create the partitions, if you wanted to do that.

Good luck.

cornelius

PB G3 Pismo400, 100 GB 5400 Toshiba internal, 1 GB RAM Mac OS X (10.3.9) Beige G3 OS 8.6

cornelius,

Thank you. This is with an external HD which I'm going to have to erase as there seems to be a problem (I'm hoping its soft not hardware).

My thinking was partly that at 200 GB the disk is on the edge of the limit for OS9 and a partition for OSX (10.3.6) might be one way of avoiding any problems connected with the limitations of volume size with OS9 (which is what I mainly use). It was also due to the fact that I have often seen comments that they are best apart, but they have been together on the Mac HD with no apparent problems, so your comments are re-assuring.

Michael

Cornelius,

Although OS 9 and OS X can reside on the same volume the method of dual booting is then limited to using Startup Disk to switch. However, if placed on separate partitions you can then also use the OPTION boot alternative. This provides a bit more flexibility depending upon one's needs.



HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Kappy

Kappy:

That is very interesting. I never noticed, on the occasions when I did Option booting, that OS 9 was not there. Thanks for pointing that out.

c o r n e l i u s

PB G3 Pismo400, 100 GB 5400 Toshiba internal, 1 GB RAM Mac OS X (10.3.9) Beige G3 OS 8.6

Kappy,

My experience of booting + option suggests the boot manager page shows disks as they booted in their last used OS.

In normal use I would happily use the Startup Disk route but I would imagine that the partition approach could be of paricular value if you had only one disk and the last system used had become faulty. Is that fair comment?

Michael

Michael,

OPTION booting can be used when you have multiple operating systems installed on separate partitions or drives. It enables switching between any supported operating system even different versions of OS X without causing conflicts. However, an OPTION boot is temporary. That means that when you select a startup device from the boot manager screen the system will start up from that device once. The next restart you do will startup from the device currently selected in the Startup Disk preference.

This article may explain it more:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106178

Kappy,

I think we're saying the same thing.

My point was that if you're using only one HD with OS9/OSX in the same volume and the OS you normally use goes belly-up then the boot manager won't help as it will only offer the faulty OS. Separate partitions would mean that you would at least be able to choose the other OS to get you away, albeit in a limited fashion, wihout having to resort to a CD.

As such separate partitions would seem to offer a slight advantage to those with OSs on only one HD.

Michael

Right you are, Michael.

Michael and Kappy:

A better provision for such emergencies is a bootable external HDD. I have my entire internal HDD backed up on a bootable partition of my LaCie. I go back and forth, especially for running DU and TTP on each other. But as an emergency measure it helps me sleep better at night.

Thanks for the discussion. I find it very helpful.

c o r n e l i u s

PB G3 Pismo400, 100 GB 5400 Toshiba internal, 1 GB RAM Mac OS X (10.3.9) Beige G3 OS 8.6

cornelius,

Absolutely. Both my G4s have external HDs which are effectively duplicates as far as OS and apps are concerned with each external backing up its Mac for documents (not to mention the antique SCSI on the one!).

PLUS (and this is what keeps me sleeping soundly) my daughter keeps an off-site backup of essential stuff including some ancient apps I occasionally need which are no longer available. Paranoia is sometimes healthy!

Michael