10.4.4 Ruined my computer

Hi Kaytee,

I don't know if you have tried this (probably have), but you could try doing the Archive Install, and see if it will give you the option to install anyway, even once it has established the lack of disc space for archiving??.

Best option I can think of at this point. Hopefully some of the more experienced guys may be able to help.

Timberman.

Hi Timberman,

I'm actually trying that at the moment. It wouldn't allow me at first but I persisted with going back and forth between the volume selection and folowing screens until the 'Install' button became active for some unknown reason.

It's been 'Verifying destination volume' for some time now so I'm not confident it will work, but I'm desperate!

I don't think I'll ever install an update again if I ever get the system up and running (touch wood).

Hi again Kaytee,

I'm going offline now, but would appreciate if you could advise as to how you got on. Would be interesting. Good Luck.


Regards - Timberman 🙂

<our original install failed because of corruption in your system, not because there is something wrong with 10.4.4>

Hilarious. "You followed the instructions and used options offered to you by Apple. The result was a wrecked computer. It's your fault, don't blame Apple".

so why don't thy TELL you this ?

Sam, I think you have to actually pay someone to get accountable, non-boorish replies.

Hello, Sam,

I regret that you interpreted my reply as boorish as I did not mean to cause offense.

With the original installation of OS X, you have Disc Utility installed on your hard drive. For permissions purposes, you do not load the installation disc. The easiest way to do open Disc Utility on you hard drive is from your Finder menu: Under "Go" you will see an option for Utilities, and within that folder is Disc Utility. I hope that this clears up your first question. When you are wanting to repair permissions, you need to do so by going to the Utility file on your hard drive.

However, to repair your hard drive (not permissions, but the drive itself) you need to use the version of DU that is on the install disc, because you cannot repair a disc drive that is in use.

I hope this is clearer.

Respectfully,

Maxit

I too found this to be disappointing. But I'm glad I read the forums first. Although it made me very paranoid, perhaps for my own good. I downloaded Cocktail and ran a bunch of stuff before taking the plunge. I bit the bullet and it ran fine, I haven't noticed a problem yet. I was extra nervous being away from home, without a startup disc or my external drive.

I should go back and look at all the reported problems and try to replicate them. Well obviously I can boot since I'm posting this from my PB with FireFox.

Well I found one. A problem that is.

My Mac goes to sleep even when it shouldn't. I've set it to "never" when on power, and even on battery for now.

The only thing I've done different is I left a DVD paused for a while. Not sure if it's related.

I don't know much about PRAM and whatnot being new to the Mac world. Could changing/resetting something like this solve the problem?

Any help?? Should I start a new thread for this?

Thanks all.

Hi Sam

Is there a recourse, a strategy (or strategem har har) to do such a thing?

Of course there is! You do the Archive & Install, you check that everything works, that everything is there, and then you delete the Previous System folder. See here:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301270

Sometimes poo just happens in these complex systems. Personally, I have gone through 27 (i think) updates in OS X, not including upgrades and security updates, and have never had a problem. Just because your system experiences a problem it does not mean there is a fundamental flaw in the update. You cannot generalize from a sample of 1.

Matthew Whiting

Hi Sam,

Just picked up your response. If I have it correct you are concerned about the extra space the Archive will take up on your disk. Yes, you are correct, infact the archive will probably take up to 5-6GB space, but not to fear, you can delete this afterwards (after you are back to the main desktop that is).

I don't think there is an option not to archive, and I guess the reason is to do with the just in case you want to go back to previous state. But of course going back is not an option in your case!! To delete the archive once you have reached a working desktop, find the file in a special folder made by the install called 'previous systems'. A search may not find this (don't know why, it didn't in my case), but you can simply locate it by double clicking on the Macintosh HD icon on your desktop and it will be in the first sreen that appears.

Heres the tricky part that I found, and thats actually deleting it. You would think that just dragging it to the trash should do it, but it didn't work that way for me. It started deleting, then kept giving me a message that certain files were locked, and so I could not delete. I have to admit that I used a program which I have called Macpilot which gave me the option to unlock the folder and contents, and it deleted first time after that. I haven't tried this but I believe you can unlock either by highlighting the folder, going to file in the finder selection at top of screen, and select 'get info', with which you may be able to uncheck the locked option for the file. The other way (I believe) is to hold down the shift-option keys while emptying the trash folder.

Once you have deleted the archive you should have exactly the same amount of disk space left that you had before.

Hope this was the answer you are looking for.

Timberman.

Thanks for the info on archive and install to 10.4.3. It seems that after the update of 10.4.4, my external DVD Lacie drive stopped working, and now my imac doesn't recognize it. Will have to go back to 10.4.3, untill they iron out the kinks in 10.4.4. Once question when you archive and install do you lose your application folder? Thanks.

"Your original install failed because of corruption in your system, not because there is something wrong with 10.4.4. You may want to read up on pre-update procedures before the next update."

I am sorry, but you are wrong. This update was delivered through Software Update, the little application that is bundles wth the OS and autmatically checks in the background for updates, and then pronpts the user to "install" which they usually do.

I have been a computer maintenance and repair professional for 15 years now, and have worked with Windows, Unix, and Mac. I am a mac fanatic, and have been ever since I bought a Mac Plus back in (late 1986?).

But that does not stop me from recognizing that it is inexcusable to provide an update, via a nearly AUTOMATIC update system, that breaks this many computers. If there are bugs, then release it on the website for the early adopters to use until the bugs are ironed out, and THEN post it up for Software Update to propigate.

When Software Update finds new software nearly every week, you can't expect your regular John Doe, every time there is a new update, to 'cancel' the automatic update and backup their system folder and repair thier permissions. That is simply NOT something the ordinary user should have to do for an update that comes from Software Update.

The advice to Archive and Install that everyone keeps giving is a good idea, if you are upgrading from 10.3 to 10.4. To require such drastic measures for an upgrade from 10.4.3 to 10.4.4 is inexcusable.

And that is coming from someone who NEVER fails to proclaim to all his computer repair and maintenance professional peers, how much better the Mac is than any other system available.