How can I reinstall Quicktime X in Lion?

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How can I reinstall Quicktime X in Lion?

OK, to make a long story short, I had a new audio problem in the Quicktime X Player after installing Lion (that I oddly enough didn't have in QuickLook, QuickTime Player 7, or VLC), and I assumed a reinstallation was in order (because I also assumed I had mucked something up by trashing some "orphan" files with TrashMe). I thought I couldn't reinstall Quicktime X Player from the Lion installation package without another two-hour-plus download, so I reinstalled it from my Snow Leopard installation disc using Pacifist naively assuming Software Update would bring me back up to date. Well, that didn't work, and now I have a copy of Quicktime X Player that won't run on Lion. I tried redownloading the Lion installation package and reinstalling the correct version of Quicktime X Player with Pacifist again, but Pacifist can't handle Lion's installation package (it crashes when you try to install or extract anything). Well, I don't have a backup, so that's not an option, and I don't have any external devices large enough to back up my files and applications, so a clean install with Lion Recovery isn't an attractive option either. Is there any way I can install Quicktime X Player on my computer again without wipping my hard drive? Is it safe to let the original Lion intallation process I downloaded from the app store run again? Will it simply replace the relevant existing files no-harm-no-foul, or will I just further muck things up?

Quicktime X-OTHER, Mac OS X (10.7)

Posted on Jul 25, 2011 5:18 PM

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Answer 1

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Kappy

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Jul 25, 2011 5:28 PM in response to skrhgh3b

Boot into the Recovery HD to reinstall. Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold the OPTION key until the boot manager appears. Select the Recovery HD and click the downward pointing arrow button. Alternatively, restart the computer and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the computer starts into the Recovery HD.

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Answer 2

skrhgh3b Author

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Jul 25, 2011 5:41 PM in response to Kappy

Thank you for the reply, but won't the Recovery HD wipe my hard drive? I don't have a backup option. I just want to reinstall the Quicktime X player without losing my files, applications, and settings. Is my data really safe letting the Recovery HD run? Again, I was under the impression that Recovery HD performs a clean install....

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Answer 3

Jul 25, 2011 5:49 PM in response to skrhgh3b

best to let cappy answer that (he has mega points) but the way I understand it is that it will just fix the OS, not wipe the OS. but I would never do anything so rash without a TM backup, just in case.

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Answer 4

skrhgh3b Author

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Jul 25, 2011 6:00 PM in response to coocooforcocoapuffs

Yeah, I don't feel like taking any more risks. Obviously, I don't know what I'm doing.

On the support.apple.com article on Lion Recovery, it says "These steps will erase and reformat the storage device. This article will instruct you on setting up the storage device to use the GUID partition scheme and the Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format, which are required to install Lion and an Internet Restore partition on your external storage device. You should back up any important files that are on the device to a different drive."

I understand the necessity of a backup option, but I need to replace a failed superdrive, and that gets budget priority over reinstalling Quicktime. (My MacBook Pro, bought in Japan, shipped with a defective superdrive that could read but not burn - it could never burn and was just plain broken. I wasn't willing to part from my laptop long enough to get it replaced while it was still under warranty, let alone deal with Japanese Apple support, but now I have something that I need to burn by the end of the week.)

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Answer 5

Kappy

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Jul 25, 2011 6:02 PM in response to skrhgh3b

No, it will just reinstall Lion withou erasing the drive.

Now, it might be easier and quicker to CTRL- or RIGHT-click on the Lion installer application and select "Show Package Contents." Navigate to /Contents/SharedSupport/ folder. Mount the disc image, InstallESD.dmg. In the window that opens navigate into the Packages folder. Open the Essentials.pkg file using the current version of Pacifist (it does work) where you will find the Quicktime Player application inside the Applications folder. Select it then click on the Install icon in Pacifist's toolbar.

Be sure you configure Pacifist to install with root privileges.

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Answer 6

Jul 25, 2011 6:05 PM in response to skrhgh3b

Well u lost me there, but I think what apple says must be so. So what you do is make a TM backup first, then during the recovery process you "should" have the option of restoring your applications/settings/documents/etc. from the TM backup. In the olden days we called it migration assistant. I am surprised the support article does not say something to that affect.

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Answer 7

Kappy

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Jul 25, 2011 6:11 PM in response to skrhgh3b

That refers to what you would do in the event you receive an installer error that "no Recovery HD can be created." It does not apply to a simple reinstall of Lion.

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Answer 8

skrhgh3b Author

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Jul 25, 2011 6:12 PM in response to Kappy

I tried the very procedure you described with Pacifist three times last night, and three times it crashed. (The same procedure did work, however, with the Snow Leopard installation disc, which is what allowed me to mess this up in the first place.) I'll try again when I get home tonight, assuming Pacifist wasn't confugured with root privileges and that was the problem.

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Answer 9

Kappy

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Jul 25, 2011 6:23 PM in response to skrhgh3b

Do be sure you are using Pacifist 2.6.2 or later. If it hangs force quit. Relaunch. Lion should pop up a dialog about Pacifist hanging because it couldn't open its windows. Click on the left button to not open windows.

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Answer 10

skrhgh3b Author

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Jul 25, 2011 6:35 PM in response to Kappy

Well, luckily I brought my laptop with me to work. I redownloaded Pacifist 2.6.4, and I've tried to install to default location and extract to custom location several times, and as before, Pacifist simply crashes. It doesn't hang even for a second; it immediately crashes. Pacifist was authorized to run tasks as root.

I guess I'll try the Recovery HD option later in the week.

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Answer 11

Kappy

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Jul 25, 2011 6:40 PM in response to skrhgh3b

Sorry you are having a problem. Pacifist works here running Lion. Maybe you should consider doing a backup, erasing your hard drive, and doing a clean install of Lion.

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Answer 12

Jul 29, 2011 10:01 PM in response to skrhgh3b

replied in error, can't delete

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Answer 13

skrhgh3b Author

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Jul 29, 2011 10:15 PM in response to skrhgh3b

I was finally able to install QuickTime X by reinstalling Lion through Recovery HD without losing any data. A real pain in the neck to restore a single program, but it worked nevertheless. Thanks.

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Answer 14

afroma

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Aug 15, 2011 10:21 AM in response to skrhgh3b

skrhgh3b - did you ever figure out the problem to very first problem (the audio problem within quicktime)

Ever since updating to Lion, I cannot export any type of video without just getting audio. No matter which way I share/export, it outputs solely an audio file.

Any solutions?

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