Lion really buggy - how do you revert to Snow Leopard?

Question

Level 1

34 points

Lion really buggy - how do you revert to Snow Leopard?

I've had Lion installed on two computers since launch, and while I like a lot of the UI changes, I'm really disappinted in the things it broke:

-Time Machine on a network drive apparently no longer supported

-iSight camera on Macbook no longer works

-FaceTime no longer works on laptop (because iSight camera doesn't work) or on Desktop (camera works, but FaceTime can't authentic email address)

-Trimming a video in Quicktime doesn't work (can't export edited video)

And there are numerous other things I can't directly blame Apple for (like the Air Display iPad app no longer working as a display in Lion).

So, how does one revert to Snow Leopard? Just install that OS from the disk?

15i PB(AL)

Posted on Sep 4, 2011 4:21 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Sep 4, 2011 4:33 PM in response to DanHontz

Look at the box on the right called 'More like this'!

Reply

Answer 2

DanHontz Author

Level 1

34 points

Sep 4, 2011 4:59 PM in response to igmackenzie

Yep I see that, but my post was also to document some of the bugs I'm seeing (in the slight hope that Apple trackes this sort of thing on their support forums)

Reply

Answer 3

DanHontz Author

Level 1

34 points

Sep 4, 2011 5:06 PM in response to igmackenzie

Also, the prescribed method - wiping the hard drive and reinstalling SL then restoring from backup - isn't a great option - how do you treat files that you've added since the Lion upgrade, not to mention things like email (which may have Lion-specific things, like different colored flags)? Honestly, Lion is a mess and I'm losing my patience with Apple not providing meaningful updates to it....

Reply

Answer 4

sig

Level 8

35,862 points

Sep 4, 2011 5:29 PM in response to DanHontz

"but my post was also to document some of the bugs I'm seeing (in the slight hope that Apple trackes this sort of thing on their support forums)"

Apple doesn't read these forums so if you want to give feedback post that here:

http://www.apple.com/feedback/macosx.html

"Also, the prescribed method - wiping the hard drive and reinstalling SL then restoring from backup - isn't a great option - how do you treat files that you've added since the Lion upgrade,"

It will be the only option you have. Email will be an issue and won't go backwards. iPhoto Library may not go backwards. You should have created a backup plan.

Reply

Answer 5

DanHontz Author

Level 1

34 points

Sep 4, 2011 10:33 PM in response to sig

Yes, I have a back up plan - both Time Machine locally and offsite with Backblaze. You've missed my (probably not stated clearly) point. If Time Machine hasn't been working properly since installing Lion, can I rely on it to restore my files when I revert to SL? I guess I should just rely on a much slower restoration from Backblaze if I decide to revert.

And I'd suspect that, although Apple doesn't spend the time to reply to these forums, they mine them for trends and aggregate data and use it in their CS systems.

Anyway, thanks for your help!

Reply

Answer 6

hexonxonx

Level 4

2,477 points

Sep 4, 2011 10:42 PM in response to DanHontz

Just so people know, you can't wipe the drive, install SL and then restore your backup from a Lion backup. You have to go far enough back in your Time Machine backup to where you were still using SL to restore files from it.

Reply

Answer 7

sig

Level 8

35,862 points

Sep 5, 2011 1:42 AM in response to hexonxonx

"You have to go far enough back in your Time Machine backup to where you were still using SL to restore files from it."

That's what we're saying.

Reply

Answer 8

capaho

Level 4

3,673 points

Sep 5, 2011 2:34 AM in response to hexonxonx

hexonxonx wrote:

Just so people know, you can't wipe the drive, install SL and then restore your backup from a Lion backup. You have to go far enough back in your Time Machine backup to where you were still using SL to restore files from it.

So, if I use the SL installation disc to erase my hard drive and re-install SL, I can't use a Time Machine backup done under Lion to restore my user account folder in SL? Shame on Apple if that's the case.

I would expect that you would be able to back up your user account using tar, re-install SL, then untar the backup file to restore the user account files. You'd probably have some tidying up to do file wise to get everything working properly, however.

Reply

Answer 9

hexonxonx

Level 4

2,477 points

Sep 5, 2011 2:43 AM in response to capaho

This is correct. If you try to use the Lion backup to restore files in SL, you will get the warning that the OS you are restoring to is older than the backup.

I don't know how well copying the user account would go, I have not tried that and can't try.

Reply

Answer 10

capaho

Level 4

3,673 points

Sep 5, 2011 7:34 AM in response to hexonxonx

hexonxonx wrote:

This is correct. If you try to use the Lion backup to restore files in SL, you will get the warning that the OS you are restoring to is older than the backup.

I don't know how well copying the user account would go, I have not tried that and can't try.

I wouldn't think the warning message would be relevant if you're just restoring a user account folder. It would if you're trying to restore system files, as that would definitely not be recommended if you're going back to SL from Lion.

I used tar for backup and restore back when Linux was my OS of choice. I also use it on occasion on my OS X servers to move web site directories around. Using tar usually requires fixing file ownership and paths after moving things around, however, so it's not as seamless as using Time Capsule (on those occasions when Time Capsule can be used for such operations).

Reply

Answer 11

Ziatron

Level 5

4,186 points

Sep 5, 2011 10:44 AM in response to DanHontz

For us it was Versions cannot be switched off (decreases security). No "Save As" in many Apps, no Bounce in Mail. 10.7 felt “dumbed down” to us. We will try later, (10.8 maybe).

This is what we did in our office, from Kappy:

To switch from Lion to Snow Leopard:

1. Boot from your Snow Leopard Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.

2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.

3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed.

4. Quit DU and return to the installer. Install Snow Leopard.

This will erase the whole drive so be sure to backup your files if you don't have a backup already. If you have performed a TM backup using Lion be aware that you cannot restore from that backup in Snow Leopard (see below.) I suggest you make a separate backup using Carbon Copy Cloner 3.4.1.

If you have Snow Leopard Time Machine backups, do a full system restore per #14 in Time Machine - Frequently Asked Questions. If you have subsequent backups from Lion, you can restore newer items selectively, via the "Star Wars" display, per #15 there, but be careful; some Snow Leopard apps may not work with the Lion files.

Reply