Disk Warrior 3.0.3 on OSX 10.6.8?

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Disk Warrior 3.0.3 on OSX 10.6.8?

I'm having major problems with my iMac (2.4 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo/2 GB 66 MHz DDR2 SDRAM/running OSX version 10.6.8). Very, very slow to login, hangs up during normal use, slows to a crawl, etc. I did some searching on this forum and have tried some suggestions offerred to people with similar problems, such as running Disk Utility. When I ran it off the hard drive it went through the process with no real error messages (found a few "damaged files" and put them in folder named the same). Then I tried running it off my Snow Leopard install disk and got the message:

Disk Utility stopped repairing "Macintosh HD" Disk Utility can't repair this disk. Back up as many of your files as possible, reformat the disk, and restore your backed-up files.

Next on my list, before going so far as reformatting/restoring (I use Time Machine to back up my system onto a 500 GB external hard drive) I want to run Disk Warrior. Here at the office we have a very old version (3.0.3). Will it work with Snow Leopard? I popped the disk into a Mac running Lion and it had the slash through the icon, indicating that it isn't compatible. However, I popped it into my work iMac, which is running the same OS as my problem iMac at home, and it looks as though it may work.

Obviously the most recent version would be ideal but will this one at least run for me? If it will I think I'll give it a shot. If it doesn't work I'll look into getting an upgrade. Anyone know?

One other thing...never could locate the S.M.A.R.T. info in my Disk Utility. Saw that mentioned several times in posts but it doesn't appear on my version. I did download an app called SMARTReporter and ran that. All indications were that my hard drive is OK.

iMac, Mac OS X (10.5.8)

Posted on Aug 16, 2012 12:40 PM

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Answer 1

Limnos

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428,315 points

Aug 16, 2012 12:48 PM in response to bmath2

The fastest way to get the right answer would be to check on the Diskwarrior web site which says, "DiskWarrior 4 is required for Intel-based Macs. Learn about the new features of DiskWarrior 4 and how to upgrade by clicking here."

10.6 will only run on an Intel Mac so you need DW4

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Answer 2

Kappy

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Aug 16, 2012 12:43 PM in response to bmath2

You will need to use DW 4.x to repair a Snow Leopard disk.

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Answer 3

bmath2 Author

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Aug 16, 2012 12:50 PM in response to Kappy

Thanks. How about an old version of Techtool Pro (5.0.4)? Will that work with Snow Leopard or is it also too old?

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Answer 4

Kappy

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Aug 16, 2012 12:54 PM in response to bmath2

I'm unclear what you did after re-reading your original post. Did you do this:

Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions

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. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.

If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.

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Answer 5

bmath2 Author

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Aug 16, 2012 1:05 PM in response to Kappy

I did boot from my Snow Leopard installer disc, yes. I didn't see any entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status in the Disk Utility interface though. That's why I downloaded the SMARTReporter app (which indicated no problem with the hard drive). After running Disk Utility Repair Disk I got the message:

Disk Utility stopped repairing "Macintosh HD" Disk Utility can't repair this disk. Back up as many of your files as possible, reformat the disk, and restore your backed-up files.

I didn't get that message when runnig Disk Utility directly from my HD/Utilities folder, which I tried before running it from the Snow Leopard install disc.

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Answer 6

Kappy

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Aug 16, 2012 1:08 PM in response to bmath2

Means the disk is too corrupted to be repaired by DU. A current version of DW may do the trick or you can backup your files then reformat the drive and reinstall Snow Leopard.

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Answer 7

bmath2 Author

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Aug 16, 2012 1:28 PM in response to Kappy

I have a copy of TechTool Pro (5.0.4) that I'm going to take home and install. From what I've read I can update to 5.0.7 once it is installed and that is compatible with Snow Leopard. Definitely going to give that a shot before purchasing the latest version of Disk Warrior.

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Answer 8

Linc Davis

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209,739 points

Aug 16, 2012 1:31 PM in response to bmath2

Don't waste any more money on Disk Warrior. It's completely useless if you have backups, which I gather you do. Erase the volume and restore from backup. That will be faster, safer, and cheaper than using so-called "utilities."

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Answer 9

Kappy

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Aug 16, 2012 1:32 PM in response to bmath2

If you have your DW 3.x CD, then you should be able to upgrade it to 4.4 by downloading the DW 4.4 updater. It will create a new CD based on the old CD. I believe this is free.

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Answer 10

bmath2 Author

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Aug 16, 2012 1:37 PM in response to Linc Davis

I'm not opposed to doing that but have never gone through that process. Looks like that is handled through Disk Utility? I see an "Erase" option and a "Restore" option. I have been backing up to a 500 GB WD external hard drive for the past few months via Time Machine.

Does anyone have a step-by-step walkthrough of how this process will go that can be copied/pasted into this thread? I'm sure it's a breeze but I'm nervous about doing something like this without as much info as possible.

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Answer 11

Kappy

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362,007 points

Aug 16, 2012 1:39 PM in response to bmath2

Please visit Pondini's Time Machine FAQ for help with all things Time Machine.

Repairing your directory with DW may take 20 minutes at most. Erasing your hard drive and restoring a Time Machine backup will take hours.

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Answer 12

Linc Davis

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209,739 points

Aug 16, 2012 2:04 PM in response to bmath2

Boot from your installation disc, launch Disk Utility, and erase the volume. It's been a while since I used 10.6, but there's an item in the Utilities menu on the disc to the effect of "Restore from backup" or "Restore from Time Machine." That's what you want.

I should add that if this is not the first time you've had this problem with the drive, or if it ever happens again, the drive should be replaced, not restored. Directory damage is always the result of a drive malfunction, or system corruption. It is not caused merely by a forced unmount. I wouldn't tolerate more than one such episode, and maybe not even one.

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Answer 13

bmath2 Author

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Aug 16, 2012 2:13 PM in response to Linc Davis

Thanks for the info (you too Kappy). I'm going to try installing/upgrading TechTool Pro (and maybe Disk Warrior if I can, in fact, upgrade from 3.0.3 to 4.4 for free) before going this route. If those tools don't work I'll erase/restore before I buy more software.

This is the first time I've ever had this sort of trouble. Hoping it isn't the equivalent of a mini heart attack indicating the existence of a more severe cardiac condition. Could be I know, just hoping.

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