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User profile for user: Maxdoomed
Maxdoomed Author
User level: Level 1
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SSD Issue: Can't Install OSX—Can I use Target Mode to Install OSX Snow Leopard onto a laptop?

Cannot reinstall my OSX Snow Leopard from my original disks: 2010 MacBook Pro 7,1.

Cannot do a Recovery Install—just put in a solid state drive, and have to do a clean install, cannot clone old OS off the old hard drive.


Can I make my tower/desktop computer work somehow, I have a .dmg Snow Leopard Installation file on my tower. I'm out of options; I've tried to do a recovery download of Yosemite and usb startup thumb drive. Nothing is working: crashing, stopping short of full installation.


I'm just trying to get any operating system to install on the MacBook Pro. Nothing seems to work.


-the old hard drive had issues that couldn't be resolved, seemed like software.

-swapped it out with ssd drive, had made backup of all files.

-tried to startup with installation disks/ original osx snow leopard disk. Failed, wouldn't complete

-tried to do recovery download installation via internet, cmd-r, with Yosemite but that seems like a long shot. Just kept stalling, so it seems like this model cannot support that os without first having the original os?

-made a thumb drive an installation of osx 10.6.8

-nothing is working

MacBook Pro (13-inch Mid 2010), Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Dec 15, 2014 8:10 PM

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9 replies
User profile for user: dot.com
dot.com
User level: Level 4
2,449 points

Dec 15, 2014 8:24 PM in response to Maxdoomed

What about burning a copy of the snow leopard installation file onto your desktop tower on it's DVD with Disk Utility?


Don't think Recovery mode came into play until Lion so no recovery partition on your Snow Leopard disk.


To use the tower in target mode you need your macbook to be running in Mac OS X which you can't do at the moment. Does the old hard drive on the macbook still let it boot - if so then think you can do it with target mode boot on tower. Once the macbook is booted up, and the tower is attached to it, you should see it as another disk drive, so just mount the Snow Leopard DMG and then run the installer - the installer should see your new SSD drive to install onto it.


To boot your desktop tower in target mode (hold down the T key during booting and let go when you see the firewire logo).


good luck

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User profile for user: Kappy
Kappy
User level: Level 10
361,741 points

Dec 15, 2014 8:26 PM in response to Maxdoomed

Since you provide no information regarding what has happened other than it didn't work, how can we help you? I can only give you the whole process:


Clean Install of Snow Leopard


1. Boot the computer using the Snow Leopard Installer Disc or the Disc 1 that came

with your computer. Insert the disc into the optical drive and restart the computer.

After the chime press and hold down the "C" key. Release the key when you see

a small spinning gear appear below the dark gray Apple logo.


2. 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 the SSD's entry from the left side list (mfgr.'s ID and drive

size.) Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window. Set the number of

partitions to one (1) from the Partitions drop down menu, click on Options button

and select GUID, click on OK, then set the format type to MacOS Extended

(Journaled, if supported), then click on the Apply button.


3. When the formatting has completed quit DU and return to the installer. Proceed

with the OS X installation and follow the directions included with the installer.


4. When the installation has completed your computer will Restart into the Setup

Assistant. After you finish Setup Assistant will complete the installation after which

you will be running a fresh install of OS X. You can now begin the update process

by opening Software Update and installing all recommended updates to bring your

installation current.


Download and install Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1. You can now log onto the App Store with your Apple ID. Go to your Purchases page and re-download the last version of OS X that you purchased and/or downloaded prior to the release of Yosemite.

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User profile for user: Maxdoomed
Maxdoomed Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Dec 15, 2014 8:46 PM in response to Kappy

I can't download anything onto the laptop because it doesn't have an operating system installed yet.

I can't install OSX Snow Leopard off original disk 1, and the link above is for the update, not the original OS.


The issue is the difference between a reinstall-above, and a full clean install, with nothing, not update, etc.

I've formatted the new ssd, tried to boot off the installation disk, but it keeps failing.

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User profile for user: dot.com
dot.com
User level: Level 4
2,449 points

Dec 17, 2014 10:25 AM in response to Maxdoomed

Sorry for the bogus advice. To use target mode you need a computer running the OS X operating system so that the target disk computer can be mounted as another volume. If you don't have anything to boot from (like an original Snow Leopard -- or any other version -- DVD then you are stuck until you can find media - maybe a friend with a Mac has some bootable media you can borrow to get your computer up and running? Or someone in a local Mac user group or someone at the local Mac store might have something to loan you to get you past this hurdle?


Good luck.....

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User profile for user: Maxdoomed
Maxdoomed Author
User level: Level 1
0 points

Dec 17, 2014 11:31 AM in response to dot.com

Thanks Dot,


It wasn't bogus advice: it was worth a shot, I did start up my laptop in target disk mode, then went through my tower with the Snow Leopard install disk in. It stalled at the same point as the laptop did. So it's probably not the optical disk reader on the laptop, it's possibly the disk itself.


I ordered OSX Snow Leopard and will try doing a fresh install with a new physical copy. After this whole incident, reading all the other forum(s):


-I'm not reinstalling a preexisting OS system: I'm trying to install on a brand new/just formatted ssd. That being said, I'm hoping the new physical OS works.

If it does then the old disk was damaged and it was a matter of that. If it doesn't, it's possible that I tried installing the damaged disk OS too many times and the new ssd will have problems. I'm hoping it stays simple. One question that I didn't understand/see the answer to is whether the proprietary license of the original install OS disks had issue with a new ssd.


The absolute specifics of a mac question make/break the outcome. The Disk Utility erase/partition step-by-steps work in some cases, etc. Then it seems like it becomes an issue of what makes each forum question unique in reference to the already tried solutions. In this case, it's a new solid state drive, no cloned operating system, and the exact operating system, Snow Leopard. Also, what state exactly is the original cd and now the health of the new ssd after being messed with.


-Keeping fingers crossed until the new system install try.

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SSD Issue: Can't Install OSX—Can I use Target Mode to Install OSX Snow Leopard onto a laptop?

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