MassachusettsMadman
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Needing to erase/format contents of old iMac

I'm looking for a way to completely erase the hard drive of an old iMac PowerPC G3 (running OS X 10.1.5). However, I do not have the installation CD that came with it.  Is there a way to do this without that CD?  Or is it more feasible to simply remove the hard drive and destroy it?  Thanks for any help.

iMac (Slot Loading), Mac OS X (10.1.x)

Posted on Jan 2, 2015 3:56 PM

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MassachusettsMadman

Q: Needing to erase/format contents of old iMac

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Allan Jones,Helpful

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Jan 2, 2015 7:42 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman
    Level 8 (35,316 points)
    iPad
    Jan 2, 2015 7:42 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman

    Lacking bootable optical disks or incurring the expensive to source some, physically removing the drive and treating like a rented mule is your best option.

  • by Glen Doggett,Helpful

    Glen Doggett Glen Doggett Jan 2, 2015 11:43 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman
    Level 4 (1,884 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jan 2, 2015 11:43 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman

    I have never done this myself, so I can't say this will definitely work or not, but here are some suggestions to try.

     

    You should be able to start up the iMac in FW Target Disk Mode, where it will basically function as an external FW drive when connected to another computer.

    How to use and troubleshoot FireWire target disk mode - Apple Support

     

    Then you can perform a secure erase on the iMac internal drive, as if it were an external drive on the second computer.  you could also copy and files from that drive before you erase it, if you need to.

    http://www.howtogeek.com/179284/how-to-securely-wipe-a-hard-drive-on-your-mac/

     

    If you have success with this method, please report back your results.

     

    EDIT: not sure which particular vintage model iMac G3 you have, the FW400 ports were introduced in later models, but earlier models do not have this capability.

  • by Jan Hedlund,

    Jan Hedlund Jan Hedlund Jan 3, 2015 3:43 AM in response to MassachusettsMadman
    Level 6 (9,901 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 3:43 AM in response to MassachusettsMadman

    On the second web page mentioned by Glen Doggett above there is a link about using a DBAN CD under Windows. There is in fact an older PowerPC version of that utility (try a search for dban-2.0.0_powerpc.iso) that you may want to test. One can burn the iso file to a CD on a PC or a Mac. Once ready, one would start the iMac G3 (while holding down the C key) from the CD and then run the wiping utility.

     

    Jan

  • by mrmullad,

    mrmullad mrmullad Jan 3, 2015 3:54 AM in response to Jan Hedlund
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 3:54 AM in response to Jan Hedlund

    I have just done a clean install after a erase and my iMac is still saying old user name in terminal.

    Happy new year Dell

  • by Allan Jones,

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Jan 3, 2015 8:49 AM in response to mrmullad
    Level 8 (35,316 points)
    iPad
    Jan 3, 2015 8:49 AM in response to mrmullad

    mrmullad

     

    You have a completely different problem from the person who started this thread and have not given enough information for anyone to start to help. Please start a new thread in the forum that matches your iMac model and, before typing it, be sure to read these Apple suggestions for effectively getting help around here:

     

    How to write a good question

     

    When you start your own thread you get focused help without diluting the help the origianl poster in this thread deserves.

  • by MassachusettsMadman,

    MassachusettsMadman MassachusettsMadman Jan 3, 2015 9:51 AM in response to Glen Doggett
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 9:51 AM in response to Glen Doggett

    Glen... thanks for the help but unfortunately this iMac doesn't appear to have a FireWire port, unless they're hiding it from the others... not likely something Apple would do.  I don't suppose there's any way to work this with USB ports?  Why I don't want to just use a sledgehammer I'm not sure.

  • by MassachusettsMadman,

    MassachusettsMadman MassachusettsMadman Jan 3, 2015 9:55 AM in response to Jan Hedlund
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 9:55 AM in response to Jan Hedlund

    Thanks for the reply, Jan... this looks like it should have worked easily enough but after having downloaded it, for some reason the DBAN CD is not offered as an option (when holding down the "c" key) from which to boot.  Maybe I'll look into this a little more as to why the file doesn't seem to be downloading correctly to my primary Mac.

  • by Allan Jones,

    Allan Jones Allan Jones Jan 3, 2015 11:38 AM in response to MassachusettsMadman
    Level 8 (35,316 points)
    iPad
    Jan 3, 2015 11:38 AM in response to MassachusettsMadman

    The other option I did not recall when I originally posted is a bare drive to USB adaptor:

     

    http://eshop.macsales.com/item/NewerTech/U3NVSPATA/

     

    It costs about and much as a working non-FireWire G3 iMac is worth and requires you to take part the computer and extract the hard drive.

     

    Once that is done, you can use the adaptor to connect the now-bare drive to another computer with a USB port and, with the newer computer, erase the drive.

  • by MassachusettsMadman,

    MassachusettsMadman MassachusettsMadman Jan 3, 2015 2:34 PM in response to Allan Jones
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 2:34 PM in response to Allan Jones

    Allan... thanks again.  I'll likely give that a shot and let you know how it goes.  That process sure doesn't sound too difficult.

  • by Jeff,

    Jeff Jeff Jan 3, 2015 4:08 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman
    Level 6 (11,559 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 4:08 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman

    "I'll likely give that a shot and let you know how it goes."

     

    The type of adapter sold by Other World Computing isn't platform-specific, so you can buy one from a PC store for about half of that price.  I paid $15 for one at Micro Center, that I use with my PCs and Macs. 

  • by Jan Hedlund,

    Jan Hedlund Jan Hedlund Jan 3, 2015 4:26 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman
    Level 6 (9,901 points)
    Jan 3, 2015 4:26 PM in response to MassachusettsMadman

    Hello,

     

    I assume that you found and downloaded the DBAN .iso file for PowerPC (named exactly as in my previous message). It is important to correctly write this .iso to a CD on a PC or Mac (not just copy the .iso file to the disc). Also, for best results, you may have to burn a CD-R at a low speed.

     

    Jan