Can you have more than one version of OS X on a Mac Pro?
Yes; install the second version onto a different partition or drive. It needs to be at least as new as the computer, and the computer needs to meet the system requirements for it.
(122922)
Yes; install the second version onto a different partition or drive. It needs to be at least as new as the computer, and the computer needs to meet the system requirements for it.
(122922)
Thanks for your reply. I am running OS 10.10.2 at the present time, but want to install OS 10.6.3 on to a different hard drive. It would not allow the install. My Mac Pro is the early 2009 quad core. I can't find if the OS 10.6.3 is compatible with this version Mac Pro or not.
You must use a the original "shipped in the box" DVD or a "Full Retail" DVD to install 10.6 on that Mac -- a DVD for a different Mac is model-specific, and will not boot that Mac.
| Mac Pro | Date introduced |
Original Mac OS X included |
Later Mac OS X included |
Mac OS X Build(s) |
| Mac Pro (Late 2013) | Dec 2013 | 10.9 | 10.9.2, 10.9.4 | 13A4023, 13C64, 13E28 |
| Mac Pro (Mid 2012) | Jun 2012 | 10.7.3 | 10.8, 10.8.3 | 11D2001, 12A269, 12D78 |
| Mac Pro (Mid 2010) | Aug 2010 | 10.6.4 | 10.7, 10.7.2, 10.7.3 | 10F2521, 10F2554, 11A511a, 11C74, 11D2001 |
| Mac Pro with Mac OS X Server (Mid 2010) | Aug 2010 | 10.6.4 | 10.7, 10.7.2, 10.7.3 (Server) | 10F2522, 11A511a, 11C74, 11D2001 (Server) |
| Mac Pro (Early 2009) | Mar 2009 | 10.5.6 | 10.6 | 9G3553, 10A432 |
| Mac Pro (Early 2008) | Jan 2008 |
10.5.1 |
10.5.2, 10.5.4 |
9B2117, 9C2031, 9E25 |
| Mac Pro | Aug 2006 |
10.4.7 |
10.4.8, 10.4.9, 10.4.10, 10.5 |
8K1079, 8N1430, 8N1250, 8K1124, 8P4037, 8R3032, 8R3041, 9A581, 9A3129 |
Mac OS X versions (builds) for computers - Apple Support
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Yes, it is. The compatible Mac OS X versions for it are 10.5.6 and newer.
(122925)
Thanks to both Neil and Grant. The OS 10.6.3 DVD I am trying to install on a second hard drive is the one that was in the box when I got the computer, but it will not install on this machine. I am confused as to why it will not install.
NB> you cannot just click on the Installer on the DVD and expect it to Install. You MUST boot from that DVD.
If no joy, do this:
Pull out your main Hard drive.
Do an SMC reset
Do a PRAM Reset
now there is no trace of the current 10.10.2 that was running, and the 10.6 should boot and install happily.
Thanks again for the tip Grant. I'll give this a try.
You should probably format the second HD using Disk Utility on your Snow Leopard installer DVD before you install Snow Leopard.
Also note that the Startup DIsk preference in your Snow Leopard system preferences will not "see" your Yosemite drive. To boot into Yosemite while you are running Snow Leopard, you will need to restart while holding down the Option key, which will bring up a choice of bootable systems.
It depends a bit on what graphic card it has for one thing what the minimum OS will be.
Also, you could run Snow Leopard in a VM under Mavericks or Yosemite instead of dual booting.
If you have more than 4 cores, and more than just basic RAM a VM is very useful for some.
SSDs and blade type SSD (faster than SATA III and less trouble too) offer a lot of performance and the biggest bottleneck and lack of bandwidth for getting files and data into memory.
The 4,1 processors and firmware can be upgraded which is why some still buy them, plus they sell for less than $900 to get started.
The minimum OS X which will install is Leopard 10.5.6
More than one version of OS X on Mac Pro
