I have a Mac OS X v10.5.7 and ordered Mac OSX Snow Leopard 10.6.3 to upgrade. The disc arrived today. I insert it to follow the installation instructions but it is ejected very shortly after a few minutes of spinning noise. What did we do wrong or how is the problem solved?.
iMac, Mac OS X (10.5.7), I want to upgrade to 10.6.3
You need to confirm what model of Mac you have - not all models can install 10.6, it probably can since the process seemed to start, but it is worth checking.
Use 'Apple menu > About this Mac' click 'More Info' to view the system profile. It will say what model you have, post the 'Model Identifier' here please.
It's possible the disk drive is dirty or failing - do other disks read OK? Do you have any other CD/DVD drives to read the disk.
You need to confirm what model of Mac you have - not all models can install 10.6, it probably can since the process seemed to start, but it is worth checking.
Use 'Apple menu > About this Mac' click 'More Info' to view the system profile. It will say what model you have, post the 'Model Identifier' here please.
It's possible the disk drive is dirty or failing - do other disks read OK? Do you have any other CD/DVD drives to read the disk.
The Model iD is iMac9,1
Yes, we do play DVD,s and CD's although on occasion a few have not worked.
Correction, it has in the past been upgraded to 10.5.8 with software updates.
Thank-you so much for your quick reply Drew. After the last reply I put in another DVD just to prove to myself that it worked and was read. I ejected it and then put in the installation disc again to show my husband that it simply made a noise and then ejected. To my amazement this time it did not eject and gives me the option of installing and reading the simple instructions again. Go figure!
Now I have a further question having read some of the discussions earlier about upgrading and doing backup etc prior t installing. I am a novice and am wondering if I should just stumble ahead and do the installation? Will I be sorry. We were interested in upgrading because some apps we wanted to use couldn't upgrade with our 10.5.8 ( eg. Skype and Adobe)
It's promising that it shows up, that model can run 10.6 & can update to the latest OS if you want.
With regards to backup, you will only be sorry if something goes wrong.
Personally I backup a lot, especially before upgrading any OS. Normally it is fine, but if something does go wrong all you have is regret and a mess to try to fix.
There are a few options for backup, Time Machine is OK if you understand the limitations - basically it copies the system, your user files & keeps older copies of them. Eventually the older copies are deleted when the disk space runs out - depends on how much data you have & how much space the backup disk has. This format means it isn't bootable. If you need to restore you have to install a working OS & then use Migration Assistant to move the data from the backup - it's pretty simple & pretty reliable. You can also pluck files out if required.
Another option is to make a bootable clone, either via Disk Utility (built in, made by Apple and is free) or via an app like Carbon Copy Cloner (free demo, if you pay you can schedule copies to be automated) or SuperDuper!. This can also be restored to the Mac, either by reversing the clone operation or by using Migration Assistant. This type of backup generally has no history, it;s a fixed point in time, but it is normally an option to keep some history in the paid for apps.
How far are you planning on updating? If you are going up to the latest OS you may want to make a clone of each intermediate stage.
It may sound complex, but it's not too bad considering you data is less likely to disappear in the event of an error.
Do you have any external disks that are large enough to contain a copy of your Mac? The backup process will normally require the disk to be empty.
Installing or updating Snow Leopard:
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/Snow_Leopard_Installation_Instructions.pdf
Thanks. It gave me a lot to ponder. We may not have a lot necessary to keep and taking my chances may be the easy way.
Good luck with it.
You know where to ask for help if it goes wrong, but you may get a lot of replies that just say 'restore your last backup'.
Disc ejected when I try to install 10.6.3 upgrade
