OS X clean install on Macbook 1.1 disk problem

I have a macbook 1.1 (1.83 GHz, 60 Gb, 2x256 Mb, Combo drive) I'm preparing to give away. It had OS X 10.4.11 installed previously. I couldn't find my OS X disk, so I called Apple and ordered a replacement. I used a friend's to launch disk utility and wipe the hard drive. The disk Apple sent me says "Mac OS X Tiger, Includes Xcode 2, Install DVD, Replacement DVD, Not for Resale." The order form said it was version 10.4.6.

I put the disk in, turned on the computer, help down "c", and all I get is a flashing question mark icon. Next, I tried going to startup manager, but it never showed the disk as an option to boot. I tried the disk in my Windows desktop drive. It recognizes there is a DVD-ROM in the drive, but it appears to be blank. Looking at the disk visually, it's clearly been written to, but nothing seems to be able to read it.

So I called Apple, and they sent another disk. This one had the same label, but the order form said version 10.4.3. Same result. Macbook and Windows PC can't read the disk at all. If I launch startup manager and put in a different bootable disk, it pops up as a boot option, but not the disks they sent. Only thing I could think to do was update firmware, but the Macbook has the latest version already.

Am I doing something wrong or are the disks they sending me bad? I wouldn't mind buying a retail disk, but it would have to be Tiger or Leopard cause I only have 512 Mb ram. For whatever reason, those versions are expensive in retail.

That particular MacBook is vintage; actually the first of the Intel line. The original version of OS X that came preinstalled on that machine was Tiger 10.4.6. Anything earlier than that will not work. That means the 10.4.3 disk will not work.

Your combo drive could be having problems which is the reason it's not reading the 10.4.6 disk. The Windows machine can't "see" the Mac files without special software so that's normal. Your installed memory is not enough to run Snow Leopard otherwise you could order the retail version for $29.99. The Leopard or Tiger retail versions will cost close to $100 if you can even find one for sale on eBay.

Try cleaning your combo drive with some compressed air.

Good information, chscag. Thank you! I should have realized a Windows machine wouldn't read the Mac files. I will try to clean the drive tonight and install with the 10.4.6 disk if it works.

I tried a few things with no success. Cleaning the optical drive didn't help. Most importantly, I tried the disks in a macbook pro. It could read the files from OS X, but did not show the disk as a boot option in startup manager. I opened the readme on the disk and in system requirements it only said PowerPC processors not Intel. Mine is Intel, so I thought maybe they sent me a PowerPC specific disk. I called Apple again, and they said the disk should work for both PowerPC and Intel configurations. They had me to a hard reset which didn't help then said they would send a third disk.

If this one doesn't work, I give up. Is it possible they are sending me upgrade only disks that have to be run from within the OS?

My guess would be that the boot code is PPC-only. This is kind of a tricky situation because of the vintage of the machine and what was going on with OS X at the time.

Try again with the 10.4.6 disc. This time, turn the machine on and press-and-hold Option (as opposed to C). Let it sit for awhile and see if the disc appears as a boot option. If it doesn't that would mean your SuperDrive is either having a problem or the disc doesn't have appropriate boot code.

You may need to try a USB external DVD drive to rule out physical issues with the drive.

I can boot from other bootable disks (both Windows and OS X install disks) from the startup manager, so I don't think the drive is the issue. I think you might have hit on the problem that the boat code is PPC-only since the macbook pro (intel) that I put it in won't boot from it either. Hopefully the new disk works.

Could I make a bootable flash drive and copy the install disk to there maybe? I already tried cloning the disk to a flash drive, but with the same results as the disk.

I received a THIRD disk from Apple. This one also said 10.4.3, and predictably did the same thing as the others. I would hope Apple support hasn't sent me incompatible disks three times after giving them my serial number, but I can't figure out what else could be the issue.

Sounds like a failed optical drive. Models using slot loaders fall victim to this often.

But I can boot from other disks. I have a friend's 10.5.4 install disk that will boot, and I can boot to Windows installation disks (Vista and 7).

harveydy said:

But I can boot from other disks. I have a friend's 10.5.4 install disk that will boot, and I can boot to Windows installation disks (Vista and 7).

Click to expand...

There's no way that a 10.4.3 disc of any description will work with that machine. 10.4.6 was the first version of OS X that contained Intel code.

The boot loader MUST be x86 in order to work. The discs they're sending you just aren't appropriate to the machine. This is, quite simply, sheer incompetence on Apple's part.

I would ask for my money back and just pick up a $29 Snow Leopard disc. It won't be the best fit, given the 512MB in that machine, but it'll do the trick of getting an OS on it.