Bootable USB not recognised by MacBook

I bought a MacBook Unibody 2009 Late (Core 2 Duo 2.26, 5GB RAM) with El Capitan but I want to downgrade to Yosemite. I have a bootable USB stick (Partition set up: OS X Extended Journaled, GUID Partition Map) to install Yosemite which is recognised as bootable by my Mac mini mid 2011 (Intel I5, 8GB RAM, OS X 11), but is not shown in the bootscreen of the MacBook. With the bootable USB stick plugged in only 2 options are shown in the MacBook's boot screen: the harddisk and the recovery disk. Beside this the bootscreen is frozen, I can't choose none.

I already reset PRAM and SMC. I tried a bootable USB stick made with the Mac mini. I tried a bootable USB stick made with the MacBook. I restored the installESD.dmg file with disk uitilities. I replugged the USB stick during the boot screen. All in vain.

Why can't my MacBook recognize the usb stick as bootable while the Mac mini can, and how can I fix this?

Thank you in advance

Just to be sure. Are you pressing the "option" key during the booting process?

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

Just to be sure. Are you pressing the "option" key during the booting process?

- Nick

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Yes, of course.

PearlyPearl said:

Of course.

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Not "of course" if you don't mention it. That's why I asked.

- Nick

PearlyPearl said:

I bought a MacBook Unibody 2009 Late (Core 2 Duo 2.26, 5GB RAM)...

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Can you please clarify if this is a 2009 MacBook or a 2009 MacBook Pro? With the information given...could be 1 of 2 computers.

PearlyPearl said:

Beside this the bootscreen is frozen, I can't choose none.

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Can you please explain this in more detail? A frozen bootscreen is not good (and shouldn't happen on a properly functioning computer). This could possibly be a bigger issue than the Yosemite install.

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

Can you please clarify if this is a 2009 MacBook or a 2009 MacBook Pro? With the information given...could be 1 of 2 computers.


Can you please explain this in more detail? A frozen bootscreen is not good (and shouldn't happen on a properly functioning computer). This could possibly be a bigger issue than the Yosemite install.

- Nick

Click to expand...

It's a white 2009 late MacBook.

Sorry, it's not frozen . I can choose "Macintosch HD" or "Recovery-10.11.6". Bootable USB stick is plugged in, but not to be seen in screen

PearlyPearl said:

It's a white 2009 late MacBook.

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Thanks for clarifying.

PearlyPearl said:

Sorry, it's not frozen . I can choose "Macintosch HD" or "Recovery-10.11.6". Bootable USB stick is plugged in, but not to be seen in screen

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Great to hear it's not frozen.

I know that this might sound like a silly question. But since this 2009 white MacBook is new to you...are you sure the USB port/ports are functioning properly? Have you tried this bootable USB installer in all the USB ports of the MacBook? And if so...do you have any other USB device you could use to test the USB ports with (such as an external HD, external input device, etc.)?

I'm thinking we need to confirm that the MacBook's USB ports are working.

- Nickk

Yes, I checked the USB ports. After all the Macbook is working with the El Capitan installation and I already plugged in an external hard disk in both the USB ports.

PearlyPearl said:

After all the Macbook is working with the El Capitan installation...

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This by itself does not confirm that a computers USB ports are working.

PearlyPearl said:

...and I already plugged in an external hard disk in both the USB ports.

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Ok. If you tried an external HD with the USB ports...and the external HD is working. Then it sounds like the USB ports are fine.

- Nick

Off Topic: How can I determine if the power adapter is broken? When connected to the computer the light in the mag safe was burning (orange for charging and green when full) but suddenly it stopped working, no light at all. Something is malfunctioning but what: it can be the adapter itself or the computer socket, or even the battery itself? There are no physical damages to see on the outside of the power adapter, cables or plugs.

The battery needs replacement for sure, almost 1000 cycles. But even if the battery wouldn't charge anymore, even so a power adapter should be providing power to the computer. So a broken battery will not cause a malfunctioning power adapter?

pigoo3 said:

This by itself does not confirm that a computers USB ports are working.


- Nick

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I understand, I meant to say that I used the USB ports while working with the MacBook.;D

PearlyPearl said:

Off Topic: How can I determine if the power adapter is broken?

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One very quick way is try using it on a 2nd computer that can use the same power adapter.

PearlyPearl said:

When connected to the computer the light in the mag safe was burning (orange for charging and green when full) but suddenly it stopped working, no light at all. Something is malfunctioning but what: it can be the adapter itself or the computer socket, or even the battery itself? There are no physical damages to see on the outside of the power adapter, cables or plugs.

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Make sure the poower port & the power cable connector are clean & free of debris.

PearlyPearl said:

The battery needs replacement for sure, almost 1000 cycles. But even if the battery wouldn't charge anymore, even so a power adapter should be providing power to the computer. So a broken battery will not cause a malfunctioning power adapter?

Click to expand...

I have heard of folks having problems when the internal battery is not in such great shape. There are so many Apple portable computer models (and this computer is from 2009...many models ago)...that it's dificult to remember which models have issues & which do not.

But if this MacBook's battery is the totally internal type (not the kind that can be removed easily externally)...then it is supposed to be good for 1000 cycles. And even with 1000 cycles...it's still supposed to have 80% capacity left. Of course this battery could be as much as 7 years old (approx)...thus because of age...this battery may not have that much capacity left...but still may be good for at least a couple hours of runtime.

- Nick

The bootable USB problem is solved. I tried again replugging the USB stick (which didn't work before) while still in boot screen and the stick appeared in the boot menu. Now Yosemite is installed. Thanks anyway for your time and effort!

Sounds like the USB ports were "confused" in some way (it happens occasionally).

Like you...I was scratching my head why this bootable USB installer worked with your Mac-Mini...but not the 2009 MacBook.

Glad you got it figured out.

- Nick

Glad you got it figured out.

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Ditto. It sure wasn't making much sense.






- Patrick
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Extra added RAM can also be a possible cause for not recognised bootable USB devices. In that case a restart in boot mode with original RAM configuration as supplied with computer will be the solution. Please don't think I'm the expert, I just read this in an other forum while searching for a solution.;D

If the Macbook can boot into the Recovery partition have you tried booting to that and perform a repair with Disk Utility?
Because of your model you may not be able to use the Apple hardware Test https://www.lifewire.com/use-apple-hardware-test-over-internet-to-diagnose-problems-2259973 but if possible this is also worth a try.

PearlyPearl said:

Extra added RAM can also be a possible cause for not recognised bootable USB devices. In that case a restart in boot mode with original RAM configuration as supplied with computer will be the solution. Please don't think I'm the expert, I just read this in an other forum while searching for a solution.;D

Click to expand...

The 5gig of RAM that I saw listed for this MacBook seemed kind of strange. Usually it's either 2gig, 4gig, or 8gig of RAM.

- Nick

Well spotted Nick, I missed that. As you say it really should be an even number.

Yes, I performed a repair with Disk Utility. Regarding odd number of RAM: As long the 1GB of RAM isn't slower than the 4GB of RAM, the odd number shouldn't be a problem? Why should it really be 2, 4 or 8 GB?