Alt boot method starts install but freezes at Apple logo

[Benchtech]

Replacing bad hard drive with new 1TB drive.

I've tried both the internal and external dvdrom drives.

Power on holding ALT only the option for osx 10.5 installation pops up, I select ti and the drive starts to spin up it then goes to the Apple logo and that's it.

 

[anti]

Model? Version of OSX?

 

[altrenda]

Model? Version of OSX?

Let's guess.
Internal and external dvd.
Apple dropped the dvd from the Mini in 2011, from the iMac in late 2012,

10.5 Leopard shipped with machines in 2008 and 2009. Snow Leopard, 10.6 shipped in late 2009

So its either a Mac Mini , iMac, a plastic or metal Macbook or a Macbook Pro from 2008 or 2009.

Unless he's trying to install Leopard on a Mini, iMac or Macbook Pro newer than Late 2009 then all bets are off.

maybe we do need more information.

 

[Benchtech]

Let's guess.
Internal and external dvd.
Apple dropped the dvd from the Mini in 2011, from the iMac in late 2012,

10.5 Leopard shipped with machines in 2008 and 2009. Snow Leopard, 10.6 shipped in late 2009

So its either a Mac Mini , iMac, a plastic or metal Macbook or a Macbook Pro from 2008 or 2009.

Unless he's trying to install Leopard on a Mini, iMac or Macbook Pro newer than Late 2009 then all bets are off.

maybe we do need more information.

20" iMac late 2006 (Sorry didn't think it was relevant to the boot procedure)
Tried both the internal drive, external firewire, external usb dvdrw drives.
I read that it came with 10.4.7 I tried 10.4.8, 10.5 and 10.6.

They all can see that installation disk, but when i click install it spins up and then stops. Drive is brand new, and it's formatted and partitioned using GUID.

 

[altrenda]

We like to know what we're working with, in case there are some quirks.

Does your Lion disk boot on other machines? Lion at retaiI came on a usb drive, if I remember. Everything else was a digital download. So this disk is a copy someone made.
Make sure it works.
Can you try a Snow Leopard disk?

 

[Markverhyden]

Yes, it's a great idea to provide complete details, including troubleshooting steps already attempted.

What were the original symptoms?
When you used an external cd drive did you unplug the internal one?
Have you reseated/swapped RAM?
Will the machine boot to installer start page with no HD attached?

The bad news is those can also have logic board problems. Any swollen caps? To be honest that is what it sounds like at this point.

The SM if you do not already have it.

http://verhyden.org/owncloud/public.php?service=files&t=2444c0d7901807cd969e7058e2833144

 

[anti]

Last time I did a 2006 iMac (can't remember specifically which one other then it was Intel) Only a vanilla 10.6 Snow Leopard disc would work. 10.6.x anything else refused to do anything.

Could always try target disk mode.


Consider making a Leopard/Snow Leopard/Lion/Mountain Lion USB key.

 

[Benchtech]

It came in because it was booting to a white screen with folder with ?.

I'm using a Leopard retail disk 10.5.1

I have pulled and replaced ram
Reset PRAM and SMC

I can get it to boot to the internal and external drives and it see the installer disk but when i click it to run the disk spins up and does nothing. I tested all the disks (10.4 ~ 10.6 which is all i have on disk) yesterday and they are working fine.

 

[altrenda]

My bad 10.5 is Leopard, not Lion.

Try booting a linux disk to see if it works. I would take a look at the drive cable, though thats more a problem with laptops than desktops.

If you have another mac, you could try installing to the disk connected via usb and then see if it boots on this machine.

 

[Benchtech]

My bad 10.5 is Leopard, not Lion.

Try booting a linux disk to see if it works. I would take a look at the drive cable, though thats more a problem with laptops than desktops.

If you have another mac, you could try installing to the disk connected via usb and then see if it boots on this machine.

The only other mac we had left yesterday. =(

Tried a 10.7 USB stick and the same thing

 

[anti]

Latest version of OSX for those iMacs is 10.6.8 (Snow Leopard) IIRC. Like I said previously I do recall not being able to install 10.6.8 directly but had to install 10.6 vanilla first, then update.

10.7 (Lion) should just give you a crossed out symbol.

What were the results of doing a target firewire to the iMac from another Mac? Can the other Mac see the drive?


edit:
My bad I had an Early 2006 iMac4,1. Sometimes they need a firmware update before being able to take a later version.

 

[Benchtech]

Latest version of OSX for those iMacs is 10.6.8 (Snow Leopard) IIRC. Like I said previously I do recall not being able to install 10.6.8 directly but had to install 10.6 vanilla first, then update.

10.7 (Lion) should just give you a crossed out symbol.

What were the results of doing a target firewire to the iMac from another Mac? Can the other Mac see the drive?


edit:
My bad I had an Early 2006 iMac4,1. Sometimes they need a firmware update before being able to take a later version.

I only had the other Mac pro for 24hours, when i did a target boot to the usb with 10.7 it found it and had the EFI install on the screen selecting it just loaded the apple logo and that was it.

 

[anti]

If you can track down another Mac see if you can target disk mode it so you can mount the drive on the other Mac.

Worse case scenario you could image it via Firewire but you would need an image.

Try swapping RAM.