making multi partition bootable tool

[pcpete]

We have made in the past a bootable drive with multiple partitions for different versions of OSX used for testing and installing OSX on other machines. We have 7 partitions for 7 different versions of OSX. This has worked great for years.

We wanted to use this same technique to install 8 versions of the ASD (apple service diagnostic) to use for different Macs. We partitioned it up and made each partition hfs+. Then we started to restore the different Images to the different partitions. It went fine except when we go to boot only some keep the actual names of the image and the others just say "efi device" (something similar). Because of that, we don't know what version we are booting. Any ideas to why they are not showing up correctly in the boot menu when using our bootable hard drive? Any solutions?

 

[overburnz]

how did you clone them to the new HD? does the original HD still show the correct names?

 

[Diggs]

How about an iodd instead?

 

[Markverhyden]

I've noticed this same behavior as well several years ago when I built an Apple OS multi-boot USB. Never got to the bottom of it, just moved everything over to an iodd as @Diggs mentioned. I'd bet it related to some file inside the installer package that you may be able to edit.

 

[pcpete]

how did you clone them to the new HD? does the original HD still show the correct names?

I used the method using disk utility like the documentation recommended. I may try cccloner to see if it is different. They are still named properly from within the os when viewing them

 

[overburnz]

I used the method using disk utility like the documentation recommended. I may try cccloner to see if it is different. They are still named properly from within the os when viewing them

that is weird indeed...

 

[pcpete]

I redid the process using another computer and different version of OSX. I also did the partitioning slightly differently and I now have 16 ASDs on one bootable drive.

 

[timeshifter]

ASD (apple service diagnostic) to use for different Macs

Do you have to be Apple authorized to find and use these?

 

[overburnz]

Do you have to be Apple authorized to find and use these?

to be able to download the ASD files yes, but they only go up to mid 2014 macbook's and some imac's, the newer one are cloud based.
If you want you can use techtool pro on a bootable usb hdd and run the test for pretty much everything

 

[pcpete]

to be able to download the ASD files yes, but they only go up to mid 2014 macbook's and some imac's, the newer one are cloud based.
If you want you can use techtool pro on a bootable usb hdd and run the test for pretty much everything

does that test stuff like telling you what sensor has failed?

 

[pcpete]

Do you have to be Apple authorized to find and use these?

that is a great question. They are available on the open web, but that hardly indicates anyone is supposed to use them. I will try and research it some

 

[Markverhyden]

that is a great question. They are available on the open web, but that hardly indicates anyone is supposed to use them. I will try and research it some

From what I remember you are supposed to be AASP to access and use those. Since the stand alone apps are for deprecated equipment Apple probably doesn't really care. Louis Rossman has links to them and I'm sure if Apple was enforcing it they'd have shut him down already. From what I've seen it appears they use a locally hosted version in the Apple stores but I'm sure the others use a web based version available directly via Apple.

I've pretty much given up on those software generated diagnostics for hardware problems. They rarely provide an accurate evaluation of what the real problem is. This was just reinforced last week with some refurbs, HP 6305 SFF's, I bought for a customer. They're from a M$ Certified Refurbisher via Microcenter. One of them booted to a memory error in BIOS out of the box. Did the typical stuff, moving the sticks around as well as running the builtin HP firmware memory test. That test reported everything was OK but when I isolated the pair of sticks the error went away.

Given the cost of parts in the M$ ecosystem, as well as the lack of reliable OEM Apple parts, it's just not worth the time.

 

[overburnz]

does that test stuff like telling you what sensor has failed?

The ASD yes, techtool pro also yes (i think), but like @Markverhyden said, it is not 100% failsafe but gives a pretty good picture of what could be the issue and its a multitool AIO

 

[pcpete]

From what I remember you are supposed to be AASP to access and use those. Since the stand alone apps are for deprecated equipment Apple probably doesn't really care. Louis Rossman has links to them and I'm sure if Apple was enforcing it they'd have shut him down already. From what I've seen it appears they use a locally hosted version in the Apple stores but I'm sure the others use a web based version available directly via Apple.

I've pretty much given up on those software generated diagnostics for hardware problems. They rarely provide an accurate evaluation of what the real problem is. This was just reinforced last week with some refurbs, HP 6305 SFF's, I bought for a customer. They're from a M$ Certified Refurbisher via Microcenter. One of them booted to a memory error in BIOS out of the box. Did the typical stuff, moving the sticks around as well as running the builtin HP firmware memory test. That test reported everything was OK but when I isolated the pair of sticks the error went away.

Given the cost of parts in the M$ ecosystem, as well as the lack of reliable OEM Apple parts, it's just not worth the time.

Rossman does not link to them or schematics. That behavior is not allowed on his forums. The ASDs are helpful for logic board issues, in particular for telling you what sensor is bad, where the public tool just says the computer has a problem and call apple.

 

[Markverhyden]

Rossman does not link to them or schematics. That behavior is not allowed on his forums. The ASDs are helpful for logic board issues, in particular for telling you what sensor is bad, where the public tool just says the computer has a problem and call apple.

First post on this thread but it's not by him to be fair. But he does not actually host them.

https://boards.rossmanngroup.com/forum/tools/2150-asd-apple-system-diagnostics

 

[Markverhyden]

I redid the process using another computer and different version of OSX. I also did the partitioning slightly differently and I now have 16 ASDs on one bootable drive.

Forgot to ask. Which version of OS did you use @pcpete.

 

[pcpete]

The first time I did it I used 10.14 along with first making all of the partitions, then restoring to them on os at a time. Logically this should have worked, but for some unknown reason it didn't.

The method that did work was on a 10.13 machine. I made the whole disk one partition, then restored one of the ASDs to it. I then kept going to the large partition and cut away one 20gb partition and restored the next ASD to it. Then I repeated the process of adding one partition and restoring one ASD at a time till I was finished. OSX only allows 16 partitions as far as I can tell. When I got to the end and realized I could not make any more, I just overwrote an ASD for the older Macs to make room for the last one I wanted