Installations problem

[unwind06]

Hi guys! First post for me here and I hope to have an answer from all you pros! Here it is, I'll make it short. I own a iMac G3 600 graphite and the hard drive failed. I replaced it with a 40gb hard drive, brand new. Unfortunately, I do not have the original CDs of the computer and I'd like to re install OS9 or OS8 only. I don't want OSX. I own 5 macs and I'd like to have one that runs only OS8 or OS9. My problem is that I do not have the possibility to format the HDD with the OS 9 drivers. I have downloaded pretty much all the OS9 version I could find online, burned 4 different version (9.0.1, 9.2.2, 9.1.........) but no one seems to be working. I still cannot boot in OS9 even if I managed to install one copy of one version I downloaded, I think it's 9.2.2...

What can I do? Please, help!!

Thank you very much!

[Mat]

What does it exactly mean that you cannot format the drive? What does drive setup from the installer CDs tell you?
I expect that you do not have any hardware issue, like Master/Slave or broken cables? There are a few HDs that are not recognized by Apples Drive Setup. A 3rd party utility, like HD Speed Tools or HD Tool Kit may help. As you own 5 other Macs, I suggest that you go to some further 9 system running (either you have one at another mac, or you get an external FW CD drive or similar to have two drives available at your recent one) and try some of such tools. (EDIT: of course you can also burn another System CD with the tools on board, it is just that you need a possibility to boot the System from CD and get (another) Mass Storage with some 3rd party tool working. Perhaps some OS CDs even offer USB? Or you get the HD into another Mac with working System)
Or you can try to use others Operating Systems for formatting the drive (like some Debian live CD with gparted for example), but that would be a further step.

What makes me courious is that you said you could install some Mac OS 9 without formatting the HD. How is that possible. If it is a brand new HD it is formatted to FAT 32 usually. So are you sure you did nothing to this new HD but could install 9 to such a singel FAT 32 partition?

[unwind06]

Ok, I'm not sure to fully understand all of what you are saying but before installing the new hdd in the iMac 600, I formatted it with my other computer (Macbook Pro). I think I did Mac extended format. My other macs are either brand new (2 iMac 5K, 1 MacbookPro, one mac mini and one mac pro) or max 2 years old so I don't have the possibility to format the drive with the MacOS9 drivers like I used to before I change all my computers.

So, I am stuck with a new hard drive and no original CD. I was able to boot from the 9.2.2 CD, an old eMac original I have, it asked me to install the OS but then, when I reboot the computer, if the CD is not in the slot, it showed me a floppy disk with a question mark in it.

I did not fully understand what you said regarding applications/software I can use.. :S

Thanks for your help! VERY appreciated!

Marc

[Mat]

OK, so here we have perhaps another issue of X is making 9 impossible, ...

You wrote "your drive failed", and thats why I thought you cannot format it from Mac OS 9 when you booted it from CD. Did you use the program "Drive Setup" at Mac OS 9?
You have to run "Drive Setup" and create the new partition (HFS+) from the Mac OS 9 program in every case. So try it and perhaps it is able to recognise your HD?

If not, you could try to put the HD back to one of your modern Macs and format it back to FAT 32 again (or MS-DOS or whatever it is called from within X). Perhaps Drive Setup of Mac OS 9 can recognise it subsequently?

[unwind06]

I'm not sure I saw any "Drive Setup" when the computer booted with the OS9 CD but I'll check that again tomorrow. Also, if this is not working, or if I don't see any drive setup, I'll remove the hard drive, format it to FAT32 and try everything again.

I'll let you know!

Thank you!

[Mat]

OK, so you simply didn´t partition your HD before you tried to install Mac OS 9.

If you open the CD after you booted from it (the icon in the top right of the screen), there is some folder called "Help Programs" or similar, I just used german CDs my entire live. It´s the one in the bottom right with the "toolbox-icon" there you should find the program "drive setup". Use it to partition your HD (or reformatting it).
Subsequently you should be able to use the program "Mac OS installation" (the cetered icon in the CD window) and install the OS.

The FAT32 idea was only for the case that your modern X made the drives unusable with 9. You have to format it to HFS+ from the 9 installer CDs in every case! Just if it is not recognized by "Drive Setup" you could try if it is recognized if you reformat it to FAT32, but subsequently you have to format it to HFS+ again (from the 9 desktop that you booted at your iMac by using Drive Setup).

[unwind06]

Just to let you know, it worked perfectly! Thanks for your help!!!!

[mrhappy]

Another happy ending!