Mac OS 9 booting on: eMac G4 1.25 Ghz. (Detailed Posts)

[UltimaN3rd]

(snip)

i tried this, and it did mostly work, but after restoring OS 9 and patching it, my system completely refuses to boot, with or without extensions.
it gets to the end of the 'starting up' progress bar and just hardlocks

I have the same issue. I was able to install OS9 from a burned disc using the instructions here, but booting to the installed partition gets stuck near the end of the "startup up" progress bar.

[joeykork]

@UltimaN3rd, I had the same problem with the lockup @ 99%

missing from the growing list of tweaks:

- after restoring the OS9 image to your permanent volume with ASR: remove the "\System Folder\Extensions\Multiprocessing" directory

You can fixup your current install by booting the MacOS9lives CD or OSX to do this.

I also had to tweak USB Overdrive (Apple Menu -> Control Panels -> USB Overdrive).
Set mouse sensitivity to 80%. If left at the default of "System", I'd get locked-up cursors.

[zulc22]

If you're having issues with hardlocking before the end, you need to delete the /System Folder/Extensions/Multiprocessing folder.

Here's my personal most painless method of installing OS 9 on this machine; no Open Firmware fiddling required. (unless my guide doesn't work)
Please tell me if this doesn't work for you, and how, so I can update this post. (for context this was done for a X 10.3 and OS 9 dual boot setup.)

0. Have an extra partition on your drive for 9.
1. Burn the Unsupported G4s CD.
2. Boot up X and download the two links at the top of the first post in this thread. (tbxi-enabler and ATI,Merlin)
3. Restore the .img file from the Unsupported G4s CD to your partition with Disk Utility.
4. Delete /System Folder/Mac OS ROM.
5. Copy tbxi-enabler into /System Folder.
6. Copy the contents of ATI,Merlin into /System Folder/Extensions, overwriting the existing files. (that's the point)
Mac OS 9 will not boot yet. Open Firmware will be able to boot to the new Mac OS ROM, but will not detect your hard drive, just showing a blinking ? floppy.
7. Make sure the Unsupported G4s CD is still inserted. Reboot and hold Option to go into the boot menu, and boot to the (probably unlabelled) hard drive w/ Finder icon. (Your OS 9 partition.)
After about 1 or 2 minutes, Mac OS ROM will give up on booting to your drive and boot to the Unsupported G4s disc. (this saves a step in Open Firmware, and if you type at my slightly above average speed that's still faster.)
8. Close the Read Me and select your main drive (should be ATA, not ATAPI... probably the second one in the list), do NOT Initialize it.
9. Click the "Functions" drop down menu on the menu bar and click "Update Drivers".
10. Allow your machine to boot into X as normal.
11. Go to the Startup Disk settings under System Preferences, select "Mac OS 9.2.2 on (your OS 9 partition)", and restart. Your machine should now directly boot into OS 9.

[joeykork]

I used ELN's tbxi-patcher repo to rebuild a new Mac OS ROM based off the 1st Gen emac's 9.2.1 install CD (691-3482-A)

mods are here: https://github.com/kfix/tbxi-patches/tree/emac
mainly an issue of search-and-replace of macmini model names and numbers with those of the later eMac.

This didn't fix the problem with the CPU Plugins crashing on my 2004/1.25 machine, but _did_ fix the onboard sound and speakers!
it seems any attempt to override 'prim-info' property thus far breaks the sound driver, but that property seems to be what need modification to fix the CPU Plugins.
I preferred to have working sound...

Unfortunately I think I fried this logic board when doing some (rushed  ) modding to get a 50% reduced fan speed!
the fan's tach signal (yellow wire) needs to be faked to keep the PMU from throttling/stalling the computer but I think I fed it a 12V pulse instead of the 5V its probably used to!
Now there's no sound and the throttling is happening full time, OSX wont even boot. Replacement is on the way...

I've attached the last sound-enabling ROM build I used. It doesn't have a resource-fork (so no smiling Mac icon) but still worked.

[Steph]

I can't make it work, I see the drive, I even the the MacOS9 icon when I click option after a restart but the only think I got when I try to boot is a grey screen. I removed the multiprocessor folder. If I remove the rom as advised by zulc22 the partition don't show at all, time to brick my machine using open firmware I guess.

[cyberluke]

The second last post with concrete steps helped a little bit, but I have same issue here with Powerbook G4: http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,6554.0.html

Now after deleting Multiprocessor extension, it does boot. But resolution is low even after applying and overwriting ATI,Merlin.sit archive.

Messing up with Mac Boot ROM was not a good idea because it is not compatible with Powerbook G4.

Why there are scattered instructions across the forum and original unsupported G4 ISO is not being updated? Imagine me, even a software developer with Linux experience, but still a newcomer in Mac world comes here and now it is 4th day trying to battle with Mac OS. Not good experience. I think I will try something like 10.2 Jaguar, where double buffering issue does not exist. But I have read that it might not install and I might need to install it in emulator, update to 10.2.8 and then transfer that drive image. G4 is slow for OS X and current work, but also not good enough to run older apps. I should buy G3.

[Steph]

It's working now, thanks! But I have privileges problems, my OS9 games are on the OS X partition, I can't move or delete them from OS9.

[cyberluke]

For me this 10.2.7 Jaguar from eMac G4 DVD works on Powerbook G4 as well. Only Classic environment will not install due to installation popup about compatibility check. But I solved it by getting VintageJaguar.dmg from the forums and use that as a Classic environment. Now everything works. But it will be never fast as native PowerMac G3 or older machine (just bought one and 3d games with software renderer are even faster)

[clvulsion]

Hello! I'm getting the file "2018-04-08 normal mini with happymactron.hqx" while trying to download the custom Rom on the top of this page, is this correct?

[Steph]

It seems that sound works when I start OS9 from OS X, I should investigate more, I just need to buy a Mini Jack to USB adapter, simpler and hassle free.

[wired]

I used ELN's tbxi-patcher repo to rebuild a new Mac OS ROM based off the 1st Gen emac's 9.2.1 install CD (691-3482-A)

mods are here: https://github.com/kfix/tbxi-patches/tree/emac
mainly an issue of search-and-replace of macmini model names and numbers with those of the later eMac.

This didn't fix the problem with the CPU Plugins crashing on my 2004/1.25 machine, but _did_ fix the onboard sound and speakers!
it seems any attempt to override 'prim-info' property thus far breaks the sound driver, but that property seems to be what need modification to fix the CPU Plugins.
I preferred to have working sound...

Unfortunately I think I fried this logic board when doing some (rushed  ) modding to get a 50% reduced fan speed!
the fan's tach signal (yellow wire) needs to be faked to keep the PMU from throttling/stalling the computer but I think I fed it a 12V pulse instead of the 5V its probably used to!
Now there's no sound and the throttling is happening full time, OSX wont even boot. Replacement is on the way...

I've attached the last sound-enabling ROM build I used. It doesn't have a resource-fork (so no smiling Mac icon) but still worked.

I rebuilt this with the 10.2.1 ROM from the Rescue & Install CD, and also used ataboot.py to install the ATA driver (can boot from partitions without the OS 9 Drivers installed, or where they were somehow not working right...fixed my ? folder). Video acceleraton doesn't seem to work OOB like it does on minis, looking at that more...

To use this, replace Mac OS ROM in the desired system folder from OS X (You can restore Mac OS 9 disk image from the unsupported CD to get one, for instance). Option boot should work immediately without OF hacking.

[wired]

I figured out part of the video issue. Changing the RockHopper2 compatible doesn't work, it black screened. This one has a ATY,Merlin pef installed, with the script modified to patch and install it instead of the original. The good news is that video works at millions of colors and full resolution. The bad news is that ATI Video Accelerator needs to be force quit right after the finder loads, and some resolutions appear available but result in problems (gray screen with cursor).

I'll keep digging in the mini threads to see if they already dealt with this.

EDIT: They did, I was using the 9.2.2 default drivers, I think. Installing January 2005 drivers causes a crash with graphics buffer corruption when the extension loads. Still digging.

[wired]

Ok, here is a pretty good eMac ROM using the State of The Art approaches from the mini thread. Credit to those who discovered those techniques, including ELN, Darthnvader, Mactron, joeykork etc.

This ROM should replace Mac OS ROM in the system folder. Remove tbxi-enabler, and remove the ATI extensions and reinstall the January 2005 ATI Update. Acceleration works (2d tested so far), audio works, ATA boot with missing drivers should work. Sleep does not work but I haven't investigated it much.

I deleted the beta versions I had pasted earlier, this one should be preferred for emacs compared  to all other available sources. I'm happy to post a diff of joeykork's git too, building ROMs on linux requires Python 3.9 (hqx support  was cut from binascii in 2020) and the input and output files must be .hqx to preserve resource forks.

Cheers.

[wired]

I got this working with Multiprocessing/CPU plugin by synthesizing a reasonable prim-info from other machines. Sound still works, but sleep does not. I will keep hacking at it.

I used `000000ff 0000002c 00030d40 00016705 00001400 00000000 0000260d 46000278 783c00` as prim-info, using mini, emac 2004, and g4 agp as "sources".

Patch (git diff) and other interesting parts for joeykork's repo is also attached. I deleted obsolete attachments on previous posts.

[joeykork]

I tried wired's ROM on my eMac, and while the Multiprocessor/CPU plugin was able to be enabled and booting completed (progress bar finishes!), 3D acceleration stopped working.

3D does work with my 2022 ROM using the patched RockHopper2 ndrv (which is also checked into tbxi-patches, from the original commits by ELN)

I tested with TuxRacer from: https://macintoshgarden.org/games/tux-racer

I'll try to integrate the patched prim-info with my fork and maybe make its builds reproducible with Docker or GitHub actions.

thanks for the hint about Python 3.9, it happened to be what's on my MacBook.

edit:
integration is here: https://github.com/kfix/tbxi-patches/tree/emac_fix_cpu_plugins

resulting ROM build is attached. it supports CPU plugins, stereo-sound, and 2d+3d acceleration on the emac

the new prim-info also seems to have cured the flickering of the speakers info-graphic within the Sound pref-panel!

[Steph]

Grey screen on my machine with Wired Rom. Joeykok's Rom worked great, sound worked, stable and snappy but I've lost lower resolution, 1024x768 is now the minimum, makes PoP unusable for example.

[joeykork]

hey Steph, so now you made me go look at my Monitor control panel and I do see only the 1024 & 1280 modelines in the picker and no more eMac infographic, just a generic CRT and it says "iMac" in the window title . not like the custom dialog from the screenshot in the original post.

not sure how I avoided this for so many boots on the new rom, but I had been using the Control Strip and OtherMenu for choosing lower resolutions & colors (which still worked!) and not the control panel. But this regression does seem to explain why my eMac was always booting into 1024x768 even when I had left it in 800x600 when shutting down....

edit: the reason it "worked on my machine!" is because I had a copy of my 2022 rom in the System folder with an alternate name! I had just deleted it, and now I'm stuck in hi-res. What a nutty OS....

ok, here's another rom build that is fatter, seemingly having the missing "System Enabler" resources to get all the video modes back. checked sound, checked 3D. Make sure you only have the one ROM in System folder, I guess!?

really need a reproducible install image for this stuff, there's so many ways to break it.

[Steph]

Hi, low resolutions are back, thanks! Still hang up once in a while on start and 1024x768 still appears as the default resolution in SwitchRes but it's usable.