Can I Install OS 10.4 But Keep My OS 9.2.2 Installation too?

[boba]

Newbie!

I've a PowerMac G4 running OS 9.2.2. I rather fancy the idea of ALSO running OS 10.4 Tiger on it but I have lots of applications on 9.2.2 that I'll never be able to find all of the disks and/or updates that I've installed over the years.

I know that you can install 9.2 as Classic in 10.4 but is there any way to do the 'opposite'? I'd like to keep everything I have already, not destroy the installation, but add Tiger.

If I can't do this could I perhaps install 10.4 on a different hard drive and boot from either 9.2.2 or 10.4 as I felt like?

[Knezzen]

They can coexist on the same HD, but some people have had problems with this (I haven't though). Otherwise there's no problem to install Tiger on a different HD or partition. Leopard 10.5.8 and Mac OS 9.2.2 happily co-exist on the same drive on my MDD and that's the way I have been using it for years and never had any issues with it.

[boba]

Thanks for that.

I have several old drives in the cupboard. Is it as straightforwards as just installing a drive (maybe 40GB or so on the same bus as the existing system drive) and booting from a Tiger DVD or is there anything else I need to do first?

[GaryN]

I suggest you refer to this post:  http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,3424.msg23551.html#msg23551
Especially the part about Spotlight.

You can indeed do it "backwards" and the simplest, straightforward way is to just install 10.4 on another drive.
You cannot use your existing 9.2 install for 10.4 Classic. The Classic OS9 is a specialized version. You can install 10.4 and Classic on the new drive to end up with the most versatile dual-boot system.

I have lots of applications on 9.2.2 that I'll never be able to find all of the disks and/or updates that I've installed over the years.

I'm sure that it is, but I'll just mention that all of that "irreplaceable" stuff should be backed up…

[IIO]

i wouldnt use a 40 gb harddrive any longer. they are just to loud. get one not older than 10 years, the 5 bucks are worth it.

[Knezzen]

You cannot use your existing 9.2 install for 10.4 Classic. The Classic OS9 is a specialized version.

Don't know where you got this from. Classic uses just a normal Mac OS 9.2.2 System Folder.
The Classic environment in Tiger on my TiBook uses the same System Folder (from the os9general.dmg) as the one I boot directly with when I want to run 9.2.2 only (not through Classic).

Tiger and 9.2.2 are installed on the same partition and I have been running it like that for years without any issues what so ever.

I understand that some of you have had issues with OSX and 9 co-existing on the same drive, but you don't have to paint it up like it's deadly to run it like that. Some of us have been doing just that for years on multiple machines without any horror stories

[boba]

Thanks all for the comments.

So I've installed Tiger 10.4 on another partition and it seems to boot up OK. Just a few odd problems:
1. Wouldn't install from the CD but it installed OK after I copied all the files to a HD partition and ran from there.
2. Software Update always fails to unpack the download. I've downloaded the 10.4.11 combo to try.
3. The G4 doesn't shut down properly out of Tiger - hangs with a blue screen - still to investigate.

9.2.2 still seems to be intact so more or less there now I guess. Now I need to find/install some apps.
I think I might try to find a copy of the Tiger 'Missing Manual' too.

[GaryN]

You cannot use your existing 9.2 install for 10.4 Classic. The Classic OS9 is a specialized version.

Don't know where you got this from. Classic uses just a normal Mac OS 9.2.2 System Folder.

Wow… You know what? I don't know where I got that from, because I do know better!
Warning kids: This is what happens when you're old and you try to multitask… Thanks Knez!

Also, I'm not sure about everybody else, but all of my "horror stories" re: OSX / OS9 compatibility issues are entirely due to directory problems caused by Spotlight and/or Time Machine.

Also also:

So I've installed Tiger 10.4 on another partition and it seems to boot up OK. Just a few odd problems:
1. Wouldn't install from the CD but it installed OK after I copied all the files to a HD partition and ran from there.
2. Software Update always fails to unpack the download. I've downloaded the 10.4.11 combo to try.
3. The G4 doesn't shut down properly out of Tiger - hangs with a blue screen - still to investigate.

I suspect that #2 and #3 are caused by #1

AFAIK, it has always been the common wisdom that OSX should / must be installed by the OSX installer.
You say "wouldn't install from the CD"… what CD? A general retail, a grey machine specific, a downloaded image?
Both #2 and #3 sound to me like resource missing or misplaced problems. OSX is very finicky about what goes where.

[IIO]

timeemachine is unreleated to classic enviroment, but spotlight always was a beast. i have never used it, it is turned off for whole bunch of reasons here.

[boba]

So I've installed Tiger 10.4 on another partition and it seems to boot up OK. Just a few odd problems:
1. Wouldn't install from the CD but it installed OK after I copied all the files to a HD partition and ran from there.
2. Software Update always fails to unpack the download. I've downloaded the 10.4.11 combo to try.
3. The G4 doesn't shut down properly out of Tiger - hangs with a blue screen - still to investigate.

I suspect that #2 and #3 are caused by #1

AFAIK, it has always been the common wisdom that OSX should / must be installed by the OSX installer.
You say "wouldn't install from the CD"… what CD? A general retail, a grey machine specific, a downloaded image?
Both #2 and #3 sound to me like resource missing or misplaced problems. OSX is very finicky about what goes where.

General retail CD pack. Sold for installation on G3/G4 and up as alternative to the DVD. The problem of refusing to install from a CD (boots but then complains that it can't see the installation CD) is well-documented on the www but I didn't find that any of the suggested fixed worked for me. Running from HD works fine - I just copied the whole install CD to a partition and ran it there, no different to running it from any other drive. Sadly (?) it still asks for CDs 2,3,4 even if you also copy them to the HD but I might experiment with this again out of interest.

The Software Update failure is fairly well documented too and the usual suggestion is to download and run the package. This worked for me too. Running the 10.4.11 combo fixed that so likely just one of the funnies in 10.4.

I found that the failure to shutdown was because file /sbin/halt was damaged. So also was /sbin/reboot. I've replaced those with the files from the install CD and that seems to do the trick, I don't understand why the install corrupted them but I suppose it's possible that I did it myself by pulling the switch when OSX failed to shut down originally. Fsck didn't help but anyway it's fine now

<edit>
Well, it was sort of fine!
I decided to do a bit of exploring and found a few more damaged files (permissions were ---------) so I wrote a script to copy the offending files from the installation CD1.
All seems well now, all software updates installed OK. Nice to have this old machine running
</edit>