OS X Refuses to Install on iBook G4

evilroot · #1 September 17th, 2008, 05:43 PM

I have a 12" iBook G4, 1.07GHz that I'm trying to reinstall OS X on after a hard drive replacement. The new drive is a standard 80GB IDE drive, fresh out of the shrink wrap. Now, when I attempt to run the install it acts rather oddly . . . it runs through the entire install script, but then at the very end errors out and says "try installing again".

I've tried three different OS X install media sets (two DVD and one CDs) and gotten the same result. I've reformatted the drive several times and run the Disk Utility repair tool, which has gone through fine. I've reset the PMU, and pulled the expansion ram and Airport card. Same result.

I'm absolutely at my wits end trying to figure this out . . . . I've tried everything I can possibly think of. Any ideas or suggestions?

jbarley · #2 September 17th, 2008, 06:20 PM

Did you partition the new drive using the Apple Partition Map scheme?

jb.

evilroot · #3 September 17th, 2008, 06:30 PM

I partitioned and formatted it using the Disk Utility that's on the 10.4 install DVD. There weren't any options for partition map schemes that I saw, was I missing something?

**Giaguara** · #4 September 18th, 2008, 01:04 AM

Partition map schemes would be only on the discs that were shipping since the Intel processors were out...
do you have any extra RAM on that system?

MisterMe · #5 September 18th, 2008, 09:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by evilroot

I have a 12" iBook G4, 1.07GHz that I'm trying to reinstall OS X on after a hard drive replacement. ...

You can't use just any ole disc. You can only use the System Restore disc that shipped with your computer or a retail distribution of MacOS X that was introduced after your computer was sold by Apple.

jbarley · #6 September 18th, 2008, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Giaguara

Partition map schemes would be only on the discs that were shipping since the Intel processors were out...
do you have any extra RAM on that system?

Which would include 10.4 (Tiger)

**Giaguara** · #7 September 18th, 2008, 01:03 PM

Yes, 10.4.4 more precisely. But every single version of Mac OS X 10.4.x retail version was for PPC. The only way to get the ones for Intel was to get the Mac that was made for. So even if you had a retail box shipped with 10.4.6 or whatever was the latest shipped with it, it would still be PPC.