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    Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

    Hello,

    My customer brought me an imac G5. It had two bad Rubicon caps. They were close to a heat source so I think the thermal paste might have needed to be redone. I'm going to verify the fans actually work first.

    Anyway, she said it used to run faster. Early after she bought it, they paid someone to install a newer version of MacOS on it. Over the years, it slowed down. She wants me to reinstall MacOS.

    Does anyone know if I do the Apple Key-R thing at startup and reinstall from that way, will the iMac reinstall the updated version of MacOS or the version that actually came with the computer? I couldn't seem to find this information anywhere.

    Finally, if it reinstalls the version that came with the computer, can I download the version she has installed and install that or does that goes against the Apple TOS? I know with Microsoft, it doesn't matter where I get the media from, so long as the person has a legally obtained product key. Is this the same way with Mac's? Would I be breaking the law finding the same version she legally has on her computer and reinstalling it?

    The version she has on there now was legally obtained, she just was never given any discs or recovery media.

    Thanks.
    -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

    #2
    Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

    if its a PPC G5, the newest it can be is 10.5, which runs nice if there's the max 2GB ram. typically they came with 10.4. Either way, no key or activation is needed. 10.5 will also run on an Intel-based imac. That covers about all I know about this subject.
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      #3
      Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

      So a while back apple stop supporting some OS and to upgrade one needs some type of recognition from the apple store. I can't remember the name of the program. If this program is not there than Apple will need to be contacted. If the machine is around 2009 MacBook Pro The Apple people will tell you that the newer OS will slow the machine down as it was not made for that machine. However, if you do not upgrade than some features will not work. So Apple support will charge them between $50 and $100 to correct the problem putting the old program on, but if she has the recognition program still on her machine you can go out to the Apple store and just down load the old OS for free.The other thing is they have a program called the time machine which backs up the programs. The only problem is there can be multiple back up on the machine eating all the free space up. They have a duplicate program finder on the machine that will find this. Did she put a new drive in the machine when the guy try to update it? And if so does she have the old drive? Apple can be made to boot up from the usb port or different Apple OS. Sorry Spork I did not see the imac G5
      Last edited by keeney123; 12-05-2016, 04:23 PM.

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        #4
        Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

        Originally posted by Topcat View Post
        if its a PPC G5, the newest it can be is 10.5, which runs nice if there's the max 2GB ram. typically they came with 10.4. Either way, no key or activation is needed. 10.5 will also run on an Intel-based imac. That covers about all I know about this subject.
        When you say PPC G5, are you talking about the PowerPC? I don't know much about Mac's Topcat. I think this is the 2nd I've ever worked on.

        My wife did the thermal paste (she has better eyes than I do now). She said one of the chips (the one she thought was the CPU) said IBM on it. IBM was one of the creators of the PowerPC, right? If so, that'd mean it's probably running 10.5 (if they typically come with 10.4).

        So, I can just find a copy of MacOS 10.5 and install it, no problems? And for the RAM, do you know if any DDR sticks will work, or do I need RAM specifically made for the Mac? I'd think DDR was DDR.
        -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

        Comment


          #5
          Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

          Originally posted by keeney123 View Post
          So a while back apple stop supporting some OS and to upgrade one needs some type of recognition from the apple store. I can't remember the name of the program. If this program is not there than Apple will need to be contacted. If the machine is around 2009 MacBook Pro The Apple people will tell you that the newer OS will slow the machine down as it was not made for that machine. However, if you do not upgrade than some features will not work. So Apple support will charge them between $50 and $100 to correct the problem putting the old program on, but if she has the recognition program still on her machine you can go out to the Apple store and just down load the old OS for free.The other thing is they have a program called the time machine which backs up the programs. The only problem is there can be multiple back up on the machine eating all the free space up. They have a duplicate program finder on the machine that will find this. Did she put a new drive in the machine when the guy try to update it? And if so does she have the old drive? Apple can be made to boot up from the usb port or different Apple OS. Sorry Spork I did not see the imac G5
          I've read a little about Time Machine. I don't think I'm going to go that route. The person that did the upgrade put a physical DVD (or multiple CDs) into the iMac and installed that way. I can always restore to the original OS, no problem, but the idea is to keep the updated version that was installed.

          So what's this about the Apple store? There's no way to just download the upgraded MacOS from some semi-trustworthy site and install that way? If the system restore option was going to put the original OS back in (version 10.4, let's say), I was just going to find the newer version (version 10.5, let's say) and install from DVD, after backing up all her files.

          Until yesterday, the system had never physically been opened before. I was the only person who opened it since she bought it new way back when. So no, no larger sized hard drive.
          -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

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            #6
            Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

            Originally posted by Spork Schivago View Post
            I've read a little about Time Machine. I don't think I'm going to go that route. The person that did the upgrade put a physical DVD (or multiple CDs) into the iMac and installed that way. I can always restore to the original OS, no problem, but the idea is to keep the updated version that was installed.

            So what's this about the Apple store? There's no way to just download the upgraded MacOS from some semi-trustworthy site and install that way? If the system restore option was going to put the original OS back in (version 10.4, let's say), I was just going to find the newer version (version 10.5, let's say) and install from DVD, after backing up all her files.

            Until yesterday, the system had never physically been opened before. I was the only person who opened it since she bought it new way back when. So no, no larger sized hard drive.
            The Apple Store is like the Windows Store it belongs to the manufacturer. It is not so untrustworthy site. My manager at the old place I live did just what this person has done. He went to a person that knew all about Apple Computers. Came highly recommended. After the guy installed the update the 2009 Mac Book pro ran like molasses. Because my manager was on vacation back in his hometown for 2 weeks the guy didn't have time to fix the computer, but promised next time through he would take care of it. This is when I got involved. One can go to the Apple Store online an get different OS. Apple does not charge for many of their OS and OS upgrades like $15. This is the convenience for paying $1500 to $2000 for a machine. So my manager said he just wanted the computer to run like it did before. He said he only wanted to upgrade it because of one program that would not work. So I cleaned up multiple duplicates. I forget how many Giga Bit. I lost count. I then reinstalled his original program on a smaller disk as he put a 1T in the laptop. I told him he could use the 1T to store back ups by the firewire. The problem he had is he saw some website that he could watch the superbowl on and it was free. What happened when he logged on this one program that you need to get updates from AppleStore.com checks to see if that program is their if it is not then the store will not recognize it. All this information is on the Apple Site and what has to be done if the program is not there. So After I got his old OS back on and running fast he still wanted to upgrade it because the Apple site said you could. He called up the local Apple Store and they told him to come in and they would help him for $50. After he arrived they told him that it really is not a good idea to upgrade it as it will slow down the computer. They told him they will straighten out the computer so the Apple Store recognizes it. After they ran their program, they told him that will be $100. And they told him they straightened every thing out for him, but of course it was the same OS that I reinstalled and no faster then it was. I think they just reinstalled that one program.
            Last edited by keeney123; 12-05-2016, 06:34 PM.

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              #7
              Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

              Also, the only reason he had 1TB drive is because when he was at friends houses that had and Apple Computer he would download all there music on his machine. Often time he did not even know what songs he was downloading and after he rarely if ever listen to them. He had over 100 GB of songs.

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                Originally posted by keeney123 View Post
                The Apple Store is like the Windows Store it belongs to the manufacturer. It is not so untrustworthy site. My manager at the old place I live did just what this person has done. He went to a person that knew all about Apple Computers. Came highly recommended. After the guy installed the update the 2009 Mac Book pro ran like molasses. Because my manager was on vacation back in his hometown for 2 weeks the guy didn't have time to fix the computer, but promised next time through he would take care of it. This is when I got involved. One can go to the Apple Store online an get different OS. Apple does not charge for many of their OS and OS upgrades like $15. This is the convenience for paying $1500 to $2000 for a machine. So my manager said he just wanted the computer to run like it did before. He said he only wanted to upgrade it because of one program that would not work. So I cleaned up multiple duplicates. I forget how many Giga Bit. I lost count. I then reinstalled his original program on a smaller disk as he put a 1T in the laptop. I told him he could use the 1T to store back ups by the firewire. The problem he had is he saw some website that he could watch the superbowl on and it was free. What happened when he logged on this one program that you need to get updates from AppleStore.com checks to see if that program is their if it is not then the store will not recognize it. All this information is on the Apple Site and what has to be done if the program is not there. So After I got his old OS back on and running fast he still wanted to upgrade it because the Apple site said you could. He called up the local Apple Store and they told him to come in and they would help him for $50. After he arrived they told him that it really is not a good idea to upgrade it as it will slow down the computer. They told him they will straighten out the computer so the Apple Store recognizes it. After they ran their program, they told him that will be $100. And they told him they straightened every thing out for him, but of course it was the same OS that I reinstalled and no faster then it was. I think they just reinstalled that one program.
                Although we don't own any Macs, I've used the Apple Store before and are familiar with it. I understand that it's a trustworthy website that it connects to and everything, but if I understand everything correctly, because the newer version of MacOS was not obtained from the Apple Store, I will need to find another place to obtain it, if I want to reinstall it without paying money. Seeing how she already paid for the upgrade when the previous person upgraded it, I don't want her to have to pay for the upgrade again, just to have her iMac restored.

                I will go and look for an ISO of MacOS. I checked out Time Machine and no backups wherever created. The idea is to format the hard drive, reinstall the OS and not have all the additional programs that were installed over the various years still there. Just get a clean install basically. If I created one of these Time Machine backups, would I have the option of deselecting all the programs and just reinstalling the current version of the OS, or no? If so, perhaps I'll go that route.

                Do you know the answer to the RAM question I asked Topcat? From what I was reading, it looks like it might not matter, but I have the baby now and it's hard to use the PC with her. I'll be back when my wife can take her for a little bit.
                -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                  It's MacOS 10.5.8 with 512MB of SDRAM. I bet 2GB to 4GB would make a world of a difference, what do you guys think?
                  -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                    I need to know what board it is. post a pic of this imac. If its a PPC, it maxes at 2gb. OSX10.5.8 will struggle on 512mb. On 2gb, it'll clip along nicely.
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                      #11
                      Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                      torrent the iso,
                      when steve jobs died, some managent fucker removed apples legacy server that had been online with every apple app & pdf back to the IIgs days!!!
                      (it even had eprom dumps!!!)

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                        Originally posted by Topcat View Post
                        I need to know what board it is. post a pic of this imac. If its a PPC, it maxes at 2gb. OSX10.5.8 will struggle on 512mb. On 2gb, it'll clip along nicely.
                        Okay, I have to take it apart to pull the hard drive and check the fans, to verify that they're not dead. I'll probably do that later tonight or tomorrow.

                        Does anyone have one of those ADC (Apple Developer Connection) accounts? Not one of the free developers one? If so, maybe they could download the ISO for me and send it to me via e-mail?

                        http://adcdownload.apple.com/Mac_OS_...81_userdvd.dmg


                        Once I take pictures and upload them, you'll be able to tell me if it can run 10.6, or is there no way at all 10.6 will go on there?
                        -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                          Originally posted by stj View Post
                          torrent the iso,
                          when steve jobs died, some managent fucker removed apples legacy server that had been online with every apple app & pdf back to the IIgs days!!!
                          (it even had eprom dumps!!!)
                          Yeah, I'm trying, with little success, but we haven't used torrent sites for something like this in a long time. It seems kat.ph is gone and demonoid.pw doesn't have it.
                          Last edited by Spork Schivago; 12-05-2016, 08:16 PM.
                          -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                            Originally posted by Spork Schivago View Post
                            Although we don't own any Macs, I've used the Apple Store before and are familiar with it. I understand that it's a trustworthy website that it connects to and everything, but if I understand everything correctly, because the newer version of MacOS was not obtained from the Apple Store, I will need to find another place to obtain it, if I want to reinstall it without paying money. Seeing how she already paid for the upgrade when the previous person upgraded it, I don't want her to have to pay for the upgrade again, just to have her iMac restored.

                            I will go and look for an ISO of MacOS. I checked out Time Machine and no backups wherever created. The idea is to format the hard drive, reinstall the OS and not have all the additional programs that were installed over the various years still there. Just get a clean install basically. If I created one of these Time Machine backups, would I have the option of deselecting all the programs and just reinstalling the current version of the OS, or no? If so, perhaps I'll go that route.

                            Do you know the answer to the RAM question I asked Topcat? From what I was reading, it looks like it might not matter, but I have the baby now and it's hard to use the PC with her. I'll be back when my wife can take her for a little bit.
                            Sounds like Topcat will help you out here. He seems very familiar with Apple. I would follow his advice.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                              I think I found 10.5. I'm downloading it now. It's going to take a couple minutes because it's a little big at 6.88GB. I'm only getting around 7.20MB/s download right now.
                              -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                              Comment


                                #16
                                Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                                Originally posted by keeney123 View Post
                                Sounds like Topcat will help you out here. He seems very familiar with Apple. I would follow his advice.
                                It looks 10.5 and 10.6 have been removed from the Apple Store because of how old they are.

                                Is MacOS based off KDE? It looks very similar to something I used to run. Pretty sure it was KDE. Not sure what the new MacOS versions are like, but this thing is very much like Linux, almost identical.
                                -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                                Comment


                                  #17
                                  Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                                  Originally posted by Spork Schivago View Post
                                  It looks 10.5 and 10.6 have been removed from the Apple Store because of how old they are.

                                  Is MacOS based off KDE? It looks very similar to something I used to run. Pretty sure it was KDE. Not sure what the new MacOS versions are like, but this thing is very much like Linux, almost identical.
                                  That i can answer. No, not based of of KDE, however, i do think design cues were taken from one by the other.
                                  It's not Linux Either. but its long lost nephew. Darwin Unix. Based partly off of BSD. As for newest version, OSX 10.5 with a "Modern" (AKA flat) design and more programs by default. Well, visualy anyway... You can run KDE on MacOS BTW.
                                  Last edited by goontron; 12-05-2016, 09:23 PM.
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                                    #18
                                    Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                                    Keeney, the minor updates are free, right? So if I install 10.5.0, I can update to 10.5.11 for free or whatever the highest 10.5 is, right? Or do they cost money as well (ie, going from 10.5.0 to 10.5.1 costs 15$)? Thanks.
                                    -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                                    Comment


                                      #19
                                      Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                                      Originally posted by goontron View Post
                                      That i can answer. No, not based of of KDE, however, i do think design cues were taken from one by the other.
                                      It's not Linux Either. but its long lost nephew. Darwin Unix. Based partly off of BSD. As for newest version, OSX 10.5 with a "Modern" (AKA flat) design and more programs by default. You can run KDE on MacOS BTW.
                                      Ahhh! Thank you! I knew it was some sort of *nix, or based off some sort of *nix. I even got a console window. I kinda feel at home with the OS. It feels a little simple though, but maybe I just haven't played around with it long enough.
                                      -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                                      Comment


                                        #20
                                        Re: Reinstalling an upgraded iMac

                                        Originally posted by Spork Schivago View Post
                                        Keeney, the minor updates are free, right? So if I install 10.5.0, I can update to 10.5.11 for free or whatever the highest 10.5 is, right? Or do they cost money as well (ie, going from 10.5.0 to 10.5.1 costs 15$)? Thanks.
                                        Actually none of the old OS would cost money. Topcat perhaps could of help you with that if you gave him the board number. He is also, correct on the Ram 512 MB will be slow. The one I work on that is what I did to increase the speed upgrade the ram. The 10.5.8 I forget the name, it is something like Snow Leopard. I think that is the highest upgrade that the one I worked would run fast. As I said none of them should of cost money. It was the new one that came out maybe two years ago that they were asking money for. That is $15.

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