Mac OS Rom for a Quicksilver 2002, anyone?

[superpantoufle]

Hi all,

Tonight I've just made a dumb thing: killing the perfectly good OS 9 installed on my PM G4 Quicksilver 2002. Long story short: I've replaced its entire OS 9 partition with the one from another machine to save some time, but in the end I forgot about the software Rom thing. And now I'm stuck with an OS 9 that boots to the Happy Mac and then freezes…

According to Mactracker, what I need is Mac OS Rom 9.0.1. Could anyone provide me with that file? I've looked through my stuff and googled quite a bit, but couldn't locate it. I've tried a couple of older and newer versions of that file I had in various installation images of 9.x, to no avail.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Byrd]

That file would be on your OS 9 installer CD - you could use something like Pacifist to gain access to the file in the installer Tome.

JB

 

[PowerPup]

Or use TomeViewer for Mac OS 8/9.

 

[superpantoufle]

Thanks!

Yes, but no... :-/

When I bought this PowerMac a couple of years ago, I got the original CD set, but yesterday I realized it's obviously for an earlier PowerMac: it has 9.2.1 and X 10.0.4. It doesn't boot the Quicksilver beyond the happy Mac.

As for TomeViewer, I first need to locate a Mac OS Rom 9.0.1! I've searched my original 9.x media (original discs for a PowerBook G4 and iBook G4, Mac OS 9.0.4 retail CD). I've searched various updaters I had (9.2.1 => 9.2.2, etc) and a 9.2.2 complete install, with no luck. All Rom files are earlier.

I also found a Mac OS Rom 9.6.1 on Macintosh Garden (for the MDD), that failed to boot the Quicksilver.

I may be wrong, but it appears my Quickisilver 2002 needs Rom 9.0.1, and that Rom was found only on its original CDs.

Tonight I'll boot up all my remaining 9.2.2 machines. Who knows? Maybe one had its system cloned from the Quicksilver!

 

[superpantoufle]

Ask, and Ye shall receive!

I now have a copy of Mac OS Rom 9.0.1, thanks to a kind comrade that provided me with a link for a copy of his.

Well… is it over? Not really. things are getting really frustrating, since my Quicksilver 2002 still doesn't boot. It shows the happy Mac for half a second, then the blinking question mark floppy for a while, then the happy Mac again and it gets stuck there. Basically the same than yesterday when it had an earlier Rom file.

Besides the Mac OS Rom file, what is machine specific in an OS 9.2.2 install? What could I try?

What I have:

- PowerMac G4 Quicksilver 2002 (originally 800 MHz, later upgraded with the 2x1 GHz processor module from another Quicksilver 2002)

- Retail Mac OS 9.2.1 CD

- various original Mac OS 9.x CDs for different machines: earlier PowerMac G4, iBook G4, PowerBook G4

- various Mac OS 9.x install images, and updaters to 9.2.2

- since tonight, a copy of Mac OS Rom 9.0.1

What I don't have:

- PowerMac G4 Quicksilver 2002 original CD set, sadly.

- Mac OS 9.2.2 complete install CD or image

What I've tried so far:

- Copying over the 9.2.2 system folder of my Cube to the Quicksilver in target mode, then replacing the Mac OS Rom with the 9.0.1

- Installing a fresh 9.2.1 (CD and some disk images) then upgrading to 9.2.2 from the Cube to the Quicksilver in target mode, then replacing the Mac OS Rom with 9.0.1.

NB:

- the Quicksilver is more than happy in Tiger and Leopard, and functions otherwise perfectly well

- it was more than happy in OS 9 up until yesterday, when I was quite dumb erasing the OS 9 partition thinking I'd save some time.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, since right now I'm scratching my head, not knowing what to do next…

 

[theos911]

Would this help?

Or is it the one you already found?

 

[superpantoufle]

(Almost) done!

Thanks to your help, and especially thanks to the kind comrade that PM'ed me great advice and links, my QS 2002 now boots happily in 9.2.2. I've tried various versions of the ROM file with little luck, but the one that did the trick is the image of the 800 MHz eMac original media that one can find in the Macintosh Garden. I could boot the QS 2002 with a burned CD from that image, and install a clean 9.2.2. Yeepeee!

Now the only remaining problem is it's an english 9.2.2. I'd rather have FU1-9.2.2 (french universal). Just as I had tried in my previous attempts, I copied the known good FU1-9.2.2 install from my Cube to the QS 2002 in target mode, and replaced its Mac OS ROM file with the one from the fresh install. And guess what… it didn't work!

I'll again try to install a fresh FU1-9.2.1, update to 9.2.2 and replace the ROM file, but I bet it won't work. Does anybody have a clue about why? Is there other files that are machine-specific, besides the ROM file?

Thanks in advance!

 

[superpantoufle]

Done!

My Quicksilver 2002 now happily runs FU1-9.2.2 from a fresh install. It wasn't an easy journey, though.

I spent most of yesterday night searching the web all over for a copy of a french 9.2.2 install recent enough to boot those machines released after the last update to Mac OS 9. No luck, and a lot of frustration.

Then, out of despair, I looked in an old backup hard drive, in which I knew I had some classic Mac OS disk images. And there, I found an image of the iMac G4 17'' original media, which is known to be pretty much universal, just as the eMac 800 MHz image I had previously found on the web.

Well, looks like I'm gifted for doing things backwards, anyway. All in all, this topic is closed for me. Thank you all!

To summarize for the record:

In order to perform a clean install of Mac OS 9.2.2 to the PowerMac G4 Quicksilver 2002 or the other G4s of that era (PowerMac MDD, iMac G4, eMac, TiBook, etc), one need either the original installation media of the machine, or an "universal" installation. The eMac G4 800 MHz and the iMac G4 17'' are the one I can confirm will boot and install on Quicksilver 2002.

 

[Cory5412]

Hey everybody,

Just so everybody knows, using the 68kMLA to redistribute copyrighted software to which we don't have distribution rights is a bad thing. It's even against the rules in the section titled "Please obey the law..."

What other web sites and Internet places decide to do on their home turf is fine, but if for nothing else than keeping costs down, I would wildly prefer not to be sued.

 

[Bunsen]

For future reference, I quote the following:

From "Mac OS 9 Isn't Dead Yet" by Adam Rosen (Oakbog)

A couple of months ago I wrote about Installing Mac OS 9 on the Mirrored Drive Doors Power Mac G4. / that Mac model requires a system-specific (non-retail) install of Mac OS 9.2.2./

Another client / has control software that only runs in Mac OS 9. A few Quicksilver G4 towers / couldn't get a stable OS 9 system running on the machine.

/

Like the MDD, the Quicksilver / some later models require a system-specific installation.

/

Finally, a helpful tip from one reader about how to find those elusive Software Restore discs:

I was at the Apple store today, and while talking to my genius, I mentioned my problem. He went out back and got me a shiny new set of system discs for my specific machine that they had hanging around . . . He also said that if one were to call AppleCare and explain the situation that they would burn a copy of the original system from the vault and it would be free except for postage.

That's from May 2011. Apple have the exclusive rights to distribute this software; we do not, you do not. Luckily, it appears they continue to offer legal OS 9 install disks for those who need them.