I bought a computer from someone and it has foolproof installed. The seller do not know the password. I cant even make it boot from the floppy. I look other information which suggests using AppleScript. But applescript is disable. Some suggest boot from a floppy, but it won't let me boot from floppy. I only get to the happy mac, and then it reset itself. The shift key to turn off extensions can not turn off foolproof.
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need to bypass foolproof
- Thread starter madcow
- Start date
Charlieman
Well-known member
Try this link:
http://www.securemac.com/foolproof.php
If that fails, boot from an external SCSI device, holding down the keys that suppress booting from the default hard disk. Then use a disk editor to mount the internal disk (NOT mounting in the Finder) and examine the boot blocks. If you can identify the formatter that wrote the boot blocks, try using that formatter to rewrite the partition map. Advanced tools can do that without forcing a complete reformat. If that fails, try wiping out individual blocks that might load the protection software when the System file or Finder is loaded. There are further tricks to try that should mount the disk (temporarily destroying its bootability) if the above fails, assuming that the disk is not encrypted.
But why bother. The disk was protected for a reason, so respect it. Follow the instruction in the first sentence of the previous paragraph. Then use your favourite formatter to wipe and repartition.
http://www.securemac.com/foolproof.php
If that fails, boot from an external SCSI device, holding down the keys that suppress booting from the default hard disk. Then use a disk editor to mount the internal disk (NOT mounting in the Finder) and examine the boot blocks. If you can identify the formatter that wrote the boot blocks, try using that formatter to rewrite the partition map. Advanced tools can do that without forcing a complete reformat. If that fails, try wiping out individual blocks that might load the protection software when the System file or Finder is loaded. There are further tricks to try that should mount the disk (temporarily destroying its bootability) if the above fails, assuming that the disk is not encrypted.
But why bother. The disk was protected for a reason, so respect it. Follow the instruction in the first sentence of the previous paragraph. Then use your favourite formatter to wipe and repartition.
For one: what computer is it?
Make sure you have a System that the computer can boot from and make sure it's blessed, that is if you want to boot from a floppy. Insert the floppy while the computer is booted from the HD, open the floppy's system folder, then close it, and boot. It should work.
Make sure you have a System that the computer can boot from and make sure it's blessed, that is if you want to boot from a floppy. Insert the floppy while the computer is booted from the HD, open the floppy's system folder, then close it, and boot. It should work.
tmtomh
Well-known member
Low-tech method, but one that's worked for me in the past: run HD SC Setup again.
I had an old SE with this problem, and when I tried reformatting the HD it didn't work, and the HD wouldn't mount on the desktop. Rebooted, went into HD SC Setup again, then tried formatting the drive again (HD SC Setup could still "see" it even though it reported it as unmounted, with no name and no filesystem). When I did it this second time, it was successful.
M
I had an old SE with this problem, and when I tried reformatting the HD it didn't work, and the HD wouldn't mount on the desktop. Rebooted, went into HD SC Setup again, then tried formatting the drive again (HD SC Setup could still "see" it even though it reported it as unmounted, with no name and no filesystem). When I did it this second time, it was successful.
M
Christopher
Well-known member
Try and put it into an OS X mac and reformat with disk utility since the software is newer and most likely ignore it.
Scott Baret
Well-known member
It is your moral, ethical, and legal responsibility to wipe the drive of any computer you acquire.
Leografix
Well-known member
A little annotation: You are absolutely correct about this but I always wonder what people give away without any interest in their own data. I'm wiping every media I get but for example I can not wipe my tapes as the drive roller head is lost - the tapes still carry backups from some science group that once worked here at the local university... Although I doubt it they might be very relevant.
J
It's from a Quadra 605 which was used as a workstation at a school. FoolProof prevents students doing foolish things and from saving to the computer. Students could only save to their server share. There's no data on the hard drive except for the applications and the operating system.
Charlieman
Well-known member
It is a while since I had a go at cracking MacPrefect, Foolproof, Empower etc but they can all be beaten. As long as the disk is not encrypted.
They typically work by writing a flag in the partition table that says the hard disk is write protected. The special partition that the Mac uses to identify a bootable device (the "hard disk driver") is also rewritten, so that it preloads the protection software before the OS. As the OS loads, the protection software applies itself again, allowing the OS to modify the hard disk, but not users. The really clever protection apps also encrypt the hard disk.
As I wrote in my first reply, you can only crack it by suppressing the drive when the Mac boots. If you simply boot from another drive, allowing the internal drive to mount, the protection code is loaded when the Finder looks at the drive. However, if the disk is not mounted, you can do what you like with formatters and block editors.
They typically work by writing a flag in the partition table that says the hard disk is write protected. The special partition that the Mac uses to identify a bootable device (the "hard disk driver") is also rewritten, so that it preloads the protection software before the OS. As the OS loads, the protection software applies itself again, allowing the OS to modify the hard disk, but not users. The really clever protection apps also encrypt the hard disk.
As I wrote in my first reply, you can only crack it by suppressing the drive when the Mac boots. If you simply boot from another drive, allowing the internal drive to mount, the protection code is loaded when the Finder looks at the drive. However, if the disk is not mounted, you can do what you like with formatters and block editors.
porter
Well-known member
1. Get the pinout/jumper settings for the drive and make sure all the jumpers are correct.
2. Plug the drive into a Sun box or similar. That will soon reset the drive.
3. Then best to use the A/UX version of HD Setup under A/UX to reinitialise a disk.
4. Or just put a new SCSI disk in the machine.
There is no way to format the hard drive. I tried everything.. from boot from a floppy and run disk tools like HD setup, and some commerical disk tools to format it. I tried all the tricks on hacking foolproof. The only thing I haven't tried is putting it on a sun machine.
