Mac OS 8.1: Creating a Mac OS Extended Format Startup Disk

In order to use a hard disk as an Mac OS Extended formatted volume, it must be erased. In addition, if you wish to start up from a disk formatted as Mac OS Extended, you must have a PowerPC-based Mac OS computer. You can use a Mac OS Extended formatted disk with a non-PowerPC-based Mac OS computer, but you cannot use it as a startup disk or use it as a hard disk for virtual memory.

Note: You should not use a Mac OS Extended formatted volume as your startup disk unless you have the Mac OS 8.1 CD.


Below are the steps required to use an Mac OS Extended volume as your startup volume on PowerPC Mac OS compatible computers. There are two ways to get Mac OS 8.1 on to an Mac OS Extended Hard Drive.

Updating Mac OS 8.0 to Mac OS 8.1 and installing it onto an Mac OS Extended volume

1. Update to Mac OS 8.1 or Install Mac OS 8.1.

- Follow the instructions in the "Installing Mac OS 8.1" Read Me

2. Start up from the Mac OS 8.1 Reference CD.

- Place the Mac OS 8.1 Reference CD in the CD drive.
- Choose Restart from the Special menu.
- Hold the "C" key down on the keyboard until you see the "Mac OS" screen
- Verify that you have started up from the CD by looking at the desktop. If the pattern looks similar to the image of CDs, you successfully started up from the CD.

3. Make a backup all of the files on your startup disk.

- Copy your files to another hard disk.
- Copy them to a server on the network.
- If you want to use some other method to backup you hard disk please refer to the section in this document entitled "Other backup methods".

4. Reformat your volume to be Mac OS Extended.
If you want to change the partitions on a hard drive refer to the Drive Setup Read Me. Otherwise, choose Erase Disk in the Finder to create a Mac OS Extended volume.

- In the Finder, select the volume you want to reformat.
- Choose Erase Disk... from the Special Menu.
- Type in the name you want the reformatted volume to be called.
- Using the Pop-up menu below the file name, select "Mac OS Extended xxx". The xxx is the size of the formatted volume.
- Click the Erase button.

WARNING: All of the data on the volume is erased. There is not a warning telling you that you are about to lose all of the data on the volume. Make sure that you have the correct volume selected. If you erase the wrong volume there is no way to recover your data.

5. Restore the files that you backed up in step two.

6. Choose Restart from the Special menu.

Installing Mac OS 8.1 on an empty hard disk
Follow these steps only if you have the Mac OS 8.1 CD. Otherwise, follow the instructions in "Updating Mac OS 8.0 to Mac OS 8.1 and installing it onto an Mac OS Extended volume.

1. Start up from the Mac OS 8.1 Reference CD.

- Place the Mac OS 8.1 Reference CD in the CD drive.
- Choose Restart from the Special menu.
- Hold the "C" key down on the keyboard until you see the "Mac OS" screen.
- Verify that you have started up from the CD by looking at the desktop. If the pattern looks similar to the image of CDs, you successfully started up from the CD.

2. Reformat your volume to be Mac OS Extended.
If you want to change the partitions on a hard disk, refer to the Drive Setup Read Me, otherwise you can use the Finder's Erase Disk function to create a Mac OS Extended volume.

- In the Finder, select the volume you want to reformat.
- Choose Erase Disk... from the Special menu.
- Type in the name you want the reformatted volume to be called.
- Using the Pop-up menu below the file name, select "Mac OS Extended xxx". The xxx is the size of the formatted volume.
- Click the Erase button.

WARNING: There is no warning telling you that you are about to lose all of the data on the volume. All of the data on the volume will be lost. Make sure that you have the correct volume selected. If you erase the wrong volume there is no way to recover your data.

3. Install Mac OS 8.1.

- Follow the instructions in the "Installing Mac OS 8.1" Read me.

4. Restart your computer.

- Choose Restart from the Special menu.

Other backup methods
It is possible to perform other types of backups. However you may have to perform extra steps.

Using removable hard drives
In step 2 above, when you start up your computer, the removable drive must be inserted in the drive.

Using a recordable CD.
Add the driver for your CD ROM drive to the Disk Tool PPC floppy disk as described in "Creating a custom startup Floppy" and use the floppy disk to start up your computer.

Using a tape drive
Add the driver for your tape drive to the Disk Tool PPC floppy disk as described in "Creating a custom startup Floppy" and use the floppy disk to start up your computer.

Using a backup program to backup the files
Put the backup program on a floppy disk.

Creating a custom startup Floppy Disk
If you have special hardware that you need to use during the install process you may need to create a custom startup floppy disk. This special hardware could include a non-Apple CD-ROM Drive, Zip Drive, Jaz Drive, Bernoulli removable drive, SyQuest removable drive, tape drive, DAT drive, or CD discs other than the Mac OS system discs.

1. Create a startup floppy disk.

To make a Disk Tools floppy disk for all Mac OS compatible computers with a 68040 processor, use the Disk Tools 1 disk. If you have a Mac OS 8.1 CD-ROM disc, you will find this disk image in the Disk Tools Images folder.

1. Open the Disk Copy program.
2. From the Utilities menu choose Make a Floppy ...
3. Find the disk image named Disk Tools for PPC and select it.
4. Click the Open button.
5. When requested insert a 1.4 MB high density floppy disk.
6. When asked if you are sure that you want to erase the floppy, click Yes.
7. After the floppy disk is finished copying, remove it from the drive.
8. Choose Quit from the File menu.
9. Copy any specific drivers to the system folder on the floppy.

2. Remove the programs Drive Setup and Disk First Aid

- Select each file and drag them to the Trash.
- Choose Empty Trash from the Special menu.

3. Copy the driver for your hardware from the System Folder on your hard disk to the System Folder on the floppy disk. The drivers are located in the Extensions folder in the System Folder. If you are going to be using CD-ROMs other than the Mac OS CD-ROM, you must copy the "Apple CD-ROM" file to the System Folder on the floppy disk.

4. Make sure the custom floppy works.

- Restart the computer.
- Put the custom floppy disk in the floppy disk drive.
- After the computer has finished starting up, verify that your special hardware functions.

Notes:

1. The Mac OS screen is in black and white.
2. If you have two special pieces of hardware you may have to create two custom startup floppy disks because of the limited space on the floppy disk. Each startup disk would have one of the drivers.