# Installing FreeBSD 7.2 on old iMac



## dipique (Jul 18, 2009)

It all started when I found an iMac abandoned in a parking lot.

I took it home, and it booted up nicely into OS 9, but the OS was severely damaged wouldn't actually *do* much other than boot up and let me change options in vain.

So I figured I would reinstall OSX. Turns out it doesn't have a DVD reader. I put in an OS9 CD, but it wouldn't boot from it (alternating question mark and file symbol), so I thought I'd try repairing whatever damage there was with a FreeBSD CD.

My FreeBSD CD is the ONLY CD this computer will boot from.  When I boot from it, I can set all the options for installation, and the first time it appeared to install just fine... but it didn't actually start up.  I screwed up the partitions on the disc, and I figured that was probably the problem, but when I went to reinstall, now I can't make partitions.  I get: "error mounting /dev/ad0S5 on /mnt : operation not permitted." And then the installation halts.  I am using the default partition setup, nothing fancy.

My ultimate goal is to restore OS 9 to this machine, and it seems getting this install to complete is step 1.  HELP PLEASE!  How do I make this work?

Dan


----------



## brd@ (Sep 13, 2009)

Sounds like it is damaged somehow. I would take out the hard drive and put it in another computer and try to run the drive manufacturers diagnostics on it.


----------

