I have an eMac G4 and I am trying to boot it into Mac OS 9.2.2 my restore CD's that I got with the computer used to do the trick but now they are lost. Unfortunately my retail Mac OS 9 disk will not let me boot the eMac. I was wondering if anyone has the Mac OS 9.2.2 restore CD of the eMac or alternatively I think I might even be able to use just the System Folder from one these computers.
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2012, May 5 - 9:01pm
#1
Emac G4 800 MHZ ATI Mac OS 9.2.2 restore cd or files needed
Comments
2012, May 5 - 9:14pm
#2
You can find Mac OS 9.2.2 for the iMac and eMac model here:
2012, May 5 - 9:18pm
#3
Thank you I will give it a try 
2012, May 5 - 9:58pm
#4
I tried the Mac OS 9.2.2 image in there it did not seem to work, should I use the iMac Restore files?
2012, May 5 - 11:22pm
#5
Nothing seems to be working when I boot into Mac OS 9.2.2 all I get is a floppy with a flashing question mark on it.
2012, May 6 - 2:01am
#6
Mac OS 9.2.2 does not have a stand-alone installer or official boot media. It was bundled with Mac OS X and installed as part of the Classic environment.
The best way to do a dedicated Mac OS 9.2.2 install is:
1. Get the OS9General.dmg file from the Mac OS X restore media.
2. Start the computer with the Mac OS X installation disc.
3. Launch the Disk Utility from the installer menu.
4. Restore the OSGeneral.dmg file to the hard disk like a backup.
The computer must be capable of running Mac OS X to do this, but you don't actually need to install it.
2012, May 6 - 3:22am
#7
"Mac OS 9.2.2 does not have a stand-alone installer or official boot media. It was bundled with Mac OS X and installed as part of the Classic environment."
That is not correct. The Mac OS 9 disc for the iMac and eMac is bootable; you do not need to have Mac OS X installed to use it, much less boot from a Mac OS X install disc.
However, it could be the case that your this specific eMac model is not supported by that disc; if you could give more information about it from System Profiler, or even the exact model number, that would give a clear identity of it, complete with any differences between other models that might be the hangup with this Mac OS 9 disc I referenced.
2012, May 6 - 3:26pm
#8
According to the system profiler this eMac has a 800 mhz PPC G4, ATI Radeon 7500, LG CD-Rom CRD-8484B. The machine model is PowerMac 4,4, and the CPU type is PowerPC G4 (2.1). I am going to try to use another G4 restore disk, hopefully that will work.
2012, May 6 - 6:40pm
#9
Ihave to agree with dajhorn, the ATI Graphics model was released in May 2003, well after the release of OS X 10.2 in which the Mac OS 9 install was performed as part of a partial restore in OS X. Indeed, this models production run 'ran' past October 2003 which saw OSX 10.3 released.
If you had OS9 Install disc for this it may have been a universal Classic installer, like the OS9 disc that came with all my post-MDD G4's.
Maybe we're both wrong, your eMac is a special case, with (optional) AirPort Extreme and other features that only work while using OS X.
2012, May 6 - 11:56pm
#10
That iMac OS9 install disc is good for the eMac ATI Graphics models. Since my iMac is identified as a PowerMac 4,5, and others with an eMac ATI Graphics model have used that same disc with no problems to boot and install Mac OS 9, it is a good disc.
2012, May 7 - 2:37am
#11
For reference, the MD5 sum of file that you probably want is:
36d9c1beb319e98acfa775260e7c3edb *OS9General.dmg
@sonicfan1373 said that he has restore discs for the eMac, and they don't boot into Mac OS 9.2.2, which means that he almost certainly has an eMac model that shipped with Mac OS X.