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Googie2149's picture
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Joined: 2011 Apr 13
Just for fun

I'm attempting to use the Apple System Software Recovery Disc ( http://macintoshgarden.org/apps/apple-system-software-recovery-1-dated-1998 ) to install multiple Systems on my Power Macintosh, and is it possible to have a boot loader to boot into different partitions at start up?

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Joined: 2009 Nov 14

I think so, don't know of any utilities, and you have to have "blessed" system folders to boot.

Astro Chicken's picture
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Joined: 2009 Apr 20

On a Power Mac I think you hold down option at the boot chime and it boots into the menu for selecting which drive you want to boot from, but it will only show drives with a bootable OS. I forget the proper name of this feature. At least I think this is how it works on my G4 Mini.

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Joined: 2010 Nov 19

I never saw a bootloader like GRUB on a Mac running OS9 or lower. I guess it would be difficult to implement, as the Mac HDD already has three or four hidden chainloader partitions to handle.
Startup Volume control panel can switch disks, and there is a keyboard shortcut for bypassing the internal HDD (ID=0): Control-Alt-Shift-Backspace.

MikeTomTom's picture
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Joined: 2009 Dec 7

System Picker? I think this has been used successfully on multiple System Macs in the past. Mac SSW 6 to Mac OS 8.1 - Perhaps newer Mac OS's too?

Googie2149's picture
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Joined: 2011 Apr 13

Wow, this forum is more active than I thought it was. I installed a different System/Mac OS onto different partitions on a 20GB HD, and so far Startup Volume has been working well, though it is annoying to have to track it down though menus when I want to switch. The hold option at boot doesn't work, but it does with my iMac G4. Installing all the different versions is about the first thing that I've done to my Power Macintosh that has actually worked. Any amazing programs that I need to get?

Astro Chicken's picture
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Joined: 2009 Apr 20

Hmm... I'm wondering if holding the option key requires a "New World" ROM. What model Power Mac are we talking about?

bertyboy's picture
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Joined: 2009 Jun 14

Well there was a boot loader for m68k Macs that came with the Linux flavours of the day, to allow the Mac to boot and let you choose to boot into Mac OS or Yellow Dog or Slackware or mkLinux, or several others. Things only got better with PowerPC, so you could check out the Linux distros for early PowerPC. Can't remember all the names, I have most of them on CD or Zip disk. Start with Debian or LinuxPPC

Googie2149's picture
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Joined: 2011 Apr 13

A Power Macintosh 6500/300.

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Joined: 2010 Nov 19

Mandrake for example had the yaboot manager, I totally forgot about that, shame on me.
This is the the ReadMe as PDF: http://www.mediafire.com/?43hqxl7xmknfq2b
Mandrake CDs are still available, if that is what you were looking for.
http://wiki.mandriva.com/en/Releases/Mandrake/10.1/Notes/PPC

Googie2149's picture
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Joined: 2011 Apr 13

Isn't yaboot only for new world Macs?