From 10.6.8 to Mavericks with a disk-that-needs-to-be-repaired?

[Boullan]

I'm on 10.6.8 on a mid-2010 Macbook Pro.

I'm considering upgrading to Mavericks, but before I do so, I'm told that I should first run Disk Utility and make sure everything is in order. As it turns out, everything is NOT in order - when I run Disk Utility, I get a "this disk needs to be repaired."

I don't have an installation disc any longer - it's been three years since I bought the damn thing - so I can not repair the disk the old-fashioned way. Guess I'm down to three alternatives:

1. Give up on Mavericks, and keep on truckin' in 10.6.8.

2. Buy a new 10.6.8 installation disc, repair the disk and then upgrade to Mavericks (!?).

3. Find some kind of work-around, which allows me to safely upgrade to Mavericks without first buying a new 10.6.8 installation disc (!?).

What say you, folks? Between the three, what would y'all recommend?

 

[adnbek]

http://www.everythingmacintosh.com/tech-notes/repair-your-hard-disk-in-single-user-mode/

 

[Dark Dragoon]

I'd go with option 3.

1) Download the Mavericks installer app from the Mac App Store, then cancel the installation.
2) Get an 8GB (or larger) memory stick, format it in disk utility to have one partition called "Untitled" (all data on the memory stick will be lost).
3) Run the following command from Terminal:

sudo /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Mavericks.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/Untitled --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Mavericks.app --nointeraction

it will ask for the password you use to login to the computer, enter the password (nothing appears on the screen) and press enter. Then wait for the installer to be created.
4) Leave the memory stick plugged into the computer, reboot and hold down option/alt. Then boot from the Mavericks installer.
5) Repair the disk using Disk Utility on the Mavericks installer.

As always, make sure you have a backup of your data.