How to fix iMac G3 not booting (no CD drive)

[MaxSolar0713]

You've probably heard this a billion times, but I can't find any solution, so...

I have an iMac G3 (233 Mhz) That you could call tray loading, but it has no CD drive.

I can't manage to get past the infamous "?" folder, but I can remove the Hard Drive, and burn to it using my iMac G5 and an ATA to USB adapter.

I have disc images of both Mac OS 9 and X. Any of them will do.

Thank you,

Max

 

[nambuccaheadsau]

Disc images will not work you need to be booted from the CD to do the install and not the hard drive.

Do you mean there is no provision for the CD drive or the slot is empty with no tray? MacTracker advises all 233, 266 and 333MHz came with slot loading CDs.

 

[worldvirus]

i suspect you will need to either clone a working G3 iMac HD or temporarily attach a cd/dvd drive to do the installation.
the later iMacs had firewire which the PPC's can boot from. usb will be no go.

 

[Thoradin]

It is possible to boot the installer from a USB drive, I have done it previously on my tangerine iBook.
Make an image of the installer to the usb using your G5, then follow the instructions her to use your USB installer.

How to boot PPC PowerMacs (G3, G4, G5) from a USB stick or drive? - Macintosh Repository

To boot any* PowerPC Mac (e.g. an iMac G3, an iBook G4, a PowerMac G5, etc...) from an USB stick or drive, FIRST know that if your model is 300mhz or...

www.macintoshrepository.org

If you cannot get this to work you may be able to put the G5 into target disk mode with the installer disc in it’s drive and read from there to install to the G3, though I have never tried this method personally.

 

[MaxSolar0713]

Disc images will not work you need to be booted from the CD to do the install and not the hard drive.

Do you mean there is no provision for the CD drive or the slot is empty with no tray? MacTracker advises all 233, 266 and 333MHz came with slot loading CDs.

I mean that there is no cd drive unit. At all. If all else fails I may need to buy one.

 

[MaxSolar0713]

i suspect you will need to either clone a working G3 iMac HD or temporarily attach a cd/dvd drive to do the installation.
the later iMacs had firewire which the PPC's can boot from. usb will be no go.

Is it possible for the iMac to use a generic CD drive (or usb for that matter)?

 

[worldvirus]

I haven’t tried but I would try one of the brands apple used like pioneer/ hitachi. You may be able to find a cheap one on eBay. It’s an ATA drive rather than SATA
Edit: I don’t believe USB will work

 

[MaxSolar0713]

I haven’t tried but I would try one of the brands apple used like pioneer/ hitachi. You may be able to find a cheap one on eBay. It’s an ATA drive rather than SATA
Edit: I don’t believe USB will work

I know its ATA (thats the hard part.) I think I'll try a third-party drive.

Did I really just ask if USB would work? I already knew it didn't with tray-loading ones!

"Wait a minute? How did this happen, we're smarter than this!" -Obi Wan Kenobi, Revenge of the Sith.

 

[nambuccaheadsau]

This is what you need:-

Apple 24X Internal CD ROM Drive (Rev B) iMac 266Mhz - 333Mhz CR-177 661-2207 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Apple 24X Internal CD ROM Drive (Rev B) iMac 266Mhz - 333Mhz CR-177 661-2207 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[MaxSolar0713]

This is what you need:-

Apple 24X Internal CD ROM Drive (Rev B) iMac 266Mhz - 333Mhz CR-177 661-2207 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Apple 24X Internal CD ROM Drive (Rev B) iMac 266Mhz - 333Mhz CR-177 661-2207 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Thank you very much.

 

[MaxSolar0713]

This is what you need:-

Apple 24X Internal CD ROM Drive (Rev B) iMac 266Mhz - 333Mhz CR-177 661-2207 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Apple 24X Internal CD ROM Drive (Rev B) iMac 266Mhz - 333Mhz CR-177 661-2207 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Hey! When I received the drive, it was some sort of "slim" interface, not an ATA 50pin interface! What're you trying to pull here?