MP 1,1-5,1 New user issues

[Bobbych]

Hi all
New Mac user, switching from windows
I purchased a used 5,1 from eBay which was meant to come with high sierra installed. On receipt the SSD was missing. After the seller sent me this I installed it alongside the 1tb HDD and switched on the Mac. I got the boot sound then the folder with the ?
So I am assuming he wiped the SSD or it was not the one fitted.

Now how do I get this to install MacOS. I. Using a Windows wired keyboard and tried the standard things I have found such as holding command/r but nothing.

Can someone give me advice how and if this old Mac will enter internet recovery mode using a Windows keyboard?

 

[tsialex]

Hi all
New Mac user, switching from windows
I purchased a used 5,1 from eBay which was meant to come with high sierra installed. On receipt the SSD was missing. After the seller sent me this I installed it alongside the 1tb HDD and switched on the Mac. I got the boot sound then the folder with the ?
So I am assuming he wiped the SSD or it was not the one fitted.

Now how do I get this to install MacOS. I. Using a Windows wired keyboard and tried the standard things I have found such as holding command/r but nothing.

Can someone give me advice how and if this old Mac will enter internet recovery mode using a Windows keyboard?

Internet Recovery is not present on a MacPro5,1. The first Mac Pro to have it is late-2013 Mac Pro, MacPro6,1.

You have to download the installer yourself and create the installer via createinstallmedia to a 16GB USB key. You usually need another Mac to make it, but it's no impossible to create it with Windows.

 

[Bobbych]

Thanks, steep learning curve. Daughter has a MacBook so can use that

Another question, I read I can boot into 'utilty' mode which I tried but I just get a great screen and a mouse pointer, nothing else. Why is this

 

[tsialex]

Thanks, steep learning curve. Daughter has a MacBook so can use that

Another question, I read I can boot into 'utilty' mode which I tried but I just get a great screen and a mouse pointer, nothing else. Why is this

There is no Utility, maybe you are talking about Recovery.

You can boot to Recovery only if present on your disk. Not possible with a new/erased disk.

A Mac Pro before the MacPro6,1 model with a new/erased disk can only boot to a createinstallmedia USB key (also to a external disk with macOS installed).

 

[tsialex]

You should try to install Sierra (El Capitan will also work), it's the newest macOS version that you can run with a MacPro5,1 that not yet have the firmware upgrades installed:

How to download and install macOS - Apple Support

Download and install current or previous versions of the Mac operating system on compatible Mac computers.

support.apple.com

Create a bootable installer for macOS - Apple Support

You can use a USB flash drive or other secondary volume as a startup disk from which to install the Mac operating system.

support.apple.com

Since you don't know yet if your MacPro BootROM firmware was upgraded by the previous user, install what you can be sure that will work.

 

[Bobbych]

There is no Utility, maybe you are talking about Recovery.

You can boot to Recovery only if present on your disk. Not possible with a new/erased disk.

A Mac Pro before the MacPro6,1 model with a new/erased disk can only boot to a createinstallmedia USB key (also to a external disk with macOS installed).

Thanks
I assumed I could boot the Mac into some sort of disk mode where I could see it actually recognises the disks
I placed the SSD as a drive on my windows pc and while I cannot read the files it is showing as being 3/4 full so I assume Mac os is on that drive but it does not show
Like I say steep learning curve. What I want to at least prove as I bought this from eBay, is the Mac actually works as it is the dual CPU version that I want to max the spec

 

[Bobbych]

Am I not right in thinking, with both the SSD installed in the machine even without anOS I should be able to boot into the DISK UTILITY and at least see my disks? At present I cannot see the disk utility.

 

[tsialex]

Am I not right in thinking, with both the SSD installed in the machine even without anOS I should be able to boot into the DISK UTILITY and at least see my disks? At present I cannot see the disk utility.

No. Without a macOS installed on a disk you only see the screen with the empty folder.

Macs are not PCs, no BIOS, no setup.

 

[Bobbych]

Thanks, as I say I'm learning a lot in one day about Mac's.

So despite the SSD having Mac os on it, the Mac will not boot or see a recovery partition. So my only way is to create a bootable USB?

I will have to find another Mac somewhere for that

Thanks for all the help

 

[tsialex]

Thanks, as I say I'm learning a lot in one day about Mac's.

So despite the SSD having Mac os on it, the Mac will not boot or see a recovery partition. So my only way is to create a bootable USB?

You are supposing that the SSD have a macOS install that is compatible with your Mac Pro, or even that the SSD works.

Like I wrote, MacPro5,1 is useless without a working disk and you need to boot a createinstallmedia USB installer to install macOS to a drive.

 

[tsialex]

Btw, you should ask for your seller to do it. He/she sold you a working Mac Pro or a project?

 

[Bobbych]

Indeed it is an assumption

But the Mac was purchased from eBay as a working Mac running high Sierra. So the SSD should have this OS on it

 

[tsialex]

Indeed it is an assumption

But the Mac was purchased from eBay as a working Mac running high Sierra. So the SSD should have this OS on it

You should ask your seller for a working SSD, it's trivial for a experienced Mac Pro user to overcome your current situation, but not to a new user. It's a steep learning curve.

 

[Bobbych]

So in your expert opinion, there is nothing wrong with the machine just for some reason it needs a reinstall?

I did read the folder icon could also mean hardware issues

 

[tsialex]

So in your expert opinion, there is nothing wrong with the machine just for some reason it needs a reinstall?

I did read the folder icon could also mean hardware issues

Right now you don't know enough to judge.

The folder icon appears when the firmware didn't found a bootable disk and this could mean an erased/brand new disk or a defective disk.

If instead of the folder you are seeing now, the screen showed a prohibited sign (zero with a slash in the middle) could be a macOS install that is not compatible with your Mac Pro.

 

[Bug-Creator]

What happens when you start with just the 1TB HDD OR the SSD installed?

Might be that one has a corrupt OS on it that somehow prevent the other to boot.

 

[now i see it]

Just get one of these and boot off of it.

Bootable USB Stick for macOS X El Capitan 10.11 - Full OS Install, Reinstall, Recovery and Upgrade https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08K3ZRPKD/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_E8T3961NYMY2WC5BXZ5T

 

[sfalatko]

Just get one of these and boot off of it.

Bootable USB Stick for macOS X El Capitan 10.11 - Full OS Install, Reinstall, Recovery and Upgrade https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08K3ZRPKD/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_E8T3961NYMY2WC5BXZ5T

Never trust something like this - make your own with an installer downloaded from Apple servers.

 

[orionquest]

If you have access to another Mac (the Macbook you mentioned) I would use that to help trouble shoot this mess.
Buy a cable that you can plug the SSD into and use it to attached externally to the Macbook. You can see what files will be on it, but it's better to just wipe it and install fresh.

I believe you have 2 SSD drives? Or just buy a USB Key around 16 gigs to use as a boot installer. Then use the Macbook to download the OS installers and create a boot installer onto 1 of the SSD drives. Apple has instructions on how to create a boot installer. It requires some terminal usage. Or you can look into a neat utility called DiskMaker.

Once you created that boot installer use it on your MacPro to boot and install OS onto the other drive installed.

 

[Bobbych]

Today I created what I am sure is a boot usb for high Sierra, and tried to boot my Mac Pro. Pressed power button and on the chime, I pressed the option key (alt on my windows keyboard)

All I got was a grey screen with mouse cursor. Nothing else. Is my USB not working?

 

[tsialex]

Today I created what I am sure is a boot usb for high Sierra, and tried to boot my Mac Pro. Pressed power button and on the chime, I pressed the option key (alt on my windows keyboard)

All I got was a grey screen with mouse cursor. Nothing else. Is my USB not working?

Remove all disks and see if you can boot to the createinstallmedia USB installer. Did you tested the createinstallmedia with the Mac you created? You could made it incorrectly.

 

[Bobbych]

thanks, unfortunately I do not have another Mac, and I am waiting for someone I know, to post me out an installer USB, but I tried today to create one on my windows PC using TRANSMAC and a HIGH SIERRA image file

so I cannot test this USB as I do not have another mac

 

[orionquest]

Today I created what I am sure is a boot usb for high Sierra, and tried to boot my Mac Pro. Pressed power button and on the chime, I pressed the option key (alt on my windows keyboard)

All I got was a grey screen with mouse cursor. Nothing else. Is my USB not working?

Just to be clear boot/press option/ grey screen. No drive selection (where you select the USB)

Try to redo the USB
Is the USB Key USB3, not sure if the ports on MacPro are vr 2 or vr 3. and or if the USB 3 drive will work correctly with a USB vr 2 port.
Try another USB drive.

 

[Bobbych]

yes, I did a CLEAR boot, waited for the BOOT bing, then pressed OPTION and just a grey screen with mouse pointer, no drives showing, I have a 480GB SSD installed, and the USB

the USB is a USB 2.0 using a USB2.0 port on the mac

 

[orionquest]

Hmm interesting. Well try what @tsialex mentioned and disconnect the internal drive and only try to boot with the USB media. Try another port etc.

Lastly I guess you didn't get the install CD media. If you can download it and burn it to CD this might be another method. You could boot off the CD media and try and install that way or at least see if the Mac will boot.