El Capitan on a Late 2009 iMac issues

[PhoenixCodes]

So, I'm having a mix of hardware and software issues on a late 2009 imac, still running El Capitan. I cant update further at the moment thanks to all the issues.

To start off, I need to get it wiped and reinstall the OS. I've downloaded the El Capitan DMG, but DiskUtility (version 15.0, 1511.3.1) doesn't show the "burn" options I'm familiar with for burning a dmg to a USB.

I've also tried BalenaEtcher, but it gives me some errors when it tries, so I assume either the app doesn't work on this old an OS, or there's something deeper wrong in the software preventing a dmg from being burned to USB.

Oh, and I did try the terminal method for doing this as well, but it didn't work either, just corrupted the drive.

Help! At a loss! And expect way more from me as I try to breathe life back into this 11 year old antique machine... after all, it should still function fine, once I fix its issues.

 

[PhoenixCodes]

So, I found (and tried) TransMac on windows - it successfully burned the El Capitan OS image to the USB... But the USB is still not bootable. When I plug it in to the Mac, it is readable (in Safe Mode, the only way I can get the Mac to boot right now), and I can run the installer directly from the USB. Unfortunately, it won't install because it is 'already installed' - Obviously, I know that, I just need to be able to wipe the machine and reinstall a fresh copy of the OS to get rid of all the errors and system bugs that have been introduced by the previous owner...

So, what next step should I take here? Currently, I've got High Sierra downloading from the App Store in Safe Mode, maybe if that can install with no issues, it will resolve my other software bugs... But I'm not hopeful. I'm thinking it'll need a proper wipe and reinstall, and... I'm at a loss for how to complete that. Please help!

 

[PhoenixCodes]

High Sierra installed fine, but then when doing the wipe-and-reinstall... well, now I'm OSless. And getting a dmg of High Sierra without HAVING a High Sierra machine is gonna be hard!

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

Sorry for the late reply...

I have seen issues with Windows applications that create bootable installers for Mac, since some of the downloadable Apple installers and in DMG format and not the full Apple installer. Applications like DiskMaker X make the process easy, but require a working Mac.

I would try starting up the iMac with Internet Recovery: How to reinstall macOS from macOS Recovery

Use the Option-Command-R key combination, as that should allow you to install the latest compatible version of of macOS (with a few variations/limitations), without having to create a bootable installer.

Let us know if that works for you.

C

 

[PhoenixCodes]

For some reason Opt-Cmd-R isn't doing anything. When I try that key combo during boot, the Mac starts up normally and shows that it has no OS. Normal recovery works, however.

I'm wondering if this issue isn't something with the keyboard... it isnt an original keyboard, it was given to me with the mac and is cheap feeling. Perhaps the three-key combo is one too many for this keyboard to recognize at once? That would also explain why CTRL-OPT-RSHIFT didn't work...

Ok, I guess I will see about finding a better keyboard, then see if I can't get into internet recovery mode. That sounds like the most solid path for now! Thanks for the advice on that.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hi,

If it is a non-Apple keyboard, you may need to use the key equivalents here:

See if that helps,

C

 

[PhoenixCodes]

Hi,

If it is a non-Apple keyboard, you may need to use the key equivalents here:

View attachment 3624

See if that helps,

C

Nah, I'm familiar with those. Those all auto-translate in my brain, haha!

This has got to be an issue with the keyboard being cheap s**t... either that, or the iMac has some serious issues and doesn't know that the internet recovery combo ought to do something in which case... I dunno

I'm going get my hands on a better keyboard, no worries! I just left on business, but I hope to work with this more in a week or two when I return!

 

[Cory Cooper]

No worries...

Let us know how it goes upon your return.

Safe travels and be well,

C