Mac Mini Server

[Squint]

Had problems with hard disks in this machine, so I took a backup, and erased the hard disks. Unfortunately the backup became corrupted (not sure how). I can install the OS from the installation disks, but when it gets to the 'Welcome' screen, after a short while the cursor appears but there is a spinning disk in the lower left corner of the 'Welcome' screen (not the beachball, the thing like sunrays going round). I've tried this a number of times on each hard disk with the same results.
Has anyone got any ideas, please?

 

[honestone]

Need to know the following:

1. What exact Mac model do you have?

2. What exact Mac OS are you running?

3. When you say "erased the hard disks", is that the internal drive? If that's the case, how are you making posts here?

4. When you say "I can install the OS from the installation disks", which ones are those, ie, DVDs, and which Mac OS?

 

[Squint]

Need to know the following:

1. What exact Mac model do you have?

2. What exact Mac OS are you running?

3. When you say "erased the hard disks", is that the internal drive? If that's the case, how are you making posts here?

4. When you say "I can install the OS from the installation disks", which ones are those, ie, DVDs, and which Mac OS?

It's a Mac mini, ID is macmini4,1.

It's the original Snow Leopard Server software (10.6) on the GREY disks.

I'm able to post because I've got a Mac Pro and a Black MacBook as well.

I'm able to INSTALL the server software, but when it gets to the setup screen there's a little bicycle wheel spinning in the lower left corner of the window, and the buttons are 'greyed' out. I left it like that for 2 hours, but nothing changed. It has 2 internal hard disks, and I used Disk Utility to erase, then to repair, them. During the install it allowed me to choose which disk, then it took about 35 minutes to install the software.

After I did this 3 or 4 times, I connected it as a Firewire disk, and had a look, the software looked OK. The disks have been set up with Disk Utility, the original DVDs used for the installation, so I don't know where to go from here.

 

[honestone]

How OLD are those drives? There is the possibility that they are still defective, even after using Disk Utility. Maybe a more robust disk repair program like Disk Warrior or Tech ToolPro could do a more thorough job of repairing the disks (assuming they can be repaired).

When you Erased and Formatted the disks, how many passes did you let Disk Utility make with the ERASE?

 

[Squint]

How OLD are those drives? There is the possibility that they are still defective, even after using Disk Utility. Maybe a more robust disk repair program like Disk Warrior or Tech ToolPro could do a more thorough job of repairing the disks (assuming they can be repaired).

When you Erased and Formatted the disks, how many passes did you let Disk Utility make with the ERASE?

The computer wasn't used very much, there's nothing wrong with the disks. I believe the Mac mini servers will on;y allow server software to be installed, but I'm not sure if that's true, or how it's done.

 

[honestone]

Here are the results of a google search I just did for "Can a Mac OS be installed on a Mac Mini server?":

https://www.google.com/search?q=Can...ome..69i57.27463j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

This link on that page states that you can install a "normal, regular" Mac OS on a Mac Mini server:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/7394075

But that still does not explain why you are having issues with the completion of the installation of the Mac OS Server software. Also, just because a machine is not used much does not necessarily mean that the disks are fine.

I guess if you want to confirm if the disks OK, install a non-server Mac OS onto one of the drives.