Very old MacBook

[Baffo182]

Hi all!

I have very little iOS/Mac knowledge and I recently got given a MacBook (MacBook 4.1?) from a friend, the iOS version is 10.6.8.

I understand that most of the programs are no longer supported with the current build, is there any way I can upgrade it so I can at least use the app store or even install windows on it or is it just a lost cause?

Thanks in advance

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

That is a MacBook (13-inch, Early 2008) or MacBook (13-inch, Late 2008). Both are limited to a maximum of OS X Lion 10.7.5.

OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.8 should already have the App Store application in the Applications folder. It should also have Boot Camp Assistant in the Utilities folder, which supports up to Windows 7.

It may be tough to upgrade the MacBook to Lion, since it isn't available any longer in the App Store.

Hope that helps,

C

 

[Baffo182]

Hello and welcome.

That is a MacBook (13-inch, Early 2008) or MacBook (13-inch, Late 2008). Both are limited to a maximum of OS X Lion 10.7.5.

OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.8 should already have the App Store application in the Applications folder. It should also have Boot Camp Assistant in the Utilities folder, which supports up to Windows 7.

It may be tough to upgrade the MacBook to Lion, since it isn't available any longer in the App Store.

Hope that helps,

C

Thank you for your reply. The app store is on it but has a bar through the icon, safari doesnt even open on it so I think installkng windows is the way forward.

I'll keep this thread updated because no doubt I'll need more help!

 

[Baffo182]

So that didnt take long to bump into my first issue! I've tried to use boot camp assistant but came up with the error

"The startup.disk cannot be partitioned or restored to a single partition.

The startup disk must be formatted as a single Mac OS Extended (journaled) volume it already partitioned by Boot Camp Assistant for installing windows."

Sorry if this is a simple error to solve

 

[Baffo182]

This is a screenshot of my disk utility, the volume is already extended (journal)

I have no idea.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hi,

If the App Store app has the prohibitive sign on the icon, then it sounds like it is a newer version than the one compatible with your Snow Leopard version. Not sure how that happened.

If you get that error with Boot Camp, then it sounds like the previous owner may have had Boot Camp installed at some point, and didn't remove it properly. Normally, that means you will need to totally erase the hard drive and reinstall OS X.

Did you happen to get the install disc(s) with the MacBook?

C

 

[Baffo182]

Hi,

If the App Store app has the prohibitive sign on the icon, then it sounds like it is a newer version than the one compatible with your Snow Leopard version. Not sure how that happened.

If you get that error with Boot Camp, then it sounds like the previous owner may have had Boot Camp installed at some point, and didn't remove it properly. Normally, that means you will need to totally erase the hard drive and reinstall OS X.

Did you happen to get the install disc(s) with the MacBook?

C

That doesnt sound good.

Unfortunately I havent got any discs with it

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hi,

It's not necessarily bad, it will just make things more difficult for now. You will probably need to source a retail Snow Leopard disc. That would allow you to erase and reinstall Snow Leopard. Once that is done, you should be able to use the App Store to install OS X Lion and run all of the updates, and Boot Camp Assistant should work to install Windows.

C

 

[Baffo182]

Thank you for all your help with this, it is much appreciated.

Would this do the trick? [Link]

 

[Cory Cooper]

No worries.

No, those discs are machine-specific for a 2009 iMac and won't work. Apple retail discs like these should work:

MacOS X 10.6.3 Snow Leopard full retail installer, DVD (Boxed) : Recycled
Apple X Snow Leopard OSX 10.6 Family Pack 5 Users (Retail)

NOTE: Doesn't matter if it says Family Pack - just means you can legally install it on 5 Macs.

C

 

[Baffo182]

Thanks for the help with those installers, managed to get the eBay one you posted.

I've reinstalled iOS 10.6.8 and can get onto the app store now.

I'm still getting the same start-up disk cannot be partitioned error though?

 

[Cory Cooper]

Excellent...glad to hear they worked.

-Do you need to save any information on the hard drive?
-Did you just reinstall Snow Leopard over the top, or did you use Disk Utility to erase the hard drive first, then install?

If you need any data off the drive, make a backup of it first. To fix the partition error issue, you will need to completely erase or repartition the drive, then install OS X. That's the only way to get Boot Camp Assistant to work again to partition the drive.

C

 

[Baffo182]

You sir, are a genius.

I have managed to install windows 7 and its working great, although 2 final questions.

1, how do I get the webcam to work with windows

2, while in OSX, in safari I get an error that it cant establish a secure connection to the server to view the webpage

 

[Cory Cooper]

Glad it's working!

1. Did you install the Boot Camp Windows drivers: Install Windows 7 on your Mac using Boot Camp
2. Which website? It may be due to the age of Safari in Snow Leopard, as it may not support the TLS encryption version on some websites.

C

 

[knollfinder]

I had a similar situation, a MacBook running 10.6.8, and updated it to El Capitan (10.11.4). Should you want to do that, go to: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT206886
I'm no expert, but it went smoothly for me.