When you're done using your external disk, select a startup disk from System Preferences to have your Mac to start up from its built-in startup disk or another drive. After installation is finished, your Mac automatically starts up from the external drive. Your Mac might restart one or more times during installation. You've connected for this purpose, not your computer's built-in Be sure you select the external storage device You're asked to select a drive for installation, click the button

Select the option to Install OS X from the Recovery window.įollow the onscreen instructions to complete the installation. If not, select a Wi-Fi network with a working Internet When the Recovery screen appears, make sure you're connected to the If you're prompted to select a Wi-Fi network, select a network Press and hold the Command+R on your keyboard.Īfter you see an Apple logo or globe appear, you can release the Immediately after you hear the startup sound, To install OS X on an external drive using OS X Recovery, follow these steps. Then, follow these instructions from an Apple help article: Install from OS X Recovery Take out the drive of your Mac using this iFixit guide.Ĭonnect to the drive and boot into Recovery ( CMD + R) on the other Mac. This answer assumes you have access to another Mac and a way to connect your hard drive to it. Then, the white screen appears, then a black screen, then another second chime, and then back to white screen, then repeated.Īre there any more key combinations that I can try?Īlso, I am not interesting in reseating the hard drive or taking the hard drive out again. Pressing command + option + R + P to reset the PRAM results in the usual chimes. I do not have access to this cable anymore (I stopped using it in 2011 as I hadn't used it since about 10 years prior.

Pressing T results in the FireWire symbol appearing. Pressing command + option + R results in nothing Pressing option before and after the chime with the original hard drive and no boot disk, occasionally am able to select and enter the password for my wifi network on a white screen with the wifi symbol and a lov/drop down box with nearby networks, after accepting the password nothing eventuates from that point, merely a white screen, a wifi symbol and the network name - is there anyway to progress from here? Seems like best chance to proceed.

Pressing C before and after chimes with boot disk inserted (original) and no boot disk, nothing Now, upon starting up, my screen is white, and has a flashing folder with a ? inside it. I used a guide on iFixit to replace my harddrive. I also have the original Snow Leopard disk. I am attempting to install OS X Snow Leopard on a new harddrive.

Install osx on new hard drive from usb