No Room to Update to 10.1.4
Dan Knight - 2002.04.18
I tried to update Mac OS X to version 10.1.4 last night - and ran into the same problem I had with one of the earlier updates.
The problem.
- Apple claims that you can run Mac OS X on a 1.5 GB partition.
- The updaters requires 300 MB of free space.
- If you have a small OS X partition, you may not have 300 MB available.
- Mac OS X will generate an error report if you don't have 300 MB for it to use.
- Mac OS X won't tell you how much free space your partition has.
When I got my TiBook over a year ago, I created a 2 GB partition to hold a spare copy of OS 9 plus utilities - and OS X when I would get around to it. I pretty much had to clear everything off that partition when I installed OS X, but I didn't want to put it on my main (8 GB) partition until I was sure everything worked and I was ready to adopt OS X.
That 2 GB partition has 227 MB of free space - after moving several X apps to my main partition. I don't think I should have to move Mail and Internet Explorer, apps that came with OS X, to another partition just so I can install a software update.
Apple needs to address this. Maybe they can change things so the updater puts the temporary files on another partition if there's insufficient space on the current partition - with the user's permission, of course. Maybe they can rewrite the updater to actually tell the user how much more space it needs. Maybe they can teach OS X to report how much free space exists on a drive.
If any of these are part of X, I've never heard of it, but I somehow can't imagine that X is unable to know and display the amount of free space on a drive.
With the classic Mac OS, I could simply copy everything to a larger partition, boot from it, and be on my way (well, a few prefs might need to be tweaked). But I don't know if you can do that under OS X.
To top it off, my main partition only has 1.45 GB free and my X Drive has 1.77 GB on it. I guess I could move some files to the OS X partition - but that's nearly full, which is the cause of all this trouble.
The alternative is to move everything to an external FireWire drive, repartition my 10 GB hard drive into 7.5 and 2.5 GB pieces, put everything back, and hope OS X survives being moved around like that. Either that or make a larger main partition and combine OS 9 and X on the same partition. I don't want to buy a larger hard drive, nor do I see any reason to do so. 10 GB is adequate for my needs; I just have the wrong partition setup at present.
I'm researching on the Web. Is it possible to simply copy OS X to another drive and boot from it? How easy or difficult is it to combine an OS X partition and an OS 9 partition? If I have both on one partition, will Retrospect Client and other utilities stop working?
As always, Mac OS X is a learning experience. 
Join us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.
Recent 10 Forward
- Three glitches in Safari 1.0, 2003.07.07. Safari developer Dave Hyatt has asked for a Top 10 list of Safari problems. Try as I might, I can only come up with three.
- Troubleshooting iChat AV for voice and video chat, 2003.06.24. Can't get iChat AV to work for audio or video chat? Here's how to get past your firewall.
- Good news and bad news about the Jaguar update and other thoughts on OS X, 2003.04.01. Turning the Jaguar upgrade into a full installer, OS 9 vs. X, pros and cons of OS X applications, thoughts on the dock, and more.
- More in the 10 Forward index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: Macintosh Portable, introduced 1989.09.20. The nearly 16 lb. behemoth was innovative but not a smashing success.
- February 13 in LEM history: 01: Layoffs may hurt Mac market - 02: Unix for the Mac - Rage against the Macintosh - 03: Options to move data from PCs to Macs - 04: Low cost RAM for older 'Books - 06: Apple, IBM, and Intel - 07: Picking the right cheap computer, new or used - 08: I needed to find an older Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Fix Home Button Delay, Tablet the Ultimate Mobile PC, iPad Notebook a Possibility, and More, iOS News Review, 2012.02.10. Also using your iPad at work, two photo editors, a new iPad text editor, Macally's magnetic iPad 2 stand, and more.
- White MacBook Goes End-of-Life, Logitech Touch Mouse Supports Gestures, Firmware Updates, and More, The 'Book Review, 2012.02.10. Also MacBook Air better than any Ultrabook, docks for MacBook Pro models, Intel offers improved SSDs, and more.
- Mac and iOS Browsers: Options Galore, Freeware Forum, 2012.02.10. Safari is adequate on Mac and great on iOS, but the range of good alternatives is stunning. LEM writers share their favorites.
- Apple's Support Lead Shipping, Smartphones Outsell PCs, OS X Ported to ARM by Intern, and More, Mac News Review, 2012.02.10. Also the power of Tex-Edit Plus, Google and Twitter are already censoring the Web, Snow Leopard Security Update, and more.
- LogMeIn: Remote Screen Sharing for the Rest of Us, Alan Zisman, Zis Mac, 2012.02.09. Configuring the Mac's built-in screen sharing to work over the Internet can be difficult or impossible. LogMeIn makes it easy.
- 15 Years Ago Motorola Unveiled the PowerPC G3, Low End Mac Round Table, 2012.02.06. The G3 processor was optimized for real world Mac software and made a big leap forward in efficiency.
- Don't Kill Caps Lock, Learning to Love the iOS Keyboard, and an Adaptive iPad Keyboard, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 2012.02.06. The Caps Lock key has a useful function, the iPad's keyboard really is useful, and checking out an adaptive keyboard for the iPad.
- More links in our archive.
About LEM Support Usage Privacy Contact
Follow
Low End Mac on Twitter
Join Low End Mac
on Facebook
Low End Mac Reader Specials
TypeStyler 11 is now in the Mac App Store!! -- Special Introductory Price of $59.95!! -- To Buy From The Mac App Store Click Here Now!! Or buy direct
from Strider Software.
Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker and Mac Casino applications in minutes.
Favorite Sites
MacSurfer
Cult of Mac
Shrine of Apple
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac Museum
DealMac
Deal Brothers
Mac2Sell
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End Mac FAQ
Affiliates
Amazon.com
The Apple Store
The iTunes Store
PC Connection Express
GainSaver
Parallels Desktop for Mac
eBay
