Install 10.3 on a 1.5 GHz Mac mini

Jan 20, '06 04:37:00AM

Contributed by: syzygies

I needed an OS X 10.3 boot partition on my new 1.5 GHz Mac mini, for applications that don't work on 10.4 (in my case, BitPim for syncing my cell phone). However, these minis were built to run 10.4, and "do not support 10.3." Here's how I worked around that limitation.

First, one needs to get a 10.3.9 system installed on a partition on the mini. If an older machine that can boot 10.3 install disks is available, attach the partition in question to the older machine, install, and update to 10.3.9. (If the partition is internal, attach the mini inself in Target Disk Mode.)

If one is working solo on a mini, use Disk Utility to make disk images of each install disk. Mount all disk images. Ignoring the top-level installer, launch instead the OSInstall.mpkg package found in /System -> Installation -> Packages on the first install disk image.

As an aside, in my experience this is the slickest way to do any install; 99% of the time, it's simpler and more robust than the advice for constructing custom install DVDs or partitions. That is a modular problem; it is quicker and more reliable to make a bootable DVD or partition which includes these disk images. Want that Betty Crocker "I added an egg" feeling? Make an alias to OSInstall.mpkg.

Now, manually apply an update to 10.3.9, downloaded from Apple, rather than trying to boot into 10.3.0 to run Software Update. Finally, restart the mini using the newly installed 10.3.9 boot partition.

Using a DVI connection to a Dell 1905FP monitor, my screen was so distorted as to be nearly unreadable. However, I managed to find and open the Displays System Preferences panel and selected a lower resolution. The distortion disappeared. I then reselected the higher, native resolution, and the distortion was now gone. This seems to be the only major issue, initial video incompatibility.

Something good happened by toggling resolutions. I have ideas, but they would be mere speculation. What matters is that this worked for me.

[robg adds: I don't usually recommend trying to run an older version of the OS on a machine that was seemingly designed for a newer version. In this case, though, it seems to work. If I were going to test this hint, I'd make sure my backup was current before proceeding!]

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