Recovering from Crashes When Updating Software
Pardon me while I engage in some knowledge management on this weblog.
It seems like each time my PowerBook crashes in the midst of updating software through the program Software Update, it hangs in the boot process when it tries to load the Login Window. (If you watch Macs boot, you probably know to which part of the startup process I refer.) I’ve finally gotten to where I can get the system back on my own, without having to take it back to a repair shop.
1) Use the first system disk to run diagnostics (Disk Utility from the Installation menu) to make sure nothing is horribly wrong.
2) Restore the OS. While this step should not erase any content on the machine, you can boot in target mode (hold down t while rebooting the system) while it is firewired into another system to snag critical files for safekeeping.
3) You might have to manually walk through the airport set up via System Preferences in order to get the machine back online. Be sure to have the wireless code.
4) Since the restoration loads 10.3.2, run Software Update to get 10.3.9 before trying to run various programs. Otherwise, you might find yourself wondering why Adium won’t run on the newly reinstated system.
