UniBeast: Install Mac OS X Lion Using an All-In-One Bootable USB Drive

Article from: http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/2011/10/unibeast-install-mac-os-x-lion-using.html

Introducing UniBeast- our new tool to create a bootable USB drive from your Mac App Store purchased copy of Install Mac OS X Lion or Apple Store purchased OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive. This all-in-one bootable USB drive can also be used as a rescue boot drive for system recovery.



UniBeast + MultiBeast is the easiest method to do a clean install of Mac OS X Lion or update any Snow Leopard system. The following guide requires no coding, terminal work, or Mac experience of any kind.


You Will Need

    8GB or larger USB Drive
    Install Mac OS X Lion Application
OR
   OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive



STEP 1: Purchase Mac OS X Lion

The operating system is not free. There are two ways to purchase your copy of Mac OS X Lion. The simplest way is to download the Application from the Mac App Store. Alternately, the OS X Lion USB Thumb is available online at Apple.com or any Apple Store retail location.


STEP 2: Create a Bootable USB Drive Using UniBeast

Take a deep breath and take your time- this is pretty simple, but it's easy to miss things if you rush. Follow each step to the letter.


1. Insert USB drive

2. Open /Applications/Utilities/Disk Utility

3. Highlight USB drive in left column

4. Click Partition tab

5. Click Current and choose 1 Partition

6. Click Options...

7. Choose Master Boot Record

8. Under Name: type USB (You can rename it later)

9. Under Format: choose Mac OS Extended (Journaled)

10. Click Apply then Partition

11. If using the Install Mac OS X Lion Application, it must be in /Applications folder.

12. If using the OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive, make sure it's plugged in and mounted.

13. Download and run UniBeast

14. Click Continue, Continue, Continue, Agree

15. At Destination Select, choose USB and click Continue

16. If using the Mac App Store "Install Mac OS X Lion" App choose that option.

17. If using the Apple Store "OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive" choose that option.

18. If using a laptop, choose Laptop Support in addition to one of the above options.

19. Click Continue

20. Enter password and click Install

The process will take about 10-15 minutes, depending on system and drive speed, but will show hours. Do not unplug or stop during this time.


STEP 3: Install Mac OS X Lion

You're almost done! All you need to do is boot from the USB drive and install! Your hard drive should be set in BIOS to AHCI mode. For recommended BIOS settings and screenshots, check out iBoot + MultiBeast.


1. If you have a Gigabyte motherboard press F12 to choose boot device.

2. Choose USB-HDD

3. At Chimera Boot Screen, choose USB

You may have to type extra command line flags to reach the installer.

•Asus Motherboard + NVIDIA Graphics - type PCIRootUID=0

•Unsupported graphics - type GraphicsEnabler=No

•Boot in Single-user mode - type -s

•Boot in Verbose mode - type -v

•Boot in Safe mode - type -x

4. When you arrive at the Installer, choose language.

If updating an existing Snow Leopard install, skip 5-14.

5. In the top menubar choose Utilities, and open Disk Utility

6. Highlight your target hard drive for the Lion installation in left column.

7. Click Partition tab

8. Click Current and choose 1 Partition

9. Click Options...

10. Choose GUID Partition Method

11. Under Name: type Lion (You can rename it later)

12. Under Format: choose Mac OS Extended (Journaled)

13. Click Apply then Partition

14. Close Disk Utility

15. When the installer asks you where to install, choose Lion, or your existing install.

16. Upon completion, restart system

The installation is complete, but the drive isn't bootable yet. Boot from the USB again, this time choosing Lion.

17. If you have a Gigabyte motherboard, press F12 to choose boot device.

18. Choose USB-HDD

19. At Chimera Boot Screen, choose your new Lion installation.


STEP 4: Post-Installation Using MultiBeast

MultiBeast is an all-in-one post-installation tool designed to enable boot from hard drive, and install support for Audio, Network, and Graphics. In addition it includes System Utilities to repair permissions and a collection of drivers, bootloaders, config files and handy software.



1. Complete Mac OS X Lion setup.

2. When you arrive at desktop, open Safari

3. Browse to tonymacx86.com and log in. If you don't have a user account, create one!

4. Go to tonymacx86.com/downloads to download the latest MultiBeast

5. Go to the DSDT Database to download your motherboard's DSDT

6. Open Downloads folder and move the .aml file to the Desktop

7. Open and run Multibeast's UserDSDT

8. Restart system



The above photo will provide general post-installation support for any recommended CustoMac build.



You may also use MultiBeast to install further drivers to enable ethernet, sound, graphics, etc... Be sure to read the documentation provided in MultiBeast Features.pdf about each option. Both UserDSDT and EasyBeast install the proper bootloader by default, so you'll not need to check that option.





Congratulations!

Install OS X Lion From A USB Drive

Article from: http://www.maciverse.com/install-os-x-lion-from-a-usb-drive.html

No longer will you be able to buy the latest and greatest software from Apple on DVDs or other media. Starting with OS X Lion, the only way to get new software will be to download and install it through the Mac App store.

Fortunately, it does not appear that Apple has limited our ability to create our own installation media. In fact, it is still very easy to create a USB installation disk for OS X Lion. Below you will find the steps I used to install the developers preview of OS X Lion via a USB disk.

These steps worked with the developer preview downloads for OS X Lion that was distributed through the Mac App Store to developers. It has not been tested with the retail version of OS X Lion, but we will test this approach as soon as the software is available in its retail form.

How To Create an OS X Lion USB Installation Drive

1.Download Lion through the App Store

2.Find the downloaded App package in Finder, right or control click it and select “Show Package Contents”

3.In the Finder window displaying the package contents select the Contents folder, then the SharedSupport folder. Find the InstallESD.dmg file. You will need this file to create the USB drive.

4.Plugin your USB Drive, for this effort I used a 8gb USB drive, and open Disk Utility

5.In Disk Utility, prepare the USB drive to be bootable. Select the drive in Disk Utility and then thePartition Tab.


6.Under Volume Scheme select 1 Partition and then Options
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7.Select GUID Partition Table and press OK. Apply the changes.


8.When the USB Drive has been reformatted to a GUID partition select the Restore Tab

9.For Source, drag and drop the installESD.dmg file into the source location. For Destination drag and drop the newly configured USB drive. Click Restore and Enter in your Password.


10.Reboot your Mac, holding down Option until the Boot Option screen appears. Select the OS X Lion USB Drive you just created.


11.Follow the onscreen instructions to install OS X Lion from your USB flash drive

It is great to see Apple moving more and more towards online software distribution, there still remains instances when consumers would like to install drives from physical media. Especially if one would like to install OS X Lion when not already running Snow Leopard.

The entire process took about 45 minutes for me to install OS X Lion from USB. Let us know in the comments how long it too for you to install.

Install OS X Snow Leopard from a USB flash drive

Article from: http://www.maciverse.com/install-os-x-snow-leopard-from-usb-flash-drive.html

The steps below will guide you through how to Install OS X Snow Leopard from a USB Flash Drive. Alternatively, you can also read these instructions on how to install OS X Lion from a USB Flash Drive.

Apple officially released Snow Leopard a couple years ago and consumers can still find the latest version of OS X at Apple Stores and resellers across the country.

At version 10.6, Snow Leopard, focused more on improving speed and performance than adding new features to OS X. With the operating system available to customers, individuals are ready for their upgrades.

Installing OS X From a USB Drive
Like other versions of OS X, Snow Leopard can be installed from a USB drive. This is especially beneficial to Macbook Air users looking to install the OS without a DVD drive. To do this, you’ll need to prepare your USB drive with the installation files. Like many of our other Mac Help articles, the steps listed below worked particularly for Snow Leopard but should also work for installing OS X from USB on Leopard.

The installation files sit at 6.2gb on the Snow Leopard DVD, so you’ll probably need a drive that has at least 8gb available. If you want your installation files to last against the elements, check out this 8 GB Water/Shock Resistant USB flash drive.

After you’ve gotten the correct USB device, connect it to your Mac and prepare it with the Snow Leopard installation files by following these steps:

NOTE:Depending on your flash drive, you may need to follow steps 5 – 7 on installing onto a USB drive to make sure the drive is bootable before you get start. This includes updating the options for the partition so that it is set to a GUID partition. If the USB drive is not bootable you will NOT be able to install from it.

1.Open Disk Utility and select the Flash Drive
2.Select the Erase tab on the right and then set Format to Mac OS Extended (Journaled). Name the partition you’ll be creating Snow Leopard or OS X Install so you can keep track of your installation device. After you’ve done this, click the Erase button.


3.After Disk Utility finishes erasing your old data on the flash drive and setting it as a new partition, it will be ready for the Snow Leopard install files. Select the Restore tab at the top and then drag the Snow Leopard DVD to the Source field. Select your USB device for the Destination file. Click Restore and wait for the restoration to finish (about 20 minutes).


4.If the restoration worked correctly you should be able to open your USB device and see the Leopard installation files. If you try and click the Install OS X Snow Leopard icon, you’ll get the message below telling you you can’ install OS X from this volume. IGNORE the message. The next steps will walk you through the installation steps.


5.Now that the installation files are successfully on your USB device, be sure to remove the Snow Leopard installation DVD from your drive. Next, restart your Mac and when it first starts to reboot, be sure to hold down the option (alt) key on your keyboard. After a few seconds at least two volumes should appear for you to select from for installation. One of those will be the USB drive we just prepared. Select it.
6.After the Snow Leopard installation software boots from your USB drive, follow the on screen instructions for installation. It took about 38 minutes to install Snow Leopard on my machine from the USB drive. I’m curious to see how this compares to the average Mac users, please leave a post in the comments letting us know how long it took on your machine.
7.After the installation finishes, it will reboot your computer into your new upgraded version of OS X, version 10.6 Snow Leopard


This method works for installing OS X Snow Leopard onto a Mac from a USB Drive. It should also work for installing Leopard or other older versions of OS X on Intel Based Macs. Check back often for additional help and tips for your Mac.