[Buck_W]

After receiving a kernel panic while my PB was in the process of starting up, I tried to repair my permissions using the original install disc. I keep receiving the error message: "No valid packages."

According to this article: About Disk Utility's Repair Disk Permissions feature - Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard note: While started from the Leopard Install DVD, a user's home directory permissions can be reset using the "Reset Password" utility.

However, when I attempted to use the "Reset Password" utility, the only disc showing was the DVD. Am I going to have to reinstall my OS?

[Cold Warrior]

I've never seen this error before. Instead of repair permissions, run the Verify or Repair Disk to check for disk problems, not permissions. Report back on any errors you see.

If you do decide to reinstall, just do an archive-install. It's fast and preserves users and network settings along with applications.

[Buck_W]

I ran the Verify and Repair Disk first and everything checked out fine, no errors.

[Chuckit]

If it can't find any packages and can't see a usable OS X install on the disk, something is definitely not right. Do you have any other disk-checking tools, like Diskwarrior?

[64stang06]

Most importantly, do you have a (recent) backup of your data and files? Sounds like you may have to bit the bullet, and do an erase and install.

[Buck_W]

Originally Posted by 64stang06 

Most importantly, do you have a (recent) backup of your data and files? Sounds like you may have to bit the bullet, and do an erase and install.

Yes, I've been using Time Machine on an external HD, so at least my files are backed up. But having to do a reinstall has not left me a happy camper. Does anybody know if Apple has some online directions for restoring everything from Time Machine?

[64stang06]

Mac OS X 10.5 Help: Recovering your entire system

[Chuckit]

Short version: Boot from the system install DVD and choose "Restore System from Backup" in the Utilities menu.

[Buck_W]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

Short version: Boot from the system install DVD and choose "Restore System from Backup" in the Utilities menu.

Will this accomplish the same results as if I did a clean (erase) install and then manually moved my backed up items back into place? If I have to go through the trouble of reinstalling, I would rather wipe everything "clean" and start over fresh.

[Chuckit]

I'm not sure, but IIRC there's also an option when you do a fresh install to restore from a backup as well, so you could get the best of both worlds.

And if you have a lot of third-party programs installed, there might be some files in places where you wouldn't think to look to manually drag them back from the backup. I've seen people wind up hunting forever because there's one Photoshop support file that they didn't know about somewhere in the Library folder.

[Hal Itosis]

Originally Posted by Buck_W 

I tried to repair my permissions using the original install disc.

 
Just a side note about permissions repair: in Tiger (and earlier), doing so while booted from
the install CD/DVD was an increasingly bad idea. It's okay if the OS is 10.3.0 or 10.4.0, but
the higher above 10.x.0 we get, the less accurate the repair tends to be (when DVD booted).

The same article you posted (last modified: June 05, 2008), seems to suggest that Leopard
will continue that trend:

Originally Posted by Article: HT1452

Should I start up from a Mac OS X install disc to repair disk permissions?

When possible, disk permissions should be repaired while started up from a Mac OS X volume (hard disk) that contains updated Mac OS X software, instead of a Mac OS X installation disc. Mac OS X software updates may change permissions on some files to improve security. When this occurs, the version of Disk Utility* on the Mac OS X volume is updated to account for the new permissions. Running Disk Utility while started from the Mac OS X volume ensures that the changes made by software updates are preserved.

*as well as /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/DiskManagement.framework

A lack of packages however doesn't add any incentive to try repairing perms while booted
from the DVD either... because that does rely on packages residing on the HD.

[yes, i find it sorta confusing too... bottom line: repair perms while booted from the HD.]

--

<edit>: The 10.x.0 part isn't written in stone. if a new Mac comes with 10.5.2 installed, and the
HD still has 10.5.2 on it... then naturally, booting from the DVD wouldn't have any disadvantage.

[Buck_W]

Originally Posted by Hal Itosis 

 
Just a side note about permissions repair: in Tiger (and earlier), doing so while booted from
the install CD/DVD was an increasingly bad idea. It's okay if the OS is 10.3.0 or 10.4.0, but
the higher above 10.x.0 we get, the less accurate the repair tends to be (when DVD booted).

That is interesting in light of the fact that I am able to repair my permissions while booted from the HD. It's only when I try to repair while booted from the original install disc that I receive the error.

But I still have the nagging problem of the kernel panics which are still frequently occurring on start-up. I called Apple Care and they said I need to do a reinstall. Yes? No?

[Hal Itosis]

Originally Posted by Buck_W 

That is interesting in light of the fact that I am able to repair my permissions while booted from the HD. It's only when I try to repair while booted from the original install disc that I receive the error.

idunno. Leopard is still pretty new, so i'm not up on everything it should do.
Plus i can't remember when i last repaired perms while booted from a DVD,
maybe Leopard is intentionally refusing? [until we figure out what all is up
with your issues, it's hard to say for sure. Certainly the Reset Password part
shouldn't have failed the way it did either... so, that sounds like it's related.]

Originally Posted by Buck_W 

But I still have the nagging problem of the kernel panics which are still frequently occurring on start-up. I called Apple Care and they said I need to do a reinstall. Yes? No?

Kernel panics are just as likely to be a hardware problem. Hmm, that might
could explain the other stuff too. Tell us about the hardware (Mac model, RAM, etc).

Oh... now i can see your sig (it's hidden when posting). So, which Mac?

[Buck_W]

Originally Posted by Hal Itosis 

So, which Mac?

It's the 17" PB. Since your raised the issue of hardware, there is one other interesting thing to report. My audio has gone down. It appears to be same the problem reported in this thread: Apple - Support - Discussions - MBP audio no longer plays from my ...

The red optical line stays on when the headphone jack is empty. I've tried the toothpick solution suggested, but wasn't able to get it to work. I have no idea whether all or any of this is related.

[Hal Itosis]

And... had you originally done a 'clean' [erase &] install of Leopard
onto this PBG4, or a quick/easy upgrade over a pre-existing Tiger?

Maybe try a backup/clean install/migrate users then.

[Buck_W]

Clean install with each new major OS release (Jaguar, Panther, Tiger, Leopard).

[CharlesS]

Dude, the reason you can't repair permissions from your original install disc (which, since it's a PowerBook, has to be some earlier version of OS X than 10.5) is because Repair Permissions in previous versions of Mac OS X depended on the packages in the Receipts folder, and 10.5 eliminated those receipt packages in favor of a SQLite database keeping track of the receipts (it's the a.receipt file that's in the 'db' folder). Somewhere along the line, they started backing up the .bom files from the packages in a 'boms' folder, although it wasn't always doing that.

Sure, there'll still be a few packages there put there by old-style packages that are still using the Tiger package format, but all the OS packages that Repair Permissions uses are going to be gone, so of course you're going to get an error about there not being any valid packages if you try to run Repair Permissions on that disk from an earlier version of OS X. Don't erase your hard drive over that! (of course, if you keep getting recurring kernel panics, a reinstall might be a good idea, although I'd check your RAM first as that's a common offender.)

At any rate, it is extremely unlikely that a kernel panic could have anything to do with permissions, so I wouldn't worry too much about that angle. There's also nothing whatsoever that prevents you from changing the permissions of anything on the boot disk, so if you've just got to run Repair Permissions, there's no reason to need to boot to an external disc just to do that.

If you want to try to track down the cause of the panic, you can look for a file called panic.log which will be in either /Library/Logs/ or /Library/Logs/CrashReporter (I forget which, since I haven't had a kernel panic in a while). Post it in this thread, and if we're fortunate it may have some clues that indicate what's going on.

[Buck_W]

Originally Posted by CharlesS 

Dude, the reason you can't repair permissions from your original install disc (which, since it's a PowerBook, has to be some earlier version of OS X than 10.5) is because Repair Permissions in previous versions of Mac OS X depended on the packages in the Receipts folder, and 10.5 eliminated those receipt packages in favor of a SQLite database keeping track of the receipts...

Try explaining that to the first level phone support techs from Apple. I spoke to two of them yesterday, giving your very explanation and they both insisted that it should still work. Go figure. Anyway. . . I'm shipping the PB in for repair today since it is still covered under AppleCare. They are going to fix the audio jack problem and attempt to troubleshoot the kernel panic.

[CharlesS]

Good call - kernel panics are likely to be caused by bad hardware, which AppleCare should take care of.

[Hal Itosis]

Originally Posted by Buck_W 

After receiving a kernel panic while my PB was in the process of starting up, I tried to repair my permissions using the original install disc. I keep receiving the error message: "No valid packages."

According to this article: About Disk Utility's Repair Disk Permissions feature - Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard note: While started from the Leopard Install DVD, a user's home directory permissions can be reset using the "Reset Password" utility.

However, when I attempted to use the "Reset Password" utility, the only disc showing was the DVD. Am I going to have to reinstall my OS?

 
Buck, I hate to bust your balls man... but
--when discussing Leopard-- terms like:

system install DVD

and even

"original" install disc

 
will surely be interpreted by folks as meaning
the *Leopard* system install DVD, and/or the
install disk used to originally install *Leopard*

I don't think it dawned on anyone here that
you were daft enough to boot from a Tiger
operating system, in order to effect repairs
on a Leopard OS (without having specified
that little detail anywhere here, in clear and
unmistakable terms).

Why weren't you booting from the 10.5 DVD???

Why would you boot from a Tiger DVD anyway,
and then... not communicate that fact to us???

[Buck_W]

Originally Posted by Hal Itosis 

 I don't think it dawned on anyone here that you were daft enough to boot from a Tiger operating system, in order to effect repairs on a Leopard OS...

Point taken. . . I probably should have known better, but when the rep from Apple phone support specifically said the original install discs that came with your PowerBook, I took that literally. Even if I had of used the Leopard disc, I'm glad that I sent it in for repair in the event that the kernel panic was hardware related. We'll see.

[CharlesS]

Don't worry about it, it was clear enough to me what you meant. That error message made it pretty obvious to anyone who understands how Leopard's package system works.

[Hal Itosis]

Originally Posted by CharlesS 

> Ticking sound coming from a .pkg package?
> Don't let the .bom go off! Inspect it first
> with Pacifist 2.5.2. Macworld - five mice!

Is there any special reason Pacifist ships with
a bunch of useless classes.nib and info.nib files?

And then when a user removes that junk from his HD,
Pacifist refuses to run? What's the point there?

Thanks.