OSX install disk utility

[ritalin]

Make backup copies of your OSX install disk.
Basically an app that lets you update a OSX retail disk with the latest combo update, plus shrinks the D/L DVD onto a S/L DVD. So far only tested on my PPC PowerBook and a couple of hackintoshes. The Intel Mac parts of the app are untested, but should in theory work.

Hexley 0.1 pre-alpha released 28/10/08
Hexley 0.2 pre-alpha released 18/11/08
Hexley 0.3 pre-alpha released 24/11/08
Hexley 0.4 pre-alpha released 30/11/08
Hexley 0.5 pre-alpha released 07/12/08

wiki pre-alpha definition



Overview of how the app works:

• The app creates disk image (dmg), this is like a virtual hard disk held on file within the real hard drive.
  
• The app then installs a stock OSX system on the dmg from the retail disk.
  
• Any modification required is then performed on the stock system held in the dmg.
  
• That stock system is then wrapped up in a package (pkg) and saved on you real hard drive.
  
• The stock system held in the dmg is now converted to small installer system to be used as the DVD.
  
• The pkg is then added to the small installer system.
  
• The dmg now holds the content of a OSX install DVD, the app converts the dmg into a DVD image (iso/cdr) and makes it bootable for the target hardware (PPC/Intel Mac or Hack)
  

Disclamer:
You have to remember this is alpha and if something can go wrong then it probably will. The app is quite verbose if there is an error copy and paste the whole output and send it to me. If you would like more info on what the app is doing try launching Console.app in your utilities folder and watch the All Messages section, this should give you an idea of what is going on/wrong.

Thanks goes to anyone willing to help with testing this app. If you want to try the app, I would suggest you try making a backup DVD first. If that works then try making an updated backup DVD. If that works then try making a PC compatible DVD.

Remember this is alpha software. It shouldn't set fire to your house and kill your family, but then again it might.

The app is just a simple GUI wrapper for a shellscript. If you look inside the app you can view the script in any text editor (I recommend Xcode). If you like you can run the script in terminal to aid debugging.

Feel free to modify the script as you wish.

The PC compatibility comes from the pkgs held in four folders labeled:
chipsetCompatibilityPkgs
compatibilityPkgs
gfxCompatibilityPkgs
networkCompatibilityPkgs
These folders can be found in "/Library/Application\ Support/HexleySupport"

Add any pkg to these folders and it will be presented as a choice in the appropriate section of the app.

[tek]

Looks good ritalin.

I ran this on my MacBook Pro and one error I have seen so far is that the app tried to load NVkush and failed. I selected it as my driver of choice for my Hackintosh.

Looking forward to future versions with (maybe) some bootloader options.

[ritalin]

Oct 31, 2008 6:52:04 GMT tek said:

Looks good ritalin.

I ran this on my MacBook Pro and one error I have seen so far is that the app tried to load NVkush and failed. I selected it as my driver of choice for my Hackintosh.

Looking forward to future versions with (maybe) some bootloader options.

Tek, could you please try making a backup copy the retail disk for your MacBook, don't select PC compatible. You will need to select thin to i386. When it's done see if it is bootable on the MacBook. I don't have access to an intel Mac to test this myself.

Anyone wishing to report errors or bugs, please send me a copy of the text output from the app. Just copy the green text in the log window that the app provides and paste it into you message.

[tek]

Oct 31, 2008 7:19:31 GMT ritalin said:

Oct 31, 2008 6:52:04 GMT tek said:

Looks good ritalin.

I ran this on my MacBook Pro and one error I have seen so far is that the app tried to load NVkush and failed. I selected it as my driver of choice for my Hackintosh.

Looking forward to future versions with (maybe) some bootloader options.

Tek, could you please try making a backup copy the retail disk for your MacBook, don't select PC compatible. You will need to select thin to i386. When it's done see if it is bootable on the MacBook. I don't have access to an intel Mac to test this myself.

Anyone wishing to report errors or bugs, please send me a copy of the text output from the app. Just copy the green text in the log window that the app provides and paste it into you message.

Hi ritalin,

Ok I can try that.

One thing I would like to report is that if you do run this on a real Mac, it messes with the extensions of the host machine. I get an error while running the app that it could not load '/System/Library/Extensions/NVkush.kext'. I ignored it but when I came to work today and powered on my MacBook Pro it seemed to mess with my kext cache as well. A little worrying but it seems after one reboot and deleting NVkush from my extensions folder it's ok. If possible, please check your app and dont let it mess with the host systems kext cache.

[ritalin]

Oct 31, 2008 14:49:57 GMT tek said:

Hi ritalin,

Ok I can try that.

One thing I would like to report is that if you do run this on a real Mac, it messes with the extensions of the host machine. I get an error while running the app that it could not load '/System/Library/Extensions/NVkush.kext'. I ignored it but when I came to work today and powered on my MacBook Pro it seemed to mess with my kext cache as well. A little worrying but it seems after one reboot and deleting NVkush from my extensions folder it's ok. If possible, please check your app and dont let it mess with the host systems kext cache.

Yep, it certainly shouldn't do that. The extensions folder of the host machine shouldn't be touched, whatever type of machine it is. Basically what happens is this:

• The app creates disk image (dmg), this is like a virtual hard disk held on file within the real hard drive.
  
• The app then installs a stock OSX system on the dmg from the retail disk.
  
• Any modification required are then performed on the stock system held in the dmg.
  
• That stock system is then wrapped up in a package (pkg) and saved on you real hard drive.
  
• The stock system held in the dmg is now converted to small installer system to be used as the DVD.
  
• The pkg is then added to the small installer system.
  
• The dmg now holds the content of a OSX install DVD, the app converts the dmg into a DVD image (iso/cdr) and makes it bootable for the target hardware (PPC/Intel Mac or Hack)
  

So what is going wrong is probably this: a modification is being applied to you real hard drive and not the dmg image. The reason this is happening could be one of many things:

• The dmg failed to mount
  
• The dmg was unmounted
  
• The dmg had the same name as another mounted dmg or real hard drive....
  

... etc.

You have to remember this is alpha and if something can go wrong then it probably will. The app is quite verbose if there is an error copy and paste the whole output and send it to me. If you would like more info on what the app is doing try launching Console.app in your utilities folder and watch the All Messages section, this should give you an idea of what is going wrong.

Thanks goes to anyone willing to help with testing this app. If you want to try the app, I would suggest you try making a backup DVD first. If that works then try making an updated backup DVD. If that works then try making a PC compatible DVD.

Remember this is alpha software. It shouldn't set fire to your house and kill your family, but then again it might.

[tek]

I've noticed now my MacBook Pro always boots in verbose mode. I'm sure I can fix that.

Second, I now tried this on my Hackintosh thinking that if it does try and load NVkush that it would be ok since I have an 8600GT card. The app caused a kernel panic on my Hackintosh and it seems now it always kernel panics after a restart.

I'm going to have to try verbose mode. Booting from a boot-132 image still causes a panic on boot as well.

[reddrag0n]

Ok, how does this work? All i get is a black window with a "Quit" button on the bottom. I have the Leopard DVD inserted, but without a manual, this is a little awkward.

[mitchde]

Warning:
I tried that on my OS X86.
All seems to work , but after one minute of doing some computation (after selecting all things, like where is the combo,...) i got the known KP - AppleIntelCPU.kext was loaded !!!
What happens :
I checked the startvolume (where i let run the app to create an SL DVD image PC) from my backup clone:
1. Its 100% sure that the app didnt created an image it installed all (Combo,...) on my poor Systemvolume !!!!
All of the 10.5.5 Combo overwritten my Systemvolume (until KP because AppleIntelCPU)
So its not amazing that after AppelIntelCPU.kext (Combo.pkg) got installed and loaded - KP!

Something went very wrong !
The only thing i do can select is the place of the combo (was not in Startvolume, was on Volume TEMP_2).
Also the screen (i remember..?) some wrong Volume informations,
like "" .

My startvolume is named OSX_2 (no spaces).

[ritalin]

Sorry for ignoring this thread for so long, but I have been busy with other things. Thanks to the three brave people who where willing to try this. It looks like I will have to go back to the drawing board on this one.

[ritalin]

Well here is a link to Hexley 0.2 alpha. I sure hope it works better than 0.1 did. It's an Intel only app at the moment, but you can still make PPC backup disks with it. I need to do a little more work to get the 'patcher' and 'apb_decrypt' binaries running on PPC.

[ritalin]

Here is a link to Hexley 0.3 alpha. It includes one bug fix that I managed to find. I've also managed to replace the closed source, Intel only patcher with xxd, so we are one step closer to making this run on PPC hardware. It's still an Intel only app as I need to find time to port the 'apb_decrypt' for PPC.

[ritalin]

Here is a link to Hexley 0.4 alpha. The cpuid patcher is now fixed and will work for AMD hardware. Hexley is now a universal app, but as I still need to port the 'apb_decrypt' for PPC so the PC compatible option is only available when Hexley is run on x86 hardware (Mac or hack). Also includes a better method of stripping unwanted arch types from binaries, no longer thining to 32bit. The XNU has been updated to the latest voodoo RC.

[tek]

Nov 30, 2008 13:22:35 GMT ritalin said:

Here is a link to Hexley 0.4 alpha. The cpuid patcher is now fixed and will work for AMD hardware. Hexley is now a universal app, but as I still need to port the 'apb_decrypt' for PPC so the PC compatible option is only available when Hexley is run on x86 hardware (Mac or hack). Also includes a better method of stripping unwanted arch types from binaries, no longer thining to 32bit. The XNU has been updated to the latest voodoo RC.

Hi ritalin.

I'm willing to try this again, but your 0.4 version link isn't working.

[ritalin]

0.4v got deleted

Version 0.5 is out, see first post.

Now includes language chooser, Voodoo 9.5.0 Kernel Release 1.0 rev A, Improved CPUID patcher (need to make that optional), plus a bunch other bug fixes.
Thanks to zephyroth @ infinitemac for his help on finding CPUIDs.

[rals2007]

what happened to this project?