System 7 Software Run On Mac Os 8

System

This guide shows you how to install System 7.5.5 for the Mini vMac emulator. For a video tutorial, watch this Youtube clip (credits to Peak66 for creating this tutorial). Also try out PCE/macplus, a newer and more advanced 68k Macintosh emulator.

Apr 13, 2017 I’m running Sheepshaver on a Jessie Raspbian Pixel install. When I try and install Ma OS 9.0.4 onto the mac hard drive I’ve created – Sheepshaver crashes and closes. I double click on Mac OS9 install on the mounted CD ROM Updating hard disc drivers completes, but as soon as it starts Installing to drive mac, Sheepshaver just crashes. Apple TIL article 8970 describes System Software compatibility for System Software from 7.1 to Mac OS 7.6. Thanks to Gamba's 'Run OS 8.1 On Your SE/30' project, you can now run 8.1 on any 030-based Mac if you really want to. Mac OS 8 is an operating system that was released by Apple Computer, Inc. On July 26, 1997. It represents the largest overhaul of the classic Mac OS since the release of System 7, approximately six years before. It emphasizes color more than prior versions. Released over a series of updates, Mac OS 8 represents an incremental integration of many of the technologies which had been developed from.

Before you start, download Mini vmac and find an appropriate ROM such as this one. Once your installation is completed, refer to my latest article for a list of interesting old Mac applications which you can play with using Mini vMac, Basilisk and SheepShaver.

Method 1: Installing System 7.5.5 from pre-made disk images

This section was added in August 2014 after I received comments from several readers asking for detailed instructions to upgrade to System 7.5.5 from System 7.5.3 using the disk images provided by Apple. In particular, one reader commented that since the upgrade disk images for System 7.5.5 downloaded from Apple are in .sea.bin format, there is no way to convert them into a format readable by Mini vMac, as HFVExplorer only supports .smi.bin format and the instructions provided in the download ask him to extract .sea.bin images using DiskCopy 4.2, which apparently requires an actual floppy disk drive.

While I do not have the time to verify this information, I do recall that Apple’s old software download page has changed over the years. When I first attempted to install System 7.5.5 and wrote this article, I did not have major issues mounting the installer disk images. So I guess it was only recently that the disk images provided by the download page were changed to .sea.bin, making it harder to install them using Mini vMac. A possible way to work with the .sea.bin images provided by Apple now is to use old versions of StuffIt Expander, which I have not attempted due to time constraints.

I therefore decided to make available for download the following files, which I created back in 2008 from the disk images provided by Apple. These images can be mounted directly in Mini vMac for a straight forward installation experience of System 7.0.1, System 7.5.3 and System 7.5.5:

hfs500M.rar: blank 500MB HFS hard disk image which can be mounted in Mini vMac for installation of System 7.5.5
Mac701.zip: installation disk images for System 7.0.1
mac753.zip: disk images for System 7.5.3
mac755up.zip: upgrade disk images for System 7.5.5

Installing System 7.5.5 on Mini vMac is now assimple as downloading and extracting the disk images from the above files and following the steps below:

Start Mini vMac with “Install 1″ disk image of System 7.0.1
From Mini vMac’s File menu, mount the empty 500MB hard disk image
Choose to install System 7.0.1 on the 500MB hard disk image
When prompted, use Mini vMac’s File menu to switch to “Install 2″ and other System 7.0.1 installation disk images
Upon completion of System 7.0.1 installation, reboot to System 7.0.1 and mount the System 7.5.3 installation image
Proceed to install System 7.5.3 and reboot after completion.
Mount the System 7.5.5 installation image and again, choose to install System 7.5.5 onto the 500MB hard disk image
Installation of System 7.5.5 should finish without issues, After a final reboot, you will have a fully functional Mini vMac running System 7.5.5

For those who wish to try out System 7.5.5 without spending the time on installation, get the file hfv500M_sys755_clean.zip also from the above download link. Extract the zip file and boot Mini vMac with the extracted disk image to run System 7.5.5.

Method 2: Using Apple’s original System 7.5.5 installer images

The following guide, written in 2008, shows you how to install System 7.5.5 on Mini vMac using the original installer images supplied by Apple.

To start, you must first install System 7.0.1 on Mini vMac:

1. Boot Mini vMac with System 7.0.1 boot disk, download from here. In Explorer, drag the boot disk to minivMac.exe and the system should boot up.

2. Download System 7.0.1 installation disk images from here

3. Use HFV Explorer to create an empty 10MB disk image

4. Click “File” —> “Open Volume.” Browse to the empty hard disk image and open it. The disk image

should show up at the top of the left hand column.

5. Now browse your system with HFVExplorer and find the .smi.bin file that you downloaded earlier. Drag it over to the

Macintosh disk image. Just click “OK” at the prompt. This will extract the original .smi into your disk image.

6. Create another empty 20MB disk image.

7. Quit HFVExplorer and with System 7.0.1 running on Mini VMac, use Mini Vmac’s File menu > Open disk image and mount

the disk images created in step (5) and ()

8. Inside Mac OS, open the installer disk image (now mounted) created in step (5) and click on the SMI file.

9. Accept the terms and conditions. You may choose to skip the disk verification. A folder named 7.0.1 (1440k images)

should be shown on desktop.

10. Open the empty disk image mouted in Mac OS, and copy the entire folder in step 9 over.

11. Shut down Mini vMac and use HFVExplorer to open the hard disk image in order to copy the .image file out. Select

the .image file and choose Edit->Copy

12. Navigate to any folder you want on your Windows machine and choose Edit->Paste to copy the files to that folder. When prompted, paste it as Raw copy, data fork. Make sure you only paste the data fork, or else you’re going to end up with MacBinary files that you can’t boot with.

13. When you are done, you may want to remove the .image files from the disk image, leaving out an empty hard disk image.

14. Now start Mini vMac with the image “Install 1.image” created in step (12). Mount the empty hard disk image, where System 7.0.1 will be installed to.

15. Start the installation process. When prompted, click on Switch Disk and choose the empty hard disk image to install to.

16. When prompted for next disk, mount the required disk image. The installation will finish in around 15 minutes:

17. When installation is done, reboot with the hard disk image and you should see System 7.0.1

Now we install System 7.5.3

1. Download it from here
2. Use HFVExplorer to extract all 19 SMI files into a new hard disk image.
3. With Mini VMac boot up with System 7.0.1, mount the hard disk image in step (1). Double click on the firstpart, choose to skip verification and you will see a the System 7.5.3 Install CD mounted on your desktop:

4. Double click on the installer CD and select Installer to start installation. The process should take another 15 minutes

Finally we upgrade to System 7.5.5

1. Download it from here
2. Repeat what we disk for System 7.5.3 to create a disk image with System 7.5.5 installer. Mount the hard disk image and start the installation.
3. When the installation is finished, reboot miniVmac with the hard disk where System 7.5.5 is installed to. You should see the 7.5.5 screen:

Mac OS 9 for Windows

An easy way to run 'classic' Mac OS applications under Windows

Under Windows, software written for the 'classic' Mac OS (i.e. versions 6 through 9) can only be run through software that emulates Macintosh hardware from 1980s and 1990s. The most advanced of these emulator programs is SheepShaver. SheepShaver is no longer supported by its original author, Gwenolé Beauchesne, but minor updates are available from an active support forum at E-Maculation.

This page provides a fully functional SheepShaver system that runs Mac OS 9.0.4 (US English version). Unlike other SheepShaver-based systems, it makes it relatively easy to exchange files between SheepShaver and Windows, and makes it easy to print from Mac OS applications to Windows printers, or to create PDF files on the Windows desktop. The system runs under Windows 7, 8.x and 10; it may work under earlier Windows versions, but I haven't tested it under earlier versions.

To install this system, download and run the MacOS9AppInstaller. (The file is around 400MB in size; it contains a 4GB hard disk image file.) Then launch the MacOS9.exe application, either from its folder or from the desktop shortcut that the installer offers to create.

Note: Updated 19 March 2020 with a new version of SheepShaver. A version posted 18 August 2019 includes a 4GB image file, not 1GB as in earlier versions.

The program comes with an uninstaller. Every file installed or used by the program is inside the program's folder. After uninstalling, any files that may be left over will be in that same folder; those files and the folder itself may be safely deleted.

For a similar system that runs Mac OS 9 under OS X/macOS, see another page.

A similar system that runs System 7.6.1 in BasiliskII

I have created a similar system that runs Mac System 7.6.1 under BasiliskII. You may download its MacSys761Installer here. Run the installer and then launch the MacSys761.exe application, either from its folder or from a desktop shortcut that the installer offers to create.

The System 7 app works mostly in the same way that the MacOS9App works. You may copy files to System 7 desktop by dropping them on to the MacSys761.exe icon. And you may copy files to the Windows desktop by selecting them with the Copy to Host application or dropping them in to Send to Windows folder (both on the System 7 desktop).

How to use the MacOS9 app

I assume that you know something about Mac OS and don't need any advice from me. A few points are worth mentioning:

Depending on your Windows version, a Computer or This PC icon appears on the MacOS9 desktop. This icon leads to the drives on your host computer.

The File Transfer folder on the desktop is a convenience, to remind you that files found in the Computer or This PC folder should be copied into that folder (or any other folder in the MacOS9 disk image) before being used. They should not be copied merely to the desktop, because they almost certainly won't work until they are actually copied into the MacOS9 virtual disk. (When you copy a file from Windows to the MacOS9 desktop, the file itself is not copied to MacOS9 disk image; that is why you must copy it to a folder inside the disk image itself.)

The MacOS9 system includes a startup script named MacOS9StartUp. This script creates the necessary file-transfer folders for printing and exchanging files, and tests whether they are correct if they already exist. Please let it run without interference.

If you are confident that the file-transfer folders are working correctly, you can move the MacOS9StartUp script from the Startup Items folder in the System Folder to the Startup Items (Disabled) folder. Then move BackgroundScript from the Scripts folder in the System Folder to the Startup Items folder; shut down the MacOS9 app and start it again. If the file-transfer folders stop working, move the BackgroundScript out of the Startup Items folder and restore the MacOS9StartUp script to the Startup Items folder.

To transfer a file from Windows to MacOS9, drop it (in Windows) on MacOS9.exe or on the MacOS9 desktop shortcut. After a long pause, perhaps even longer than 30 seconds, a copy of the file should appear on the desktop of the MacOS9 disk. The original file remains in your Windows system.

To transfer a file to Windows from MacOS9, drop it on the 'Send to Windows' applet on the MacOS9 desktop. The file should be copied almost immediately to the Windows desktop. Or you may double-click on the 'Sent to Windows' applet and select a file to send to the Windows desktop.

To print from MacOS9 to your default Windows printer, simply use the File/Print menu in your MacOS9 application, and print with the default desktop printer, 'Print to Windows.' After a pause, the document should print to your default Windows printer.

To print from MacOS9 and select a Windows printer for the current print job, use the File/Print menu in your MacOS9 application, choose the desktop printer named 'Select Windows Printer', and print. After a pause, a popup list of Windows printers should appear; choose the one you want.

To create a PDF file in Windows when printing from MacOS9, use the File/Print menu in your MacOS9 application, choose the desktop printer named 'PDF to Windows Desktop', and print. The resulting PDF file on the Windows desktop will have an arbitrary name based on the current date and time.

To create a PDF file on the OS 9 desktop, use the File/Print menu in your MacOS9 application, choose the desktop printer named 'PDF to OS9 Desktop', and print. You will be prompted to enter a filename for the resulting PDF; an arbitrary filename will be offered based on the current date and time, but you can type over it to change it.

To print 'raw' PostScript data from MacOS9 to a PostScript-compatible Windows default printer, follow the printing instructions above, but choose the desktop printer named 'Raw PS to Win PS Printer.' The raw PostScript data will be sent to your Windows default printer; if that printer is not PostScript-compatible, you may waste a lot of paper, so be careful with this option.

If SheepShaver locks up: While the MacOS9 app is running, a small Mac-like icon appears in your Windows system tray. You may click on this to open a menu that includes 'Force Quit.' You may click on this to shut down SheepShaver forcibly; you will be asked to confirm that you intend to do this. (SheepShaver is notably unstable, and liable to crash without warning, so this feature may be useful.)

You may use the supplied SheepShaverGUI app (in the Programs folder inside the MacOS9 folder) to modify the system, but the file transfer and printing features will only work if you launch the MacOS9 app from the MacOS9 desktop icon or the MacOS9.exe program inside the MacOS9 folder! If you launch SheepShaver from the SheepShaverGUI, you may get error messages about the file transfer system; if this occurs, shut down SheepShaver and relaunch the MacOS9 icon or MacOS9.exe program.

System 7 Software Run On Mac Os 8 1

To transfer files from a real Mac to SheepShaver, follow the instructions in this post on emaculation.com.

System 7 Software Run On Mac Os 8 Emulator Online

To add additional disk space to MacOS9: This system includes a 4GB disk image. If you need additional disk space, then visit this page at Macintosh Garden and download one of the provided disk images (I recommend the third download, with a 10GB disk image). Then follow these steps:

Use something like the 7z file manager app to extract the downloaded disk image.
Rename the extracted disk image to something like Second.dsk (for convenience, use the .dsk extension, whatever the original extension might be).
Move the renamed disk image into the MacOS9Programs folder.
Use Notepad or any text editor to edit the SheepShaver_prefs file in the same folder and add this line after the first line: disk Second.dsk (using whatever name you gave the to the disk image file).
Save the SheepShaver_prefs file and restart MacOS9.

'Cannot map second Kernel Data' error: If, on your system, SheepShaver starts up with the error message 'Cannot map second Kernel Data area: 487', then go to the Programs folder inside the MacOS9 folder, rename SheepShaver.exe to SheepShaver-old.exe and rename SheepShaver-noJIT.exe to SheepShaver.exe. This alternate version will probably be slower, but should at least run. (This error message occurs unpredictably on some systems but not on others.)

Further details may be available later if you ask for them.

What the MacOS9 app contains

The MacOS9 application contains a standard US-English Mac OS 9 installation, without features that can't be used in this system, such as file-sharing. It also includes a large number of standard Mac OS applications, plus some Control Panels, Extensions, Scripting Additions, and a gray desktop image that you can easily change if you prefer.

The file transfer system uses two AppleScripts: either the MacOS9StartUp script or the BackgroundScript script described above. The MacOS9AppData folder uses an OS9Action folder action script found in the Scripts:Folder Action Scripts folder.

In the MacOS9 disk image, the Transfer folder alias and From Windows folder are required by the file-transfer system, as are the MacOS9AppData folder and the WinPath.txt file found in the System Folder.

The Transfer folder is an alias of the Windows folder named Transfer (inside the MacOS9 folder, typically in your user folder). In contrast, the File Transfer folder on the MacOS9 desktop is a mere convenience for use when copying files from the Computer or This PC folder.

Acknowledgments

Mac Os 8 Download

This system is built on software provided by many people who are more expert than I am. The included build of SheepShaver was built by Ronald P. Regensburg and posted at the E-Maculation support forum for SheepShaver. The AppleScripts used in this application could not have been written without the help of many experts at Macscripter.net, and the AutoIt script that provides the launcher application could not have been written without the help of many experts in the forum at AutoItScript.com.

Support

If your anti-virus program warns you that this system contains malware, then don't take my word for it that this is the result of a false positive. Upload the software to a site like VirusTotal.com for testing. Absolutely do not waste your extremely valuable time writing me an e-mail asking if the software is safe. If you do not trust my software, do not use my software.

Please do not ask me to help you customize the 'classic' Mac OS or advise you about any applications. Please ask for support in the E-Maculation support forum for SheepShaver. If you want to get in touch with me about the AppleScript and AutoIt used in this system, then please visit this page.

Edward Mendelson (em thirty-six [at] columbia [dot] edu, but with two initials and two numerals before the [at] sign, not spelled out as shown here).

Goldengol