[Solved] Installing El Capitan guest on El Cap host

[socratis]

Mac Mini (late 2012) running El Cap (10.11.6) host with 16 GB RAM
VirtualBox 5.2.8
Trying to install El Cap as guest using
Selecting In Wizard either Mac OS X (64 bit) or Mac OSX 10.11 El Capitan (64 bit) gives same end result
Assign 4 GB RAM
Create Virtual Hard disk - VDI Dynamically 49 GB
System settings ICH9 - enable I/O APC - enable EFI - Hardware Clock in UTC
Processor 1 CPU - Execution Cap 100% - enable PAE/NX
Paravirtualization interface is default - Hardware virtualization enable nested paging
Display 128 MB - 1 monitor - scale factor 100%
All other settings default
Start VM and select "Install OS X El Capitan.dmg" from the menu.
Booting starts.
Pauses after ApplFSCompressionTypeZlib load succeeded.
Sometimes it stayes there forever (well longer than I can wait!) and sometimesz it goes on to
Missing Bluetooth Controller.
Another pause then screen turns to garbage with 'no enrtry' sign (circle with slash through it)

How can I get it to work?

Thanks!

[socratis]

All other settings default

Don't "other settings default". Keep all the settings default until you know what you're doing. Before that, trust the templates. The 10.11 templates, not the generic templates.

Start VM and select "Install OS X El Capitan.dmg" from the menu.

What exactly is "Install OS X El Capitan.dmg" and where did you get it? See the "[Howto] Create OSX ISO from the OSX Install app". It's a sticky at the top of the OSX guest forums. Follow the procedure and let me know what doesn't work.

[Mnki]

Okay, I made the iso file using the script.
I selected the El Cap (64 bit) option at the start of the VM creation, then used all the defaults.
(Though the default of 4MB for video memory seems horribly small for my AppleThunderbolt Display)

I started the VM and selected the iso file.

Booting started but (as previously) ground to a halt after the line:
com.apple.AppleFSCompessionTypeZlib load succeeded

(Though this time it it didn't get to the 'Missing Bluetooth Controller' message)

After almost 15 mins stuck on
com.apple.AppleFSCompessionTypeZlib load succeeded
I gave up and shut down the VM

Attached is the log with username replaced by ************

[socratis]

Please send me by PM (if you're afraid !?!) your exact path. I'm not kidding when I say "Do not obfuscate...".

Okay, I made the iso file using the script.

I'm going to need you to run the script again with the "-v 3" switch for the full verbosity level. I'm going to need you to include all the commands and output. Copy the complete terminal output, paste it in a text file, ZIP that file and attach it.

Also, you never mentioned where you got the "Install OS X El Capitan.dmg"...

I selected the El Cap (64 bit) option at the start of the VM creation, then used all the defaults.

Right-click on the VM in VirtualBox Manager, Show in Finder. ZIP that .vbox file and attach it to your reply as well.

[Mnki]

Hi,

The exact paths in both the log and the script terminal output contain the username, which is my actual name, and I’m not going to post my actual name on a public board where anyone (e.g. identity thief) can use it.

I tried to send both those zip files to you by PM, but I can’t find an attachment button in the PM window. Where is it? Or maybe I’m not allowed yet to sent attachments by PM?

The zipped vbox file is attached here.

To get the "Install OS X El Capitan.dmg" I used DiskMaker X (diskmakerx dot com) with the Install OS X El Capitan.app to make a bootable USB installer drive (8 GB memory stick). I booted from that USB drive and checked into the installer was working. Then I rebooted to my internal drive and used Disk Utility to create a dmg file from that drive.

[socratis]

The VBox.log and the <VM>.vbox look fine.
You can't send attachments in a PM, thankfully. Just attach it here obfuscated, but send me a PM with the exact username.

[Mnki]

Thanks for taking time to help and look through logs, etc.

Here is the verbose output from the Terminal running the script.

[socratis]

OK, thanks for that, I'll try to find a 10.11(.0) installer somewhere in my backups and try to replicate what you've done.

And just for completion, your username (sent by PM) is not a problem. ASCII only, no special characters. Could have been "johndoe"

[Mnki]

Thank you very much for time and efforts!
Please let me know if you think I should try something else and/or send more logs.

[socratis]

I've lost hours on trying to figure out what's going on with this... As with everything Apple, I couldn't come up with a concrete solution.

Do you ever get in the graphics part of the installation?
If not, can you downgrade your VirtualBox? To 5.1.0 or something of that era?

[Mnki]

Thank you very much for your time spent on this. It is very much appreciated.
As far as I can tell it seem to hang just before installing graphics.
I'll try with VB 5.1.0 and report back.

[Mnki]

Okay, with 5.1.0 and using all defaults it goes right through to the OSX installation screen.
So I started the installation but the installer can't see the virtual disk set up when the VM was created.
Disk Utility in the set-up screen can see the virtual disk and can even do First Aid on it.
However, I can't see anywhere that enables me to select that disk for the OS installation.
At the point where the screen says 'Select the disk on which to install' the only disk it shows is OS X Base System, which appears with a DVD icon. It won't install on that.

[ChipMcK]

Disk Utility in the set-up screen can see the virtual disk and can even do First Aid on it.
. . . At the point where the screen says 'Select the disk on which to install' the only disk it shows is OS X Base System, which appears with a DVD icon.

Did you format (initialise) the (virtual) disk?
(select type of partitioning, how the partition(s) are formatted.)

Basic macOS 101.

[Mnki]

[Did you format (initialise) the (virtual) disk?
(select type of partitioning, how the partition(s) are formatted.)

Basic macOS 101.

Okay, that worked.
It may be basic, but in almost 20 years of using Macs, my System installs have always been done on internal disks that had already been formated (e.g. a computer came with a system already installed and I later installed new systems over that).

[ChipMcK]

User Manual 3.1.1. Mac OS X guests

3. The Mac OS X installer expects the harddisk to be partitioned so when it does not offer a selection, you have to launch the Disk Utility from the "Tools" menu and partition the hard disk. Then close the Disk Utility and proceed with the installation.