TechTool Deluxe discs included with AppleCare not properly booting Macs; word from Micromat

We continue to report on an issue where some users are unable to boot various Macs from the TechTool Deluxe startup disc, included with AppleCare. [See these articles for previous coverage: 1, 2, 3, 4]

The latest incident report comes from MacFixIt reader Beth Fuller:

"I have a Power Mac G5 1.6GHz with 256MB of RAM. It was purchased in 2004 and I have just recently tried to boot my computer up using the the TechTool Deluxe CD included in the Apple Care Plan and it won't do a thing. It just simply boots up to the hard drive as usual. So I downloaded another version from Apple and it doesn't work either."

[Note that TechTool Pro and TechTool Deluxe are two different products. TechTool Pro 4 is a retail product with greater functionality than TechTool Deluxe, which is available exclusively through AppleCare]

In many cases, the issue is simply out-of-date startup software. New Macs often require new components -- or new iterations (e.g. Mac OS X 10.4.8 instead of Mac OS X 10.4.7) for startup, and outdated TechTool Pro/Deluxe discs can fail to boot systems in these cases. Micromat and/or Apple generally replace discs in these cases, but some users are still having the problem with the latest revisions.

Your first course of action in this situation should be to contact AppleCare at 1-800-275-2273 and ask for a replacement disc that is compatible with your system.

UPDATE: Alternatively, you can enter your Mac's serial number on this Apple Support page and download a new version of the TechTool Deluxe disc that may properly boot your system. Instructions for updating your current disc can be found in Apple Knowledge Base article #61794.

Christian Pickman of Micromat (the developer of TechTool Pro/Deluxe) echoes this advice:

"AppleCare customers whose TechTool Deluxe CD is not booting their machine should contact AppleCare. They will either provide the AppleCare customer with a download link to get the latest bootable CD or place their name on a list and notify them when one becomes available.

"Occasionally, third party peripherals may interfere with the CD boot up process. We would recommend that they physically disconnect these devices leaving the stock keyboard and mouse attached when attempting to boot from the CD. Connecting a keyboard through a USB hub or using a third party keyboard are typical culprits for this issue."

We are trying to establish a matrix of Mac models and disc/software revisions of TechTool Deluxe that are compatible. If you have had trouble or success with booting your Mac from an AppleCare-supplied TechTool Deluxe disc, please drop us a line.

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