Will it delete stuff if i put in my mac cd?

Question

I accidentally deleted an applicaton on my mac. If i put in my original cd that came with the computer so i can get my application back, will it delete stuff on my computer??

Answer 1

Good news: You do not have to delete your personal data!

If you have another friend with a Mac, it might be easiest to get the app from them. Make sure they are running the same version of MacOS as you first. If one of you has Tiger and the other has Panther, for example, you won't want to try this method. Boot their Mac into target disk mode (hold down the "T" key while it starts up) and use a firewire cable to connect both computers. Your friend's Mac will mount as an external drive on your Desktop. Use the Finder to drag the app from their hard drive to yours. (This will copy it, so your friend will still have it too.) If you have problems with this method, read on.

Depending on which application you are trying to get back, there are different ways to go about it.

When you put in the restore disk that came from your computer, there should be an installer for "Additional Software." (Depending on your system, the Additional Software installer may be on a second disk. Read the front of all the disks you have to see.) You can run that installer to get back any of the applications included there, which is stuff that came on your Mac but is not part of the OS, such as World Book, or Quicken. Exactly which apps depends on your system. You do not need or want to restart the machine to run this installer.

If you need an application that comes directly with the OS, such as Safari or iChat, it is a little bit more complicated, but you still don't need to lose your data! Put in the disk and follow the instructions. The first instruction is to restart. As you follow the on-screen instructions, you will get to a screen with a button at the bottom labeled "Options..." When you see it, click it. Make sure you have selected "Archive and Install." This will move all of your personal data into a safe place while overwriting all the system files to get that app back. Then you can keep following the instructions to complete the installation. When you're all done, your personal data will be in a "Previous Installations" folder, and you can move it back to the places you want it.