SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

About SheepShaver, a PPC Mac emulator for Windows, MacOS X, and Linux that can run System 7.5.3 to MacOS 9.0.4.

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PaulS
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SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by PaulS »

I have downloaded the latest version of SheepShaver (version 2.5).
Unzipped it to my Desktop and then moved the app into the Applications folder.
Started SheepShaver the first time by right clicking on the app and chose Open.
SheepShaver pops up for a very shot moment in the Dock and then disappears.
I have checked system.log in Console and see the following message.

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com.apple.xpc.launchd[1]: Coalition Cache Hit: app<application.com.emaculation.sheepshaver.67941047.67941057(501)> [4944]
Do you have any idea why SheepShaver isn't working on my Mac?
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

Did you install SheepShaver for the first time?

If so, you will need to also download the SheepShaver folder and place SheepShaver into that folder. Also needed are additional files, like a compatible ROM file to be able to run SheepShaver at all and a System install CD image file to install a MacOS system into SheepShaver. See our SheepShaver setup manual: https://www.emaculation.com/doku.php/sh ... os_x_setup

If you already had a SheepShaver setup, tell us more about it. Was it on this Mac? Or was it on a previous Mac from which you migrated your account to this Mac?
PaulS
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Re: SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by PaulS »

It's on a Mac mini 2018.
When I bought this Mac (February 2020) it was running macOS Catalina.
I migrated all the applications (including SheepShaver), using Migration Assistant, from my old Mac mini 2012 to this new Mac mini.
I can't remember if I have ever tried to run SheepShaver in macOS Catalina.
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

Then your old SheepShaver prefs file and all installed SheepShaver files should have been migrated to the Mac mini.

1. You installed the new SheepShaver application in the Applications folder. Is that where the previous SheepShaver application was installed also?

2. Please post here the content of your SheepShaver prefs file, so we can see your SheepShaver settings:

Launch Terminal (in /Application/Utilities/) and type at the prompt

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open ~/.sheepshaver_prefs
followed by a return.
The file will open in your default text editor. Select all content and copy and paste it here in your reply.
PaulS
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Re: SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by PaulS »

1. Yes, in a subfolder in Applications named SheepShaver.

2. I have solved the crash problem.
On my old MacBook Pro I had a running version of SheepShaver.
I replaced the SheepShaver prefs file on my Mac mini with the prefs file from my MacBook Pro.
Now SheepShaver starts without any problem on my Mac mini with Big Sur. :smile:

This is the prefs file on the Mac mini before it was replaced by the MacBook Pro prefs file.

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extfs /
windowmodes 0
screenmodes 0
serialb /dev/null
bootdrive 0
bootdriver 0
ramsize 16777216
frameskip 8
gfxaccel true
nocdrom false
nonet false
nosound false
nogui false
noclipconversion false
ignoresegv true
ignoreillegal false
jit true
jit68k false
keyboardtype 5
hardcursor false
hotkey 0
scale_nearest false
scale_integer false
cpuclock 0
yearofs 0
dayofs 0
mag_rate 0
swap_opt_cmd false
keycodes false
mousewheelmode 1
mousewheellines 3
dsp /dev/dsp
mixer /dev/mixer
idlewait true
This is the prefs file on the Mac mini after it was replaced by the MacBook Pro prefs file.

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disk MacintoshHD.dsk
disk BigData.dsk
cdrom /dev/disk2
extfs /
screen win/1024/768
windowmodes 0
screenmodes 0
seriala /dev/cu.Bluetooth-Modem
serialb /dev/null
rom newworld86.rom
bootdrive 0
bootdriver 0
ramsize 1073741824
frameskip 1
gfxaccel true
nocdrom false
nonet false
nosound false
nogui false
noclipconversion false
ignoresegv false
ignoreillegal false
jit true
jit68k true
keyboardtype 5
ether slirp
keycodes false
keycodefile 
mousewheelmode 1
mousewheellines 3
dsp /dev/dsp
mixer /dev/mixer
ignoresegv false
idlewait true
And this is what's in the SheepShaver folder.
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adespoton
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Re: SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by adespoton »

So you weren't loading a ROM or disk images in the one that "crashed" -- this is expected and documented.

I also notice that your unix drive is "/" -- that's a really bad idea in general, and could lead to issues in Sierra onward, especially in Big Sur. I usually set mine to /Users/Shared/Documents/ so that it's somewhere easily accessible that I can fully erase if the guest OS messes up the filesystem.

Maybe we should consider setting extfs to /Users/Shared/Documents/ by default?
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Ronald P. Regensburg
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Re: SheepShaver and Big Sur = Crash

Post by Ronald P. Regensburg »

Apparently the prefs file was not included in the migration, so SheepShaver created a default prefs file as if it was not yet configured. If the migration had included your user account with all files, it should have migrated all files in your Home folder, including the prefs file.

As adespoton mentions, it is not a good idea to leave the 'Unix' shared folder ("Unix Root" in SheepShaver preferences) to the default "/", which is all of your host's disk.

It is better to create a separate folder to be your shared folder, as instructed in the setup manual, and use the shared folder only for moving files between the host and the guest, not for storing files. Serious issues with the shared folder, including files disappearing, were solved many years ago, but still better be safe than sorry.

There are also several superfluous (not used) files in your SheepShaver folder. You could consider removing them. At least remove the old SheepShaver version 2.4.
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