SheepShaver refuses to run

[Vox]

Hi,

I had installed SheepShaver long ago on a Macbook under Leopard and it worked good for some time with Mac OS 8.5. Then, suddenly stopped working for no apparent reason; probably some system update (I apply them all) broke it. Trying to launch it resulted in immediate exit while I had touched nothing in its installation.

I left it for more than one year. Today I saw that there is a new version and I tried to start from scratch. Everything goes fine until to the point where I try to relaunch SheepShaver after having defined its preferences. It crashes immediately like previously (not even launch). This means that I cannot even advance to the installation of the operating system ( Mac OS 8.5 ) in the freshly created disk image.

Here are its traces in the system console:

10/04/11 21:09:36 /Applications/SheepShaver/SheepShaver.app/Contents/MacOS/SheepShaver[2142] CPSSetForegroundOperationState(): This call is deprecated and should not be called anymore.
10/04/11 21:09:42 [0x0-0x70070].SheepShaver[2142] ether_unix.cpp:255: failed assertion `sigpipe_sa.sa_handler == SIG_DFL || sigpipe_sa.sa_handler == SIG_IGN'
10/04/11 21:09:42 [0x0-0x70070].SheepShaver[2142] SheepShaver V2.3 by Christian Bauer and Mar"c" Hellwig
10/04/11 21:09:42 [0x0-0x70070].SheepShaver[2142] Reading ROM file...
10/04/11 21:09:42 [0x0-0x70070].SheepShaver[2142] Using SDL/coreaudio audio output
10/04/11 21:09:42 com.apple.launchd[1482] ([0x0-0x70070].SheepShaver[2142]) Exited with exit code: 255

Can anyone understand what is going wrong?

Thanks!

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I cannot link some of the lines in Console to my latest SS build and the settings as described in the setup manual.

- Which MacOSX version do you use on which MacBook model?
- When you say that you started "from scratch", did you delete the previous prefs file with the script that is included in the download?
- Which ROM file do you use?
- Did you follow the setup guide exactly, including ethernet interface set to "slirp" and "Ignore Illegal Memory Accesses" enabled?

[Vox]

Thank you for answering. Now on the specifics:

- Which MacOSX version do you use on which MacBook model?

It is Mac OS X 10.5.8 and the Macbook is a black one (2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo, late 2007)

- When you say that you started "from scratch", did you delete the previous prefs file with the script that is included in the download?

Yes, I started from zero with nothing in my home directory. I erased even the corresponding plist file in Library/Preferences.

- Which ROM file do you use?

If I remember correctly, it must be a ROM file I extracted from an old Powerbook G3 (Wallstreet, 266 MHz).

- Did you follow the setup guide exactly, including ethernet interface set to "slirp" and "Ignore Illegal Memory Accesses" enabled?

Yes to everything. Yet, SheepShaver does not even launch if I set its preferences, always according to the installation instructions. But as I said previously, SheepShaver worked fine once and then it suddenly stopped. It still remains a mystery to me. My only reasonable assumption is that some system update broke it.

[Silent Flamer]

I thought Powerbook ROMS don't work in emulators?

[Vox]

I thought Powerbook ROMS don't work in emulators?

Then why it worked before? Besides, I tried a so called "new world" ROM I found on internet and it makes no difference whatsoever.

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

To my knowledge, the PowerBook rom files do indeed not work with SheepShaver MacOSX. The new world rom that can be found at the redundant robot site is the best choice with MacOS 8.5 through 9.0.4.

- When you say that you started "from scratch", did you delete the previous prefs file with the script that is included in the download?

Yes, I started from zero with nothing in my home directory. I erased even the corresponding plist file in Library/Preferences.

I was referring to the file ".sheepshaver_prefs" in your Home folder. That file is invisible in the Finder. It can be deleted with the script "Delete Prefs File" that is included in the download. Did you delete that file?

[Vox]

I was referring to the file ".sheepshaver_prefs" in your Home folder. That file is invisible in the Finder. It can be deleted with the script "Delete Prefs File" that is included in the download. Did you delete that file?

Yes, many times, using the script provided and the terminal. Same for the .sheepshaver_nvram file.

[Vox]

To my knowledge, the PowerBook rom files do indeed not work with SheepShaver MacOSX. The new world rom that can be found at the redundant robot site is the best choice with MacOS 8.5 through 9.0.4.

Well, as I said an older version of SheepShaver worked indeed with a Powerbook ROM. Rather unstable and crashing, but worked.

Anyway, I just tried the newworld86.rom (after having renamed it as Mac OS ROM) and I get the same behavior and same error messages in the system console. SheepShaver does not even launch after defining its preferences. I have each time to delete the .sheepshaver_prefs if I want it to launch, but it goes never beyond that point.

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

Summarizing: When you start from scratch you can launch SS. You can configure SS preferences following the setup guide. Finally you save the settings and you hard shut down SS (control-escape). When you try to start SS again, it will not launch.

Please show here the content of the prefs file.

In Terminal type

Code: Select all

open .sheepshaver_prefs

followed by a return.

The file will open in TextEdit. Copy the content and paste it here.

[Vox]

Just a remark, not sure if it is important: if I launch SheepShaver without a preference file in my home directory (which will open its window) but with the Mac OS 8.5 CD in the Macbook and the Powerbook ROM, then it will automatically boot from the CD. Of course with the new world ROM and the CD inside it is stuck in the boot process for long and I am not sure if it will ever boot.

[Vox]

Summarizing: When you start from scratch you can launch SS. You can configure SS preferences following the setup guide. Finally you save the settings and you hard shut down SS (control-escape). When you try to start SS again, it will not launch.

This is precisely what happens.

Please show here the content of the prefs file.

In Terminal type

Code: Select all

open .sheepshaver_prefs

followed by a return.

The file will open in TextEdit. Copy the content and paste it here.

Here it is:

Code: Select all

disk MacOS8.dsk
cdrom /dev/poll/cdrom
extfs /
screen win/640/480
windowmodes 0
screenmodes 0
seriala /dev/cu.-2
seriala /dev/cu.Bluetooth-Modem
seriala /dev/cu.-2
serialb /dev/null
rom Mac OS ROM
bootdrive 0
bootdriver 0
ramsize 134217728
frameskip 0
gfxaccel true
nocdrom false
nonet false
nosound false
nogui false
noclipconversion false
ignoresegv true
ignoreillegal false
jit true
jit68k false
keyboardtype 5
ether slirp
keycodes true
keycodefile keycodes
mousewheelmode 1
mousewheellines 1
dsp /dev/dsp
mixer /dev/mixer
ignoresegv true
idlewait true

[Vox]

This is unreal. Now, even without preference file in my home directory SheepShaver would not even launch but I have another message in the console:

Code: Select all

ERROR: cannot create SHM segment for Kernel Data: no space left on device.

[Vox]

Some more news: after the new crash (the one without preference file in my home directory), and even without seeing the SheepShaver window to be able to touch its preferences, it automatically creates a new preference file which looks like:

Code: Select all

extfs /
windowmodes 0
screenmodes 0
seriala /dev/cu.Nektarie-DialupNetworki-2
seriala /dev/cu.Bluetooth-Modem
seriala /dev/cu.-2
serialb /dev/null
bootdrive 0
bootdriver 0
ramsize 16777216
frameskip 8
gfxaccel true
nocdrom false
nonet false
nosound false
nogui false
noclipconversion false
ignoresegv false
ignoreillegal false
jit true
jit68k false
keyboardtype 5
keycodes false
mousewheelmode 1
mousewheellines 3
dsp /dev/dsp
mixer /dev/mixer
ignoresegv false
idlewait true

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

Just a remark, not sure if it is important: if I launch SheepShaver without a preference file in my home directory (which will open its window) but with the Mac OS 8.5 CD in the Macbook and the Powerbook ROM, then it will automatically boot from the CD. Of course with the new world ROM and the CD inside it is stuck in the boot process for long and I am not sure if it will ever boot.

Well, without a pre-existing prefs file and with a compatible rom file named "Mac OS ROM" available, also with the new world rom, SS should boot from the install disk. Note that SS will create a default prefs file when launched. So you would need to delete the file for each similar test.

However, with some combinations of host machine, OSX version, ROM file and MacOS version SS might crash without manual configuration because some protective settings are missing, specifically when "Ignore Illegal Memory Accesses" is not enabled (ignoresegv in the prefs file).

Here it is:

- I suppose that the original file does not start with an empty line.

- Probably not related to your problem, but for safety reasons it is better to not leave the setting for "Unix Root" (extfs in the prefs file) to its default "/" value.

- The only unusual lines I see are the two lines with: seriala /dev/cu.-2
Again probably not related to your problem, but you could try to delete all seriala and serialb lines (you can edit the file in TextEdit) and try again.

This is unreal. Now, even without preference file in my home directory SheepShaver would not even launch but I have another message in the console:

Code: Select all

ERROR: cannot create SHM segment for Kernel Data: no space left on device.

I don't know what happened, but this strikes me as a more profound system problem. I would restart the MacBook to begin with.

Some more news: after the new crash (the one without preference file in my home directory), and even without seeing the SheepShaver window to be able to touch its preferences, it automatically creates a new preference file which looks like:

That is the default prefs file that is created when SS is first launched. You use the preferences to edit this file.

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

Code: Select all

ERROR: cannot create SHM segment for Kernel Data: no space left on device.

Usually error messages express something different from what they seem to tell, but just to be sure: How much space is available unused on your HD?

[Vox]

I restarted the Macbook, which solved the SHM segment problem, and I followed all your instructions above. Nothing still works, no matter which ROM file I use (new- or old-world). Also the preferences file has no empty line in the beginning.

[Vox]

Code: Select all

ERROR: cannot create SHM segment for Kernel Data: no space left on device.

Usually error messages express something different from what they seem to tell, but just to be sure: How much space is available unused on your HD?

Plenty; around 30 GB.

[Vox]

I really fail to see what goes wrong here. I still have the feeling that it is something system-specific since SheepShaver worked once and then broke without apparent reason. When I get back home I will try the experiment on my wife's Macbook Pro ( also Leopard 10.5.8 ) and see what happens.

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

I really do not know what could be the cause of your problem. Through the years we have had all sorts of issues reported, but I never encountered anything like this.

Maybe your initial assumption is correct that something was broken with one of the system updates. You could try to download and install the full 10.5.8 Combo-updater to refresh most of your system software. It can be installed over the existing 10.5.8 installation. Best first do a permissions repair, then do a safe startup (with shift key pressed) and then install the Combo-updater.
The updater can be downloaded here: http://support.apple.com/downloads/Mac_ ... mbo_Update

(Expect the safe startup to last longer than a normal startup and do not be alarmed by the double-startup that will probably conclude the update.)

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

Good idea to see how it works on your wife's MacBook Pro.

BTW: The 8.5. install CD is indeed a generic retail system install CD (green label with white 8)?

[Vox]

OK, this is it. My old SheepShaver installation runs without problems on the unibody Macbook Pro. So it is something with the system on the black Macbook.

Both have the same OS version ( 10.5.8 ) and all system updates applied. The only, probably significant, difference is the hardware and in particular the RAM. The MBP has the initial factory RAM (I don't know which manufacturer), the black MB has RAM from OWC. It is not the first time I buy RAM from them and never had an issue. In fact, the black MB is rock solid, like the unibody MBP.

The strange thing with the MBP is that SheepShaver runs even without specifying a keycodes file and without checking any of the illegal memory access/instructions buttons. Probably the newest version of SheepShaver is able to automatically detect the keycodes file if it is present in the same directory?

Now, applying the combo update on the black MB is always an option to consider. I am however very reluctant to do it since many software updates have been released since the combo update and I fear that this may create a mess. Besides, I use it lately for fairly important work, so I would not risk it right now. And probably I will upgrade to Snow Leopard later this year.

[Cat_7]

Hi,

I would also check which software you have running in the background. I seem to remember someone withe that same error you reported last. A restart seemed to help, and not running OSS3 (whatever program that was)

I did a search on the forum:
http://www.emaculation.com/forum/viewto ... hm+segment
http://www.emaculation.com/forum/viewto ... hm+segment
http://www.emaculation.com/forum/viewto ... hm+segment

Best,
Cat_7

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

The strange thing with the MBP is that SheepShaver runs even without specifying a keycodes file and without checking any of the illegal memory access/instructions buttons. Probably the newest version of SheepShaver is able to automatically detect the keycodes file if it is present in the same directory?

- SS will run without a keycodes file. The keycodes file is only needed for use with other than USA-English keyboard layouts to get the intended characters, including special characters, while typing text.
- SS will run fine on most machines without enabling Ignore Illegal Memory Accesses. In some setups SS will crash without it. That is why it is advised to always check that box.

[Vox]

Thanks for the help guys.

It is clear that there is something wrong with my MB, not that wrong though to be noticed under regular use. I tried to run SS from another user on the MB and there the boot process went up to the point where it loaded all the system extensions and then it crashed (closed without any warning). In the console I could see a series of different error messages indicating clearly an issue with memory access or management. That could be hardware-specific but also software-related; it is difficult to say. If it is of interest here I could post the error messages when I put again my hands on the MB.

But as I said previously I will leave it like that for now, with the plan to either try the combo update later or go directly to Snow Leopard. SS runs very good on my wife's MBP without making the fans to go that noisy as on the MB, and when I find time I will try also to create a Mac OS 9 boot disk.

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

Would also be interesting to see what happens with the original factory RAM re-installed.