Never copy a System Folder from a system installer CD
We would like to take this opportunity to warn you against copying a Mac OS 9 "System Folder" from a system installer CD. Actually, this applies to copying a Mac OS 9 "System Folder" from pretty much any disk to another.
In fact, we wouldn't recommend copying a Mac OS X "System" folder (note the difference in the names) from one disk to another, either!
The logic of this is inescapable, if not totally obvious. If it were this easy to "install" the system software, then no one would ever need to run an installer program for the operating system. Yet, Apple keeps making installer CDs/DVDs and installer programs. The reason is that the installer programs do more than just copy files; they make choices.
For the layman, then, the system installer is the most sure-fire way of getting a good system folder that will allow the computer to boot up. Copying a working system folder from one drive to another, or from the installer CD to a hard drive, just won't work much of the time.
Copying a "System Folder" or "System" folder from drive to drive seems like it ought to work. Instead, this often results in a lot of effort spent fixing your computer so it can start up again. This is likely something you'd want to avoid, and we would like to spare you that pain. Be warned.
There are, of course, ways to copy a working system if you are attempting to clone a computer. Please note that these ways are not simply acts of dragging the folder from one disk to another. We leave this as an exercise for system administrators (who generally need to make a lot of computers look alike) and for those using specialized backup software (which can back up a computer so that it can be restored in the event of a hard disk crash). If you are really interested in this, please contact us.
