So, you’ve decided to download an older version of Mac OS X. There are many reasons that could point you to this radical decision.
OS X Lion 10.7.5 is the latest update and is recommended for all users. See requirements and features for OS X Lion. Support Communities. Find and share solutions with fellow users around the world.
To begin with, some of your apps may not be working properly (or simply crash) on newer operating systems. Also, you may have noticed your Mac’s performance went down right after the last update. Finally, if you want to run a parallel copy of Mac OS X on a virtual machine, you too will need a working installation file of an older Mac OS X. Further down we’ll explain where to get one and what problems you may face down the road. A list of all Mac OS X versions We’ll be repeatedly referring to these Apple OS versions below, so it’s good to know the basic macOS timeline. Cheetah 10.0 Puma 10.1 Jaguar 10.2 Panther 10.3 Tiger 10.4 Leopard 10.5 Snow Leopard 10.6 Lion 10.7 Mountain Lion 10.8 Mavericks 10.9 Yosemite 10.10 El Capitan 10.11 Sierra 10.12 High Sierra 10.13 Mojave 10.14 STEP 1. Prepare your Mac for installation Given your Mac isn’t new and is filled with data, you will probably need enough free space on your Mac.
This includes not just space for the OS itself but also space for other applications and your user data. One more argument is that the free space on your disk translates into virtual memory so your apps have “fuel” to operate on. The chart below tells you how much free space is needed. Note, that it is recommended that you install OS on a clean drive. Next, you will need enough disk space available, for example, to create Recovery Partition. Here are some ideas to free up space on your drive:.
Uninstall large unused apps. Empty Trash Bin and Downloads. Locate the biggest files on your computer: Go to Finder All My Files Arrange by size Then you can move your space hoggers onto an external drive or a cloud storage. If you aren’t comfortable with cleaning the Mac manually, there are some nice automatic “room cleaners”. Our favorite is as it’s most simple to use of all.
It deletes system junk, old broken apps, and the rest of hidden junk on your drive. For OS 10.4 - 10.8 (free version) for OS 10.9 (free version) for OS 10.10 - 10.14 (free version) STEP 2. Get a copy of Mac OS X download Normally, it is assumed that updating OS is a one-way road. That’s why going back to a past Apple OS version is problematic. The main challenge is to download the OS installation file itself, because your Mac may already be running a newer version.
If you succeed in downloading the OS installation, your next step is to create a bootable USB or DVD and then reinstall the OS on your computer. How to download older Mac OS X versions via the App Store If you once had purchased an old version of Mac OS X from the App Store, open it and go to the Purchased tab. There you’ll find all the installers you can download. However, it doesn’t always work that way.
The purchased section lists only those operating systems that you had downloaded in the past. But here is the path to check it:. Click the App Store icon. Click Purchases in the top menu. Scroll down to find the preferred OS X version. Click Download.
This method allows you to download Mavericks and Yosemite by logging with your Apple ID — only if you previously downloaded them from the Mac App Store. Without App Store: Download Mac OS version as Apple Developer If you are signed with an Apple Developer account, you can get access to products that are no longer listed on the App Store. If you desperately need a lower OS X version build, consider creating a new Developer account among other options. The membership cost is $99/year and provides a bunch of perks unavailable to ordinary users. Nevertheless, keep in mind that if you visit developer.apple.com/downloads, you can only find 10.3-10.6 OS X operating systems there. Newer versions are not available because starting Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.7, the App Store has become the only source of updating Apple OS versions. Purchase an older version of Mac operating system You can purchase a boxed or email version of past Mac OS X directly from Apple.
Both will cost you around $20. For the reason of being rather antiquated, Snow Leopard and earlier Apple versions can only be installed from DVD. Buy a boxed edition of 10.6 Get an email copy of 10.7 Get an email copy of 10.8 The email edition comes with a special download code you can use for the Mac App Store. Note, that to install the Lion or Mountain Lion, your Mac needs to be running Snow Leopard so you can install the newer OS on top of it. How to get macOS El Capitan download If you are wondering if you can run El Capitan on an older Mac, rejoice as it’s possible too.
But before your Mac can run El Capitan it has to be updated to OS X 10.6.8. So, here are main steps you should take: 1. Install Snow Leopard from install DVD. Update to 10.6.8 using Software Update. Download El Capitan. “I can’t download an old version of Mac OS X” If you have a newer Mac, there is no physical option to install Mac OS versions older than your current Mac model.
For instance, if your MacBook was released in 2014, don’t expect it to run any OS released prior of that time, because older Apple OS versions simply do not include hardware drivers for your Mac. But as it often happens, workarounds are possible. There is still a chance to download the installation file if you have an access to a Mac (or virtual machine) running that operating system. For example, to get an installer for Lion, you may ask a friend who has Lion-operated Mac or, once again, set up a virtual machine running Lion.
Then you will need to prepare an external drive to download the installation file using OS X Utilities. After you’ve completed the download, the installer should launch automatically, but you can click Cancel and copy the file you need.
Below is the detailed instruction how to do it. Install older OS X onto an external drive The following method allows you to download Mac OS X Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks.
Start your Mac holding down Command + R. Prepare a clean external drive (at least 10 GB of storage). Within OS X Utilities, choose Reinstall OS X. Select external drive as a source. Enter your Apple ID.
Now the OS should start downloading automatically onto the external drive. After the download is complete, your Mac will prompt you to do a restart, but at this point, you should completely shut it down. Now that the installation file is “captured” onto your external drive, you can reinstall the OS, this time running the file on your Mac. Boot your Mac from your standard drive. Connect the external drive.
Go to external drive OS X Install Data. Locate InstallESD.dmg disk image file — this is the file you need to reinstall Lion OS X. The same steps are valid for Mountain Lion and Mavericks. How to downgrade a Mac running later macOS versions If your Mac runs macOS Sierra 10.12 or macOS High Sierra 10.13, it is possible to revert it to the previous system if you are not satisfied with the experience.
You can do it either with Time Machine or by creating a bootable USB or external drive. Instruction to Instruction to Instruction to Before you do it, the best advice is to back your Mac up so your most important files stay intact.
In addition to that, it makes sense to clean up your Mac from old system junk files and application leftovers. The easiest way to do it is to run CleanMyMac X on your machine. Visit your local Apple Store to download older OS X version If none of the options to get older OS X worked, pay a visit to nearest local Apple Store. They should have image installations going back to OS Leopard and earlier. You can also ask their assistance to create a bootable USB drive with the installation file. So here you are.
We hope this article has helped you to download an old version of Mac OS X. Below are a few more links you may find interesting. These might also interest you:.
Apple OS X Mountain Lion is the latest release of the world's most advanced desktop operating system. Mountain Lion includes over 200 new features to update your Mac into the best computing experience yet. With the new Messages app you can send text, photos, videos, contacts, Web links, and documents to anyone using another Mac, iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - you can even start a conversation on one device and continue it on another. The new Share button makes it easy to share files, Web pages, photos, and videos, as well as tweet right from the app you are using. With the Reminders app you can create to-do lists and alerts What's New in OS X Mountain Lion. Apple OS X Mountain Lion is the latest release of the world's most advanced desktop operating system.
Mountain Lion includes over 200 new features to update your Mac into the best computing experience yet. With the new Messages app you can send text, photos, videos, contacts, Web links, and documents to anyone using another Mac, iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - you can even start a conversation on one device and continue it on another. The new Share button makes it easy to share files, Web pages, photos, and videos, as well as tweet right from the app you are using. With the Reminders app you can create to-do lists and alerts that appear in the new Notification Center.
With Notes you can write down all your ideas and even speak your words with voice dictation. Play head to head games on your Mac with friends on their Macs or iOS devices with Game Center. And with iCloud built in, it's simple to keep all your mail, contacts, calendars, reminders, notes, to do lists, music, photos, iWork files, PDFs, and more up to date across all your devices. Messages. Send messages from your Mac to friends with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac. With iMessage, you can start a conversation on your Mac and pick it up on your iPhone or iPad. Messages also supports traditional instant messaging services like AIM, Yahoo!
Google Talk and Jabber. ICloud. Documents in the Cloud lets you create and edit your documents on your Mac, iPhone, and iPad. The new Reminders app makes managing tasks easy. Jot down your thoughts with the new Notes app.
And iCloud keeps your Reminders and Notes up to date across all your devices. Safari. Type both searches and Web addresses in the new Smart Search Field. Pinch to see tabs with Tab View and swipe to switch between them. iCloud Tabs makes the last websites you looked at accessible on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Notification Center. New notifications appear in the top right corner of your screen.
Open Notification Center from anywhere in OS X to see recent notifications. Configure your notifications to receive just the ones you want.
Sharing. Share links, photos, videos, and other files right from the app you're in. Share with Mail, Messages, and AirDrop. Sign in to Twitter, Flickr, and Vimeo once to start sharing. Tweet right from your apps with the Tweet sheet. Game Center.
Play live multiplayer and turn-based games against friends on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac. Log in to the Game Center app to see friends in your gaming network. Check out leaderboards and achievements.
See what games your friends play and track your progress against them. Other great Mountain Lion features. Dictation lets you talk anywhere you can type-no setup or training required. AirPlay Mirroring shows your Mac screen on your HDTV with Apple TV. Power Nap keeps your Mac up to date while it sleeps so it's instantly ready to go. Gatekeeper makes it safer to download apps from the Internet by giving you control over which apps can be installed on your Mac.
New features for Chinese users include improved text input, leading search engine Baidu as an option in Safari, sharing to microblogging service Sina Weibo and video websites Youku and Tudou, eight new fonts, and a new Chinese dictionary. Version 10.8.5:. Fixes an issue that may prevent Mail from displaying messages. Improves AFP file transfer performance over 802.11ac Wi-Fi. Resolves an issue that may prevent a screen saver from starting automatically. Improves Xsan reliability.
Improves reliability when transferring large files over Ethernet. Improves performance when authenticating to an Open Directory server. Addresses an issue that prevented a smart card from unlocking preference panes in System Preferences. Contains the improvements included in MacBook Air (Mid 2013) Software Update 1.0.