Best method to upgrade to MacOS 14 Sonoma from 13?

[roadkill401]

I have been running both a MacBook Air M2 and a Mac mini M2pro on 13.7.8 for the past several years. It works great but I have found that some of the apps that I use are now complaining that they want me to be on Sonoma 14.5+ as well as there are several apps that I would like to get that won't run at all on macOS 13

I have mist. I have used it on both of these computers to wipe them and re-install MacOS13 in DFU mode with a fresh set of firmware. But that was when they were quite new and didn't have a couple years worth of my apps and projects installed. it would be a total pain to rebuild from a clean install. So how is best to upgrade. I know I can get a single upgrade path to 14.8.7 with one install. But is that the best method. Or is it better to go with an older 14.8.2 and then let it apply the security patches up to the 14.8.7?

I have no interest on running the latest version of MacOS. I have been burnt by Apple enough times to know that they want you to upgrade to new hardware and the route to easily do this is to trash performance of the older mac's and bloat the OS with functions that require new hardware to work. I am fine with what I have and don't see a reason to replace this Mac for another 5-6 more years.

 

[macaddiict]

Do you want to do this again in 3-9 months when the apps start cycling you to Sequoia-only updates?

I have found Sequoia 15.7.x to be very reliable other than Pages.app (weirdly). I don't feel like macOS 26 is worth upgrading to, but Sequoia has been good other than 1 repeatable issue where Pages.app causes trouble.

If you don't use Pages, I'd suggest Sequoia is actually faster on the same hardware (and you'd get much more out of your upgrade because you won't need to do it again for a long time)

 

[Ben J.]

Download a macOS installer from the app store or mrmacintosh and create a bootable installer:

Create a bootable installer for macOS - Apple Support

You can use a USB flash drive or other secondary volume as a startup disk from which to install the Mac operating system. These steps are primarily for system administrators and other experienced users.

support.apple.com

Many people think this has to be a usb flash thumbdrive, but it can be created on any drive, just make sure that it's a macOS extended (HFS+) partition, and set it to at least 30GB size. Boot from it, run the installer and point it to the volume you want it to install on.

An internet install will always default to the very latest version of macOS.

I very much agree with @MacAddict, you really should consider Sequoia. For me, it's been the most solid macOS since a long time ago, and personally, I had nothing but troubles with Sonoma.

 

[roadkill401]

Do you want to do this again in 3-9 months when the apps start cycling you to Sequoia-only updates?

I have found Sequoia 15.7.x to be very reliable other than Pages.app (weirdly). I don't feel like macOS 26 is worth upgrading to, but Sequoia has been good other than 1 repeatable issue where Pages.app causes trouble.

If you don't use Pages, I'd suggest Sequoia is actually faster on the same hardware (and you'd get much more out of your upgrade because you won't need to do it again for a long time)

When I originally bought my Mac mini it came with macOS 13 but 3 months after it died because the graphics part of the M2 chip failed. it got fixed under warranty but came back with 14.2 loaded and I know that was terrible. But I would assume that later dot versions might be better. That ended up why I bought myself a MacBook Air (not that I wasn't considering it before) and managed to DFU myself back to 13. I had been hesitant to upgrade ever since. If 15 is really stable then I will look into it.

I do use Pages sometimes but not a a power user or anything like that. I have been using it to write some podcast scripts for a voice acting show that is still in production. So I would be wondering what issue was with pages??

As well. do I need to run an external usb installer to upgrade the macOS 13 that I have now. or can I just run the update app on the Mac? I seem to remember that was the way it works when I had an old 27" intel iMac. has that process now changed?

 

[Ben J.]

As well. do I need to run an external usb installer to upgrade the macOS 13 that I have now. or can I just run the update app on the Mac? I seem to remember that was the way it works when I had an old 27" intel iMac. has that process now changed?

Running the update in system Settings will always install the very latest (compatible) version. Only way to choose a specific version is with a bootable installer.

 

[roadkill401]

Running the update in system Settings will always install the very latest (compatible) version. Only way to choose a specific version is with a bootable installer.

thankyou for that insight. I guess it has changed from my old days of intel iMac. I will give it a try. Made a bootable USB with mist and will see if I. can figure out how to convince my MacBook to boot from the usb

 

[Ben J.]

Made a bootable USB with mist and will see if I. can figure out how to convince my MacBook to boot from the usb

The bootable installer must be created from the installer sitting in the apps folder, and using the appropriate terminal command you find in the Support page that I linked to above:

Create a bootable installer for macOS - Apple Support

You can use a USB flash drive or other secondary volume as a startup disk from which to install the Mac operating system. These steps are primarily for system administrators and other experienced users.

support.apple.com

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

Do you want to upgrade one of the Macs, or both?

Try it this way:

1. Download CarbonCopyCloner (free download and FREE to use for 30 days).

Download CCC - Bombich Software

bombich.com

2. Use CCC to create a cloned backup of your MBa as it exists RIGHT NOW.
then...

3. Use Mist to create a bootable flashdrive of the Sonoma installer.
then...

4. Boot from the flashdrive.
5. Use disk utility to erase the internal drive
then...

6. Install the new OS (Sonoma).
then...

7. At the end of the install, it will reboot to the initial setup screen (choose your language).
8. At this moment, connect the CCC cloned backup.
9. Begin "clicking through" the setup. At the appropriate moment, setup assistant will ask if you wish to migrate from another Mac or drive. YES, you do, so...
10. Point the way to the backup and give SA time to "digest" things
11. Setup assistant will present you with a list of things to migrate:
- apps
- accounts
- settings
- data
12. I suggest you do it the easy way and just "migrate it all", so accept SA's defaults and just "let it go". The migration may take a little while.
and then...

When the migration is over, you should see your old login screen, just as before.
So... log in and "look around". Do things look OK...?

If this works, just repeat the entire process for the other Mac, also.

 

[roadkill401]

mist does allow you to make a bootable usb very easily. what I wasn't sure of is if it would just wipe the Mac and then install a new OS onto it. or install an OS overtop of your older install and you loose all your settings and user configurations. It calls it a boot installer but it will do an upgrade that to me is slightly different

I don't use the Mac mini as much as the MacBook so I did that one as a test. I wasn't really planning on upgrading that Mac but there wasn't any reason why I couldn't, and if it blew up that was the one that would be the easiest to rebuild if I had to.

All went well. had a few hiccups with my Batfi app and the MacBook when it upgraded that as it stopped controlling the battery and forget the MacBook to 100% charge rather that the preferred 70%. but a few configurations later it was working again. got my audiobook maker app installed. Will give 14.8 a try for a while and look into 15 maybe in September