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Is my macbook pro history now?

seabreeze56

seabreeze56

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 4, 2016
52
5
I have a macbook pro running on 10.8.5 and it seems like I can't upgrade it. In order to get 10.9.2, I need 10.9 which is no longer available. So am I stuck getting a whole new computer?? I'm having trouble downloading any browsers now because it says I need to upgrade my computer. HELP!!!!
 
you didn't mention what year your mbp is.

and yes, buy a new one if the current one is not sufficient for your daily task
 
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If you download Mavericks (OS X 10.9) from Apple, you will get the most up-to-date version, which is 10.9.5.
There's no reason to do 10.9 first.
It's not as simple as purchasing through the App Store, as it is no longer available as a new purchase. (I use the term "purchase", even though the software is free, you still "purchase" free software from the App Store, and OS X installers are no exception to that.)

So, you need to discover a source for the Mavericks installer. Some folks have luck by asking for a copy at an Apple store, but that may depend on who you talk to, and how nice you ask :D
You CAN purchase OS X installers on eBay or Amazon. I don't know if you can trust those (or not), but they are available.
Amazon example here ...
eBay example here ...
 
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DeltaMac said:
If you download Mavericks (OS X 10.9) from Apple, you will get the most up-to-date version, which is 10.9.5.
There's no reason to do 10.9 first.
It's not as simple as purchasing through the App Store, as it is no longer available as a new purchase. (I use the term "purchase", even though the software is free, you still "purchase" free software from the App Store, and OS X installers are no exception to that.)

So, you need to discover a source for the Mavericks installer. Some folks have luck by asking for a copy at an Apple store, but that may depend on who you talk to, and how nice you ask :D
You CAN purchase OS X installers on eBay or Amazon. I don't know if you can trust those (or not), but they are available.
Amazon example here ...
eBay example here ...
Click to expand...

yeah I tried thru apple and it just says my computer is not compatible. I NEED 10.9 already on the laptop.
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
If you tried to download an "update" for OS X, such as the the 10.9.2 update that you mentioned, then, yes, you need 10.9 already installed.
This is an example of what you mentioned - https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1760?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
You cannot install that update, because you don't have some version of 10.9 installed already.
BUT, the thumb drive installers that I linked are NOT updates, but are bootable full system installs.
^ ^ ^
THAT'S what you need. You might even be able to get the Mavericks installer app from a friend of yours who might have purchased/upgraded to Mavericks in the past. HE can download the full installer at any time. It will be in his App Store/Purchased tab (like it is in my App Store)
 
DeltaMac said:
If you tried to download an "update" for OS X, such as the the 10.9.2 update that you mentioned, then, yes, you need 10.9 already installed.
This is an example of what you mentioned - https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1760?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
You cannot install that update, because you don't have some version of 10.9 installed already.
BUT, the thumb drive installers that I linked are NOT updates, but are bootable full system installs.
^ ^ ^
THAT'S what you need. You might even be able to get the Mavericks installer app from a friend of yours who might have purchased/upgraded to Mavericks in the past. HE can download the full installer at any time. It will be in his App Store/Purchased tab (like it is in my App Store)
Click to expand...
Thanks I think will try the one from amazon. Can't afford a whole new computer right now.
 
BarracksSi said:
I'll ask the obvious question again: What year is your MBP?

Go here, find the listing for yours, and see if 10.9 is supported:
http://www.everymac.com
Click to expand...
Mid 2012
[doublepost=1480905439][/doublepost]Everything is actually working fine until a couple days ago and it started lagging and I keep getting err timed out on chrome. So, I'm not sure if it's my actual internet provider OR my computer. I've cleared cache, I've repaired permissions. Didn't change anything. I'm not a hard core computer person. I just play a couple games on FB, do some movie stuff off my go-pro once in a while. Email.
 
seabreeze56 said:
Thanks I think will try the one from amazon. Can't afford a whole new computer right now.
Click to expand...

Before buying anything, please check https://support.apple.com/kb/SP702?locale=en_US. Your mid 2012 is upgradable. In addition, upgrading may not be your solution. You should troubleshoot it.

1) Tried Safari? Does it have the same issue?
2) For lagging, open Activity Monitor and see if you RAM is on stress.
3) Maybe your HDD is dying?

What mid-2012 MBP is it? You need to be more specific.
 
gngan said:
Before buying anything, please check https://support.apple.com/kb/SP702?locale=en_US. Your mid 2012 is upgradable. In addition, upgrading may not be your solution. You should troubleshoot it.

1) Tried Safari? Does it have the same issue?
2) For lagging, open Activity Monitor and see if you RAM is on stress.
3) Maybe your HDD is dying?

What mid-2012 MBP is it? You need to be more specific.
Click to expand...
Everytime I try to upgrade, it says, not compatible. Safari is the same. The imac we have is the same. It's an old imac but this makes me wonder if it's the internet provider. Verizon is NO help. But I'm switching providers at the end of the week so that I will have un-limited data. I will check the RAM to see what it is at.
[doublepost=1480907124][/doublepost]Looking at activity monitor... what exactly am I looking for? Memory free, I have 14.8 free. I don't see anything that says RAM.
What all info do you need?? I'm not a computer techie at all. It's a 13 inch, 2.5 GHz, 4GB, intel, OS X 10.8.5,
 
Last edited:
Yes, you get an error message if you try to run an OS X update, if it is for a higher version of OS X.
And, upgrading such a small amount (from Mountain Lion to Mavericks) is somewhat counterproductive - you may need to upgrade again in literally a few months when a new macOS version is released (and your operating system falls further behind.)
I would suggest, when you have 10.8.5, that you move to Yosemite (OS X 10.10.5), which will be a substantial upgrade, yet not such as large change overall. It will keep you going another few years (or should :D )

I should mention two other upgrades that you could do at the same time (which will take you a big step forward with how fast your system feels) Upgrade the RAM to 8GB (or to 16GB, but that's not as great a leap as 8GB is from 4GB), and replace your spinning hard drive with an SSD.
Prices for those have dropped significantly in the last couple of years, and particularly the SSD will make obvious difference in how fast your MacBookpro feels. It will literally feel like a brand new laptop (and faster than when you first started using it :D )
(just something for you consider doing)
 
DeltaMac said:
Yes, you get an error message if you try to run an OS X update, if it is for a higher version of OS X.
And, upgrading such a small amount (from Mountain Lion to Mavericks) is somewhat counterproductive - you may need to upgrade again in literally a few months when a new macOS version is released (and your operating system falls further behind.)
I would suggest, when you have 10.8.5, that you move to Yosemite (OS X 10.10.5), which will be a substantial upgrade, yet not such as large change overall. It will keep you going another few years (or should :D )

I should mention two other upgrades that you could do at the same time (which will take you a big step forward with how fast your system feels) Upgrade the RAM to 8GB (or to 16GB, but that's not as great a leap as 8GB is from 4GB), and replace your spinning hard drive with an SSD.
Prices for those have dropped significantly in the last couple of years, and particularly the SSD will make obvious difference in how fast your MacBookpro feels. It will literally feel like a brand new laptop (and faster than when you first started using it :D )
(just something for you consider doing)
Click to expand...

Can't upgrade to yosemite. I just get a page that says, not available :( I think I'm just doomed
 
Yes, you can upgrade to Yosemite.
"Unavailable" just means, well, unavailable. It does NOT imply that you can't upgrade.
You can upgrade a 2012 MBPro to ANY version of OS X from Lion to Sierra (absolutely). I just suggested Yosemite as a good compromise, for a stable system, and not too much bother with needing to worry about upgrading some of your apps, such as if you were to upgrade to Sierra (which is good upgrade, too, IMHO)
All you need is the installer - and you can't get the Yosemite directly from Apple, when you haven't purchased it from Apple in the past.
Again, you may be able to get a copy if you just ask at an Apple store (though some don't succeed at that now); or you could get it through a friend who has downloaded Yosemite, etc, in the past; or, perhaps there are some on this very site that may help you out (I don't know who).
Or, find it as a torrent download. Although some will have the opinion that torrenting is "risky business", It is another source for what you need (OS X installers)
 
Everyone in my area that has verizon said they are having issues of some sort. So..... this has been going on for me for the past week and that's when everyone else started having issues. I'm going to hold tight til I get my new provider next week. People's verizon phones are also acting up and mine is as well. Lagging bad. Everyone up here is complaining about that provider. I live in a remote foothill area. Verizon has been the only provider I could get til now. I just got an email from them stating that I'm going to be going over my monthly allowance of 20GB. NO WAY!!!! I never go anywhere near to that. Something is real screwy!!
[doublepost=1480912736][/doublepost]Maybe someone here can help me with an installer :) Because i'm not having any luck on the internet or like you say - looks kind of sketchy. I don't have any friends that have macs. They are all PC users :( I'm the only mac user. I can sure try and plead at an apple store for it. But not sure how well that will go. I'm sure they'd want to sell me a new computer instead.
 
seabreeze56 said:
Everyone in my area that has verizon said they are having issues of some sort. So..... this has been going on for me for the past week and that's when everyone else started having issues. I'm going to hold tight til I get my new provider next week. People's verizon phones are also acting up and mine is as well. Lagging bad. Everyone up here is complaining about that provider. I live in a remote foothill area. Verizon has been the only provider I could get til now. I just got an email from them stating that I'm going to be going over my monthly allowance of 20GB. NO WAY!!!! I never go anywhere near to that. Something is real screwy!!
[doublepost=1480912736][/doublepost]Maybe someone here can help me with an installer :) Because i'm not having any luck on the internet or like you say - looks kind of sketchy. I don't have any friends that have macs. They are all PC users :( I'm the only mac user. I can sure try and plead at an apple store for it. But not sure how well that will go. I'm sure they'd want to sell me a new computer instead.
Click to expand...


With a bit of Googling, you should be able to find an official Mac OS installer for an older version.

Have a look here:

http://macdrug.com/download-yosemite-dmg-os-x-10-10-without-apple-store/

Whatever you download should be virus scanned. You can buy older copies from Apple if this makes you happier, although, again, you'll have to hunt on the Apple site for the version you want.

http://www.apple.com/au/shop/help/downloadable_software?afid=p231|camref:1100lmSq&cid=AOS-AU-Aff-PHG


HTH,

John
 
Seriously, this is a problem that will solve itself...

Here's what you do..

Download and install macOS Sierra

Here's a link: CLICK HERE!

Then, once the Mac App Store is open to the macOS Sierra page, click the button at the top left that says, "Download". Then, once that's downloaded, a window will open that will walk you through installation. Just click "Next" a few times and your computer will be brought completely up to date!

BTW.. In case it's not obvious.. DO NOT DOWNLOAD A MAC OS INSTALLER FROM A 3RD PARTY WEBSITE!!!

You're welcome.
 
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I have a mid-2012 13" MBP and am running Sierra. Don't know why you're still on 10.8, and don't care why, either. Bump it up to the current release for the latest security if nothing else.
 
I have a unibody 2008 model its running 10.9.5

With 2012, you should have no reason your computer not being comptabile
 
OP:

You said your MacBook Pro is a mid-2012, but you didn't say whether it was a retina or non-retina.

If it's the non-retina model (with an internal platter-based HDD), you will probably want to replace that with an SSD before you install any version of the os from Mavericks "onward".

The reason is that since Mavericks the Mac OS seems to have been engineered to run best on Macs with either SSD's or fusion drives, at the expense of those still using HDD's.

The OS will still run on a platter-based HDD, but all-to-often the user experience will feel more like the OS is "walking", instead of "running".

Just to let you know.

IF you decide to put an SSD in, you can find detailed instructions on what to do (and what tools to use) at ifixit.com.

If you can't download the version of the OS you need directly from Apple, there are "other ways", but I can't really say more about that here.

I would suggest that with any downloaded copy of the OS that you create a bootable USB flash drive with it, and boot and install from that. Not hard to do, but there is a bit of a learning curve.

Finally, of all the more recent OS versions, I would recommend El Capitan as being the best...
 
BarracksSi said:
I have a mid-2012 13" MBP and am running Sierra. Don't know why you're still on 10.8, and don't care why, either. Bump it up to the current release for the latest security if nothing else.
Click to expand...
Because everything was working for me up until now. I don't keep up on updates if everything is working. All of the replies.... I've TRIED everything you all suggested. I went to all those links, sites and nothing works. I keep getting a window that says not compatible. So don't know what to do if it says that. The mac app is insane and the worst one. I get to the window where it shows Sierra and there is nothing there to choose. I choose the one that will let me and it takes me right back to the page where it says - not compatible.
 
seabreeze56 said:
Because everything was working for me up until now. I don't keep up on updates if everything is working. All of the replies.... I've TRIED everything you all suggested. I went to all those links, sites and nothing works. I keep getting a window that says not compatible. So don't know what to do if it says that. The mac app is insane and the worst one. I get to the window where it shows Sierra and there is nothing there to choose. I choose the one that will let me and it takes me right back to the page where it says - not compatible.
Click to expand...
Give us a screen shot of the entire screen when this happens (press Cmd+Shift+3 and upload the image on your desktop).
 
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