macOS Sierra and Later Not Listed in Mac App Store Purchased Tab, Updates Not Tied to Apple ID

[MacRumors]

Following the release of macOS High Sierra, Mac users have discovered that Apple is no longer listing previous operating system updates in a user's Purchased tab in the Mac App Store.

Neither macOS Sierra nor macOS High Sierra show up in the Purchased list, suggesting the updates are no longer tied to an Apple ID account. Previous Mac software updates were linked to an Apple ID account and updating required an Apple ID and password, something that could be a hassle when a Mac changed ownership.

An Apple support document on reinstalling apps confirms that the change to remove macOS Sierra and High Sierra from the Purchased tab was intentional.

"macOS Sierra or later doesn't appear in the Purchased tab," reads the document.

In the case of macOS Sierra, the change means that there's no way for Mac users to download macOS Sierra should they want to downgrade from High Sierra for some reason.

OS X El Capitan, OS X Yosemite, OS X Mavericks, and earlier updates are all tied to a user account and listed in the Mac App Store. Apple has also made a link to the OS X El Capitan update available through a support document, but no similar support document is available for macOS Sierra.

Article Link: macOS Sierra and Later Not Listed in Mac App Store Purchased Tab, Updates Not Tied to Apple ID

 

[jroman]

Well, that sucks. I actually downgraded a computer this morning due to some software not working correctly.

 

[garirry]

This is why people were complaining so much about OS X becoming download-only since Lion. If I wanted to install an older OS, whether it'd be for compatibility or testing, I want to be able to download it, especially when I don't have the space for dozens of OS installers "just in case". I was still fine with the older OS X installers being redownloadable, and even purchasable when the next OS was already released, but since Yosemite you can't get Mavericks unless you already owned it and now you can't even download Sierra, even if you downloaded it previously. This makes it seem like Apple is heading towards the forced upgrades and downgrade lockout from iOS, and that seriously concerns me.

 

[farewelwilliams]

just made a backup on my icloud drive.

 

[PBG4 Dude]

It makes a bit of sense if this only affects High Sierra users as a downgrade requires reformatting your drive back to HFS+ from APFS. If you upgrade to High Sierra and you don’t have a Sierra Time Machine backup, you’re basically hosed.

 

[farewelwilliams]

This is why people were complaining so much about OS X becoming download-only since Lion. If I wanted to install an older OS, whether it'd be for compatibility or testing, I want to be able to download it, especially when I don't have the space for dozens of OS installers "just in case". I was still fine with the older OS X installers being redownloadable, and even purchasable when the next OS was already released, but since Yosemite you can't get Mavericks unless you already owned it and now you can't even download Sierra, even if you downloaded it previously. This makes it seem like Apple is heading towards the forced upgrades and downgrade lockout from iOS, and that seriously concerns me.

not a big deal. it's still available, just hidden from users. here's a direct link to Sierra
http://osxapps.itunes.apple.com/app...-c51c-c3c1fececb99/jze1425880974225146329.pkg

 

[Apple_Robert]

not a big deal. it's still available, just hidden from users. here's a direct link to Sierra
http://osxapps.itunes.apple.com/app...-c51c-c3c1fececb99/jze1425880974225146329.pkg

Won't open. Unidentified developer message.

 

[LaszGulliver]

This a sad day in Apple history no more custom ringtones... they removed it... we have to buy them now or stick with the default ones... wth is going on apple that’s a very #badapple

 

[macsba]

Lucky I downloaded the Sierra 10.12.6 installer last week.

 

[canadianreader]

This a sad day in Apple history no more custom ringtones... they removed it... we have to buy them now or stick with the default ones... wth is going on apple that’s a very #badapple

You can upload custom ringtones and old apps to your iphone by drag dropping your ringtone on itunes

 

[Lancetx]

This exact same thing happened last year when I updated back then to Sierra. It has never shown up in my Purchased list for the past year either.

 

[dontwalkhand]

It bothers me that there’s no links to older OSes, like El Capitan or Yosemite, which some Macs these are the maximum OS.

 

[LaszGulliver]

You can upload custom ringtones and old apps to your iphone by drag dropping your ringtone on itunes

Your a life saver .... just tried it and it worked...

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Good thing people host these files elsewhere.

 

[macs4nw]

This is why people were complaining so much about OS X becoming download-only since Lion. If I wanted to install an older OS, whether it'd be for compatibility or testing, I want to be able to download it, especially when I don't have the space for dozens of OS installers "just in case". I was still fine with the older OS X installers being redownloadable, and even purchasable when the next OS was already released, but since Yosemite you can't get Mavericks unless you already owned it and now you can't even download Sierra, even if you downloaded it previously. This makes it seem like Apple is heading towards the forced upgrades and downgrade lockout from iOS, and that seriously concerns me.

Use SuperDuper or CCC to create a bootable back-up of your preferred flavor of macOS.

I'm still running SL 10.6.8 on my oldest machine for one specific purpose, to be able to run iTunes 10.21.7, which continues to be my preferred version for a dedicated music server Mac.

 

[dwhittington]

It did not require authentication into the AppStore to download either.

 

[Bob-K]

not a big deal. it's still available, just hidden from users. here's a direct link to Sierra
http://osxapps.itunes.apple.com/app...-c51c-c3c1fececb99/jze1425880974225146329.pkg

Thanks for the link, but it wouldn't open for me either (on a 2012 MacBook Pro 15" running Sierra 10.12.6).

The "unidentified developer" message can be remedied by going to System Preferences>Security and Privacy>General and clicking "allow anyway".

After I did that, the Mac continued to open the package, but after a minute or so I got a message: "The operation couldn't be completed. (com.apple.installer.pagecontroller error -1.)

 

[Xenomorph]

not a big deal. it's still available, just hidden from users. here's a direct link to Sierra
http://osxapps.itunes.apple.com/app...-c51c-c3c1fececb99/jze1425880974225146329.pkg

What is this file? Nothing opens it.

 

[JamesPDX]

It would be better if Apple used their vast resources to patch the existing security issues in HS before removing/delisting useful operating systems from their App store.

 

[Michaelgtrusa]

This makes you wonder, what's next.

 

[JamesPDX]

A new Mac Mini?

 

[BaltimoreMediaBlog]

HOLD DOWN THE FORT PEOPLE! LITTLE TIMMAY IS COMING FOR YOUR WARES!

This is why I always save the download. I can install El Capitan or Yosemite or Mavericks or Sierra to my hearts content.

Apple giveth. Apple taketh away.

 

[tennisproha]

Hmm, I've been wondering about this. Never saw it in my Purchased Tab so downloaded just in case last week.

 

[Saturn1217]

On a related note. Is there are time limit after which I won't be able to install an already downloaded Sierra install? (I vaguely remember that this might be an issue).

I'm on El Capitan now. I want to upgrade to Sierra. I have already downloaded Sierra from the App store (pre-High Sierra). Do I have X-months to upgrade before Apple revokes some certificate or something. Or can I update whenever?

Anyone know? I would update now but I'm swamped with work and I can't deal with any show stopper bugs right now. I'll upgrade to High Sierra in a year when APFS has been thoroughly vetted.

 

[jlnr]

Apple has released the list of security fixes in High Sierra, but no equivalent patch for Sierra & El Capitan. The unwritten rule used to be that the latest three macOS versions were being patched in sync, and that meant that each OS release was accompanied by security updates for the previous two versions. Has macOS silently moved to an iOS-like model where only the latest version counts? Would that explain the inability to download old versions?

Edit: Looking back at the list of previous security updates, it seems that the initial .0 release of a Sierra was also released by itself, but older versions were patched starting at 10.12.1. That's dumb, but probably unrelated to the App Store thing then.