Trying to install Mojave, 12.08 GB available but it says I still need 6.23 GB more?!

[kdum8]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to install Mojave onto a MacBook Air with only a 128 GB SDD. I deleted as much as a I realistically could to come within the minimum free space requirements according to what I could find from several online sources, but the installer still says I need another 6.23 GB free before the install can proceed. Given that I have 12.08 GB already free that's a total of 18.3 GB of free space required for this install. Can that really be right? I don't see how I can delete much more...

 

[Fishrrman]

I believe the OS needs room for temporary files, etc.
You're just going to have "make more room" on the internal drive.
Can you "move stuff" to an external, at least for now?

 

[kdum8]

Thanks for your reply. I've moved/deleted everything I can already unfortunately

Note, I don't think this is temporary files for the OS, it specifically says that it is the Photos app that is taking up the space, not general OS files...

 

[DeltaMac]

If space is an issue - I would make this a 2-step process:
Install Mojave to an external drive, then when asked by the installer, migrate files and data from the internal drive.
When that is complete (you would then have a complete bootable backup on the external drive) erase the internal, then again install Mojave as a clean install on the internal, finishing up by migrating from the external this time. Same process to restore everything to the internal.
This will take several hours, and you should consider that you are really low on space now, on a boot drive that doesn't have much space for your stuff. Might be time to consider replacing that 128GB with a third-party NVME card with more capacity. 500GB might be a good choice for a significant upgrade. Prices on those cards continue to drop.