Reinstall from macOS Recovery
I'm running 10.6.8 on a macbook bought Xmas 2010. I've run disk utility and it tells me to startup from the installation disk and run disk utility again. But I don't have the disk. I'm looking for the file to download and burn to a disc. I downloaded Recovery Disk Assistant but it says it won't work on 10.6.8. Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard Free Download DMG 10.6.3 Clean Rip. It is final bootable OS X Snow Leopard Install DVD 10.6.3 DMG for Clean OS X Reinstall. Mac OS X Snow Leopard Overview. Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is the seventh release of the Mac OS X. This operating system. Download diskmaker for os x mac 10.6 for free. System Tools downloads - DiskMaker X 5 by gete.net and many more programs are available for instant and free download.
macOS Recovery makes it easy to reinstall the Mac operating system, even if you need to erase your startup disk first. All you need is a connection to the Internet. If a wireless network is available, you can choose it from the Wi-Fi menu , which is also available in macOS Recovery.
1. Start up from macOS Recovery
To start up from macOS Recovery, turn on your Mac and immediately press and hold one of the following sets of keys on your keyboard. Release the keys when you see an Apple logo, spinning globe or other startup screen.
- Mac OS X Snow Leopard DMG Free Download. If you looking on the internet a Mac OS X Snow Leopard DMG File So, you come to the right place now a day shares with you a Snow Leopard DMG free download without app store direct link. Mac OS X 10.6.8 Snow Leopard is an upgrade version to the previous version of OS X Leopard.Mac OS launch many more cool features in this Snow Leopard to improve the.
- 1 Insert the Mac OS X installation disc. 2 Double-click the Install Mac OS X icon. The Welcome pane appears, followed by the License Agreement. Read and agree to the software license agreement. 3 In the pane where you select a disk, select your current Mac OS X disk (in most cases, it will be the only one available). Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard.
Command (⌘)-R
Reinstall the latest macOS that was installed on your Mac (recommended).
Option-⌘-R
Upgrade to the latest macOS that is compatible with your Mac.
Shift-Option-⌘-R
Reinstall the macOS that came with your Mac, or the closest version that's still available.
You may be prompted to enter a password, such as a firmware password or the password of a user who is an administrator of this Mac. Enter the requested password to continue.
When you see the utilities window, that means you have started up from macOS Recovery.
2. Decide whether to erase (format) your disk
You probably don't need to erase your disk, unless you're selling, trading in or giving away your Mac, or you have an issue that requires you to erase it. If you need to erase it before installing macOS, select Disk Utility from the Utilities window, then click Continue. Find out more about when and how to erase your disk.
3. Install macOS
When you're ready to reinstall macOS, choose Reinstall macOS from the Utilities window. Then click Continue and follow the on-screen instructions. You will be asked to choose a disk on which to install.
- If the installer asks to unlock your disk, enter the password you use to log in to your Mac.
- If the installer can't see your disk or notifies you that it can't install macOS on your computer or volume, you may need to erase your disk first.
- If the installer is for a different version of macOS than expected, find out about macOS Recovery exceptions.
- If the installer offers you the choice between installing on Macintosh HD or Macintosh HD – Data, choose Macintosh HD.
Please allow the installation to finish without putting your Mac to sleep or closing its lid. During the installation process, your Mac may restart and display a progress bar on the screen several times, and the screen may be blank for minutes at a time.
If your Mac restarts to a setup assistant, but you're selling, trading in or giving away your Mac, press Command-Q to quit the assistant without completing the setup process. Then click Shut Down. When the new owner starts up the Mac, they can use their own information to complete the setup process.
macOS Recovery exceptions
The version of macOS offered by macOS Recovery may vary in some cases:
- If macOS Sierra 10.12.4 or later has never been installed on this Mac, Option-Command-R installs the macOS that came with your Mac, or the closest version that's still available. And Shift-Option-Command-R isn't available.
- If you erased your entire disk instead of just the startup volume on that disk, macOS Recovery may only offer the macOS that came with your Mac, or the closest version that's still available. You can upgrade to a later version afterwards.
- If your Mac has the Apple T2 Security Chip and you've never installed a macOS update, Option-Command-R installs the latest macOS that was installed on your Mac.
- If you've just had your Mac logic board replaced during a repair, macOS Recovery may only offer the latest macOS that is compatible with your Mac.
If you can't get macOS Recovery to offer the installer you want, you may be able to use one of the other ways to install macOS.
Other ways to install macOS
- You can also install macOS from the App Store or Software Update preferences. If you can't install macOS Catalina, you may be able to install an earlier macOS, such as macOS Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, El Capitan or Yosemite.
- Or, create a bootable installer disk and then use that disk to install macOS on your Mac or another Mac.
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. 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 |
Catalina 10.15 |
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 CleanMyMac 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.
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.4 - 10.8 (free version)
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.9 (free version)
Download CleanMyMac 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 Snow Leopard 10.6
Get an email copy of Lion 10.7
Get an email copy of Mountain Lion 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.
2. Update to 10.6.8 using Software Update.
3. Download El Capitan here.
“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.
STEP 3. Install older OS X onto an external drive
The following method allows you to download Mac OS X Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks.
Mac Os X 10.6 Install Disc Download
- 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.
Mac Os 10.8 Update Free
- 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 downgrade from macOS Sierra
Mac Os X 10.6 Installation Disk Download Windows 7
Instruction to downgrade from macOS High Sierra
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Mojave
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Catalina
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 (download it for free here).
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.