Once your older Mac OS X CD or DVD is in your hand, set aside some time with Disk Utility and some blank CD-Rs, DVD-Rs, or, in the case of the Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard and Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard. Obtain the macOS / OS X Disc Image (see instructions above). Go to Macintosh HD Applications Utilities Disk Utility. Click on the 'Burn' button at the top of the Disk Utility window. Navigate to the macOS / OS X disc image ('InstallESD.dmg' file). Installing an OS is simple; all you need is to burn the ISO to a USB Flash drive with any one of the software from the list. After finishing, restart your computer and change the boot order from USB. Now, follow the onscreen instructions and you are good to go. Once your work is done, you can format the drive and use it as a regular flash drive.
After successfully created a macOS bootable USB, the next step is how to use it to install macOS from external USB drive. This is not normal case because macOS is very stable and have less bugs/virus than Windows PC. So many Mac users don't know how to perform a clean install of macOS on their Mac when the device was broken or could not boot into desktop.
Please don't worry. We will share detailed steps on how to install macOS/Mac OS X from an USB drive. Even you had issues during this process, it is not thing to be afriad as we have offered the troubleshooting guide as well.
How to Install macOS on Mac from USB Drive (Normal Way)
If the target Mac computer already had a macOS or OS X on it, then installing macOS from USB is straightforward and this is called the normal way.
Step 1: Insert the macOS bootable USB drive on a USB port of Mac computer.
Step 2: Shut down the Mac and wait for 1-2 minutes. This will make sure the Mac is powered off.
Step 3: Hold the Power and Option key simultaneously for 15 seconds. This will bring up the Startup Manager on Mac.
Step 4: You will see all bootable devices attached to this Mac, including Macintosh HD and external USB or DVD. Click the drive name of your macOS bootable USB to start the installation process.
Step 5: Agree the terms and conditions and wait for the installation process to be done.
How to Install macOS on Mac from USB Drive (Advanced)
If the drive was not partitioned or the partition table was corrupted, then you can not install macOS on Mac with the normal way. You have to boot Mac into Recovery mode and format the hard drive or SSD to Apple file system first.
Step 1: Shut down your Mac and press the Power key to turn on the Mac; then immediately press Command and R keys.
Step 2: You will be directed to the macOS utility section and here you need to select 'Disk Utility' to format the USB drive. From the Disk Utility app, select Mac drive name under Internal section and then click on the 'Erase' button.
Step 3: You will get a couple of options from the Format. Pleasec choose APFS (macOS) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled) for old version Mac OS X.
Step 4: After the completion of the formatting process, go back to the macOS utility section and this time, select 'Reinstall macOS'.
Step 5: Further, go to the Startup Manager, move to the External drive section, and select your bootable macOS USB drive.
Step 6: Now, the configuration of MacOS will start. As soon as the process starts, it will provide Terms and Agreement page and your job is to agree with the same and then click on the continue button.
Step 7: After that, click on the 'Continue' button to start the installation process. This will take 30-45 minutes and once it gets completed, restart Mac.
Step 8: As you are using the fresh copy of MacOS on Mac machine, so you need to set up the OS and for that connect the Mac with the Wi-Fi and then sign in with the Apple account.
Step 9: After signing in, you can access the several products of Apple such as iCloud, DropBox and many more.
Quick Troubleshooting Tips if You Got Stuck during MacOS Installation
Could not write installation information to disk
If you see the message like 'Could Not Write Installation Information to Disk' when you are trying to install the OS, it means, some important files are missing from the bootable USB device. Mostly, this error happens when you download Mac OS file from an unauthorized site.
You can fix this issue just by downloading the original OS file from the Apple store and then create a fresh bootable USB using the same.
Compatibility error
If you are upgrading the OS X after having an older version, you can get the compatibility error message. In such case, just cross-check the system requirement for the OS you want to install on your Mac system.
You can fix this issue just by downloading the original OS file from the Apple store and then create a fresh bootable USB using the same.
macOS could not be installed on your Computer
If you see the error message similar to 'macOS Could Not Be Installed on Your Computer' that means, either your system is not compatible or the Date and Time settings in your system is not up to date.
To resolve the problem, first, check the system combability for the OS X. If it's fine and still you are facing the error, then just update the system Time & Date with the option of 'Local Apple time server'.
Application is damaged, can't be used to install macOS
![Mac os disk Mac os disk](https://www.gamehackstudios.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Fallout-2-Free-Download-PC-Full-Version-8.jpg)
You the message 'application is damaged, can't be used to install macOS' appear on your screen, it means the OS certificated has been expired. And so, you won't be able to proceed further for installation.
The simple solution is; you need to create a fresh bootable USB by downloading the MacOS file from its official website.
MacOS couldn't install on this computer
Sometimes, the thirty-party tool which you use to create a bootable USB is the culprit. If the OS files will not be copied successfully using the bootable tool, then you may see the message like 'MacOS couldn't install on this computer'.
In this case, you should avoid using a third party bootable tool despite you should create a bootable USB with the help of command.
Conclusion
The above tutorial covers most of the issues you could come across during the installation process. If you had other issues not mentioned in this article, please contact us and our technical team will help you fix it.
If you’re still using a Mac OS X the time will come when your computer won’t boot, or a problem may arise where you can’t take control of the device, and booting from an OS X installation media will be required.
This is why it’s recommended that you make a Mac OS X bootable USB when your Mac is in working conditions. However, if you find yourself on a scenario where your device (iMac, MacBook Pro, Air, Mac Pro or Mini) is not responding and you happen to have a Windows 10 device, then you can still be able to make a USB bootable installation media for your Mac OS X to reinstall the operating system using the Recovery Assistant.
These instructions will also work for Windows users who are running Mac OS X on a virtual machine and need to upgrade to the latest version. For instance, to OS X Yosemite.
Requirements
Before you dive into this guide, you’ll need a few things:
- A broken Mac computer with Mac OS X.
- A trial copy of the TransMac software.
- One high quality USB flash drive with 16GB of storage.
- A copy of Apple’s macOS (DMG file).
Now that you have all the necessary ingredients, you’re ready to make a Mac OS X bootable USB using the DMG file of the operating system with the steps below.
Create Mac OS X bootable USB installation media
Before you can use TransMac, you first need to partition your USB flash drive with a GPT partition, as a normal MBR partition may not work. To do this, you’ll need to use the Diskpart command-line utility on Windows 10.
Setting up GPT partition
Use these steps to set up a USB drive with a GPT partition:
- Open Start on Windows 10.
- Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result and select the Run as Administrator option.
- Type the following command to open Diskpart and press Enter:
- Type the following command to determine the USB flash drive and press Enter:
- Type the following command to select the storage and press Enter:Quick tip: The
select disk 1
command as an example, but you have to replace 1 with the number of the flash drive you want to use. - Type the following commands to delete everything from the USB thumb drive and press Enter:
- Type the following command to convert the drive into a GPT partition and press Enter:
- Type the following command to select the new partition and press Enter:
Mac Os Create Disk Image
After you complete the steps, the USB flash drive from MBR to GPT format, you can use the steps below to create a bootable USB installation media to install Mac OS X.
Create USB install media
Use these steps to create a bootable media to install Mac OS X:
- Download and install a copy of TransMac.Quick note: TransMac is a paid software, but it has a 15-day trial solution, that give us more than enough time to move the DMG files to the USB drive from Windows. (If you want to support the developer, you can purchase the full version.)
- Insert the USB drive that you’ll use to fix your installation of OS X. (Remember that all the data in the USB will be erased. Make sure you take off any important documents.)
- Right-click the TransMac software icon and Run as administrator. (You’ll be prompted to Enter Key or Run, because we’ll be using it once, click the Run option.) Ubuntu graphics program.
- On the left pane, you’ll see all the Windows PC drives listed, right-click the USB drive that you’re intending to use to reinstall Apple’s OS X and select the Restore with Disk Image option.
- In the warning dialog box, click the Yes button.
- Use the Restore Disk Image to Drive dialog box to browse for the DMG file with the installation files for Mac OS X Yosemite in this case, and click the OK button to create a bootable USB of the operating system.Now, you’ll have to wait a long time. No kidding. It could take one or two hours to complete the process depending on your computer and other variables.
Once your bootable USB installation media is ready, remove it and insert it into your Mac, power it on, holding down the Option key, and select the USB you just created to reinstall Mac OS X.
Mac Os X Disk
If you’re having issues trying to create a bootable media, you can get a USB flash drive that comes with Mac OSX ready to install.