Need to make bootable El Capitan USB from my Mac Mini with 10.7.5 Lion.

[GameGuru]

Already tried downloading it from Mac App Store but it wouldn't download, saying it is incompatible with my OS. I downloaded a torrent of it but DiskMaker X said it wasn't correct or something. Where can I download an official installer outside of the Mac App Store?

 

[pigoo3]

Already tried downloading it from Mac App Store but it wouldn't download, saying it is incompatible with my OS. I downloaded a torrent of it but DiskMaker X said it wasn't correct or something. Where can I download an official installer outside of the Mac App Store?

Easy answer. 2007 Mac-Mini is not compatible with El Capitan. Max OS on that computer is 10.7.5 (already installed).

- Nick

p.s. Stay away from torrent sites!

 

[GameGuru]

I know that, I was downloading it for my iMac which I installed a new SSD and need to make a bootable USB with El Capitan on it so I can format it.

 

[dtravis7]

It's too bad you did not do the download on the supported iMac while it was up and running. From the store it will see your Mini can not run it and refuse to let you download it.

Piracy is not the answer as also you may get more than you bargained for if you get my point!

IS the SSD in the iMac and blank? Do you have an external you can use your old drive in just to get the El Cap installer?

 

[pigoo3]

I know that, I was downloading it for my iMac which I installed a new SSD and need to make a bootable USB with El Capitan on it so I can format it.

Thread title and post #1 were confusing. Most of the time someone downloading an OS upgrade…downloads it on the computer it will be installed on.

As is being discussed in another thread today on Mac-Forums. One of the methods for creating a bootable USB installer for El Capitan requires OS 10.9 or newer. 10.7.5 being older than that (on the Mac-Mini)…could be the issue. Or…because this El Capitan installer was downloaded from a torrent site…it could be "jacked-up"!

Bottom line. When installing a brand new storage device into an Apple computer (which has had OS 10.7.5 or newer installed on it previously)…you should be able to use "Internet Recovery" to get the OS downloaded and installed on the new storage device (SSD in this case).

- Nick

 

[harryb2448]

Be very very careful using pirated software. All sorts of malware as a 'gift'.

 

[GameGuru]

On the 10.7.5 Mac Mini I clicked on the Free Upgrade and that is where it told me it wasn't compatible.

Ok, I have a Windows 10 PC and a Windows 10 laptop and could use TransMac to make a USB Drive, where can I get the El Capitan image then since I shouldn't use torrent?

 

[GameGuru]

Yeah the HDD in the iMac died so I bought a SSD instead of another HDD. This doesn't have a recovery partition.

 

[GameGuru]

Hmm ok, yes the HDD did have El Capitan on it. So when I get home I should be able to do an Internet Recovery onto the brand new drive?

 

[pigoo3]

Hmm ok, yes the HDD did have El Capitan on it. So when I get home I should be able to do an Internet Recovery onto the brand new drive?

Maybe I didn't explain things well enough above. One of the purposes of Internet Recovery IS for when a brand new storage device is installed (as long as 10.7.5 or higher was previously installed on the computer).

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201314

- Nick

 

[GameGuru]

Sorry I didn't get back sooner but I wound up making a Lion install USB on my wife's Mac Mini, bought and added Lion to my Apple ID, installed Lion and then updated to El Capitan. My Apple ID now has Lion, Yosemite and El Capitan. I want Mavericks on it so I ordered a USB thumb drive with it from Amazon and will be installing that soon. El Capitan is okay but Mavericks will be snappier on my iMac.