Creating a Bootable Installer for MacOS

ferrarr said:

Here is a link to the thread, https://www.mac-forums.com/showthread.php?349132-Downloaded-High-Sierra-file-is-only-22-7-MB.

Did you try this, https://support.apple.com/macos/high-sierra?

If the above link does not download the full installer, then you may have to pull it from your backup drive.

Click to expand...

I tried the link you posted - that just takes me back to the app store and I end up with the same problem.

two other things I came across when I researched this issue on the net.

In one place they claim that two step installation, first 22Mb, then the whole installer, is done because a firmware update is required (maybe only on some Mac) - no ideas if that is actually true.
Another place said to actually start the installation with the 22MB installer and then stop either before the target volume is selected or just after - there are different opinions here.

I have not tried anything, I just made a backup of El Capitan, will boot into that and then try the the various options on the backup.

Try this site for High Sierra:

https://support.apple.com/downloads/highsierra

Ian

IWT said:

Try this site for High Sierra:

https://support.apple.com/downloads/highsierra

Ian

Click to expand...

I looked at that last night.
These are all just updates of HS.
If you look at the details, the file sizes are nowhere near 5GB or so which is what they need to be for the full installer.

This might be an option to save further headache:

MacOS Mac OS X 10.13 High Sierra USB Drive Full Install Installer
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CSDCW4K/?tag=macforums0e4-20

I finally found the time to boot into my El Capitan test backup to try the various ways to try to get the complete HS installer to down load, and guess what....

Went to the app store, downloaded HS the way I always did before - the download started quickly, it looked as if the download would be the 22MB part again, but just before the process bar was about to reach the end, it stopped, minutes estimated for download increased, and I thought the whole installer was downloaded because it took a lot longer than last time.

But in the end, when I checked the size, it was still only 22MB.

So then I decided to try the HS patcher route following the instructions.
Pretty straight forward once you get to the download site.

The download of the installer took 16 minutes, size was 5779.1MB

I used Disk Creator to make the bootable USB Flash drive rather than Disk Maker X, found that a bit easier since I don't have to relog in as an Admin.

So far all looks good - I have not actually tried using the USB installer yet

So you downloaded both the HS Installer and the HS patch installer, with both being in Applications?

Please let us know if you can boot from the USB installer.

Thanks much.

I’m surprised nobody has the installers on a “backup” drive? After the installer is originally downloaded, aren’t we supposed to make a new “good” backup, to avoid this issue?


Bob -

Sent from my iPad using Mac-Forums

This might be an option to save further headache:

Click to expand...

Say, anyone else wondering what's wrong with Apple and their recent macOS downloads and installs the last few years, and personally I'd say just from this thread alone that the situation is a bit ludicrous and pathetic!!!

At least some third parties try and solve the problem as shown by the link krs provided above — IF it still works and with Apple's blessings.

A pretty sad situation I'd say.






- Patrick
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Mark F said:

So you downloaded both the HS Installer and the HS patch installer, with both being in Applications?

Please let us know if you can boot from the USB installer.

Thanks much.

Click to expand...

I just tried booting frtom the USB installer I made - works perfectly.
Total time to the HS final setup but without Migration took 40 minutes. But I used a USB 2.0 Flash drive I had sitting around.
If I made another USB installer I would use a USB 3.0 flash drive

And no, you don't use both the HS Installer and the HS patch installer - the HS patch installer is only required if you want to install HS on a Mac that is not officially supported by Apple.
I installed it on a Mac Mini late 2012 which is supported. In fact, when I went to get the HS installer on the HS Patch Installer website, I actually got a message that I don't need the patch installer for my Mac.
In general, being a former Product Manager of software products, I thought the Patch Installer UI was well done.

If you just want the full HS installer to make a USB install drive, you just go to the tools dropdown of the Patch Installer website and download the HS installer - there you get the full 5GB+ installer.
The download ends up in your document folder - I just selected it from there when I made the USB installer using Disk Creator.

ferrarr said:

I’m surprised nobody has the installers on a “backup” drive? After the installer is originally downloaded, aren’t we supposed to make a new “good” backup, to avoid this issue?


Bob -

Sent from my iPad using Mac-Forums

Click to expand...

I'm not sure what you mean "having the installer on the backup".
Once you download the installer from Apple and actually install the software, the installer gets deleted from your Mac.
The only way you can actually end up with a full installer on your Mac is by not actually installing the software when it tells you to after the download.
For HS that does not work.

pm-r said:

Say, anyone else wondering what's wrong with Apple and their recent macOS downloads and installs the last few years

Click to expand...

One can actually download the full installers for all OSs from Mountain Lion up to and including Mojave, EXCEPT High Sierra.

There has to be a reason why Apple has set up the HS install the way they have - I read somewhere that some Macs require a firmware update and doing the install in two steps allows that, but I'm not sure if that is actually true.

BTW - my Mac restarted about three times during the HS install, but Apple noted when the install started that multiple starts are normal - so no issue there, just a heads up in case somedone panics when the Mac restarts on its own.

PS: I'm just reading in another thread that someone had trouble installing Mojave because they needed a f/w update.
Turned out they needed a "Helper Tool" to do the f/w upgrade.
The "Helper Tool" was part of the HS installer download from the HS patch website and showed up at some point during the download or install - don't remember exactly where.

krs said:

I'm not sure what you mean "having the installer on the backup".
Once you download the installer from Apple and actually install the software, the installer gets deleted from your Mac.
The only way you can actually end up with a full installer on your Mac is by not actually installing the software when it tells you to after the download.
For HS that does not work.

Click to expand...

If you make a Time Machine or clone backup after the installer has downloaded completely, you will have a copy of the installer on your backup.

One thing I usually do is download each version of each update to macOS, so in Time Machine each update version is available to make an installer if needed. Because when you update in place, you don’t get the 10.xx.3 or 10.xx.5, etc.


Bob -

Sent from my iPad using Mac-Forums

Along the same lines - when I download a new OS installer from the Apple Store it goes into Applications. I stop it installing at that point, make a copy to an EHD, then from the original installer in Applications, make a bootable USB Installer with Diskmaker X onto a USB Stick.

That way I have 2 copies; the original Installer from Apple and a USB Bootable installer on a USB stick.

Ian

pm-r said:

Say, anyone else wondering what's wrong with Apple and their recent macOS downloads and installs the last few years, and personally I'd say just from this thread alone that the situation is a bit ludicrous and pathetic!!!

At least some third parties try and solve the problem as shown by the link krs provided above — IF it still works and with Apple's blessings.

A pretty sad situation I'd say.

Click to expand...

I'm actually the one who posted the link. I guess I was lucky because back when I swapped the HDD in my iMac for an SSD, I was able to download High Sierra without issue and also create a bootable USB drive following Apple's instructions without issue. The clean install also went without a hitch. It is disturbing to hear some are experiencing such frustrating issues, though. Wish Apple had an article to clear the air on it.

Once you download the installer from Apple and actually install the software, the installer gets deleted from your Mac.
The only way you can actually end up with a full installer on your Mac is by not actually installing the software when it tells you to after the download.

Click to expand...

I've always just saved a copy of the Mac OS X installers and kept them in an "Installer Stuff" folder at the Root level.

They also then end up on my bootable CCC cloned backup and can be used from there if and whenever needed. Possibly the same thing as Bob was suggesting.





- Patrick
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Correct, Patrick. I made that point in post #33 as well.

Ian

This is great, thanks. But a question, sorry for my ignorance. Im trying to find the HS Patch website and all I find are references to the dosdude1 site. Is there an official Apple HS Patch site? I'd rather go there.

Is there an official Apple HS Patch site? I'd rather go there.

Click to expand...

You're joking right??? Or maybe new to the Mac/Apple world??

JFYI, Apple does NOT supply nor support hacks of any sort. And personally, I wouldn't even consider trying any HS Patch.

But I like and prefer using reliable and fully working machines.





- Patrick
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IWT said:

Correct, Patrick. I made that point in post #33 as well.

Ian

Click to expand...

OK, and I guess I reinforced the comment Ian, and maybe I should refresh the page before posting to make sure everything is loaded.





- Patrick
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Nope, not kidding and as I wrote, I'm not knowledgeable about these things. I did not understand that this was an unofficial hack. The major reason I use a Mac and not (usually) Windows is because the Mac mostly just works. In the meanwhile, I still need to somehow create a HS installer disk on a flash drive and all I'm able to download is the 22mb file.