High Sierra installer download fails on Mac App Store application

"/Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate.plist" :

defaults:

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate AutomaticCheckEnabled -bool false

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate AutomaticDownload -bool false

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate ConfigDataInstall -bool false

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate CriticalUpdateInstall -bool false

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate InactiveUpdates -array

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastAttemptBuildVersion -string "10.13.6 (17G66)"

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastAttemptSystemVersion -string "10.13.6 (17G66)"

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastFullSuccessfulDate -date "2025-06-25 19:50:49 +0000"

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastRecommendedUpdatesAvailable -int 0

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastResultCode -int 100

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastSessionSuccessful -bool true

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastSuccessfulDate -date "2025-06-25 19:50:49 +0000"

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate LastUpdatesAvailable -int 0

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate PrimaryLanguages -array -string en -string en-US

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate RecommendedUpdates -array

defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.SoftwareUpdate SkipLocalCDN -bool false

======

I know it reports a successful download but I also updated a non-Apple application today.

That direct link to Sierra works for me, since it is basically FTP, but I don't need Sierra.

I don't want Catalina. I want to keep this old iMac on an OS that is 32 bit application capable should I really need to use several applications I use daily that have no 64 bit application equivalents just using what it has now. I simply want the OS on the internal drive instead of booting to the external drive the way I am now. I do have Mojave on a USB flash drive for "emergencies". I know those aren't really good as a boot drive but if comes down to it just for downloading High Sierra I could boot to it.

That's interesting that Apple axed Mavericks from its downloads. I do remember in the past they have removed certain versions of software where if your hardware was too new to run one version but could run various newer versions, they just offered you the newest your computer could run. So maybe now they are telling you if you have hardware that is capable of more than Mountain Lion you should at least be running Yosemite? I don't have the time to research it now.

Incidentally, trying to download Mojave using the Mac App Store application does get me a stub installer.

I am using the "reinstall" button to see if it will do anything at all in terms of getting High Sierra (I don't want to actually reinstall it on this drive but to install it on another one). I have simply been trying pretty much everything that didn't involve booting to a newer OS just to see if I could download it using that, or involve doing all that Terminal stuff while booted to recovery (I'd have to print those pages of instructions). Neither the App Store application nor trying to get it while booted to Recovery will work.

shaneeeitaliano wrote:

Try using a bootable installer

That's the whole thing. If I had one I wouldn't need to download High Sierra. I could probably just copy the installer file off it.