Advice on changing my mac OS

I personally have never lost data simply due to an upgrade. although it can and sometimes does occur. that is why it is always recommended to make a backup of your data before ANY major changes to macOS, including upgrades. the simplest method is to Back up your Mac with Time Machine.

as far as which macOS to upgrade to, I would (and do) keep my Mac on the most recent macOS that it can run. and if you want to upgrade, you can skip over a couple versions to get to your desired macOS. but if you have the time, you might want to consider upgrading one macOS at a time.

rf4c wrote:

Mac Mini M1 operating Monterey 12.7.6. It's been working fine for me so why change!

Change so that you don't have to go through a large batch of 'fix its' when you finally decide you've had enough of the "things I can't do" and "apps I can't get to work" with the older OS.

However now I'm finding more and more the things I can't do, apps I can't get to work, etc. SO I guess it's time

I came up to date!

My biggest fear is upgrading and after that final reboot, finding that stuff has disappeared, stuff needs days and days of re-configuring to work, and all the misery that comes with it!

If you keep your macOS up to date on a regular basis, then these problems will be kept to a minimum. You adapt and adjust to the minor changes in small increments along the way, not all at once when you're two or three major OS revisions behind the curve.

Also, by keeping your Mac's OS up to date, you guarantee yourself the longest potential lifespan for the computer.

Advice please: How to I get from Monterey and what system to I upgrade to?

What precautions do I need to ensure I don't wreck my digital world?

If it all goes bad, is there a way back?

Make sure you have a Time Machine (or other) backup of your stuff. Carbon Copy Cloner and SuperSuper! are two highly recommended backup solutions. If things go sideways you must have a data backup to recover.

If I were in your shoes, I would bite the bullet and upgrade first to Sequoia 15.7.1 in one shot. Typically the upgrade would be fine and you can sort out anything that might go awry. Once you have a handle on Sequoia, then sit tight until Tahoe 26.2 or 26.3 is released, then upgrade to that if you wish. Most veteran users will wait until the n.1 or n.2 OS release before upgrading if for no other reason than to watch and see what issues may arise as others play the guinea pig and jump on the brand new release.

D.I. Johnson wrote:

If I were in your shoes, I would bite the bullet and upgrade first to Sequoia 15.7.1 in one shot. Typically the upgrade would be fine and you can sort out anything that might go awry. Once you have a handle on Sequoia, then sit tight until Tahoe 26.2 or 26.3 is released, then upgrade to that if you wish. Most veteran users will wait until the n.1 or n.2 OS release before upgrading if for no other reason than to watch and see what issues may arise as others play the guinea pig and jump on the brand new release.

Wholehearted agreement with that recommendation.

To the OP - if you plan to upgrade from Monterey, go to Sequoia 15.7.1 or 15.7.2 whichever is available. Don't jump straight to Tahoe (26.xx) anything.

Make sure you have a backup of your data before attempting any upgrade.

Also, before upgrading, check all your apps. Chances are that you have some apps that will also need upgrading - and that may have a cost. I recently looked into upgrading from Monterey to Sonoma and in the process discovered that at least 2 of my apps would require a paid upgrade costing more than $200 ... and one of them would change its licensing in an unfavorable way ... so I decided just to keep that Mac and the apps on Monterey.

rf4c wrote:

Hi friends,

Thank you all very much for the advice.

you're welcome.

Whatever I do then, I still have my (very very critical) data!

since your data is critical, I would recommend more than one backup, using different methods of backup. and keep one of those backups in an off site location in case of fire, flood, or some other unforeseen disaster.

I came here bewildered and now I have a firm plan, thanks to you folks.

yes, this is a wonderful source for knowledge about apple products.

Bless you all,

Jim

and the best wishes to you as well. :)