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As far as I can tell, I should be able to upgrade from 10.9.5 on a MacBook Pro, late 2013, 8GB memory. But I can't find any way to make it happen. There's no "Software Update" in System Preferences and clicking on Software Update in Apple says No Apple Updates Available. Going to Catalina in Apple Store displays a page with lots of information but no download or other way to get the update software.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Mac Pro
What OS do you want to install, there is a world of a difference between El Capitan and Catalina.
When you tried to install El Capitan what happened, from the link I gave you at Section 4
you would click Download OS X El Capitan, this downloads Install MacOSX.dmg, open that to
get Install.MacOSX.pkg, double-click on that and an installation window will open, this does not
install El Capitan but converts the .pkg to the Install OS X El Capitan.app that appears in your
Applications folder, clicking on that will start the installation of El Capitan, or you can use it to
create a bootable USB, How to create a bootable installer for macOS – Apple Support
Do you really want to jump straight up to Catalina, you can do it but be prepared for big changes.
just use the Install macOS Catalina.app or you can make a bootable installer as suggested above.
As you have already tried the Catalina install app be prepared that it does look like it is doing
nothing for a long time but be patient. The main Install macOS Catalina screen will sit for about
10 minutes, perhaps more before it restarts to a back screen with the white Apple logo and
a white progress bar that will give you a very loose estimate of the time it will take.
Remember the Catalina install will be converting your disk from HFS+ to APFS.
Personally I would go to Mojave first, again your disk will be converted to APFS
but Mojave is a more kinda warm sand between the toes feeling rather than the
cold unrelenting waves of uncertainty that surround Catalina.
Whatever you decide do your homework first and make those back ups.
What OS do you want to install, there is a world of a difference between El Capitan and Catalina.
When you tried to install El Capitan what happened, from the link I gave you at Section 4
you would click Download OS X El Capitan, this downloads Install MacOSX.dmg, open that to
get Install.MacOSX.pkg, double-click on that and an installation window will open, this does not
install El Capitan but converts the .pkg to the Install OS X El Capitan.app that appears in your
Applications folder, clicking on that will start the installation of El Capitan, or you can use it to
create a bootable USB, How to create a bootable installer for macOS – Apple Support
Do you really want to jump straight up to Catalina, you can do it but be prepared for big changes.
just use the Install macOS Catalina.app or you can make a bootable installer as suggested above.
As you have already tried the Catalina install app be prepared that it does look like it is doing
nothing for a long time but be patient. The main Install macOS Catalina screen will sit for about
10 minutes, perhaps more before it restarts to a back screen with the white Apple logo and
a white progress bar that will give you a very loose estimate of the time it will take.
Remember the Catalina install will be converting your disk from HFS+ to APFS.
Personally I would go to Mojave first, again your disk will be converted to APFS
but Mojave is a more kinda warm sand between the toes feeling rather than the
cold unrelenting waves of uncertainty that surround Catalina.
Whatever you decide do your homework first and make those back ups.
The App Store Updates page only informs you of updates available for the OS you are currently running.
As you are running an older system then you are probably up to date on that system
If you want to install a newer OS that is called an Upgrade.
The model and year of your Mac will determine which macOS you can upgrade to,
read the following links.
How to upgrade to macOS Mojave - Apple Support
How to upgrade to macOS High Sierra - Apple Support
How to upgrade to OS X El Capitan - Apple Support
Before upgrading make a full back up of your Mac.
Check that third party apps you use have updates available for the new OS.
Check that your printers/ scanners etc have updated drivers and software available for the new OS.
If you are considering upgrading to Catalina be warned that it does not support 32bit apps.
Your Mac is probably running 32bit apps and these will need to be updated to 64bit apps,
some updates may be free, some may be paid. Use this app to discover which apps you have
are 32bit, https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/. Once the list has been created you can then
contact the developers of the apps to see if they provide 64bit updates.
I’ll assume the installer app is larger than four gigabytes; that it’s a “full” installer and not a “runt” installer as Apple has sometimes used for some upgrades. The “runt” installer still works, but has to download the full installer, and that can take a while depending on your network speed, and the backlog at the Apple servers. (I’ve not met a “runt” Catalina installer, but there’ve been other “runt” installers around, and with no clear pattern known for who gets which...)
Boot into Safe Mode, and try the install again.
Do you have add-on anti-virus, add-on anti-malware, add-on cleaners, add-on firewall apps, or add-on VPN clients? If so, remove those per the vendors’ instructions, reboot, and try again.
Thank you. I did try to upgrad to El Capitan using the information on the upgrade page you suggested. I was able to download the file, then run it. Everything appeared normal, it said the upgrade completed successfully, but my Mac still says I'm at 10.9.5. (this is both before and after a reboot) Shouldn't it indicate the new OS?
Do you have an app in your Applications folder called Install OS X El Capitan, or Install macOS Catalina?
If so, click in that to start the respective installation.
You’ll want a complete and current external backup or two prior to commencing the installation. If you’re using Time Machine, re-using Time Machine can flush your chances of downgrades if there’s not enough storage for everything, so an external clone of your current version can be handy and can be preferable. This backup is your only reasonable downgrade path, if something goes wrong with the upgrade.
Thanks for your response. I did find an app call install macOS Catalina. When I try to install, it goes through a few screens until it gets to one that has a button to click labelled "Install". When I click that, nothing happens. I waited an hour and a half, but no change, so I just terminated the app. Not sure what to do next.
To follow up, in my searching I found that in the App Store macOS Catalina says "installed" in a grey shade which can't be clicked. Any suggestions? Thanks.
Upgrade from 10.9.5 to Catalina
