I bought a new iMac and tried to use the migration assistant to transfer all my files from my old Mac and I’ve had problems with my new Mac starting up and downloading all of the apps that I previously had. Is there a way to start over?

Well as stated, 32 bit apps will not work. If you have the old Mac, start it up and open About this Mac and then open System Report and then click Applications and wait for it to populate. Then look in the column that will state if they are 32 or 64 bit. Look for apps you are referring to and if they say they are 32 bit that is your answer, they won't work. So they either need to be upgraded or replaced. No there are no work arounds to run 32 bit apps on Big Sur and now you cannot downgrade Big Sur.

Please shutdown normally and then try holding down the startup button for about 15 seconds. Then tell us what occurs. The old apps you would have problems with should be 32 bit apps as they will not run on Big Sur. Did you check your old apps prior to migrating to verify they were 64 bit versions?

I just bought a new iMac. Before I transfer my information from my old (2009) computer, I noticed several apps that didn't seem to be 64 bit apps. What is the best way to transfer the information to my new computer without creating all the problems described by jsawyer99?

Although s/he's case is different, delete all 32-bit apps. There might be some Apple 32-bit apps, like DVD player. Don't worry about deleting stuff like that.

Cheers,

Jack