I would like to have a completely separate instance of MacOS on my Macbook.
That means, files that I create/save, applications that I install on one instance has no impact on the other Mac instance.
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 11.3
This article from Apple regarding your question should offer the needed information
link below
Use more than one version of macOS on a Mac
Notation: whatever " separate instance of MacOS " the user intends to run, the computer must Qualify to run that version of macOS
To help identify what Other version this computer Qualifies to run, refer to links below
Computer Qualifying for macOS 13 Ventura
Computer Qualify for the Monterey upgrade
macOS Big Sur 11 hardware requirements
macOS Catalina 10.15 hardware requirements
macOS Mojave 10.14 hardware requirements
This article from Apple regarding your question should offer the needed information
link below
Use more than one version of macOS on a Mac
Notation: whatever " separate instance of MacOS " the user intends to run, the computer must Qualify to run that version of macOS
To help identify what Other version this computer Qualifies to run, refer to links below
Computer Qualifying for macOS 13 Ventura
Computer Qualify for the Monterey upgrade
macOS Big Sur 11 hardware requirements
macOS Catalina 10.15 hardware requirements
macOS Mojave 10.14 hardware requirements
The Install the Other Instance of macOS on an External Drive
That would isolate the Good from the Bad
The other caveat is that the second instance of macOS cannot be older than what originally shipped on that Mac model. You also likely do not want Spotlight or Time Machine on one instance of macOS accessing the other dormant macOS volume. I would drag/drop the dormant Macintosh HD icon into the Spotlight Privacy pane and exclude from Time Machine on the active macOS volume.
I don't necessarily want a separate version of MacOS. I don't mind if it's the same version.
I just want it to be a separate instance, so anything I install, any potential bugs that are introduced, do not affect the other account that I use on an everyday basis.
As there are 2 separate Contributors ( VikingOSX & P. Phillips ) on your question it getting confusing to Whom your above reply is intended for.
The same principle would apply using the method from previous link able.
But, I do not see any usefulness of running 2 identical versions of macOS on one computer.
If issue swill occur in Original Installation and you add a second Instance of the same Version of macOS on another Volume - what makes the user believes it will not still have the same issues ?
I want to have a separate instance to have a testing environment for software. I dont want my main instance of Mac to be affected by bad software.
How do I run a separate instance of Mac?
