Trying to Download macOS Catalina Installer

I am in the process of setting up my late 2013 iMac to boot from an external SSD to improve performance. I am following instructions I found online but I can't get the Catalina installer to download. I click get, it asked if I am sure, I say yes, the progress bar shows that it is 8.25 GB of 8.25 downloaded but errors out before it's done and I don't have the installer in my Apps.


Installation Error: An error occurred while installing the selected updates


I think it is trying to update vs just download and sees that I already have that version?


Is there anything I can change to just get the Installer downloaded so I can install on my external drive?


Posted on Feb 13, 2023 05:58 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Feb 13, 2023 07:12 AM

Follow this help article: Reinstall macOS - Apple Support (i.e., Cmd+R for recovery mode)


The only change in the steps would be you should select your external SSD when prompted to choose "select a disk".


Hope it helps.

Similar questions

2 replies

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Trying to Download macOS Catalina Installer

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.