I can't restore it from the time machine.

There was a move and the imac was turned off, 15.3 was on it After turning on On March 10, makos was updated immediately, updated to 15.3.1 and does not allow data to be restored from the timemachine, it offers to reinstall macos on 15.3, which is not available, and the new installer immediately downloads 15.3.2

Where can I get 15.3 or how can I restore data from 15.3 -> 15.3.1?

iMac (2017 – 2020)

Posted on Mar 21, 2025 2:19 AM

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Mar 21, 2025 4:30 AM in response to Art_Mo

Art_Mo wrote:

I need to recover from the time machine. the backup was made on version 15.3
It is currently installed on 15.3.1 and when trying to restore, it says reinstall macos

It remains unclear to me


If the computer was upgraded from Sequoia 15.?? to Sequoia 15.3.2


What is it you are trying to do ?


As mentioned by @Barney-15E


All your data should still be on / in the computer


Use macOS Recovery on a Mac with Apple silicon - Apple Silicon Computer


Use macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac - Apple Intel Computer


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Mar 21, 2025 2:48 AM in response to Art_Mo

If I understand correctly ?


You what to downgrade the computer from Sequoia 15.3.2 to an earlier version of Sequoia on an Apple Silicon Computer or on Intel iMac ?


In either case, why is it necessary to downgrade to an earlier version of Sequoia ?


Time Machine Backup Utility Does Not Have a Full and Working Copy of the Operating System





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Mar 21, 2025 2:59 AM in response to Art_Mo

There was a move and the imac was turned off, 15.3 was on it After turning on On March 10, makos was updated immediately, updated to 15.3.1 and does not allow data to be restored from the timemachine,


Why not? What happens when you Enter Time Machine. Or, do you mean you can’t restore macOS? Time Machine doesn’t back up the System Volume, only data.


15.3 may still be available via softwareupdate in Terminal. I’m not at a Mac to check.

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Mar 21, 2025 4:00 AM in response to Art_Mo

Art_Mo wrote:

I need to recover from the time machine. the backup was made on version 15.3
It is currently installed on 15.3.1 and when trying to restore, it says reinstall macos

That is the process for restoring an entire drive. As noted, Time Machine does not back up the OS so you must install it first and then you migrate your data., But I don’t understand if it updated to 15.3.2 it wouldn’t have erased your data and it all should still be there. If you erase your drive, then you need to migrate your data from your backup.

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Mar 21, 2025 4:56 AM in response to Art_Mo

Art_Mo wrote:

I'm trying to restore the data, but the timemachine says it can't restore the data from 15.3 to 15.3.1

Data as I understand it


Would be, the all the Data contained in the User Account that was backed up previously


Not the Operating System


That being said, the User Account when the computer was running Sequoia 15.3

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Mar 21, 2025 5:03 AM in response to Art_Mo

Follow on


If and only If you have wiped the computer of ALL Data


That being Both the Operating System and the User Account DATA


Again as @Barney-15E has rightfully outlined earlier


You will Have to Install the Operating System - First


Then, migrate your User Account Data back onto the computer

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Mar 21, 2025 5:25 AM in response to Art_Mo

It looks like you're trying to restore data from a Time Machine backup made on macOS Sequoia 15.3, but your iMac has been updated to 15.3.1, and when you attempt to restore, it suggests reinstalling macOS 15.3, which isn't available since the installer automatically downloads 15.3.2.

Time Machine doesn't back up the operating system, only your user data. To restore your data, you need to first install a compatible macOS version (15.3.1 or 15.3.2) and then use Migration Assistant to transfer your user data from the backup.

Downgrading to macOS 15.3 is not necessary; you can proceed with restoring your data on 15.3.1 or later.

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Mar 21, 2025 7:11 AM in response to Art_Mo

Art_Mo wrote:

I'm trying to restore the data, but the timemachine says it can't restore the data from 15.3 to 15.3.1

That doesn’t make any sense. It would if the versions were reversed. You need to migrate from a backup set made on the the version you are migrating into. You can’t migrate data from 15.3.1 to 15.3, but you can migrate from 15.3 to 15.3.1.

And, to reiterate, you must use Migration not Restore.

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Mar 21, 2025 11:51 AM in response to Art_Mo

Art_Mo wrote:

does not allow data to be restored from the timemachine

Some confusion about what you are trying to do.


Are you trying to restore, say, just one file (or a few files) from the Time Machine backup? If so, connect the Time Machine drive, select "enter Time Machine" from the pull down menu associated with the clock-like Time Machine icon at the top right of your screen, and select the file to restore.


If you are trying to restore all your files from the Time Machine backup, that would be a migration, as others here have pointed out. Open Migration Assistant and answer the questions and you can have it migrate your entire account and all your files. No reason to do that unless somehow your Mac has been erased, however. Those files should all still be on your Mac if it was simply shut down for the move and then restarted.


If the Time Machine backup was made while your Mac was on 15.3, and now your Mac is on 15.3.1 or 15.3.2, you can restore individual files that you select to the Mac from that backup, by "entering Time Machine" as I explained above. Or you can restore your account and all its files, by using Migration Assistant.

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I can't restore it from the time machine.

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