My old iMac doesn't give me access to store my photos in the cloud. Given there is no box to tick, as there is on my more recent iMac from 2022 how should I save them? This old iMac is looking a bit sketchy and I'd like to get these old images off before it's too late.
Thanks
iMac 24″, macOS 15.6
According to this Support article, iCloud Photos still works with Sierra (though not with anything less).
System requirements for iCloud - Apple Support
You could also back up the photos from the old Mac to an external hard drive or SSD (something you should have been doing all along). That would not automatically merge them into your current Photo library, but at least might let them survive the death of the old machine.
Johnthestrugglingdirector wrote: … how should I save them? This old iMac is looking a bit sketchy and I'd like to get these old images off before it's too late.
Right! You don't say-- is the Sierra Mac using the Photos app, or is it using iPhoto? How big is the Library?
In either case the very best thing to do is to copy the Library to an external drive. The Photos Library is cleverly named "Photos Library.photoslibrary," and it's in the Pictures folder. (The iPhoto Library is similar.) Just drag it to an external drive. The best format for the drive is Apple's APFS, and it must be formatted in either APFS format or Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format to be safely run the Library. Storing the Library in other formats is OK, but running a Library from a non Apple format can corrupt it.
A newer Photos app should be able to run an older Library, but it will have to update it first. You should do this on another copy of the Library, just in case. Once updated, a Photos Library can't be run from an older version of Photos.
Macs can have multiple Libraries, and you can just double click on one to use switch to using it. You can combine Libraries-- you can use File>Import to bring in pictures from another library. However, you don't get albums and folders that way.
For dealing with multiple Libraries, importing albums as well as pictures, and even merging two libraries into a combined one, we use the trusted 3rd party app PowerPhotos ($35) which can help with lots of other things as well.
If you're using iCloud Photo on your Silicon iMac the you can use the paid version of PowerPhotos to merge the library from the 2009 iMac with your current Photos library on your Silicon iMac and let it add the photos to the iCloud library.
The Photos User Guide still states that iCloud Photos is available for OS X v10.10.3 Yosemite or later. I remember that I have been using iCloud Photos since Photos came out on Yosemite. iCloud Photos has been my main reason to switch from Aperture and iPhoto to Photos for MAc.
On OS X Sierra 10.12 you need first to enable iCloud Photos in the System Preferences for iCloud.
Then make the Photos Library your System Photos Library in the Photos > Preferences > General, and only then you should be able to enable iCloud Photos in the Photos > Preferences > iCloud.
If your photo library is still an iPhoto Library or Aperture Library and not yet a Photos Library, you have to create a Photos Library fro it to be able to enable iCloud Photos. Open the iPhoto library on your old iMac in Photos by dragging it onto the Photos icon in the Dock.
The best format in this case is Mac OS Extended (Journaled, Non-Case-Sensitive).
Apple introduced APFS in High Sierra, and the OP’s old iMac is running the previous version of macOS.
How do I move photos from an old iMac 2009 running Mac OS Sierra version 10.12.6 to the cloud?
