oxcart

Q: Downgrade to Snow Leopard

I just spoke to an applecare advisor and he said that it is possible to downgrade a new mac that came with Mountain Lion, but that they were not allowed to tell me how to do it.

 

Does anybody have any info on this topic?

 

Thanks

Posted on Feb 1, 2013 2:55 AM

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Q: Downgrade to Snow Leopard

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  • by oxcart,

    oxcart oxcart Feb 8, 2013 1:15 PM in response to MlchaelLAX
    Level 1 (84 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 8, 2013 1:15 PM in response to MlchaelLAX

    I find that generally speaking, most people under 30 do NOT get the joke (look closely inside the Digital Media Player's video screen)!

     

    That might depend where you live.  The HMV record store here in Oxford had a larger than life model of the dog and gramaphone in the window, and I kind of assumed that they all had it.  Not for much longer though, as they just went bankrupt.  Anyway, nice Avatar.

  • by oxcart,

    oxcart oxcart Feb 9, 2013 5:31 AM in response to oxcart
    Level 1 (84 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 9, 2013 5:31 AM in response to oxcart

    Hi Guys,  Since we have this thread going I would be grateful for another piece of info.  I am looking at a refurbed MBP but the earliest I can find is October 2011.

     

    Originally released October 2011

    15.4-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit Hi-Res antiglare widescreen display, 1680-by-1050 resolution


    4GB (2 x 2GB) of 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM

    128GB Solid State Drive

    8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)

    Intel HD Graphics 3000 and AMD Radeon HD 6770M

     

    It has the Radeon graphics but the version is one higher than the i7 I currently have running SL.

     

    Do you know if this will accept the cloned SL donwgrade?

     

    Thanks.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Feb 9, 2013 5:42 AM in response to oxcart
    Level 9 (52,516 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 9, 2013 5:42 AM in response to oxcart

    I have a late 2011 17" MBP with Snow Leopard installed on it.  If the version is 10.6 8, you should be able to install it via cloning.

     

    Ciao

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa Feb 9, 2013 8:46 AM in response to oxcart
    Level 7 (32,117 points)
    iPad
    Feb 9, 2013 8:46 AM in response to oxcart

    I would not count on it being able to boot with SL. Depending on when it was released and which build it has, it may or may not - the general rule is and has always been: you cannot boot a Mac with an OS version earlier than what it came with. Here is a list of builds and the OS they had installed:

     

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1159

  • by MlchaelLAX,

    MlchaelLAX MlchaelLAX Feb 9, 2013 9:04 AM in response to oxcart
    Level 4 (2,256 points)
    Feb 9, 2013 9:04 AM in response to oxcart

    oxcart wrote:

     

    That might depend where you live.  The HMV record store here in Oxford had a larger than life model of the dog and gramaphone in the window, and I kind of assumed that they all had it.  Not for much longer though, as they just went bankrupt.  Anyway, nice Avatar.

    Thank you!

     

    Yes, it my recents visits to London, it was nice to see Nipper still in use by HMV (His Master's Voice) - a retail record (CD) chain in Europe. He was originally shared by five separate international companies, four of which have in one way or another, abandoned him!

     

    I am sorry to hear they have financial troubles and may spell the end of Nipper (at least outside of California!)

  • by seventy one,

    seventy one seventy one Feb 9, 2013 9:03 AM in response to MlchaelLAX
    Level 6 (15,175 points)
    Peripherals
    Feb 9, 2013 9:03 AM in response to MlchaelLAX

    Make them an offer for the items in the Oxford window, Michael.  They're bankrupt, they need the money ... and you could have a larger than life companion at the bottom of your bed!

  • by MlchaelLAX,

    MlchaelLAX MlchaelLAX Feb 9, 2013 9:06 AM in response to seventy one
    Level 4 (2,256 points)
    Feb 9, 2013 9:06 AM in response to seventy one

    That is an interesting suggestion. But not for the reason you suggest...

  • by MlchaelLAX,

    MlchaelLAX MlchaelLAX Feb 9, 2013 9:12 AM in response to oxcart
    Level 4 (2,256 points)
    Feb 9, 2013 9:12 AM in response to oxcart

    oxcart wrote:

     

    Hi Guys,  Since we have this thread going I would be grateful for another piece of info.  I am looking at a refurbed MBP but the earliest I can find is October 2011.

    I suggested in an earlier post, a link to how to make a 10.6.7 version of the Install DVD, although I have never tried it.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Feb 9, 2013 9:10 AM in response to babowa
    Level 9 (52,516 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 9, 2013 9:10 AM in response to babowa

    Baboawa, greetings:  You cannot use a retail disk and install it in a late 20011 MBP.  If you have a MBP that came with Snow Leopard or earlier, you can install 10.6 .? and then update it to 10.6.8.  Clone that to an external HDD and it will boot a late 2011 MBP.  Then you can copy to the internal HDD of the 2011 MBP.  That is how I installed it on my 2011 MBP.

     

    If the OP uses this process, I am willing to wager that it will work.

     

    Ciao.

  • by MlchaelLAX,

    MlchaelLAX MlchaelLAX Feb 9, 2013 9:15 AM in response to OGELTHORPE
    Level 4 (2,256 points)
    Feb 9, 2013 9:15 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

    OGELTHORPE wrote:

     

    Clone that to an external HDD and it will boot a late 2011 MBP.

    Can this method be transfered to a flash drive for OP's portable use to test the MBP in question (by attempting to boot it from the flash drive), before he purchases it?  How big of a flash drive does he need?  I am guessing 16GB just after the update to 10.6.8 and before any other applications are installed.

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa Feb 9, 2013 9:43 AM in response to OGELTHORPE
    Level 7 (32,117 points)
    iPad
    Feb 9, 2013 9:43 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

    Yes, of course I know you can install Snow Leopard if it originally came with that. However, chances are, that a late 2011 MBP  did not come with Snow Leopard installed.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Feb 9, 2013 10:17 AM in response to MlchaelLAX
    Level 9 (52,516 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 9, 2013 10:17 AM in response to MlchaelLAX

    MichaelLax, greetings; Please keep this premise in mind: A late 2011 MBP will only allow 10.6 to be installed is if it has been updated to 10.6.8.

     

    One could use a USB drive to install the OS but there is a practical issue to be considered.  If you just want the 10.6.8 OS, then you have to delete all of the other data on the source HDD.  If you want to transfer all of the data, then the USB must be large enough to accommodate all of the data.  If you erase the user data, then you should be able to calculate the size of the USB thumb drive.  (This does not make an install USB.  That is another proposition.)

     

    Just prior to this response I took a HDD that has 3 partitions, one with 10.6.8, one with 10.5 and one with 10.4.  I connected it to the late 2011 MBP and the 10.6.8 booted as expected.  When I tried 10.5, the MBP vomited.

     

    All you have to do is use Disk Utility>Restore to transfer the OS and the data.

     

    Ciao.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Feb 9, 2013 10:21 AM in response to babowa
    Level 9 (52,516 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 9, 2013 10:21 AM in response to babowa

    Babaowa, greetings:  My late 2011 MBP came with Lion installed.  That was not a 'show stopper'.  Please understand that my proboscis is now so large I cannot afford to lie.

     

    Ciao.

  • by babowa,

    babowa babowa Feb 9, 2013 10:29 AM in response to OGELTHORPE
    Level 7 (32,117 points)
    iPad
    Feb 9, 2013 10:29 AM in response to OGELTHORPE

    Interesting, thanks. I had heard that some machines were capable of booting with Snow Leopard depending on exactly when they were manufactured. Obviously you were lucky since yours is one of those.

  • by noondaywitch,

    noondaywitch noondaywitch Feb 9, 2013 10:47 AM in response to babowa
    Level 6 (8,147 points)
    Feb 9, 2013 10:47 AM in response to babowa

    a brody's usertip; https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-2455#SnowLion

    details which Macs can run SL. Scroll to last section.

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