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Mr.Camaro

Q: OS X 10.8.1 upgrade installation not working.

I tried to upgrade from 10.8.1 Mountain Lion to 10.11.~ El Captain. But When it finished downloading, it went into the install boot. It installs about 3/4s of the bar then stops and shuts down. I can't boot into safe mode, I can't boot into recovery. Is there any way to Abort the installation without damaging any of the information on the hard drive? I am within the requirements to do the upgrade so that shouldn't be the problem and I have more that 300Gb free.

iMac, iOS 8.1

Posted on Aug 13, 2016 12:21 PM

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Q: OS X 10.8.1 upgrade installation not working.

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  • by stevejobsfan0123,

    stevejobsfan0123 stevejobsfan0123 Aug 13, 2016 12:25 PM in response to Mr.Camaro
    Level 8 (43,494 points)
    iPhone
    Aug 13, 2016 12:25 PM in response to Mr.Camaro

    Nothing happens when you shut down and then hold the option key while restarting? What about holding the Command, option and R keys, which should boot to Internet Recovery if you have a supported Mac?

  • by Mr.Camaro,

    Mr.Camaro Mr.Camaro Aug 13, 2016 12:27 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 13, 2016 12:27 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

    I am using a wireless keyboard and its not wanting to see the keyboard. No commands work.  or anything.

  • by stevejobsfan0123,

    stevejobsfan0123 stevejobsfan0123 Aug 13, 2016 12:33 PM in response to Mr.Camaro
    Level 8 (43,494 points)
    iPhone
    Aug 13, 2016 12:33 PM in response to Mr.Camaro

    Oh, I see. In order to use any of the startup key combinations, make sure that you press the keys immediately after, but not before, you hear the startup chime. OS X performs some self checks before activating Bluetooth accessories, indicated by the startup chime. If you cannot get that to work, then you probably need access to a wired keyboard. If you do not have one, hopefully you have an Apple Store nearby, where you can make an appointment and they should be able to help complete the installation (and have access to a wired keyboard).

  • by Mr.Camaro,

    Mr.Camaro Mr.Camaro Aug 13, 2016 12:45 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 13, 2016 12:45 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

    The Command Options R didnt work either. The only wired keyboard I have is an old Dell. and when I was in between keyboards because my first one shorted out. I was using the Dell but the commands wouldn't work. Control/Windows/Options wouldn't work. The nearest apple store is 70 miles away, I dont have the money to do a drive that far. I am also not covered by any warranty etc...

  • by stevejobsfan0123,

    stevejobsfan0123 stevejobsfan0123 Aug 13, 2016 12:50 PM in response to Mr.Camaro
    Level 8 (43,494 points)
    iPhone
    Aug 13, 2016 12:50 PM in response to Mr.Camaro

    The Dell keyboard should work, if you press Windows + alt + R. See: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/970299.

     

    If you press the caps lock key on the keyboard, does a light on the keyboard come on (assuming it has one)? If not, then the keyboard may not be getting recognized.

  • by Mr.Camaro,

    Mr.Camaro Mr.Camaro Aug 13, 2016 1:35 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 13, 2016 1:35 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

    The Dell didn't get seen, its as if its not taking any commands.

  • by M Irwin,

    M Irwin M Irwin Aug 13, 2016 3:02 PM in response to Mr.Camaro
    Level 1 (109 points)
    Aug 13, 2016 3:02 PM in response to Mr.Camaro

    Deleted - posted about wrong version.

  • by M Irwin,

    M Irwin M Irwin Aug 13, 2016 3:04 PM in response to Mr.Camaro
    Level 1 (109 points)
    Aug 13, 2016 3:04 PM in response to Mr.Camaro

    I had this exact problem. At least in some cases, it is a known issue with computers having very large file systems. I was told it can't be recovered from except at an Apple Store or a send-in unfortunately. Mine started the same way, with a 2/3-ish progress bar against the gray restart screen. I let this run all night with no progress Then retried again with a couple of hard restarts - nothing.

     

    I then booted up using my old Leopted DVD. I was hopeful since this booted fine, but then when I tried to reinstall my system, it wouldn't recognize the main drive as a viable OS target. I then tried to run my Time Machine recovery, but that bombed out with an error message after about 6%. I thought I might have had a simultaneous hardware problem right when i updated.

     

    There was good news and bad news. It was not a hardware problem but rather the aforementioned system file size issue. The disk had to be completely reinitialized at the Apple Store, and I had to restore from Time Machine thereafter. Again, this is an issue that Apple knows about and SHOULD be alerting people to before any more get bit by this problem. I can't say you have the exact the same issue, but it seems likely you'll have to do a hard reinstall at an Apple Store. I hope you're backed up.