El Capitan Partition

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Level 1

74 points

El Capitan Partition

Hi folks! I have been trying to install El Capitan on a partition on a late 2015 iMac. Following the instructions here, I could create the partition without any issues: https://www.macworld.co.uk/how-to/mac/partition-hard-drive-mac-3619175. I could also download El Capitan from the App Store (I am currently running High Sierra, and need to upgrade to Mojave ASAP for work, thus the urgency). I couldn’t actually open the installer on my iMac, as I got an error message, so I created a USB-key installer instead. The installation process chugged along down to 0%, but after the post-installation restart, it isn’t a bootable partition! Any suggestions? I have some older apps (mostly games), and some don’t even work on High Sierra, so this would be a helpful solution.

Thanks!

Posted on Sep 22, 2019 6:43 PM

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Answer 1

DrPuppet Author

Level 1

74 points

Sep 22, 2019 7:30 PM in response to DrPuppet

I believe it did come with Sierra, but all I needed to do was reboot via the installer USB. It simply hadn’t finished yet! Half the time, computer problems are “solved” by just being patient, it seems.

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Answer 2

dialabrain

Level 10

136,025 points

Sep 22, 2019 8:50 PM in response to DrPuppet

Interesting. You wouldn't think it would have come with El Capitan in 2017. Macs are not supposed to be able to boot versions of macOS earlier than what they ship with.

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Answer 3

dialabrain

Level 10

136,025 points

Sep 22, 2019 6:54 PM in response to DrPuppet

If your iMac came with Sierra or High Sierra pre-installed it won't boot from El Capitan.

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Answer 4

DrPuppet Author

Level 1

74 points

Sep 22, 2019 8:34 PM in response to dialabrain

It was not. It was purchased new in very early 2017. There was a long time there with no updates to the iMac line, as you may recall. Thankfully, El Capitan, from my even older (and long gone) iMac, was still in my “Purchased” tab. It seems that all those old OSes disappear from the App Store once you update to Mojave, so I am glad that I found that out in time! Although even older OSes were also listed, I could not even download them.

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Answer 5

dialabrain

Level 10

136,025 points

Sep 22, 2019 7:34 PM in response to DrPuppet

Glad it's sorted. A 2015 iMac would normally come with El Capitan installed if it was purchased shortly after it was released.

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El Capitan Partition

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