big sur upgrade "not enough room to install"

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Level 1

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big sur upgrade "not enough room to install"

have 121gb static drive, had 11gb free when first got message "not enough room to install", so deleted several things, moved photos to iCloud, deleted Big Sur Install app and freed up 35gb. With 35gb free of 125gb static drive, shutdown & restarted my 2019 MacBook Pro. Downloaded Big Sur update, clicked install, got error message, "11.76bg more needed to install". I checked HD storage, now had 23gb free after install app downloaded => do I need the 23gb that's free PLUS anther 12gb = 45gb total to install this upgrade? Very frustrating... Thank you

MacBook, OS X 10.11

Posted on Nov 16, 2020 8:36 AM

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Answer 1

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BobTheFisherman

Level 10

85,165 points

Nov 16, 2020 8:40 AM in response to MikeLenich

https://support.apple.com/kb/sp833?locale=en_US&viewlocale=en_US

General Requirements

OS X 10.9 or later
4GB of memory
35.5GB available storage on macOS Sierra or later*
Some features require an Apple ID; terms apply.
Some features require a compatible internet service provider; fees may apply.

* If upgrading from macOS Sierra or later, macOS Big Sur requires 35.5GB of available storage to upgrade. If upgrading from an earlier release, macOS Big Sur requires up to 44.5GB of available storage.

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Answer 2

MikeLenich Author

Level 1

8 points

Nov 17, 2020 5:22 PM in response to BobTheFisherman

Thank you for your response - I somehow missed that 35.5GB available storage requirement.

It was a struggle but I learned how to move my iTunes music to operate from an external hard drive, freeing 28.8GB of available storage on 121GB static drive (here’s link to instructions I used: https://www.imore.com/how-move-your-itunes-library-external-hard-drive ).

With iTunes moved, I now had 60.4GB of total available storage space & the Big Sur upgrade downloaded and installed without a hitch.

Appreciate availability of this discussion group, and time those took to respond and make these pages most helpful. Thank you...

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big sur upgrade "not enough room to install"

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