How to properly upgrade?

macOS Mojave (10.14), macOS Catalina (10.15) and the newest macOS Big Sur (11.0)

Which OS you can upgrade to will be governed by which model and year your mac is.

Click on the  top left of your screen click on About This Mac to find out the year of your mac.

For older OS’s, like Mojave or Catalina,

Open Safari and click on this link, 

How to get old versions of macOS – Apple Support

Go to Check Compatibility to see if your mac qualifies for the OS upgrade you want.

Then go to the Download OS section and click on the OS you want to install.

If you want to or are able to install Big Sur, open Safari and click on the link below.

How to upgrade to macOS Big Sur - Apple Support

Before upgrading make a full back up of your Mac.

Check that third party apps you use have updates available for the new OS.

https://roaringapps.com

Check that your printers/ scanners etc have updated drivers and software available for the new OS.

Connect your mac to your router via cable rather than rely on WiFi.

Do not use your mac while it is downloading

and do not use any other devices that share the same internet connection.

If the App Store says ‘Open’ then it is detecting a previous download of the install app

go to the Applications folder locate Install macOS ******.app.

Move it to the Trash, empty the Trash.

Restart, click on the link again, the App Store should say ‘Get' or 'Download'.

If you are considering upgrading to Catalina or Big Sur be warned they do not support 32bit apps.

Your Mac is probably running 32bit apps and these will need to be updated to 64bit apps,

some updates may be free, some may be paid. Use this app to discover which apps you have

are 32bit, https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/ then contact the developers of the software to see

if they are providing 64bit updates or alternatives.

First of all have you checked to see if your mac can upgrade to a newer OS, only macs from 2012

and newer can upgrade to Mojave and Catalina.

Then you need to check if the version of Office you want can run on these two OS's, or Big Sur.

Any other third party apps will need to be checked to see if they have updates so they will continue to run on Mojave or Catalina.

This is especially important as macOS Catalina does not run 32bit apps (nor does Big Sur) this is mentioned in my last post.

If you have any important software that is 32bit and can't be updated to 64bit you may want to only upgrade to Mojave.

Again in my first post it tells you how to do this.

Any printers/ scanners etc that you use with your mac will need to be checked to see if they will work on the

above OS's otherwise you may have to buy new printers/ scanners etc.

Macs from 2013 or newer can only upgrade to Big Sur, here is the list, does your mac qualify.

MacBook introduced in 2015 or later

MacBook Air introduced in 2013 or later

MacBook Pro introduced in late 2013 or later

Mac mini introduced in 2014 or later

iMac introduced in 2014 or later

iMac Pro

Mac Pro introduced in 2013 or later

Big Sur was only released about six weeks ago, so is very new and that could mean there are bugs in the system that may hamper your work. When a new OS is released even though it has been tested it is only when it is out in the wild where

the thousands/ millions of users who all use their mac in their own way will start to report bugs and errors. That is why it is sometimes prudent to hold off installing the latest OS until it is in its third or fourth version.

All three OS's still receive Security Updates etc from Apple, Mojave will drop off next year when Apple introduces the next macOS. Apple works on a three year window for support of its OS's.

So it is up to you to research as much as you can and then decide which OS might best suit your needs.

You can upgrade to the OS of your choice you do not have to upgrade to each one in turn.