When I press reinstall macOS I receive a message that said the recovery server could not be contacted
Trying to fix my macOS and I try to reinstall macOS I have a message that said
the recovery server could not be contacted ????
Question marked as
Yep, this can happen if your WiFi connection isn't secure, or if you are trying to load a system older than is currently running on the Mac.
First off, before you install anything backup your data.
Secondly, for Macs newer than July 22, 2011, you can boot with command-option-shift-R to restore the system that shipped with the Mac. To restore the system currently running on similar Macs, just boot with command-R.
Restoring an older system will necessitate an erase of the entire computer, or partition large enough to restore to. APFS formatted drives are not supported on Mac OS 10.12.6 and earlier (Sierra and earlier). HFS Extended Journalled is required for those systems.
It is better to be connected via ethernet than WiFi to your modem when doing a restore.
Understand that documents saved on a newer system than what you restored may not be readable until you restore the existing system.
Make sure you allow enough space to reinstall the operating system, and there aren't any background programs that don't belong currently running. See Etrecheck to look for these things.
Be sure you are plugged in to power if it is a laptop.
If you have more details about what you are trying to install and on what vintage machine, we might be able to help you more.
Lastly, because some of the certificates may be expired on some of the downloads, you may need to change the time on your computer.