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Boot Camp "can't install the software because it is not currently available" Error

I have a MacBook Pro 13" 2019 running Monterey. I'm trying to use the installed Boot Camp application to set up a dual boot Mac/Windows environment. I get to the part where I set the partition sizes and select the Windows ISO file and then it attempts to "download the Windows support software" but fails with the unhelpful "can't install the software because it is not currently available..." message. I was able to use the Boot Camp menu Action | Download Windows Support Software option so I have the actual Windows support software files. I just don't know how to tell Boot Camp where those are? I've tried putting the Windows support files download in the same directory as the Windows ISO file but that hasn't worked. Any ideas on how to get past this???

MacBook Pro

Posted on Nov 22, 2021 8:03 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Nov 24, 2021 8:34 AM

So due to the lack of response (thanks Apple), I did some additional searching and found this page that solved the problem:


[Guide] Windows 11 clean install through Boot Camp Assistant


The Problem:

Trying to install Windows 11 through Boot Camp Assistant (BCA) with an official Windows 11 ISO simply results in the assistant failing with the error message "Couldn't download Windows Support Software because it is not currently available from the server". This is because the Windows Support Software not only contains drivers for installing within Windows, but also contains drivers that are used during the Windows Pre-Installation Environment (WinPE), and Apple doesn't have drivers for Windows 11. Switch to a Windows 10 ISO, and the problem goes away - but then you're installing Windows 10.


The Solution:

We are able to workaround this issue by retaining WinPE from the Windows 10 ISO, but using the OS install archive from a Windows 11 ISO. This allows you to install Windows 11 on your Intel-based Apple device using the Windows 10 installer. This method also bypasses both the TPM and Secure Boot requirements.


The Process:

You need the following:

Once you have all of that, do the following:

  1. Create a folder somewhere in your computer (for simplicity, I'll just assume you're creating it in your downloads folder) and name it Win11_21H2_BC (or similar, it doesn't matter what you name it)
  2. Mount and open the Windows 10 ISO
  3. Copy all files from the mounted disk image into the folder you created in step 1
  4. Unmount the Windows 10 ISO
  5. Navigate to FolderCreatedInStep1\sources\, and delete the file named either install.wim or install.esd
  6. Mount the Windows 11 ISO
  7. Navigate to ESD-ISO\sources\, and copy the file named either install.esd (most common) or install.wim (less common) to FolderCreatedInStep1\sources\.
    1. If your file is named install.wim, rename it to install.esd.
  8. Unmount the Windows 11 ISO
  9. Open ImgBurn, and select Create image file from files/folders
  10. In the top window, select the icon that looks like a folder with a magnifying glass over it (Browse for a folder) and select the folder you created in step 1. Don't open it, just select it.
  11. Then, to the right of the destination input box, click the same folder/magnifying glass icon and set a name and location for your output ISO file.
  12. Click the large folder to disk image icon. You will receive a message telling you that you've "only selected 1 folder". Click Yes.
  13. Another message box will then pop up - Set the volume label to whatever you want or leave it as the defaults. The program will then create your modified Windows 10 disk image, and play an obnoxious sound effect once it's complete.

Then, transfer the disk image you just made to your Apple device. You can now follow the standard procedure to create the Windows partition and download the support software. Note that when your device boots into the Windows installer, it will be the Windows 10 installer. This is fine. It will install Windows 11, not Windows 10.




[Link Edited by Moderator]


Similar questions

3 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Nov 24, 2021 8:34 AM in response to MacWindowsOS

So due to the lack of response (thanks Apple), I did some additional searching and found this page that solved the problem:


[Guide] Windows 11 clean install through Boot Camp Assistant


The Problem:

Trying to install Windows 11 through Boot Camp Assistant (BCA) with an official Windows 11 ISO simply results in the assistant failing with the error message "Couldn't download Windows Support Software because it is not currently available from the server". This is because the Windows Support Software not only contains drivers for installing within Windows, but also contains drivers that are used during the Windows Pre-Installation Environment (WinPE), and Apple doesn't have drivers for Windows 11. Switch to a Windows 10 ISO, and the problem goes away - but then you're installing Windows 10.


The Solution:

We are able to workaround this issue by retaining WinPE from the Windows 10 ISO, but using the OS install archive from a Windows 11 ISO. This allows you to install Windows 11 on your Intel-based Apple device using the Windows 10 installer. This method also bypasses both the TPM and Secure Boot requirements.


The Process:

You need the following:

Once you have all of that, do the following:

  1. Create a folder somewhere in your computer (for simplicity, I'll just assume you're creating it in your downloads folder) and name it Win11_21H2_BC (or similar, it doesn't matter what you name it)
  2. Mount and open the Windows 10 ISO
  3. Copy all files from the mounted disk image into the folder you created in step 1
  4. Unmount the Windows 10 ISO
  5. Navigate to FolderCreatedInStep1\sources\, and delete the file named either install.wim or install.esd
  6. Mount the Windows 11 ISO
  7. Navigate to ESD-ISO\sources\, and copy the file named either install.esd (most common) or install.wim (less common) to FolderCreatedInStep1\sources\.
    1. If your file is named install.wim, rename it to install.esd.
  8. Unmount the Windows 11 ISO
  9. Open ImgBurn, and select Create image file from files/folders
  10. In the top window, select the icon that looks like a folder with a magnifying glass over it (Browse for a folder) and select the folder you created in step 1. Don't open it, just select it.
  11. Then, to the right of the destination input box, click the same folder/magnifying glass icon and set a name and location for your output ISO file.
  12. Click the large folder to disk image icon. You will receive a message telling you that you've "only selected 1 folder". Click Yes.
  13. Another message box will then pop up - Set the volume label to whatever you want or leave it as the defaults. The program will then create your modified Windows 10 disk image, and play an obnoxious sound effect once it's complete.

Then, transfer the disk image you just made to your Apple device. You can now follow the standard procedure to create the Windows partition and download the support software. Note that when your device boots into the Windows installer, it will be the Windows 10 installer. This is fine. It will install Windows 11, not Windows 10.




[Link Edited by Moderator]


Boot Camp "can't install the software because it is not currently available" Error

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