I am currently running el Capitan but want to upgrade to Big Sur or Monterey on my macbook, but Apple does not appear to provide an upgrade path. I recognize I may need to upgrade to Sierra/others 1st but Apple does NOT even give me that option. Recommendations please?
MacBook, OS X 10.11
Upgrading a macOS depends upon the model Mac, specifications, and year. To get more information about your computer, choose: (Apple menu) > 'About This Mac' in the upper left corner of any window, then "More Info..." or "System Report". There's more about this in "About System Information [Profiler] on your Mac" - https://support.apple.com/HT203001
Use the computer information, including the model year, and the links below to determine what is possible with your computer.
Click on this link to read how to get different versions of macOS --> https://support.apple.com/HT211683
- The article also has links to system requirements for each OS version which you should check against your exact computer model. Note some of the model identifier articles are outdated. For any model produced in the last 5 years or so you should use the system requirements links for each OS version instead. This web site also has a reliable presentation of model and OS version compatibility: https://eshop.macsales.com/guides/Mac_OS_X_Compatibility
- It helps to have more RAM (memory) than what is noted as "minimum" for any particular system or your computer may run slowly.
- You may find to get links for High Sierra and later using the Mac App Store application to open a functioning page you need to use Safari.
- Sierra, El Capitan, and Yosemite download as a .pkg. Click on this to have a converted version placed in your Applications folder as an "Install OS..." application. Run the installer and follow the directions.
- Upgrades may take some time (up to an hour or more) to install, with restarts and blank screens.
Before upgrading, back up at least your data in case something goes wrong. See this support document: How to back up your Mac - https://support.apple.com/mac-backup
Check if your old apps will still work with with the OS you want to install - https://roaringapps.com/apps This is particularly critical if you are upgrading to Catalina or newer, as older 32 bit apps will no longer work. To check for those, try this 32 bit application scanner application --> https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/
Upgrading a macOS depends upon the model Mac, specifications, and year. To get more information about your computer, choose: (Apple menu) > 'About This Mac' in the upper left corner of any window, then "More Info..." or "System Report". There's more about this in "About System Information [Profiler] on your Mac" - https://support.apple.com/HT203001
Use the computer information, including the model year, and the links below to determine what is possible with your computer.
Click on this link to read how to get different versions of macOS --> https://support.apple.com/HT211683
- The article also has links to system requirements for each OS version which you should check against your exact computer model. Note some of the model identifier articles are outdated. For any model produced in the last 5 years or so you should use the system requirements links for each OS version instead. This web site also has a reliable presentation of model and OS version compatibility: https://eshop.macsales.com/guides/Mac_OS_X_Compatibility
- It helps to have more RAM (memory) than what is noted as "minimum" for any particular system or your computer may run slowly.
- You may find to get links for High Sierra and later using the Mac App Store application to open a functioning page you need to use Safari.
- Sierra, El Capitan, and Yosemite download as a .pkg. Click on this to have a converted version placed in your Applications folder as an "Install OS..." application. Run the installer and follow the directions.
- Upgrades may take some time (up to an hour or more) to install, with restarts and blank screens.
Before upgrading, back up at least your data in case something goes wrong. See this support document: How to back up your Mac - https://support.apple.com/mac-backup
Check if your old apps will still work with with the OS you want to install - https://roaringapps.com/apps This is particularly critical if you are upgrading to Catalina or newer, as older 32 bit apps will no longer work. To check for those, try this 32 bit application scanner application --> https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/
The Age of this computer will Govern what newer version of macOS it will Qualify to install. Use About this Mac from the Apple Icon on Desktop - the required Information will be there.
With the above information in-hand - follow this How to get old versions of macOS and verify what version this computer Qualifies to install. For Best results use Safari to commence the download as Others may not work.
Safari will open a redirect and open the Apple Store where the download can commence
Tips Big Sir Upgrade Released Nov 2020
Tips Monterey Upgrade Released Oct 25, 2021
Make Time Machine Backup is very useful and can be used to Revert to Previous Working macOS
Notation - Mojave is the Last version to support 32 bit applications / extensions and Drivers. Catalina, Big Sur & Monterey supports only 64 bit and there is no workaround.
Suggest using Go64 to find 32 bit application before attempting the upGrade. Some or many of the Application already installed may required update or upGrades to 64 Bit Versions.
Are there any AntiVirus, Disk Cleaner, Optimizers, Un-installers, etc installed which should be removed as per Developers Instructions. They are useless, unneeded, cause havoc and interfere with the normal operation of the OS and may even Corrupt the OS requiring a Reinstallation
how do i upgrade from el capitan to newer version of MacOs for free on macbook
