Cannot rebuild MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012)

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Cannot rebuild MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012)

I am trying to rebuild my old MacBook Pro to give to my step-mom. The last time I rebuilt it was about a year ago and I deleted the disk and then asked it download the latest OS, which was Catalina. I am now trying to rebid it again to pass it on. I deleted the disk and then realised that the only operating system option I was getting was for Lion! I therefore decided to restore from last backup. Everything seemed OK and I left it running overnight. It was still stuck on the same screen in the morning. I have tried several times and the same thing happens. I therefore tried to install Lion from the menu. That just starts installing and then gives me an error to say that it can't get all the components that it needs.

Can anyone suggest how I can sort this out and get it working?

Thanks.

MacBook Pro 15″, macOS 10.15

Posted on Mar 16, 2022 2:56 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

caedmon65

Level 4

2,488 points

Mar 16, 2022 3:39 PM in response to mandy212

Try creating a bootable installer of any compatible macOS version using a different computer. Then use the installer to install that version of macOS on the computer. Just follow the steps on the attached article to create and use a bootable installer. You will need to be connected to wifi or Ethernet to use the installer.

How to create a bootable installer for macOS - Apple Support

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Answer 2

MartinR

Level 6

19,285 points

Apr 10, 2022 8:47 AM in response to mandy212

Here are two articles about how to find & download older macOS installers:

Apple: How to get old versions of macOS (scroll down to "Use Safari to download macOS on your Mac")

[Link Edited by Moderator]

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Answer 3

Allan Jones

Level 9

69,026 points

Apr 10, 2022 8:53 AM in response to mandy212

Is the Macbook Pro still on 10.7 "Lion"?

If so, you may need to do an intermediate upgrade per the Apple artice the Martin R linked:

Note only the ones I highlighted can upgrade a computer running 10.7 Lion. Once you are at at least Yosemite, you should be able to use the Catalina installer and, presumably, create the USB installer. The latter may not be needed.

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Answer 4

mandy212 Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 10, 2022 8:25 AM in response to MartinR

Sorry, my fault, I wasn't explicit in what I said.

I have managed to download Catalina but to create the bootable installer I need to be able to open the download. This is where I am having the issue, my MacBook Air won't let me open it.

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Answer 5

caedmon65

Level 4

2,488 points

Apr 10, 2022 11:56 AM in response to mandy212

Did you restart your computer and choose the installer hard drive as the startup disk? If not, try doing that. When you boot using that disk, you will be able to install the version of macOS that you made the bootable installer for.

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Answer 6

mandy212 Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 10, 2022 12:33 PM in response to Allan Jones

The last time I rebuilt it was about a year ago and I deleted the disk and then asked it download the latest OS, which was Catalina. I am now trying to rebid it again to pass it on. I deleted the disk and then realised that the only operating system option I was getting was for Lion! I therefore decided to restore from last backup. Everything seemed OK and I left it running overnight. It was still stuck on the same screen in the morning. I have tried several times and the same thing happens. I therefore tried to install Lion from the menu. That just starts installing and then gives me an error to say that it can't get all the components that it needs.

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Answer 7

HWTech

Level 9

56,072 points

Apr 11, 2022 8:16 PM in response to mandy212

There is no opening of the Catalina installer if you downloaded it directly from Apple as the Catalina installer should be an app bundle titled something like "Install macOS Catalina". As long as you have this full (almost 6GB) app, you should be able to use the Terminal commands to create the bootable macOS USB installer. If you don't have the full 5-6GB installer or you acquired the installer from somewhere besides Apple, then it will not work.

As for installing Lion, you can try changing the date & time on the Mac to 2017, or perhaps you will need to try 2016, 2015, etc. You will need to launch the Terminal app from the Utilities menu while booted to the Lion installer and use the following command to set the date & time to Jan. 2, 2017 @ 11:33am (change as appropriate to 2016, 2015, etc.):

date  -u  0102113317

If this does not produce any errors, then quit the Terminal app and select the "Reinstall macOS" option.

Unfortunately sometimes Internet Recovery Mode will not boot the expected newer version and will instead boot the oldest compatible online installer.

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Answer 8

mandy212 Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 10, 2022 5:43 AM in response to caedmon65

For various reasons I have only just been able to try this. Unfortunately it hasn't worked for me because my MacBook Air is too new and can't access the Catalina download.

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Answer 9

mandy212 Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 10, 2022 12:35 PM in response to caedmon65

I can't create a bootable installer on my MacBook Air as I can't open the Catalina Installer to get a hold of the bits I need.

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Cannot rebuild MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012)

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