I am trying to install Monterey on an external SSD. It is formatted in APFS and there are some files on it.
When clicking to install Monterey, the image is grayed out and I get a "unable to set target system volume for preflight" note.
What the heck does that mean?
Can I install Monterey on it or do I have to reformat the drive. Or could I install another APFS partition?
iMac 27″ 5K, macOS 12.6
Thanks for the comment.
I have no idea what that message from the Mac means. But I created another partition within the same APFS container and Monterey installed on that partition and it boots just fine.
Thanks for the comment.
I have no idea what that message from the Mac means. But I created another partition within the same APFS container and Monterey installed on that partition and it boots just fine.
Incomplete system - Apple Community
User level:
Level 10
174,571 points
Verify you have reformatted the parent drive and not a volume.
From Internet Recovery (option command R) >Disk Utility>View>Show All Devices
reformat the parent drive as GUID/apfs
Recovery: How to reinstall macOS - Apple Support
I have been viewing the volumes through the Disk Utility and selected all volumes.
I created a new volume under the same container on this external SSD. There is just one container on that drive.
The Monterey OS installed on the new blank APFS volume.
All the files in the original volume are intact. Monterey shows up in the new volume and I can boot off of that.
From what I have seen, installing Monterey on an External Drive may or may not work.
At least it would be problematic
Somewhere in Monterey 12.3 or 12.3.1 the Monterey Installer would verify if the Destination Drive is an Apple Original Drive
If not an Original Drive, it may baulk and refuse to install " It is formatted in APFS and there are some files on it. "
It does not Help that the existing External Drive
Out of curiosity, what are you looking for here since it boots just fine? I am trying to insure that I am not releasing any information that may compromise my security, which is why I scrubbed the names on the other picture I posted.
It appears here that #1 is the original data container. The others have to do with the Monterey install, I think.
#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER
0: APFS Container Scheme - +2.0 TB disk7
Physical Store disk3s2
1: APFS Volume 626.6 GB disk7s1
2: APFS Volume Monterey OS - Data 5.0 GB disk7s3
3: APFS Volume Preboot 269.4 MB disk7s4
4: APFS Volume Recovery 2.2 GB disk7s5
5: APFS Volume VM 1.1 MB disk7s6
6: APFS Volume Monterey OS 15.4 GB disk7s7
To compare the Drive Structure on Ventura 13.4 to Monterey 12.??
Your drive
#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER
0: APFS Container Scheme - +2.0 TB disk7
Physical Store disk3s2
1: APFS Volume 626.6 GB disk7s1
2: APFS Volume Monterey OS - Data 5.0 GB disk7s3
3: APFS Volume Preboot 269.4 MB disk7s4
4: APFS Volume Recovery 2.2 GB disk7s5
5: APFS Volume VM 1.1 MB disk7s6
6: APFS Volume Monterey OS 15.4 GB disk7s7
My Drive
APFS Container Scheme - +245.1 GB disk3
Physical Store disk0s2
1: APFS Volume Macintosh HD 9.1 GB disk3s1
2: APFS Snapshot com.apple.os.update-... 9.1 GB disk3s1s1
3: APFS Volume Preboot 5.4 GB disk3s2
4: APFS Volume Recovery 782.7 MB disk3s3
5: APFS Volume Data 22.3 GB disk3s5
6: APFS Volume VM 20.5 KB disk3s6
Sometimes, a simple restart can help resolve temporary glitches. Restart your Mac and try the installation process again. Ensure that you have sufficient free disk space on your target system volume. Insufficient disk space can cause installation errors. Delete any unnecessary files or applications to free up space if needed. If you downloaded the macOS installer from the internet, it's possible that the file is corrupted or incomplete. Try downloading the installer again from the official source, and make sure the file size matches the expected size macOS includes a utility called Disk Utility, which can repair disk permissions and fix certain issues.
Thanks.
I tried a restart and disk repair. Monterey just did not want to install on that volume, perhaps because there were files stored on it?
I created a new volume on the same disk and successfully install Monterey.
Use the Terminal Command below
It will provide a more complete view of the Drive Structure
diskutil list
Post back the results, if you please
Same problem with MacBook Pro M2 & MacOS Ventura/Sonoma.
What we have: NVMe Orico CNM2-U4 with SOLIDIGM P44 Pro on genuine Apple Thunderbolt 4.
Unable to set target system volume for preflight - error on installing Mac OS
