Mac OS install problem

Question

Mac OS install problem

I was attempting to update my MacBook Pro 13.3" Intel Core i5 3.1GHz OS from Catalina…. Everything was going great… it downloaded, restarted and now I have this!

Ive tried to do everything I know how to do…. I’ve tried to follow the directions on how to start it up in safe mode and either I’m not doing it right or something is screwy, because it’s not going into safe mode either. I’m at a loss and have no idea how to get this to work now. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!! TIA!!!

Posted on Oct 28, 2023 7:51 PM

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Answer 1

TheLittles

Level 10

203,019 points

Oct 28, 2023 8:03 PM in response to wildfire44231

wildfire44231 Said:

"Mac OS install problem: I was attempting to update my MacBook Pro 13.3" Intel Core i5 3.1GHz OS from Catalina…. Everything was going great… it downloaded, restarted and now I have this! Mac OS install problem: I was attempting to update my MacBook Pro 13.3" Intel Core i5 3.1GHz OS from Catalina…. Everything was going great… it downloaded, restarted and now I have this!: Mac OS install problem"

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Thank you for the photo.

Provide the Top-Right Corner of your Screen:

What is on the top-right corner of your screen? You need to have an Internet connection.

Try Reinstalling the macOS:

Nothing would be lost, it's just that sometimes changes are made to your system, and then then processes become corrupted, technically. When reinstalling, deleted files are reinstalled, and misplaced files are moved back to where they should be. Go Here: How to reinstall macOS from macOS Recovery - Apple Support. See if that installs the new macOS.

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Answer 2

Oct 29, 2023 7:42 PM in response to wildfire44231

if yours is a 2017 model, it does not have a T2 chip to get in the way. Maybe an SMC reset would knock some sense into it:

Reset the SMC of your Mac - Apple Support

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Answer 3

Oct 29, 2023 3:33 PM in response to wildfire44231

Back to basics.

This article suggests in detail how to go about installing versions of MacOS: There is a hierarchy of suggested ways to go about it, and an array of classes of MacOS you might want to install.

How to download and install macOS - Apple Support

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Answer 4

Oct 29, 2023 7:26 PM in response to wildfire44231

try moving "install MacOS ... app" to the Trash from the /Applications folder (if present there) and try the download and install again.

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Answer 5

chdsl

Level 2

410 points

Oct 29, 2023 7:17 AM in response to wildfire44231

In Terminal do,

softwareupdate -i -a --verbose

and once the update is downloaded, wait for a while, go back to System Settings > General > Software Updates and update through it. There you have to give permission to install.

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Answer 6

Oct 29, 2023 1:11 PM in response to TheLittles

I’ve tried to do this a couple of different times and have used both the different internet based disk recovery key combinations, and I keep getting the same error. Do I need to possibly erase the internal drive and try this all over again? It seem like something got screwed up somewhere along the way that isn’t allowing me to install the OS and it keeps getting hung up at the same point.

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Answer 7

chdsl

Level 2

410 points

Oct 29, 2023 3:04 PM in response to wildfire44231

There are no updates for Catalina anymore. It is unsupported as of November 30, 2022.

But still, I'm surprised that the command softwareupdate is not in your system. If your system says that command is not in your system, I can't help you, sorry. Please do a Google search how to update your system.

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Answer 8

Oct 29, 2023 7:23 PM in response to chdsl

I have and actively still am… it was trying to update itself to Monterey when this all went south… since then it literally acts like the installer is somehow messed up. It begins the install, the installation bar and percentages goes up…. The it gets to a point and throws the error message every time. I’ve tried all of the startup command key combinations and they all will allow it to fire up in recovery mode but I get the same results when I try to install the OS. It makes no sense… it was working fine up until this point.

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Answer 9

Oct 29, 2023 7:30 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I’ve followed every one of them. I even attempted to make a bootable usb using my wife’s Monterey based MBA and it for some reason won’t do it …. Even though I followed the directions and attempted to do it in Terminal. Everything I’ve tried has literally hit a dead end

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Answer 10

Oct 30, 2023 5:05 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

i wish I could! I have literally no way to get into the applications folder. Everything is gone and there is no desktop to get into. Which is fine I don’t mind the stuff in the computer being gone… I just want to get the OS installed and start getting this thing back up and running again.

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