I need to install Monterey in order to run Sony Imaging Edge Desktop on my 121 Gb Macbook Air. Since I don't have enough space on the 121gb macintosh hd to do all the operations, I was wondering if it is possible to expand new free memory? And if yes, how?
Sara
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.14
Disk space is not memory.
No, you cannot make the drive bigger; you may be able to regain used space. But on such a tiny drive as you have, I'd opt for external storage immediately.
In order to regain space, you need to delete personal data only: files you created, copied, or downloaded onto your Mac. This is where the external drive comes in. If the data is important, copy it to the eternal drive before deletion.
But on your drive, you're going to have problems getting to the space you need. You should have 15-20% of the drive (approx 20GB) totally unused 100% of the time. And this is after you delete data and move to Monterey.
Disk space is not memory.
No, you cannot make the drive bigger; you may be able to regain used space. But on such a tiny drive as you have, I'd opt for external storage immediately.
In order to regain space, you need to delete personal data only: files you created, copied, or downloaded onto your Mac. This is where the external drive comes in. If the data is important, copy it to the eternal drive before deletion.
But on your drive, you're going to have problems getting to the space you need. You should have 15-20% of the drive (approx 20GB) totally unused 100% of the time. And this is after you delete data and move to Monterey.
Which MacBook Air do you have?
If your MacBook Air is an Early 2015 or 2017 model, then I believe it would be one of those that can both (a) accept a third-party drive (circuit board stick), and (b) run Monterey.
https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/macbook-air/2013-2014-2015
Note: If you go this route, install Monterey on your Mac before installing a third-party drive. Reportedly, Monterey installs a firmware upgrade on your Mac. If it sees a non-Apple SSD in your Mac the first time that it tries to do this, the installation fails: No Monterey for you!
mado129 wrote:
My mac is a MacBookAir7,2
That would be a MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2015) or MacBook Air (13-inch, 2017). For both of these MacBook Airs, Monterey is the end of the line (and the caution about not installing an internal third-party SSD until you've installed Monterey somewhere, successfully, at least once, would apply).
OWC sells internal SSDs for those models.
https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/macbook-air/2013-2014-2015
Although 2017 does not appear in the URL, the page says"For MacBook Air 11" & 13" (Mid 2013 - Mid 2017)" and mentions the model identifier MacBookAir7,2.
Crucial does not appear to carry internal SSDs for these MacBook Airs, though I could be wrong.
Servant of Cats wrote:
Crucial does not appear to carry internal SSDs for these MacBook Airs, though I could be wrong.
No, Crucial does not make an internal drop in replacement SSD for the MBAir or any Mac utilizing a blade style SSD since Apple uses a proprietary SSD connector for their blade style SSDs (actually several different proprietary connectors over the years).
From reading this forum for years, people who want to utilize a standard M.2 SSD internally in a Mac should use a Sintech SSD adapter as it appears it is the most compatible & reliable (I have no personal experience with it, but I have never seen anyone on this forum mention any issues with it, while most other SSD adapters seem to have issues). None of the M.2 SSD manufacturers will support their SSDs in that configuration.
OWC is the best option since it is a drop in replacement from a respected vendor who has been providing accessories for Apple products for decades and has great tech support. While there are some other third party vendors that may advertise a cheap drop in replacement, most of them are just unknown brands with no history....needless to say I would avoid those cheap ones as they are probably cheap in quality as well as price.
I have a similar issue trying to use Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows on my Mac. I am considering DIYing this option. Do you think it would work?
My mac is a MacBookAir7,2
Servant of Cats wrote:
Note: If you go this route, install Monterey on your Mac before installing a third-party drive. Reportedly, Monterey installs a firmware upgrade on your Mac. If it sees a non-Apple SSD in your Mac the first time that it tries to do this, the installation fails: No Monterey for you!
To slightly expand upon this, it is possible to install the Monterey upgrade to an external drive (if you have a spare external drive to use temporarily) if the internal SSD doesn't have enough storage space for the upgrade. This will install the required system firmware update from the Monterey installer. Once this is done, it should be possible to install the OWC upgrade SSD internally and install macOS 12.x Monterey to the new OWC SSD.
You can then migrate from a backup unless you also purchased the OWC SSD upgrade kit which includes an OWC Envoy Pro enclosure for the SSD in which case you migrate from your original Apple OEM SSD. If the OWC Envoy Pro enclosure is the more recent version, then it should be compatible with installing the OWC Aura SSD temporarily so Monterey only needs to be installed just one time. If the OP receives the older style OWC Envoy Pro enclosure (depending on where it is purchased), then it is not compatible with the OWC Aura SSD. The first time Monterey is installed to a Mac, the installer requires an original Apple SSD be installed internally so the system firmware can be update. Subsequent installs of Monterey can be done with a third party SSD installed internally.
To expand memory macbook air 121 GB
