How do I guid Partion a USB flashdrive to create a startup drive?

Disk Utility won't let me create a startup drive on a USB flash drive because it's not GUID-partitioned. I need to install Sonoma or Ventura on a Mac Mini (2018), and I've tried everything unsuccessfully, so I want to create a bootable startup disk.

The USB flash drive is brand new and is 63 GB. When I use OS Recovery on my Macbook Pro it sees the USB drive, but won't let me choose it to install Ventura, stating that the disk doesn't use the GUID Partition Table scheme. I've erased the drive and then tried to partition it, but Disk Utility won't let me.

Mac mini (2018)

Posted on Jul 1, 2024 9:36 AM

Top-ranking reply

Matti Haveri

Level 6

19,706 points

Posted on Jul 1, 2024 10:36 AM

In Disk Utility > View > Show All Devices, select the topmost device and select GUID and then APFS format.

...it is possible to install and boot from a USB flash drive but it is not recommended because those drives are slow and unreliable. Use a proper SSD instead.

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How do I guid Partion a USB flashdrive to create a startup drive?

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