debsquared
Level 1 (5 points)

Q: How do I downgrade from Mavericks back to Snow Leopard?

I upgraded to Mavericks (10.9) from Snow Leopard (10.6.8) just a while ago and I hate it. My folder tags are now a tiny circle which is inconvenient because what I liked about them was that they highlighted folders I wanted to see clearly. My mouse's scroll wheel is now moving in complete reverse (scrolling down requires me to move the wheel upwards), my fan is going bonkers and making a lot of noise and from the sounds of it plus judging by how fast my battery is draining it's as if my CPU's being worked to the bone. I used to be able to see the size of each folder at the bottom of the Finder window when I'm scrolling through, now it's just a blank!

 

Is there any way I can downgrade back to the OS I upgraded from? I know you can do a Time Machine backup restore if you have Mountain Lion or Lion but I was wondering if the same can be done for Snow Leopard? I currently don't have my installation cd (as I accidentally left it back home before I flew back to school). Help!

MacBook Pro (17-inch Mid 2009), Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Oct 22, 2013 5:45 PM

by Frank Caggiano,Solvedanswer
Frank Caggiano Frank Caggiano
Level 7 (25,796 points)
A:

debsquared wrote:

 

I was looking around and found this: http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11181?viewlocale=en_US

Would this be possible to do from Mavericks to Snow Leopard or is a complete reinstallation the only way? Because i *have* backed up my computer using Time Machine before the upgrade.Let me know!

Seems like it is worth a shot. The big question is if you can boot to recovery mode using command-R.

 

The recovery partition started with Lion, SL didn't have it. So the question is did installing Mavericks on your system create a recovery partition. The easiest way to check is to try the boot as explained in that document.

 

But as I wrote above give the safe boot a shot you might be able to stay with Mavericks after that. It certainly would be lot less messy if you could.

 

Message was edited by: Frank Caggiano

Posted on Oct 22, 2013 6:47 PM

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debsquared

Q: How do I downgrade from Mavericks back to Snow Leopard?

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  • by R C-R,

    R C-R R C-R Apr 3, 2014 5:26 AM in response to Joe Keef
    Level 6 (17,700 points)
    Apr 3, 2014 5:26 AM in response to Joe Keef

    Joe Keef wrote:

    Somehow I don't think Jobs would have let this happen.

    The scroll direction has defaulted to the "natural" one since OS X 10.7 Lion. Lion was released in July of 2011. Steve Jobs died in October of that year. Given the lead time on OS X version development, it is very likely he approved of this change.

     

    I agree that (to me) after all the years scrolling worked the other way it doesn't seem very "natural" but the idea is that it is like putting your finger on the page & swiping it in the same direction you want the page to move. That's how it works on touch screen devices like iPhones & iPads, thus the "natural" designation.

     

    At least we have a system preference to reverse it ... except when booted from the Recovery partition or other sources that don't offer system preference settings. It can be very disconcerting when scrolling doesn't work as expected from those sources. Just something to be aware of....

  • by Joe Keef,

    Joe Keef Joe Keef Apr 3, 2014 6:24 AM in response to debsquared
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Apr 3, 2014 6:24 AM in response to debsquared

    The "natural" scroll thing is probably what killed him.

  • by R C-R,

    R C-R R C-R Apr 3, 2014 6:49 AM in response to Joe Keef
    Level 6 (17,700 points)
    Apr 3, 2014 6:49 AM in response to Joe Keef

    Joe Keef wrote:

    The "natural" scroll thing is probably what killed him.

     

  • by Kamal Algeria,

    Kamal Algeria Kamal Algeria May 2, 2014 6:44 PM in response to debsquared
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 2, 2014 6:44 PM in response to debsquared

    Hello guys, if u r still interested in downgrading from mavericks just gimme a sign i will help u, i let u know that i downgraded from mavericks to 10.7 without any DVD or USB and without losing any data. U just need to create three partitions and download the dmg u want to downgrade to. If u r interested just lemme know i will giv u the instructions, its very simple, it will just take u around 20 minutes if u got the dmg ready. cheers guys

     

    Message was edited by: Kamal Algeria

  • by monkeyhead0305,

    monkeyhead0305 monkeyhead0305 May 18, 2014 3:18 PM in response to Emma.Claire
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 18, 2014 3:18 PM in response to Emma.Claire

    Hi Emma, when you restored to 10.6.8 using TM, I am assuming you were able to restore iPhoto pictures from Mavericks TM to your 10.6.8, correct?

  • by appleButler,

    appleButler appleButler Jun 1, 2014 5:12 AM in response to Kalsta
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 1, 2014 5:12 AM in response to Kalsta

    what if i don't have a time machine backup? I have one but not sure if it'll work, cause I installed it after mavericks.

    The previous one may be on an internal HD? IDK,

    My problem is that Mavericks messed with my mail too, I fixed that, but imovie!!!! For cryin out loud!! WTH!, i can't figure out the new one, and the 9.0.9 version that I want to use,when I open it, it hides in a corner..i think it's because my operating system is for the retina display (that crashed and burned after the upgrade) so maybe if I just change from 10.9.3 to a different one? could someone walk me through that? or have a better fix? i can't get to many project that have to get done, NOW! on a stupid tv monitor!

    going crazy here!

  • by G4PB,

    G4PB G4PB Sep 26, 2014 8:42 PM in response to debsquared
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 26, 2014 8:42 PM in response to debsquared

    Can I downgrade from Mavericks to Snow Leopard on a 2.8GHz Intel Core i5 Macbook Pro?

  • by Barney-15E,

    Barney-15E Barney-15E Sep 27, 2014 5:15 AM in response to G4PB
    Level 9 (50,827 points)
    Mac OS X
    Sep 27, 2014 5:15 AM in response to G4PB

    G4PB wrote:

     

    Can I downgrade from Mavericks to Snow Leopard on a 2.8GHz Intel Core i5 Macbook Pro?

    If that is the one built in 2014, then no. The hardware in that Mac would be completely unknown to Snow Leopard.

  • by G4PB,

    G4PB G4PB Sep 27, 2014 5:26 AM in response to Barney-15E
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 27, 2014 5:26 AM in response to Barney-15E

    Alas it is 2014. I guess I'll have to ditch this rubbish and buy half a dozen refurbished circa 2010 books to see me out till I fall off the perch. Thanks & cheers

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