Q: Upgrading OS in an Imac

At least Yosemite. Back up your data, check your applications for compatibility, and download it from the Mac App Store.

(130557)

What is the year? The highest you can go is Yosemite right now but you need to be sure that your computer can handle going that high. You have the option of going to Lion or Mt Lion which you can purchase online.

A 3.06GHz iMac is an early 2008 through mid-2010 model. All of these can handle Yosemite.

(130559)

1. See above.

2. It's free.

3. Not unless a problem occurs; some applications may need to be upgraded or replaced.

(130560)

Correct.

(130564)

Piggybacking this question, I have a 2007 iMac, my OS is OS X, version 10.6.8, with 2.16 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo and memory of 2GB 667 DDRZ SDRAM.  My printer broke and when I bought a new one, I could not get it to work with my computer.  Staples personnel said my computer OS was too old, that there were no current model printers which would 'talk' to it, and that I needed to upgrade my OS, or get a new computer.  (I have also received advice to get an inexpensive  laptop, and when I want to print something, send it to my laptop which would be connected to printer.

I have continuously running backup, a 500 GB external harddrive.

I do not want to spend for a new iMac.  Can I safely upgrade my OS, and to what extent, and will that do the trick?  As you can tell, I am not a techie.

thanks in advance for any advice.

Your iMac can only go to 10.7.5; if you choose to upgrade, you should install more RAM in it first.

(130571)

There's a problem with your specs.  If it has a 2.16Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, it cannot be a 2007 iMac.   It has a to be a late 2006 iMac.

Its a problem, because a 2007 iMac can update all the way to Yosemite, but a 2006 iMac cannot.

Is it white or silver?

The first thing to do is to precisely identify the iMac model you have.

How to identify iMac models - Apple Support

Without knowing the exact model of Printer its also hard to know what it will support. Its likely this printer needs a fairly new OS. If your iMac is 2006, then it will top off at Lion. 10.7.x .  Whether the printer can run off of Lion is unknown.

iMac (Late 2006) - Technical Specifications

iMac (Mid 2007) - Technical Specifications

You might want to see if your iMac can handle more RAM, as 4 GB is generally considered to be the bare minimum to run anything Lion or later satisfactorily.

@ edward: you only have 2 GB and if either of these is yours:

http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/specs/imac-core-2-duo-2.16-20-inch-sp ecs.html

http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/specs/imac-core-2-duo-2.16-24-inch-sp ecs.html

you can only go to Lion, but you can have a total of 4 GB RAM.

PS 2 Phil:

your post did not show until after I posted mine......

Babowa, mine is the smaller of the two, and it is white.  so I guess I have a 2006.  I purchased it in the late spring of 2007, never thought of it as being other than current production, but the question never arose. 

All things considered, am I better off budgeting for a new computer?  This has worked fine, although it seems a bit slower of late, (but that could be my Time Warner account).  What about the idea of a workaround with a new laptop?  Another person suggested a Chromebook as an auxiliary or substitute.

Yours is getting to be about 9 years old (when you bought it, you bought the current model) and Snow Leopard is an excellent OS. It will run happily with 2 GB; I probably would not spend more money on a machine this age, but start saving for a new one. You can look into Apple's online store refurb section - that is where I've gotten most of my iMacs, Macbook Pros, and even my current iPad Air - good savings and you get the same warranty as with a new model.

I cannot comment on any computer that is not a Mac as I have no clue - I've never owned anything but Macs.