El Capitan on older iMac

Question

Level 1

26 points

El Capitan on older iMac

I have an older iMac (mid-2009) that is currently running Yosemite and using Bootcamp to permit running of Windows 7. Apparently, my iMac will not run Windows 8 or 10 under Bootcamp. I would like to upgrade my iMac to El Capitan but also need to have Bootcamp. I read someplace that my iMac may not support this capability for me. Anyone have experience or recommendations as to whether or not I should upgrade to El Capitan?

Thanks in advance....Dick

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Nov 29, 2015 7:21 AM

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Answer 1

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,486 points

Nov 29, 2015 7:26 AM in response to RWM

I have a late 2009 iMac running El Cap just fine. BUT I have 16 gb of ram, the biggest mistake people, especially people with older Macs, make is trying to run a modern OS without enough ram. To run smoothly you need at least 8Gb of ram, but I believe you should have that running Yosemite too. As far as what version of windows is supported I don't know, I use Parallels and Win 7.

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Answer 2

Loner T

Level 9

59,471 points

Nov 29, 2015 11:20 AM in response to RWM

Please see the following links for Windows versions supported on Macs. Check your model in each of these and verify what it can support.

Use Windows 10 on your Mac with Boot Camp - Apple Support

Use Windows 8.1 on your Mac with Boot Camp - Apple Support

Install Windows 7 and earlier on your Mac using Boot Camp - Apple Support

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Answer 3

RWM Author

Level 1

26 points

Nov 29, 2015 11:09 AM in response to Loner T

Thank you for the information. My research indicated that my iMac will not support Windows 8 or 10. Therefore, my question becomes: If I upgrade to El Capitan will its version of Bootcamp support Windows 7?

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Answer 4

Loner T

Level 9

59,471 points

Nov 29, 2015 11:20 AM in response to RWM

Yes, El Capitan will also allow you install W7 on your specific Mac model.

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