Q: why can't i download El Capitan from the App Store on my brand new Mac Mini?
I have been trying to download El Capitan from the App Store for 2 days with no success. The wheel at the top of the App Store window just spins and spins but nothing happens. Anyone know what's going on?
Mac mini (Late 2014), OS X El Capitan (10.11.3)
Posted on Feb 17, 2016 10:48 PM
First can you check that to see if you have Install Mac OS X El Capitan.app in your Applications folder, if so delete it.
Also check Launchpad for OS X icon, if you see it press and hold the cursor over the icon till it wiggles, click the x
to delete. Restart and relaunch the App Store and see if you can download. If not try the procedure below.
Above is the path to the folder that needs to be removed.
The folder is normally hidden by default, to make it visible follow instructions below.
In Finder use the Go To Folder item under Go and type in /private/var/folders in the text box
and from there navigate to zz and then the folder zyxvp........ ending in 68, control-click and then Move To Trash, don't delete
you could also drag it to the desktop before for extra safety.
Restart the Mac and relaunch the App Store and see if you are able to download now. The folder and files within it are regenerated on Restart.
If you are happy you can then empty the Trash and delete the one on the desktop if you did that.
If you are successful and the download completes, do this before you install it.
Look in your Applications folder for Install Mac Os X El Capitan.app, make a copy of it on an external disk or USB device.
This will save you having to download it again in case you need to.
Posted on Feb 19, 2016 10:26 AM