Mac Fresh Install Catalina
If your Mac isn't compatible with the latest macOS, you might still be able to upgrade to an earlier macOS, such as macOS Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, or El Capitan. To get the latest features and maintain the security, stability, compatibility, and performance of your Mac, it's important to keep your software up to date. How to Perform a Clean Install of macOS Catalina. Download macOS Catalina from the Mac App Store Direct Link. Once the download is complete, close the installer window by selecting the Quit.
From a desert to an island, the Mac is all set to welcome the brand new OS Catalina. With a number of new features like Sidecar, voice control, Music, Podcasts and Apple TV, it may be the best OS yet. But before you get started, there are a couple of things you can do to prepare your Mac for the new OS Catalina. Read through this blog to understand the important prep work before installing along with steps on how to install Catalina.
Note: When you are upgrading from Mojave to Catalina or from High Sierra to Catalina, you may encounter a Pre-Boot volume error. Know how to fix ‘Could not create a pre-boot volume for APFS install’ here.
Prep work for installing Mac OS Catalina
1. Check your Mac for compatibility
Mac Fresh Install Catalina Free
Before you install Catalina, make sure that the Mac you have is compatible and supports the new OS. The following list of Mac devices support Catalina.
·iMac (2012 and above)
·iMac Pro (2017)
·MacBook (2015 and above)
·Mac Book Air (2012 and above)
·MacBook Pro (2012 and above)
·Mac Pro (2013 and above)
·Mac Mini (2012 and above
2. Clean up your Mac
If your Mac contains a number of outdated and unnecessary files, now is the time to clear them all up. This will save tons of space on your Mac and also helps your Mac perform better.
To clean up your Mac, you can either go through every file/folder manually and clear them. Or you could use a third party software to do the job automatically.
3. Create a backup
Sometimes even simple tasks like a macOS Catalina upgrade can cause data loss when you least expect it. Hence, creating a backup is the most essential thing to do to avoid data loss or photo loss on Mac after update.
You can easily create a backup on Mac using Time Machine as follows:
- In the menu bar, click on the Time Machine icon
- Select ‘Backup Now’
Time Machine will back up all your data and set it up. Alternatively, you can manually backup or use third party software to create a backup for you.
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Mac OS Catalina Download & Installation Guide
After you have cleared up your computer and created a backup, you are all set to download and install Catalina.
There are 2 methods of installing Catalina, one is a regular install and other a Clean install (regular installation process is covered here). The regular installation installs Catalina over the previous OS, whereas the Clean install wipes the entire boot drive.
In the next section of this post, you will learn how to install Catalina.
How to install Mac OS Catalina?
If you choose this method, all the applications on your Mac will remain, so you will not need to reinstall any apps to start using your Mac. Your Mac with the new OS will be exactly similar to the state before OS upgrade, the only difference being the addition of new features with Catalina.
These steps will help you upgrade your Mac to OS 10.15 Catalina:
- Have your Mac connected to a reliable Wi-Fi connection and a source of power
- Click on the AppStore in the dock and launch it
- Search for ‘Mac OS Catalina’ and click Get
- Now, the new OS will be downloaded
- Click Continue to install and enter your admin credentials
- Allow the installation to complete fully
After installing, your Mac may restart several times to complete the set up process. Please don’t turn OFF your Mac during this time. After the process completes, you will have Catalina set up on your Mac.
Turning OFF your Mac in the middle of an OS upgrade can cause your Mac to hang and may cause data loss. If encountered with such a situation, Remo Recover Mac can help you recover data lost during OS upgrade/reinstall. Check out the free trial for a reliable and safe Mac data recovery experience.
Conclusion
Fresh Install Mac Catalina
The new features of Catalina like Sidecar, Music, Apple TV along with additional security certainly makes it exciting for users. However, please note that when you install Catalina on your Mac, the older 32-bit apps will not be supported. So, if you have any 32-bit apps, upgrade them to 64-bit apps or install alternative apps that are supported by Catalina.
If you are planning to install Catalina, we hope that this guide has provided you with the information required to carry out the installation process smoothly. Just remember to create a backup before you install Catalina, this will save you from bitter data loss situations.
Apple announced the new operating system early on without precisely setting the macOS Catalina release date. We expected it for quite a while, experimenting with the Beta version. Some users weren’t confident enough to install the Beta, since bugs were expected.
For those who waited for the official macOS Catalina release date, October 7th was the lucky day. This is a major upgrade with quite a few changes that most users love, but many criticize.
Some are still not ready to install macOS 10.15 Catalina, since they aren’t sure if their files and apps would suffer damages. If you are one of those users, then this guide is definitely for you. We’ll guide you through a detailed process on how to clean install macOS Catalina. The steps are relatively easy even for inexperienced Mac users. There’s no need to ask a friend to help you with this; you can do it!
Tips: How to Clean Install macOS Catalina
1. Check if Your Mac Can Handle It
Before you figure out how to clean install macOS Catalina, it’s important to know if your device is compatible with the release. These are the devices that support it:
- All iMac Pros
- iMacs from 2012 on
- Mac minis from 2012 and on
- Mac Pros from 2013 and on
- MacBook Pros from 2012 and on
- MacBooks from 2015 and on
- MacBook Airs from 2012 and on
If you have an older device, you’re stuck with the Mojave. But if your computer can handle Catalina, you’ll need at least 16GB of free space on the startup disk to cover the installation.
2. Choose the Type of Install You Want to Upgrade to
Apple gives you two upgrade options for macOS Catalina:
- Install macOS 10.15 Catalina while preserving all data intact. Most people have important files on their computers. Losing them would probably be a total disaster. Imagine a writer losing all their documents or a control freak losing their apps. Of course, the cloud is always there, so you can always recover things that get lost. But learning how to install macOS Catalina without losing any of your data will lead to a less stressful experience.
- A clean install for a fresh start. This gives you the feel of a brand new computer. During the installation process, all system junk will be gone and you’ll be left with a clean slate. This is a good option for those who don’t need any of the data on their computer. Maybe it’s full of photos and documents that you transferred on an external drive. If you don’t need anything, a clean macOS Catalina installation will make your computer faster. But even if you do this type of install, you might want to back up some of your data. This is the type of install we’ll be talking about in the continuation of this article.
3. Clean It Up
If you’re wondering how to clean install macOS Catalina in a fast and effortless way, it’s best to do some cleaning before you start the process. If there’s tons of junk in the form of apps and files you don’t need, the installation will take more time.
You can easily cover this step if you use a cleaning app that gets rid of file duplicates, old cache files, and all kinds of junk.
How To Install Fresh Macos Catalina
Pay attention: you’ll get rid of 32-bit apps during this process. They don’t work on the Catalina. If your work depends on some of these apps, stay with the Mojave until app developers introduce an upgrade.
4. Back It Up
Apple offers a native app for this purpose: Time Machine. There’s a third-part option, Get Backup Pro, which creates bootable clones.
You can use whatever backup system you prefer, just don’t ignore the necessity of it. Even if you’re sure that you don’t need anything on your current system, you might end up needing some files.
5. Get Your macOS Catalina
Now that your Mac is clean and backed up, you’re ready for the most important stage. We recommend creating a bootable USB installer for the upgrade.
- Get your Catalina installer from the App Store.
- When the installer launches, click File > Quit.
- Get your USB in (you need at least 16GB of free storage space on it). It has to be properly formatted. Name it and close the Disk Utility.
- Access the Terminal app. This is the hard part: you’ll need to enter a precise command.
sudo /Applications/Install macOS Catalina.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia –volume /Volumes/[XXX] –applicationpath /Applications/Install macOS Catalina.app
Instead of XXX, you’ll type your drive name.
- Return and insert the admin password.
- Wait patiently for the process to be finished. When it’s ready, click Done and close the Terminal.
6. Get Catalina on the Startup Drive
There. You’ve been through the hard part. From now on, it will be easy.
- Choose the Catalina installer, which you’ll find under Startup Disk (in System Preferences).
- Restart the computer, but make sure to hold Command-R.
- Find the option “reinstall a new copy of macOS” in the Utilities window.
- Continue and follow the process (you have to agree to the terms first).
- Choose your startup drive and proceed with the installation process.
That’s it. After this process, your computer will feel like new.
You Just Learned How to Clean Install macOS Catalina
We’ve been waiting for the macOS Catalina release date for too long. Now that the operating system is finally here, many people hesitate to install it. Don’t worry; a clean install is pretty easy to do. That command above might overwhelm you, but it’s really not that difficult to enter it when you know what it is.
There’s another issue that worries Mac users: what if they can’t free up enough space on their startup drive? There’s a solution for that: it’s possible to install the operating system on a non-startup drive. The process is simple:
- If the drive is not new, then erase it. It has to be clean.
- Download the macOS installer from the App Store and click Quit as soon as it launches.
- Launch the installer from the Applications folder and choose the drive that you want it on. Proceed with the steps as the installation process guides you.
When you’re using an Apple product, there’s usually a solution for any problem you face. That’s why you love your Mac so much. Now make it even better with the new operating system. It will be love at first sight!