Need to update from El capitan to Sierra...but can't find it in apple app

Jeannie

Member
Hi...it's about time I update from El capitan to Sierra...as I am doing more stuff involving google.
Unfortunately...I can't find the Mac OS Sierra 10.12 on the apple app.
Now what?

Jeannie
 

chas_m

Well-Known Member
Is Sierra the most modern version your machine can run? If so, it is time to start looking for a new or newer machine ... Sierra is officially three versions back, and as of next month sometime it will be four versions back ... that translates to no security updates anymore. I am of the opinion that is better to keep software (all software, not just Apple’s) as up-to-date as possible, since each new one fixes bugs and closes security issues. That said, you don’t have to upgrade on day one of release, but within a month is usually a good rule of thumb.

There are times when such a big change happens (like the move to exclusively 64-bit software as occurred with Catalina) that old, abandoned program will “break” with the new release, and in those cases it is okay to wait for a while (a short while, i.e. less than three years) before upgrading the OS while you upgrade the software you need — or, if no upgrade is in the offing, while you search for a replacement/alternative.

Though I have a new MBP that runs the latest software, I’m in that boat with my older 2012 MBP — it CAN run Catalina, but there’s some software on there (a few games I don’t quite want to give up yet, even though I very rarely play them, and some audio software I use for the Space Javelin podcast) that never got upgraded enough to run on 64-bit only systems. I will over the next year or two have to find a replacement or just give them up.

I should mention that there is one exception to this — if you really want to keep an obsolete machine around for whatever purpose, at least take it offline (not on the internet) so that the main vector of attack is not available. I have some musician friends who have old computers they don’t have connected to the net and use them as dedicated (almost) single-purpose machines to run the unsupported software (or the version of the software) they prefer.
 

Jeannie

Member
So I have an imac 9retina 5, 27", late 2015)
processor 3.2 GHz Intel core i5
memory 8 gb 1867 MHz DDR3
Graphics AMD radeon R9 M490 2048 MB

What Mac OS should I upgrade too? If you think Sierra may possibly be too old.

Jeannie
 

chas_m

Well-Known Member
You can see my answer in the other thread, but your machine is perfectly capable of running any macOS version up to and including the next one (Big Sur/macOS 11), coming soon. In the other thread, I've given you a link to download Mojave (10.14), which still supports old 32-bit software.
 

Jeannie

Member
So I clicked on the link you had provided...and got onto the mojave page and clicked on the top left corner clicked on the word 'open' and got this message...This copy of the Install macOS Mojave application is damaged, and can't be used to install macOS. Did I do something wrong?
 

Jeannie

Member
Also...can't seem to find the installer for El capitan on my mac to make a bootable disk. Instead I have an installer for mojave that claims it is damaged (something to do with an outdated certificate I suspect)...so I have no choice ...mac is forcing me to upload the new operating system catalina? This means some of my 32 bit programs won't work.
 

chas_m

Well-Known Member
Remove the Mojave installer you already have on your machine, and try the link for Mojave again. The fact that the word "open" appeared rather than the word "get" suggests that you already had a copy of the Mojave installer somewhere on your Mac.

32-bit programs are, almost without exception, old versions that haven't been updated for nearly a decade. It would be wise, regardless of whether you are successful at going to Mojave or have to go to Catalina, to update any programs you have that are giving you that warning or you know to be that out-of-date.
 
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