As IT administrators look to efficiently manage remote Mac® systems, some turn to scripting to help automate their needs. Depending on the tools used to manage Macs, however, admins may not be able to fully accomplish their goals. By managing Mac systems through a cloud directory service, organizations can push commands to systems regardless of their location.
May 30, 2017 I remember how stable System 7.6.1 felt, the new UI overhaul in Mac OS 8 which felt so modern, the rocky initial transition to Mac OS X (I ran 10.0 on an iBook and found it to be so unusable I switched back to Mac OS 9 and then went to Mac OS X again with 10.1) that was then resolved and became a solid and fantastic OS. OS 8.6 - 9.2.2 might need the last of whichever versions of the USB extensions that each of these System versions supports (for OS 9.1 through 9.2.2, USB 1.5.6 is the preferred version; OS 9.1 and later don't need the extension 'USB Mass Storage Support', especially since it sometimes freezes Macs running OS 9.1 - 9.2.2 that are trying to boot.
Command line interfaces (CLIs) give savvy IT admins high levels of control over their systems and other endpoints. Commands can be used to tweak system configurations, query data points upon request, push application downloads via .PKG, and even deploy files at scale across multiple endpoints simultaneously. Often, CLI allows for more customization than a graphical user interface (GUI), which is limited to the extent of features displayed by the developer.
Another key feature of CLI is its extensibility. Using various languages and/or standard development kits (SDK), admins can manage virtually any endpoint or OS, provided they know the syntax. For instance, PowerShell, a popular and powerful scripting language, can be applied to Mac, Windows®, and Linux® systems.
Zsh script is the default language for macOS® Catalina™, but can be modified to bash for those more familiar with the traditional Mac scripting language. Administrators input their scripts into the Terminal app to make system changes through commands.
When a system is remote, however, admins can’t physically access the machine to run commands like they normally would in the office. There are several options available to employ for running remote commands on Macs.
Remote desktop software allows admins to interface with a remote system, provided it is online. Using a tool like Splashtop, admins can take over the remote user’s system, open the Terminal, and run commands on a system. If PowerShell is in use in the organization, admins can also opt to connect to remote Macs via the SSH protocol to run PowerShell on the system and alter configurations as necessary.
Although this route gets the job done, tapping into every users’ Mac when a change needs to be made is tedious and time consuming. Such a manual and one-off process is hard to scale effectively, a tough pill to swallow considering the automation possibilities of well-implemented CLI.
Remote management and monitoring (RMM) solutions and mobile device management (MDM) tools offer remote CLI as well. Unlike a remote desktop tool, RMMs and MDMs often rely on daemons/agents downloaded onto the Mac system to make changes to settings and other configurations. When an admin creates a script and deploys it through an RMM/MDM, they can choose to apply the command to multiple systems at once, making the process considerably smoother than applying the command on each system individually.
In general, entries into the RMM and MDM space are considered point solutions: They are highly effective for the services they provide an organization, but offer little else outside of their respective niches. For many organizations, this suits their needs effectively, but comes at the expense of their budgets.
Point solutions tend towards being more expensive than not, and since they only address a specific need, admins often need to purchase multiple to cover all of their needs. With IT budgets declining due to recent drops in global markets, administrators may want to consider consolidating their stack into a single platform that covers more of their needs.
This all-in-one approach to IT tooling means a single line item on a budget, saving money while still providing the requisite functionality. This also means that the IT admin only has one vendor they need to do business with, saving time spent requesting support, training technicians and end users, and perhaps most importantly, convincing executives that the new tool is worth the cost.
One such all-in-one platform that IT admins can employ to run remote commands on their Mac fleets is a cloud directory service, or Directory-as-a-Service®.
JumpCloud® Directory-as-a-Service (DaaS) offers flexible IT administration for streamlining and automating processes. DaaS allows admins to create and run commands from the cloud-based Admin Console UI, which remotely push down to JumpCloud-managed Macs (as well as Windows and Linux machines) through the downloaded system agent. Admins can also employ group-based Policies which apply pre-configured scripts to systems en masse. JumpCloud also supports the Apple MDM protocol for additional system management functionality.
Script-savvy admins can take advantage of JumpCloud’s PowerShell Module to build upon their familiarity with the popular scripting language and control their directory instance with ease. The JumpCloud API also enables automation across multiple solutions and endpoints found in your environment.
Learn more about the flexible administration options available through JumpCloud by checking out our product page.
So, you’ve decided to download an older version of Mac OS X. There are many reasons that could point you to this radical decision. To begin with, some of your apps may not be working properly (or simply crash) on newer operating systems. Also, you may have noticed your Mac’s performance went down right after the last update. Finally, if you want to run a parallel copy of Mac OS X on a virtual machine, you too will need a working installation file of an older Mac OS X. Further down we’ll explain where to get one and what problems you may face down the road.
We’ll be repeatedly referring to these Apple OS versions below, so it’s good to know the basic macOS timeline.
Cheetah 10.0 | Puma 10.1 | Jaguar 10.2 |
Panther 10.3 | Tiger 10.4 | Leopard 10.5 |
Snow Leopard 10.6 | Lion 10.7 | Mountain Lion 10.8 |
Mavericks 10.9 | Yosemite 10.10 | El Capitan 10.11 |
Sierra 10.12 | High Sierra 10.13 | Mojave 10.14 |
Catalina 10.15 |
Given your Mac isn’t new and is filled with data, you will probably need enough free space on your Mac. This includes not just space for the OS itself but also space for other applications and your user data. One more argument is that the free space on your disk translates into virtual memory so your apps have “fuel” to operate on. The chart below tells you how much free space is needed.
Note, that it is recommended that you install OS on a clean drive. Next, you will need enough disk space available, for example, to create Recovery Partition. Here are some ideas to free up space on your drive:
Go to Finder > All My Files > Arrange by size
Then you can move your space hoggers onto an external drive or a cloud storage.
If you aren’t comfortable with cleaning the Mac manually, there are some nice automatic “room cleaners”. Our favorite is CleanMyMac as it’s most simple to use of all. It deletes system junk, old broken apps, and the rest of hidden junk on your drive.
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.4 - 10.8 (free version)
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.9 (free version)
Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.10 - 10.14 (free version)
Normally, it is assumed that updating OS is a one-way road. That’s why going back to a past Apple OS version is problematic. The main challenge is to download the OS installation file itself, because your Mac may already be running a newer version. If you succeed in downloading the OS installation, your next step is to create a bootable USB or DVD and then reinstall the OS on your computer.
If you once had purchased an old version of Mac OS X from the App Store, open it and go to the Purchased tab. There you’ll find all the installers you can download. However, it doesn’t always work that way. The purchased section lists only those operating systems that you had downloaded in the past. But here is the path to check it:
This method allows you to download Mavericks and Yosemite by logging with your Apple ID — only if you previously downloaded them from the Mac App Store.
If you are signed with an Apple Developer account, you can get access to products that are no longer listed on the App Store. If you desperately need a lower OS X version build, consider creating a new Developer account among other options. The membership cost is $99/year and provides a bunch of perks unavailable to ordinary users.
Nevertheless, keep in mind that if you visit developer.apple.com/downloads, you can only find 10.3-10.6 OS X operating systems there. Newer versions are not available because starting Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.7, the App Store has become the only source of updating Apple OS versions.
You can purchase a boxed or email version of past Mac OS X directly from Apple. Both will cost you around $20. For the reason of being rather antiquated, Snow Leopard and earlier Apple versions can only be installed from DVD.
Buy a boxed edition of Snow Leopard 10.6
Get an email copy of Lion 10.7
Get an email copy of Mountain Lion 10.8
The email edition comes with a special download code you can use for the Mac App Store. Note, that to install the Lion or Mountain Lion, your Mac needs to be running Snow Leopard so you can install the newer OS on top of it.
If you are wondering if you can run El Capitan on an older Mac, rejoice as it’s possible too. But before your Mac can run El Capitan it has to be updated to OS X 10.6.8. So, here are main steps you should take:
1. Install Snow Leopard from install DVD.
2. Update to 10.6.8 using Software Update.
3. Download El Capitan here.
If you have a newer Mac, there is no physical option to install Mac OS versions older than your current Mac model. For instance, if your MacBook was released in 2014, don’t expect it to run any OS released prior of that time, because older Apple OS versions simply do not include hardware drivers for your Mac.
But as it often happens, workarounds are possible. There is still a chance to download the installation file if you have an access to a Mac (or virtual machine) running that operating system. For example, to get an installer for Lion, you may ask a friend who has Lion-operated Mac or, once again, set up a virtual machine running Lion. Then you will need to prepare an external drive to download the installation file using OS X Utilities.
After you’ve completed the download, the installer should launch automatically, but you can click Cancel and copy the file you need. Below is the detailed instruction how to do it.
The following method allows you to download Mac OS X Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks.
Now the OS should start downloading automatically onto the external drive. After the download is complete, your Mac will prompt you to do a restart, but at this point, you should completely shut it down. Now that the installation file is “captured” onto your external drive, you can reinstall the OS, this time running the file on your Mac.
Locate InstallESD.dmg disk image file — this is the file you need to reinstall Lion OS X. The same steps are valid for Mountain Lion and Mavericks.
If your Mac runs macOS Sierra 10.12 or macOS High Sierra 10.13, it is possible to revert it to the previous system if you are not satisfied with the experience. You can do it either with Time Machine or by creating a bootable USB or external drive.
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Sierra
Instruction to downgrade from macOS High Sierra
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Mojave
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Catalina
Before you do it, the best advice is to back your Mac up so your most important files stay intact. In addition to that, it makes sense to clean up your Mac from old system junk files and application leftovers. The easiest way to do it is to run CleanMyMac X on your machine (download it for free here).
If none of the options to get older OS X worked, pay a visit to nearest local Apple Store. They should have image installations going back to OS Leopard and earlier. You can also ask their assistance to create a bootable USB drive with the installation file. So here you are. We hope this article has helped you to download an old version of Mac OS X. Below are a few more links you may find interesting.