Apple would prefer you to only download approved apps from the App Store, but that isn’t always possible. If you find a suitable app online that hasn’t been approved for installation, macOS will block it from launching. This security feature is well-intended, but you’ll need to bypass it to install some of your own third-party apps.
Install macOS Catalina on Unsupported Mac. Now, follow the steps shown below carefully to load the installer, erase your local disk, and install macOS Catalina from USB drive you created in above step. Step 1: Boot Mac from USB Installer. To do this, insert the installer and hold down the Option key as you restart your Mac. If you have an unsupported Mac but want to try the latest macOS then this guide is for you. MacOS Big Sur is one of the biggest updates in years and obviously better than the last macOS. It brings a new app design, full-height sidebars, refresh dock, control center like iPhone, and more.
Thankfully, it’s a pretty easy process to run unverified apps on a Mac. Before we begin, remember that this security measure exists for a reason. Only consider installing apps from sources you trust, or you may put your Mac at risk, even with Mac antivirus software installed.
Allow Unverified Apps In System Preferences
When you first attempt to open an app from an unverified developer, Apple will block it, displaying an alert box instead. macOS will always prevent apps it doesn’t recognize from launching without your approval.
It’s also possible that your macOS security settings prevent any apps from being launched that aren’t from the App Store. This includes apps from verified developers that have been downloaded from the internet directly.
- If you’re unable to launch an unverified app (or a verified app that isn’t from the App Store), you’ll need to head to System Preferences. You can access this from your Dock directly, or launch it from within Launchpad.
- In System Preferences, click Security & Privacy > General, then click the Lock button to allow you to make changes to your settings. You’ll need to provide your password, or use Touch ID, to unlock this.
If your app is from a verified developer but it isn’t from the App Store, under the category named Allow apps downloaded from, select App Store and identified developers.
- The last app you attempted to open will be listed underneath your App Store security options. To launch the app (or rather, the DMG image file containing your app), click Open Anyway.
You’ll need to do this for each unverified app you launch, as Apple removed the option to automatically allow this in an earlier version of macOS. You’ll only need to do this for a particular app once, however.
If you’ve clicked Open Anyway, the DMG image file containing your unverified app will launch. Most DMG files contain your enclosed application file, as well as a shortcut to your Applications folder.
- To install this unverified app, drag your app icon and drop it on the Applications shortcut in your Finder window. This will copy the app from your DMG image file to your macOS installation, allowing it to be accessed from Launchpad or from within the Applications folder in Finder.
- Once installed, if you haven’t previously opened the app, macOS will warn you that you’re attempting to open an app from the internet. You’ll need to approve it for launch, so click the Open button to do this.
Open Unverified Apps Without Installation
Among the many things that Finder allows you to do it is the ability to view the contents of a DMG image file before you install an app. Rather than dragging your enclosed app to the (usually supplied) Applications shortcut, you can open the app straight from your DMG file instead without installing it.
- To do that, open your DMG file. To do this, you can either double-click on the application icon, or right-click on the application file in your Finder window and click the Open button.
- A warning about the unverified app will appear. This will inform you that you’re attempting to open an app from the internet. Click Open to allow it to launch. You can also select the Don’t warn me when opening applications on this disk image checkbox to allow all apps in your DMG file to launch without a warning.
Your app will launch at this point. As it won’t be installed on your system, you’ll need to repeat this process to launch it again once you close it.
Using Homebrew To Run Unverified Apps on Mac
While Apple would prefer you to install apps through the App Store, you can bypass it completely with Homebrew. The benefit of using Homebrew to install macOS apps is that it bypasses the security mechanisms that Apple uses to “protect” you from unverified apps.
This is a double-edged sword, as while you’ll be able to install unverified apps, you’ll need to ensure that you only install apps and software that you trust.
Homebrew acts as a package manager in the same way that APT does on Linux does. It allows you to install apps using the macOS terminal, either individually, or using it to create a bulk installer to install multiple apps at once.
This might be useful to install multiple apps to new macOS devices, for instance.
- To install Homebrew, start by opening up a macOS Terminal app window. You can find the Terminal app in the Launchpad > Other folder, or by searching for Terminal in Spotlight, which you can access by clicking the search icon in the top menu bar.
- To install Homebrew, type /usr/bin/ruby -e “$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)” in your Terminal window, then click enter twice. This will deploy the automated installation script created by the Homebrew developers.
- The installation process for Homebrew should complete automatically. The Terminal window will update with the message Installation successful upon completion.
Once Homebrew is installed, you can then search for potential Homebrew apps by typing brew search appname, replacing appname with a partial or full app name. You can also search for these on the Homebrew website.
- Once you’ve located a suitable installation package for an app, you can type brew cask install appname, replacing appname with the app. For instance, to install Firefox, typing brew cask install firefox would download and install the relevant package for Firefox.
Once the installation process has completed, your app will be available to launch from the Launchpad, or from the Applications folder in Finder, alongside your other Mac apps.
macOS 11 Big Sur is an advanced Macintosh operating system that you can install on your Mac. It has got tons of new features to enhance the user experience, like making safari browser 50% faster, new features of messages, Air Pods improvements, new-design sidebar in mail and photos, widgets in the notification bar, and many more.
Apple announced this new software on 22 June at WWDC. And this time, Apple did a big challenge and released the macOS 11 Big Sur along with iOS 14, iPadOS 14, tvOS 14, and watchOS 7. Meanwhile, Apple highlighted all the new features, changes, and improvements to the current software. You can download this new operating system from various sources now. Unfortunately, some Macs can't receive macOS 11 Big Sur update and they can't install the new operating system. In this article, we will discuss how to install macOS 11 Big Sur on an Unsupported Mac with easy steps.
Part 1: Official List of Big Sur Supported Mac Models
macOS 11 Big Sur Developer Beta is available to download. But you have to check your Mac compatibility first. If you have the below-listed Macs then you don't have to install macOS 11 Big Sur as these models will receive an update for macOS Big Sur automatically.
- MacBook 2015 and later
- MacBook Air and Pro Late 2013 and later
- Mac mini 2014 and later
- iMac 2014 and later
- iMac Pro 2017 and later (all models)
- Mac Pro 2013 and later
Part 2: Unsupported Mac Models of Big Sur (Not Eligible for Direct Upgrade)
On the other hand, if you have the below-listed Mac computers then you can install macOS Big Sur on those models as they are unsupported officially. You have to do some hacks to let Big Sur running on unsupported Macs.
- MacBook Air 2012
- MacBook Pro 2012 and Early 2013 MacBook Pro
- 2012 Mac Mini
- 2012 and 2013 iMac
Part 3: How to Install macOS Big Sur on an Unsupported Mac
Before the installation, make sure that you take a backup of your Mac on an external hard disk as you will lose all your data when you install the new operating system. There are several backup software like Time Machine, iCloud, Dropbox, and many more. Once you have taken a backup follow the instructions below to install macOS Big Sur on your unsupported Mac.
Step 1: First you need to download two files from the links below to complete the macOS 11 Big Sur installation on your unsupported Mac.
- macOS Big Sur PKG installer: https://developer.apple.com/macos/
- macOS Big Sur PKG install hack: https://forums.macrumors.com/simple-installer-hack-zip.926156/
Step 2: After you have downloaded these two files, unzip the hack and copy the hax.dylib file and then paste it to home folder.
Step 3: Click on Install Assistant.pkg to install required contents to your Mac. Make sure that you have enough space on your hard disk as the file will take 20.1 MB size on your computer.
Step 4: Now go ahead and tap on the Install button to install the software on the disk 'Macintosh SSD'. Once you click the 'Install' button then it will ask you to enter your password. Next, click the 'Install Software' button.
Step 5: Next, you have to boot your computer into Recovery mode. You can do that by pressing Command + R immediately on startup until Recovery option appears. In case if you have no recovery partition, you can press down Command + Option +R to get into Internet Recovery. After that, go to Utilities -> Terminal and type 'csrutil disable', followed by pressing the Enter button on your keyboard.
Step 6: Type the following two commands in the terminal. Once you apply the first command, type your login password, and then input the second command.
sudo defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.security.libraryvalidation.plist DisableLibraryValidation -bool true
launchctl setenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES $PWD/Hax.dylib
Step 7: Next, run the macOS 11 Big Sur installer app that you installed from InstallAssistant.pkg a while ago. Now click on the 'Continue' button and follow the instructions to complete the installation process.
Step 8: The installation will take about 30 minutes approximately. Once the installation is successful you will see the macOS 11 Big Sur wallpaper on your Mac screen. That's it, you have installed macOS Big Sur on your unsupported Mac successfully.
Follow the above-mentioned method to install macOS 11 Big Sur on unsupported Mac devices. The method is quite easy; you just have to focus on the command line and other installation procedures.
Part 4: Alternative Method to Install Big Sur on an Unsupported Mac
The above tutorial is for users who still have access to their device. However, if your Mac is unable to boot into Desktop or you are using a Hackintosh, then you should follow the alternative method instead. In this part, we will show you how to create a macOS Big Sugr bootable USB on a Windows PC and install macOS Big Sur on unsupported Mac by using that bootable media.
Step 1: Make a full backup of important files on your Mac.
Step 2: Download a copy of UUByte DMG Editor and follow the instructions to install it on your Windows PC.
Step 3: Insert a USB flash drive into PC and open UUByte DMG Editor. Now, click the Burn tab to get into the new window.
Step 4: You will see three options on Burn windows. Please import macOS Big Sur DMG file into the program and choose the USB drive name. You can also set a new name for that USB drive. And this is optional.
Install Unsupported Mac Os
Step 5: Once the setting process is completed, just click 'Burn' button located at the bottom to start burning dmg file to USB on your PC. You should wait about 10 minutes for this task.
Step 6: Plug Big Sur bootable USB on your Mac and press Power + Option combine keys to open Startup Manager. At this stage, you are able to select a booting device. Click on the USB drive and start Big Sur installation process.
This part is mainly for Windows users who want to install Big Sur on an unsupported Mac. The most important step is to create a bootable USB drive.
Troubleshooting:
If your system is showing any error message while installing the macOS Big Sur you can try these methods to fix it.
- Restart your Computer and continue with the installation.
- Make sure that your Mac’s date and time is correct.
- Check your Hard Drive to see that you have enough free space to carry out the installation.
- Make sure that the version of macOS Big Sur is up to date including the macOs installer
- Run first aid on your startup disk before installing macOS Big Sur to check any system files are damaged or not.
Windows Unsupported Os
Summary
Macos Unsupported Mac Os
You can see that it is not hard to install macOS Big Sur on an Supported Mac. Make sure that you key in the right command lines which are mentioned above, as typing a wrong command can harm your system. Enjoy the great features that come with the macOS Big Sur on your unsupported device!