Sadly I don't really trust the message. I would say that there's enough free space - but how much is "enough" for a full OS upgrade?The message is saying you need more space on your internal drive ("Volume"). How much free space do you have on the drive?
I would recommend 50 GB free to upgrade from Mojave to Big Sur.Sadly I don't really trust the message. I would say that there's enough free space - but how much is "enough" for a full OS upgrade?
Anyway: now I cannot boot anymore into the old MacOS (or I don't know how). So how can I check the free space?
Thanks.
Thanks - I'll keep this in mind.I would recommend 50 GB free to upgrade from Mojave to Big Sur.
I am able to boot into Recovery. Actually it boots into "Internet Recovery", but then I think I get to the same point where I can choose between "Restore From Time Machine Backup", "Reinstall OS X", "Get Help Online" and "Disk Utility".Can you try booting into Recovery (Command + R at startup)?
If you can boot into Recovery then you can use Disk Utility or Terminal to check the status of your disk/volumes. Internet Recovery is another option if you boot to normal Recovery.
Use macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac
Learn how to use macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac.support.apple.com
I was able to select "Macintosh HD" to boot from, but the system remains stuck at the end of the initial progress bar (the one on the black screen with the Apple logo). Anything I can do to proceed on this path?Try Option Boot to get the boot selector. There is likely a separate disk for the installer. Select the main disk.
You could then clean up or use diskutil to clear out the Update volume.
Catalina uses APFS format (as does all macOS since High Sierra), so it should be able to see the disk on your non-working MacBook. When you run Disk Utility make sure the View setting is set to "Show All Devices".Hi again.
I've connected Thunderbolt cable and booted the "non-working" Macbook into "target disk mode". On my Catalina-based Macbook I did not see any additional disk appear on my desk. Also with Disk Utility, I can't see any other disk.
Do I need a newer macOS version on my Catalina-based Macbook? Or what is the issue here?
Thanks.Catalina uses APFS format (as does all macOS since High Sierra), so it should be able to see the disk on your non-working MacBook. When you run Disk Utility make sure the View setting is set to "Show All Devices".
If Disk Utility can not see the drive then there is not much you can do.So now: would it make sense to try restoring my non-working Macbook from the most recent Time Machine backup I have? Or could this also be failing because of the low disk free space (21 GB)?
Disk Utility *can* see the disk, when I enter recovery mode from the Big Sur installer.If Disk Utility can not see the drive then there is not much you can do.
Yes, at most it's 1 hour old from the time I started upgrading.Is your TM BU recent when you were using Mojave?
Are you sure you have Catalina on the working Mac? Your picture of Disk Utility is a much older version of Disk Utility than what's in Catalina or even Mojave. Whatever version it is just doesn't recognize APFS disks.Hi again.
I've connected Thunderbolt cable and booted the "non-working" Macbook into "target disk mode". On my Catalina-based Macbook I did not see any additional disk appear on my desk. Also with Disk Utility, I can't see any other disk.
Do I need a newer macOS version on my Catalina-based Macbook? Or what is the issue here?
100% sure my working Macbook runs Catalina, see here:Are you sure you have Catalina on the working Mac? Your picture of Disk Utility is a much older version of Disk Utility than what's in Catalina or even Mojave. Whatever version it is just doesn't recognize APFS disks.
Try booting into internet recovery again on the problematic Mac, just holding command-option-r. Perhaps you used command-option-shift-r, which would take you back to the oldest major version of macOS available for the Mac you're using.