Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Stex

macrumors 6502
Jan 18, 2021
280
189
NYC
Try to recreate the drive and copy the output from the terminal for review.

Ok thanks, I will do this. FYI - I created the bootable flash drive using the Terminal commands you posted above in #45. No errors were reported in Terminal. The error showed up as a window in macOS when attempting to boot from the flash drive after holding down Option key and selecting the flash drive as boot drive. But will recreate it again and paste the Terminal output here. Thanks again.
 

Chrisoldmacos

macrumors newbie
May 17, 2022
1
0
United Kingdom
Some people over in the Early Intel Macs section have recommended this from the Internet Archive, although I have not personally used it. https://archive.org/details/install-os-x-mavericks.app

I also have a DMG of Mavericks I can send to anyone who PMs or emails me. I made it in a particular way, by running CreateInstallMedia and targeting a virtual disk instead of a real one, and it's what I personally use when I need to do a reinstall.
id like to have one for my virtal machene
 

Wowfunhappy

macrumors 68000
Mar 12, 2019
1,745
2,087
All MBP11,4 (mid 2014) came with Mavericks. So if your disk is blank and you do internet recovery it will install Mavericks.
You can also use Macrecovery.py:
Code:
macrecovery % python macrecovery.py -b Mac-F60DEB81FF30ACF6 -m 00000000000FNN100 download
Downloading 031-10295...
Saving http://oscdn.apple.com/content/downloads/33/62/031-10295/gho4r94w66f5v4ujm0sz7k1m0hua68i6oo/RecoveryImage/RecoveryImage.dmg to RecoveryImage.dmg...
192.0 MBs downloaded...
Just to close the loop on this method—it does not work.

It will download a recovery image which the user can boot into. However, when you attempt to install the OS, you will be asked to enter an Apple ID. Only if your Apple ID contains Mavericks in its purchase history will you be able to proceed with the installation.
 

startergo

macrumors 603
Sep 20, 2018
5,019
2,282
I am curious why Apple has made it so difficult to install Mavericks specifically. Internet recovery only offers Yosemite for my MBP even though it came preloaded with Mavericks. Very frustrating.
Maybe because Mavericks is the last OS without the SIP protection. You can change NVRAM variables within the OS.
 
  • Like
Reactions: N69AP

DeltaMac

macrumors G5
Jul 30, 2003
13,749
4,572
Delaware
I can still download Mavericks from the App Store (and tried again just now, downloads the complete 5.33GB installer just fine)
To do what I did, you would need to be booted to an older OS X system, on a Mac that will natively boot to Mavericks. I used El Capitan system, and booted to a 2008 iMac. Oh, and one other thing -- I "purchased" Mavericks from the App Store when it was current, and it remains in the Purchased tab on that old system, still downloadable.
You could try registering as a developer, which may give you other options to download Mavericks directly from Apple.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MBAir2010 and N69AP

N69AP

macrumors member
Aug 7, 2021
36
169
United States
I can still use "Option-Shift-Command-R" to install Mavericks on a late 2013 rMBP:
That's interesting...I have a mid 2014 MBP. I don't know why it offered me Yosemite.

I can still download Mavericks from the App Store (and tried again just now, downloads the complete 5.33GB installer just fine)
To do what I did, you would need to be booted to an older OS X system, on a Mac that will natively boot to Mavericks. I used El Capitan system, and booted to a 2008 iMac. Oh, and one other thing -- I "purchased" Mavericks from the App Store when it was current, and it remains in the Purchased tab on that old system, still downloadable.
You could try registering as a developer, which may give you other options to download Mavericks directly from Apple.
Thank you for the tip! That worked. I was able to grab the installer from an old Mac that was still on Snow Leopard. It's wrapping up the installation now.
 

startergo

macrumors 603
Sep 20, 2018
5,019
2,282
Yes this is weird:
1665546373089.png


Yosemite, ML and Lion available, but in between Mavericks is missing.
 
  • Like
Reactions: N69AP

fxdaly

macrumors newbie
Jan 17, 2023
1
0
Just to close the loop on this method—it does not work.

It will download a recovery image which the user can boot into. However, when you attempt to install the OS, you will be asked to enter an Apple ID. Only if your Apple ID contains Mavericks in its purchase history will you be able to proceed with the installation.
could you please send me the mavericks installer, thanks.
 

Wowfunhappy

macrumors 68000
Mar 12, 2019
1,745
2,087
If anyone needs a copy of Mavericks, please either PM me or email me. One of those two things. Thanks.
 

startergo

macrumors 603
Sep 20, 2018
5,019
2,282
I can still download Mavericks from the App Store
No longer available. Mavericks was the first free macOS version, but yes If you downloaded it before it would stay in your purchases. Now I only see EC there. I purchased Lion before, but I don't see it in my purchases perhaps because it is free now. I am not sure if you can manipulate NVRAM variables (write) from terminal in previous macOS, but in Mavericks you can without going to safe mode.
 

DeltaMac

macrumors G5
Jul 30, 2003
13,749
4,572
Delaware
No longer available. Mavericks was the first free macOS version, but yes If you downloaded it before it would stay in your purchases. Now I only see EC there. I purchased Lion before, but I don't see it in my purchases perhaps because it is free now. I am not sure if you can manipulate NVRAM variables (write) from terminal in previous macOS, but in Mavericks you can without going to safe mode.
Are you on an old enough system to verify that? I had previously purchased Mavericks (yes, it has always been a free download, but I use "purchased" in the sense that requesting a download of a free app then makes that app appear in your "Purchased" tab in an OS X App Store that still shows the Purchased tab.)
I just now booted to a Snow Leopard system, and successfully downloaded Mavericks from my Purchased tab in the App Store. Appears to still be available. I don't know if you have to go back to that old system, but Snow Leopard is the oldest with an App Store, so I thought I would check to see if that even worked now, and yes, it still works.
 

Wowfunhappy

macrumors 68000
Mar 12, 2019
1,745
2,087
Is it available in the paid developer's account?
No.

I just now booted to a Snow Leopard system, and successfully downloaded Mavericks from my Purchased tab in the App Store.
That's because you previously downloaded Mavericks with your Apple ID. Unfortunately, Mavericks won't appear in the Purchased tab if you never previously downloaded it, no matter how old your Mac.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DeltaMac

startergo

macrumors 603
Sep 20, 2018
5,019
2,282
I could not even sign in to the App Store in SL nor Mavericks. Purchases did not appear in Ventura. But in EC here they are:
Screen Shot 2023-01-22 at 9.52.14 PM.png

Go figure...
 

startergo

macrumors 603
Sep 20, 2018
5,019
2,282
Just tested:
Code:
mas install 675248567
Still works. (I had it previously downloaded through App Store).
 

Dayo

macrumors 68020
Dec 21, 2018
2,256
1,278
I have also just hit the madness that is Mavericks and cannot install it just because I never used it back then.
Lion, Mountain Lion before and Yosemite, El Capitan after are fine to install but not Mavericks. Nuts!


EDIT
This offline installer for Mavericks 10.9.5 works:

I run xattr -cr on the install app it creates and change the date by default.
Not sure if they are actually needed but likely that they are.
 
Last edited:

f54da

macrumors 6502a
Dec 22, 2021
503
185
If you're going to use random installers and dmgs found on the net, be sure to at least verify the signature (codesign -v should do it I think, or pacifist will do it for you in a nice gui).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dayo

startergo

macrumors 603
Sep 20, 2018
5,019
2,282
and cannot install it just because I never used it back then.
That cannot be true. In order for the installer to check whether you have installed it or not in the past you have to be logged in to the App Store from the Installer. The installer does not provide that option. If you are talking about the login to ICloud at the last stage just before login that is easily skippable. All you need to do is sign in later.
 
Last edited:
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.