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Help cancelling OS install

P

Peter Franks

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jun 9, 2011
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Been stuck on white screen with Apple logo for hours

‘Installing: About 23 minutes remaining’ it’s said for 3 hours, and the bar not moved a mm in hours. It’s really not going to move any more now. What’s the safest way to interrupt and quit install at this point. Turn off from button?
 
I would likely not disturb the install for a few hours, but if you want to give up, sure, press and hold the power button until your Mac shuts off.
Then, boot up again. Let it do what it will do. It may go back to the same point, but continue on to a finish.
I have had this happen on a couple of occasions.
If it were my Mac, I would not trust that as a good install, even if it finishes after you force a power off and reboot.
I would (absolutely) reboot to your installer, and give it another run. Maybe that will go through without issues on a second try.
 
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DeltaMac said:
I would likely not disturb the install for a few hours, but if you want to give up, sure, press and hold the power button until your Mac shuts off.
Then, boot up again. Let it do what it will do. It may go back to the same point, but continue on to a finish.
I have had this happen on a couple of occasions.
If it were my Mac, I would not trust that as a good install, even if it finishes after you force a power off and reboot.
I would (absolutely) reboot to your installer, and give it another run. Maybe that will go through without issues on a second try.
Click to expand...

Thank you for that. Good advice. I’ll leave for a few more hours first. Thanks.
 
On a different but related note: had a relative's Mac run into an update issue the other day. Could not open any apps, start any new processes. Anytime you tried to open an app, a message would briefly flash along the lines of "Program app name cancelled update". Tried to restart Finder but that too failed to restart. Had to power button the machine down.

Restarted, could finally bring up Console to scan the logs, found update failed without any apparent warning. Went back to App Store and re-initiated High Sierra update (was still listed as having not updated). That update took and everything seems to be ok now.
 
Yeh, I will thanks, I was going to leave it till I go to bed, but it's beyond painful now....
 
Peter Franks -

Pull the plug out of the wall, reboot (if it will) and start over.

I suggest you try a "different approach" this time.
 
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I do like the way you say 'different approach', like it's something I've done wrong.
You're probably right though!:cool:

There is only one way of getting El Cap and Sierra though isn't there?
The App store doesn't list them anymore, obviously, but their site does have links to it somewhere

https://itunes.apple.com/app/os-x-el-capitan/id1147835434?mt=12

I mean, that is IT, there's nothing else to be gained from getting that or Sierra, elsewhere, is there?
I've at least got that right?

https://itunes.apple.com/app/macos-sierra/id1127487414?mt=12
 
Which OS do you want to download and install?

You can download El Cap here:
Get OS X El Capitan

You can download Low Sierra here:
Get macOS Sierra

Download either one of these, and I'll tell you what to do next.

Hmmm... you're still running 10.6.8, is that correct?
Or, something newer?
 
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Thanks, yes, I was running El Cap, really didn't like it, too many things that I couldn't get over, so went back to SL, 10.6.8 Shhhh, don't tell anyone. I'm like a leper on here because of using it. Snow Leper. Hah! Thanks, I'm here all week...

Anyway, I want to try Sierra now, but need to install EC to install Sierra. Don't want High Sierra because of the APFS thingy as advised by your good-self, plus the fact I've not got a clue what it may or may not stop from working, re my older files and folders.
 
Trying to get from Snow Leopard to Low Sierra is just too much trouble ... UNLESS you have a bootable USB installer for LS.

The only problem is... I don't think the resources exist to create such a bootable drive while still running Snow Leopard. I don't think "DiskMaker X" will run under SL. I could be wrong.

What I'd advise you to do:
Go on ebay. There are sellers there who will sell you a USB flashdrive with the Low Sierra installer already on it and "ready to go". Will cost about $20 (US).

Once you have the bootable flashdrive, do this:
1. While still running Snow Leopard, do a "final backup" using CarbonCopyCloner (NOT Time Machine). When done, DISCONNECT the backup drive.
2. Boot from the installer, don't run the OS installer yet
3. Open Disk Utility and ERASE the internal drive to Mac OS Extended with Journaling enabled, GUID partition format
4. Close DU and re-open the installer
5. Now do the fresh install. It will take some time and involve some reboots.
6. Do you get a good install? If so, it will reboot to the setup screen
7. Begin setup. At the appropriate moment, setup assistant will ask if you wish to migrate from an existing Mac or hard drive
8. Connect the CCC cloned backup, and "aim" setup assistant at it.
9. Select what you wish to migrate
10. Let setup assistant do its thing
11. When done, log in and it should be ready to use.
 
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Ohhhhh, that is something I didn't know. I thought CCC just puts back a mirror image of what you give it, and that it would just put SL back on the MBP. I didn't realise you could do that, thought that was a TM thing.

So installing over what I already have is a no go then because of the age it took last time. Doing it this way would allow Sierra to go straight on the SSD instead of messing about with EC first?
 
You have to make a choice:
Run Snow Leopard, or run something newer (El Cap or Low Sierra).
Only you can choose which.

It's possible to "have both".
Either on a partitioned internal drive, or by keeping one OS on an external drive.

Perhaps your best bet is to locate an independent Mac repair shop there, and get them to help you.
 
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What you've said seems straight forward enough, thanks again for your help
I was trying the partition thing, and that was a no go, but decided to just stick with a newer one now
 
Yes, I have to come out of the dark ages, not according to me, but according to every browser... bank... itunes.... You get the picture.
 
early 2011 MBP

A million things come up when I put that in, but amongst it all is 'High Sierra'.
[doublepost=1533239419][/doublepost]I'm not downloading any of them at the moment, I just got download time on there of '21 hours', and it actually looks like it would be. Didn't take that long last time!
 
Honestly, your choices are limited. I'd just install High Sierra, it is pretty stable now and will receive *very* important security updates longer. I know this is silly, but have you restarted and tried to download again?
 
I've now got El Capitan on here, which I don't like for many reasons...

Still can't quite believe how smooth a 9 year old Snow Leopard was in comparison to this, sticking on everything I open. Chrome has gone mad now too, and Safari is still poor.

Don't like the slidey desktop thing, don't like opening a picture in a folder and the folder isn't underneath it when I close image to choose a different image. The folder has slid away under the image leaving me with desktop underneath, instead of staying on the download folder to allow me to open the next image. Have to then slide back to the folder every time I want to view the next image.

Don't like the fact I could slide back to the previous folder when opening another folder within it with three fingers gesture, and now it just slides to the desktop?!! And doesn't move back to folder

Mail is twice as slow as it was in Snow Leopard when I click on an email top open, big delay. Was no delay in SL. All these years later and Mail is slower?!
It actually wobbles even when you click on anything, it's just cheap looking. Even using the old view.

Don't like the fact that despite un-ticking 'reopen windows when logging back in', it still restarts opening a load of applications I don't want open on start up....

Just a few things that wind me up!

And where's my photos, Empty, and importing 'Pictures' is greyed out.

Tried to download Sierra, but it fails mid download all the time. There's many things I don't like about EC, but it's my own fault for using and relying on Snow Leopard for 8 years. High Sierra's new file system will no doubt not be compatible with stuff I have, maybe? That's why I was going to see if I prefer Sierra to EC

Oh and don’t get me started on no pinch and zoom on folders files or mail.

I also followed instruction about users and groups/log in items, and see 'itunes helper' as the only item listed in there, and yet when El Cap starts up it opens Photoshop/Word/Mail/iTunes/Firefox... What's that all about?
 
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Peter Franks said:
I've now got El Capitan on here, which I don't like for many reasons...
I also followed instruction about users and groups/log in items, and see 'itunes helper' as the only item listed in there, and yet when El Cap starts up it opens Photoshop/Word/Mail/iTunes/Firefox... What's that all about?
Click to expand...

Sounds to me like you don't bother to close those apps and that is why they relaunch. I've got El Capitan on a couple of computers and it works, as expected, with no problems.
 
MSastre said:
Sounds to me like you don't bother to close those apps and that is why they relaunch. I've got El Capitan on a couple of computers and it works, as expected, with no problems.
Click to expand...

I made a point of not opening any of them, when I installed EC for the second time, to test exactly your theory, plus unticking the box on restart, and it's exactly the same.

Really messes up chrome too. All extensions gone. And all these messages of add ons popping up being added without me doing anything. Shouldn’t it stop that from happening. None do I want but why. Remind me, what’s developers mode
 
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Maybe your best bet is to go to an Apple Store, or authorized repair shop, to get some help and guidance.
 
MSastre said:
Maybe your best bet is to go to an Apple Store, or authorized repair shop, to get some help and guidance.
Click to expand...

The last time I tried that, well you can read about it on the 'pinch and zoom' thread... unbelievable experience in 3 stores. Nobody knew anything. Wasn't a great time for me.
 
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