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symphony

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Aug 25, 2016
2,232
2,641
Has anyone with a Mac mini 2018 updated to beta 3 at all? The full update and incremental update just restarts my Mac with a 10 minute timer, and I don't have any spare drives to use an installer. Is there another workaround?
 

Shawn Llewellyn

macrumors member
Jun 5, 2015
44
17
Has anyone with a Mac mini 2018 updated to beta 3 at all? The full update and incremental update just restarts my Mac with a 10 minute timer, and I don't have any spare drives to use an installer. Is there another workaround?
I have the same problem as well I have been trying to install sense yesterday no go! So disappointed
 

ChronicLynx

macrumors regular
Aug 5, 2018
104
135
In my experience, you have to make the USB installer and boot from that device to successfully install the update. Make sure you boot to recovery mode using Command + R on boot to disable T2 chip security (allow booting from external drive and perhaps lower OS verification to medium or off temporarily). You should be able to find the instructions to make a USB installer on Apple’s website. Just replace the Catalina text with the name of the Big Sur Beta installer. When all of this is done and you’re ready to install boot the Mac mini while holding the Option key to select the boot device. Should be the one that looks like a drive icon and labeled macOS installer.
 
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Shawn Llewellyn

macrumors member
Jun 5, 2015
44
17
I got it successfully installed! Boot into recovery mode and selected fresh install and from there it downloaded b3 and installed. It took around an hour but all works great and no need for me to make a usb boot installer. Why I don’t know 🤷🏻‍♂️
 

symphony

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Aug 25, 2016
2,232
2,641
I got it successfully installed! Boot into recovery mode and selected fresh install and from there it downloaded b3 and installed. It took around an hour but all works great and no need for me to make a usb boot installer. Why I don’t know 🤷🏻‍♂️
Does the fresh install erase everything on the disk?
 

Shawn Llewellyn

macrumors member
Jun 5, 2015
44
17
Does the fresh install erase everything on the disk?
No it doesn’t you just choose to recover your Mac it went really slow between loading screens. Sorry just trying to remember off the top of my head ( have weekend on my 🧠)
[automerge]1595617015[/automerge]
Hold on boot up Command+r for a awhile until it gets into the recovery screen
 
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symphony

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Aug 25, 2016
2,232
2,641
No it doesn’t you just choose to recover your Mac it went really slow between loading screens. Sorry just trying to remember off the top of my head ( have weekend on my 🧠)
[automerge]1595617015[/automerge]
Hold on boot up Command+r for a awhile until it gets into the recovery screen
It worked. Thanks so much!

My Macintosh HD was locked, probably because of FileVault. Unlocking it in “Reinstall macOS” doesn’t work, I had to mount it in Disk Utility before I could reinstall.
 
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Shawn Llewellyn

macrumors member
Jun 5, 2015
44
17
It worked. Thanks so much!

My Macintosh HD was locked, probably because of FileVault. Unlocking it in “Reinstall macOS” doesn’t work, I had to mount it in Disk Utility before I could reinstall.
I’m glad it worked one way or another have a great weekend ✌
 
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KennethS

macrumors 6502
Jan 4, 2011
342
449
UK
In my experience, you have to make the USB installer and boot from that device to successfully install the update. Make sure you boot to recovery mode using Command + R on boot to disable T2 chip security (allow booting from external drive and perhaps lower OS verification to medium or off temporarily). You should be able to find the instructions to make a USB installer on Apple’s website. Just replace the Catalina text with the name of the Big Sur Beta installer. When all of this is done and you’re ready to install boot the Mac mini while holding the Option key to select the boot device. Should be the one that looks like a drive icon and labeled macOS installer.
This worked for me -- thanks!
 

haralds

macrumors 68030
Jan 3, 2014
2,985
1,251
Silicon Valley, CA
In my experience, you have to make the USB installer and boot from that device to successfully install the update. Make sure you boot to recovery mode using Command + R on boot to disable T2 chip security (allow booting from external drive and perhaps lower OS verification to medium or off temporarily). You should be able to find the instructions to make a USB installer on Apple’s website. Just replace the Catalina text with the name of the Big Sur Beta installer. When all of this is done and you’re ready to install boot the Mac mini while holding the Option key to select the boot device. Should be the one that looks like a drive icon and labeled macOS installer.
This is actually mentioned in the Developer Release Notes. I had to resort to a USB Stick.
 

Arubalube

macrumors newbie
Jun 25, 2020
10
5
In my experience, you have to make the USB installer and boot from that device to successfully install the update. Make sure you boot to recovery mode using Command + R on boot to disable T2 chip security (allow booting from external drive and perhaps lower OS verification to medium or off temporarily). You should be able to find the instructions to make a USB installer on Apple’s website. Just replace the Catalina text with the name of the Big Sur Beta installer. When all of this is done and you’re ready to install boot the Mac mini while holding the Option key to select the boot device. Should be the one that looks like a drive icon and labeled macOS installer.

√ Thanks—I followed your advice and now have a 16GB flash drive with 'Install macOS Big Sur Beta' ready to go. I've gone into StartUp Security Utility via Recovery Mode boot and turned everything off to allow my T2 to install. I've also turned of FileVault.

X The drive is fit and well according to Disk Utility's 'First Aid' and it begins to install Bug Sur on my MacBook Pro; but on my Mac Mini it gets stuck. I begin in System Preferences, and change Start Up Disk to the BS flash drive. Reboot. Installation looks good ( logo and progress bar). After a while I get "A software update is required to use this disk". I allow this update, then I get a new error message: "An error occurred installing the update".

Do you have any idea what this is or how to fix it? I assume that there's something about the T2 chip that's not allowing it but, as I say, I've given permission to boot from another drive.

BACKGROUND: This is a 2018 Mac Mini, which keeps crashing. This post [https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...fter-security-update-2020-002.2228812/page-10] thinks that Big Sur will force BridgeOS to update and cure my kernel panics.
 
Last edited:

rjmorita

macrumors newbie
Aug 8, 2020
5
0
X The drive is fit and well according to Disk Utility's 'First Aid' and it begins to install Bug Sur on my MacBook Pro; but on my Mac Mini it gets stuck. I begin in System Preferences, and change Start Up Disk to the BS flash drive. Reboot. Installation looks good ( logo and progress bar). After a while I get "A software update is required to use this disk". I allow this update, then I get a new error message: "An error occurred installing the update".

I have the exact same problem with my 2018 Mac mini. The latest Public Beta 5 would not install.

Do you have any idea what this is or how to fix it? I assume that there's something about the T2 chip that's not allowing it but, as I say, I've given permission to boot from another drive.

That's my guess, too. But I don't know what to do about it.
 

twsmit

macrumors newbie
Aug 24, 2020
3
5
I have the exact same problem with my 2018 Mac mini. The latest Public Beta 5 would not install.



That's my guess, too. But I don't know what to do about it.

I had the same issue on my 13" 2018 MBP. The fix was to re-flash the bridge OS using a USB-C cable and another Mac.

Previous to this I had tried everything including a full reformat, clearing NVRAM, clearing SMC, re-downloading Big Sur, USB thumb drive install. Nothing worked until I used configurator and re-flashed the bridge OS.
 

rjmorita

macrumors newbie
Aug 8, 2020
5
0
I had the same issue on my 13" 2018 MBP. The fix was to re-flash the bridge OS using a USB-C cable and another Mac.

Previous to this I had tried everything including a full reformat, clearing NVRAM, clearing SMC, re-downloading Big Sur, USB thumb drive install. Nothing worked until I used configurator and re-flashed the bridge OS.
Thank you for the suggestion.

I looked at the instructions here: https://mrmacintosh.com/how-to-restore-bridgeos-on-a-t2-mac-how-to-put-a-mac-into-dfu-mode/

Holy cow! It is not an easy process.
 

IQ Air Visual Pro

macrumors newbie
Jun 17, 2020
2
1
Has anyone with a Mac mini 2018 updated to beta 3 at all? The full update and incremental update just restarts my Mac with a 10 minute timer, and I don't have any spare drives to use an installer. Is there another workaround?

it’s because mac mini 2018, as iMac 27 5K 2020, both have T2. the chip protect from install any beta software. I know cz I have both. luckily I avoid repeating same error on the brand new mac mini, but I have still the iMac 27, also brand new, blocked in a stupid loop. you need to take the mac mini to Apple and with Apple Configurator Beta 2, yes, beta, they will restore the os, witch, btw, will be reinstalled completely from scratch.
 

chrfr

macrumors G5
Jul 11, 2009
13,702
7,265
it’s because mac mini 2018, as iMac 27 5K 2020, both have T2. the chip protect from install any beta software. I know cz I have both. luckily I avoid repeating same error on the brand new mac mini, but I have still the iMac 27, also brand new, blocked in a stupid loop. you need to take the mac mini to Apple and with Apple Configurator Beta 2, yes, beta, they will restore the os, witch, btw, will be reinstalled completely from scratch.
This is incorrect. Apple has not yet released a beta which supports the 2020 iMac, but every other computer Apple sells which has a T2 can install the Big Sur betas.
 

rjmorita

macrumors newbie
Aug 8, 2020
5
0
I was able to install Big Sur Public Beta 3 on my 2018 Mac mini. Apple must have fixed the installer. All is well, finally.
 

jlsm511

macrumors 6502
Feb 26, 2008
414
211
KMIA
Having this same issue on my 2018 Mac mini and the Big Sur RC 2. Any ideas? Should I just try and wait for the Public Release on Thursday to see if that resolves the issue?
 

jlsm511

macrumors 6502
Feb 26, 2008
414
211
KMIA
Having this same issue on my 2018 Mac mini and the Big Sur RC 2. Any ideas? Should I just try and wait for the Public Release on Thursday to see if that resolves the issue?
Update: Just tried to install and it took. Didn't do anything different (same installer as yesterday), I am guessing the error it was throwing about BridgeOS being out of date was Server Side and it was fixed between yesterday and today?
 
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