set up macOS on an exterior drive

Involved about updating your Mac to the most recent model of macOS? Maybe you aren’t certain about operating macOS Sequoia fairly but, or possibly you wish to check the beta however don’t wish to danger messing up your system. You is likely to be involved about incompatible software program otherwise you may simply be pondering that you just may hate it and never have the ability to return to the macOS you might be accustomed to. 

Fortunately you don’t have to put in the OS replace in your Mac in any respect. You’ll be able to set up it on an exterior drive as an alternative.

Putting in the Mac working system on an exterior drive is the most secure solution to get an excellent have a look at a brand new OS with out altering something in your Mac. It’ll depart your present configuration intact and let you mess around with the beta of the subsequent model of macOS.

On this tutorial we clarify run macOS from an exterior drive in 4 easy steps:

1. Put together the exterior drive for the set up utilizing Disk Utility.
2. Get the macOS set up recordsdata. We’ll present you the way.
3. Set up macOS on the exterior drive.
4. Run macOS on the exterior drive by urgent Alt/Choice at begin up on an Intel-powered Mac, or urgent and holding the on change on an M1 or M2-series Mac.

What you want

If you wish to run macOS on an exterior drive you have to a number of issues, together with a drive with an excellent quantity of storage accessible.

You need to use an exterior laborious drive or SSD–and SSD presents sooner boot occasions than a tough drive. It’s additionally value investing in a USB-C or Thunderbolt drive as it will supply the quickest connection.

You will get maintain of a USB flash stick fairly cheaply, resembling this San Disk USB Kind-C drive with 128GB for $24/£16.49. It’s a bit more durable to discover a Thunderbolt-powered SSD, and sadly, they’re much more costly. Check out our round-up of the finest SSDs. If you wish to use the exterior set up as in case you are operating it in your Mac we propose you get the most important USB C/Thunderbolt drive you possibly can afford.

For extra shopping for recommendation, check out our information to the finest exterior drives for Mac for some cheaper, non-SSD choices.

Troubleshooting issues with M-series Macs

Earlier than we transfer on to how one can create this exterior set up of macOS, we are going to point out some points individuals had when attempting to create such an set up for an M-series Mac.

After the primary M1 Macs launched in 2020, it emerged that there was an issue with the USB interface. Consequently, some customers encountered issues attempting to put in macOS on and booting from SSDs linked by way of USB. This problem was shortly addressed in an OS replace, however when you discover it impacts you we propose that you just do the next:

• Strive a special port. For some it has labored to put in on a disk linked by way of USB-A connector, however not USB-C, whereas the scenario has been vice versa for others.
• One other answer is to make use of a drive that makes use of Thunderbolt moderately than USB (the port seems to be the identical, however the usual is totally different). It needs to be linked on to the pc, not by way of a dock. That drive will want an excellent quantity of house (again once we began operating Mojave beta on a 32GB stick we discovered it wasn’t sufficient as soon as we began utilizing iCloud Desktop and different options that meant that our information began being downloaded).

One other problem value flagging is that when you had been hoping to make use of this boot drive to run older variations of macOS on M1 Macs sadly it isn’t potential because the M1 Mac can solely run the ARM model of Massive Sur.

Step 1: Put together the drive for set up

Observe these directions to organize your exterior drive – word that there could also be some slight adjustments to the method when you want to set up macOS Ventura or the most recent macOS beta.

1. Join the exterior drive to your Mac.
2. Launch Disk Utility (press Cmd + spacebar and begin to sort Disk Utility).
3. Earlier than this subsequent step: in case you are operating Excessive Sierra or later you have to to click on on the View drop-down. Select Present All Units from the choices.  Now you will note the basis drive along with the exterior quantity beneath it.

Foundry

Foundry

Foundry

4. Choose the Exterior drive within the sidebar (the subsequent step received’t work when you solely choose the quantity–for instance, within the screenshot above it’s worthwhile to choose the Particular Storage, not Untitled).
5. Click on on Erase (it’s worthwhile to erase the drive so you possibly can reformat it correctly).
6. Give your drive a reputation resembling “macOS Sequoia” or “USB”.
7. Select APFS because the Format.

8. Click on on Erase.
9. Wait whereas Disk Utility creates the partition and units up the drive (this may take a couple of minutes).
10. Then click on Finished.

Now you will note that your exterior storage has been renamed with the identify you select and it is going to be prepared so that you can set up the macOS on it–however there’s something else it’s worthwhile to do first.

Step 2: Get the macOS set up recordsdata

This step will depend upon whether or not you wish to run a macOS beta, a full model of macOS, and even an older Mac OS X.

Whether or not you wish to get the macOS Sequoia or the most recent beta set up recordsdata the method is just like that detailed beneath. When the 2024 model of macOS turns into accessible to obtain you must have the ability to get the set up recordsdata by way of Software program Replace or the Mac App Retailer.

Right here’s get the macOS Sequoia installer:

1. To obtain the macOS installer click on right here to go to the Ventura web page on the Mac App Retailer.
2. Click on on Get to obtain the installer.
3. Software program Replace will search after which, in case you are already operating Ventura it can ask you to substantiate that you just do wish to obtain macOS Ventura.
4. Click on on Obtain.

Do not forget that you simply wish to obtain the software program, not set up it, at this stage.

If it’s a full model of an older model of macOS you might be after, we clarify get the set up recordsdata for macOS right here.

If you’re after a beta of macOS, you have to to enroll in the beta in your Mac and obtain the beta recordsdata. After you have the recordsdata you’ll wish to set up them on the exterior drive moderately than your Mac, so watch out. We now have a
full information to getting the macOS beta right here. The beta recordsdata are about 12GB.

Step 3: Set up macOS on the exterior drive

Now to put in the beta or various model of the Mac working system in your exterior drive.

1. Open a finder window, go to Functions and discover the Sequoia installer (or whichever model of macOS you wish to run). You too can discover it through the use of Highlight (press Command+spacebar and begin typing the identify of the OS)
2. Click on on the installer.
3. A window ought to open (verify the Dock if not). It’ll invite you to arrange the set up of macOS Sequoia (or no matter) and click on Proceed.
4. Conform to the software program license settlement.

5. Subsequent–that is vital–click on on Present All Disks. Don’t click on on Residence as you don’t wish to set up in your principal drive.
6. Click on on the exterior drive.
7. Click on Set up.

Wait whereas the model of macOS installs on the drive. This course of could take some time–it at all times takes longer than the estimated time.

Notice: This is not going to work when you didn’t set your exterior drive up accurately as a GUID Partition as per the steps above.

Step 4: Run macOS on the exterior drive

There are two methods to run the model of macOS out of your exterior drive

Both:

1. Open System Choice > Startup Disk or System Settings > Basic > Startup Disk.
2. Choose the exterior drive you want to use to start out up the Mac and click on Restart.

Or:

1. Maintain down Choice/Alt throughout startup on an Intel-powered Mac, or press and maintain the on button on an M-series Mac till you see the start-up choices.
2. Choose the drive you want to use to start out up the Mac.

After you have put in the macOS you need on the drive it needs to be simple to put in subsequent updates there by way of System Preferences.

For extra recommendation about putting in macOS or Mac OS X learn replace the Mac working system and set up outdated variations of OS X on a Mac.