Top 10 Things to Do Before Upgrading macOS 10.14

Elise Williams

2024-04-12 10:55:47 • Filed to: Solutions of macOS 10.14 • Proven solutions

Just like in the previous versions of macOS where there certain requirements before download and installation are successful, the new macOS 10.14 comes with requirements and guides to successfully installing running it. Installing and update things mac OS 10.14 is quite a simple task to carry out. But what things to do on a Macbook is quite important to make sure everything works fine before 10.14 installed. Here will list top 10 things you need to do before updating macOS 10.14.

10 Things to Do before Upgrading macOS 10.14

Before upgrading into macOS 10.14, you need to know how to prepare your Mac for macOS 10.14. Here is a list of comprehensive of macOS 10.14 requirements below.

1. Know More about macOS 10.14

This is unarguably the first thing to do before installing any software update. For macOS 10.14, you need to find out exactly what it has to offer and any known issues alongside.

Apple Company releases beta versions of the succeeding OS software version to Apple developers and the public within the months of June to September every year. During this period, you can optimize the opportunity by checking out the features of the macOS 10.14 and get comfortable with having them running on your Mac.

2. Make Sure Your Mac Is in A Healthy Form

You need to confirm your Mac is in good health before trying to install macOS 10.14. Faults like Drive errors can result to a misbehaving system which may not be able to allow you install macOS 10.14. Therefore, you’d need to perform a disk repair. Using the Disk Utility which can be found in Application/Utilities, you can verify the start-up drive by clicking on the First Aid tab and subsequently clicking on Verify. If the drive seems to have errors, you can log off and boot from a different volume, then try to perform repair using the Repair Disk Button.

3. Stay Connected to A Strong And Trusted Network

A strong and trusted network is one important requirement for a glitch-free download of macOS 10.14. A fluctuating network would end up either wasting tons of your time or serving you with incomplete downloads. In the same vein, an untrusted network is very dangerous while downloading the macOS 10.14 so try not to carry out download in a public place as you might not know what lies in there. Home, Office or School networks are the best to stay onto.

4. Check for Enough Disk Space

Apple recommends a disk space of 8GB before installing a macOS. But to be on a safer side, a disk space of 16-20GB should be available on your Mac to ensure safe delivery. Search for irrelevant (heavy or light) files eating up space on your disk drive and trash them.

5. Check to See If Your Mac Spec Suits macOS 10.14

Some Macs have poor specifications or are simply out-dated and therefore cannot carry software updates and Operating Systems. This limitation might be due to low RAM size or just age. Before downloading macOS 10.14, be sure your Mac is supported and can carry the latest OS.

6. Back Your Mac Up

A back up of files and folders should be carried out before performing any important update on your Mac. This is to avoid accidental loss of files. As for downloading and installing macOS 10.14, you must back your files up. If not, you stand a chance of losing all your files. Fortunately, Apple has made it ultra-easy to back files up using the Time Machine tool and so you have no excuse to lose your files.

7. Stay Logged in on iCloud

Several Apple apps and system softwares are linked to iCLOUD and hence one should stay logged in order to have a smooth and glitch-free installation.

8. Switch To The Latest Version Of macOS 10.13 (High Sierra)

To successfully install macOS 10.14, you may need to have performed the latest update of the macOS 10.13 version. (For instance, if macOS 10.13.5 is the latest update for macOS 10.13 and you are still running on just macOS 10.13. To install the macOS 10.14 version, you’d need to update your macOS 10.13 to macOS 10.13.5). This is a regular process with macOS installation because improvements on stability are included on software updates and there are chances of experiencing glitches while installing a new OS without updating the previous one. You can use the Mac App Store to update macOS 10.13 already installed.

9. Visit The Mac App Store And Download macOS 10.14

This is the fun part of the all stages. Go ahead and download macOS 10.14. But before this, you’d need to have the Mac App Store running on your Mac. To download macOS 10.14:

Go to the Mac App Store
Search for the mac OS you wish to download
Click on ‘Download’
Enter your macOS username and password if asked
Once downloaded, a window pops up, asking you to continue. Just in case a window does not pop up, the downloaded file can be found in the applications folder. Nevertheless, this window will definitely pop up immediately after download

Note that while download occurs in the background, you’re able to use your Mac for other activities. Also note that installation takes quite some time before it completes, so be sure you’re done with whatever can’t wait.

10. Install The macOS 10.14

At this point, the only thing standing between you and a brand new macOS 10.14 is installation. Eventually, it takes no time but very simple steps. Here’s how:

Click on ‘continue’ which appears on the popped up window
Follow the instructions on the screen to complete installation which may take up to 30 minutes or more depending on your Mac version