Most of us confront the medical prognosis of upgrading our operating systems with a miscellany of excitement and dread . lawful , a new atomic number 76 brings cool new fashion to form . But that does n’t change the fact that when you put in a major version of OS X you ’re essentially gutting your Mac and replacing its practical insides .
Luckily , Apple ’s improve the upgrade experience with each new qat , constitute the process much less intimidating . But despite the Installer ’s useful guidance , there are things it does n’t tell you , and places where its help falls short . With that in creative thinker , here ’s my guide to making the ascent process as difficulty - free as possible .
What you need
Before you get lead off , the two most important things you need are a compatible Mac and a complete backup of all your data . Leopard requires a Mac with an Intel or PowerPC G4 or G5 processor ( for G4 organization , processor speed must be at least 867MHz ) ; a videodisk drive ; built - in FireWire ; at least 512 megabyte Aries the Ram ; and at least 7 GB of free laborious - disk distance . ( I recommend at least 1 GB random memory and 10 to 15 GB of free disk space . )
To protect yourself from mishaps , I recommend youcloneyour surd drive or else of just backing up data piecemeal . you could create a knockoff — a stark , monovular transcript of your Mac ’s heavy drive — using a public-service corporation such as Shirt Pocket ’s $ 28 SuperDuper , Bombich Software ’s Carbon Copy Cloner , or even OS X ’s own Disk Utility . If anything should go amiss with the upgrade , you could part up from the clone , restore it back to your chief hard thrust , and be back where you started with nothing lost but time . ( For instruction manual , see Easy Mac Backups . )
Before you begin
Before start the installation process , here are a few stone’s throw you should take :
The installation process
The literal installation procedure is straightforward . Just follow along as the Installer walks you through the steps . However , do n’t neglect a couple opportunities to customize the process .
Select a DestinationAfter selecting onto which drive you want to set up Leopard , come home on Options . This is where you choose your instalment method — Upgrade , Archive and Install , or Erase and Install .
Pick WhatNotto InstallClick on Customize . Here you could prefer to not install several items in lodge to pull through tough drive space . take any detail in the Package Name list to view information about that point at the bottom of the windowpane . When you ’re finished , select Done . Here are some likely thing you might vamoose :
select Install on the Install Summary concealment and the installation will begin . The summons can take a while , especially the step when the Installer check the Installation DVD . ( If you ’ve previously install Leopard using this same disc , so you know it ’s misplay - free , you’re able to press Skip to bypass this footmark . ) When the installation process is finished and your Mac restarts in Leopard , you ’ll see either the full - distance , full - screenland Setup Assistant ( if you did an Erase And Install ) or a shorter registration version .
After you’re done
If you performed an Archive And Install with the alternative to conserve user accounts and internet mise en scene , you should be up and run away mostly where you left off the last time you used your Mac pre - Leopard . If you chose not to keep drug user and web context , or if you used the Erase and Install option , the Setup Assistant will give you the opportunity to transfer over files from another Mac , another drive on the current Mac , or a backup volume . you may choose to transfer user accounts , connection and other circumstance , applications , and other non - system data . Although this mental process is slow , it works well .
In either case , you ’ll want to check your favourite program to see if they ’re turn properly . You may require to re - enroll enrolment or successive numbers for some . Other programs may require re - installation ( especially those that instal files in the /Library or /System / Library folders ) . Also keep an center out for misdemean programs that do n’t crop well with Leopard ; you may not be able to use these until the developer releases a compatible version .
No Files Left BehindIf you used the Archive and Install method acting , I recommend that you voyage to the / Previous Systems / Previous System 1folder and graze through the subfolders in spite of appearance to make certain all your file were move properly . ( If you ’ve performed multiple Archive and Install installation , you may havePrevious System 1,Previous System 2 , and so on ; you want to browse the newest one . ) For example , if you used the Archive and Install option to maintain user account , the single file inside the Shared user folder ( /Previous Systems / Previous System 1 / Users / Shared ) do n’t get impress . You ’ll likely want to copy them to the unexampled / Users / Sharedfolder . ( If you habituate the Setup Assistant to transfer files , the Shared folder ’s content do get transferred . )
Also check inside the Library folder inPrevious System 1 , bear particular attention to the message of Contextual Menu Items and QuickTime . If there are files in the Library brochure that are required by programs you employ , or third - party system attention deficit hyperactivity disorder - ons that you want to carry on using , you may require to reassign them manually to the same location in the current / Libraryfolder . However , first verify that the computer software is compatible with Leopard . ( It may be easier to plainly re - install this software package to ensure you have all the necessary sustenance files . )
With any portion , this full process should take only a few hours , which is n’t risky for something you necessitate to do only once every couple twelvemonth . And with these tips and suggestions , you should be back up and running , enjoying Leopard ’s young feature of speech , with minimal growing pain .
Decoding Your installation options
It ’s wanton to miss the Mac OS X installer screen ’s Options item . tick on this small button reveals several important choices forhowOS X gets installed on your Mac . Here ’s what each method acting does .
Upgrade Mac type O XThis choice keep your older version of Mac OS X , but set up young variant of any files that have changed between the honest-to-god edition and Leopard . Although in possibility this should be dependable for everyone , third - party system hyperkinetic syndrome - ons , as well as damage system files that are n’t replace , can have problems . I urge it only for brand - new Macs being upgraded from Tiger to Leopard out - of - the - box . For most users , I recommend Archive and Install ( or Erase and Install , fix your data from a full backup using Setup Assistant ) .
Archive and InstallThis method installs a consummate , young variation of Leopard , using none of your erstwhile OS installation files . However , it maintain all of your older organisation files on your hard drive — in a booklet anticipate Previous System 1 ( or 2 or 3 , depending on how many Archive and Install installation you ’ve done)—just in case you involve any of those files . This method stave off many problems because the contents of your honest-to-goodness System folder , including some third - party system MBD - ons , are archived in the Previous System brochure . I recommend take the selection to Preserve Users And web preferences , because this retains your existing user news report and all drug user information in Leopard . ( observe that the Archive and Install selection take much more hard - drive space than an Upgrade install . It may also require a bit of manual file transferring , as identify on the premature page . )
Erase and InstallThis method really erases your entire hard cause — or , if your drive is zone , the partition you ’ve chosen as the install fix — and installs Leopard . ( It should go without say that you must have a backup of your information to employ this selection , since score out the crusade deletes all your data point . ) This is useful if your current OS X instalment has been have problems , as it vouch that any disc or file cabinet corruption is eliminated . ( Choose the option to Format Disk As Mac o Extended [ Journaled ] . ) However , unless you really want to begin from scratch , after the installation you ’ll need to either quicken your user write up in Leopard and restore your data from a stand-in , or use OS X ’s Setup Assistant to transpose those accounts and data over from another computer or from a full backup . ( This latter function nearly copy an Archive and Install with the Preserve Users and internet preferences pick — but with the added bonus of a new , clean hard driving . )
Install Mac type O XYou’ll see this option — insteadof Upgrade Mac OS hug drug — only if you choose a bulk that does n’t already have an upgradeable version of Mac OS decade installed . In that case , Install Mac OS X and Erase and Install will be your only pick . ( If you invite your written matter of Leopard through the Mac OS X Up - To - Date programme — for people who purchase a Mac that shipped with Tiger after Leopard was free — your disc will installonlyonto a drive that already has Tiger installed . You ’ll get the same installation options except for this one — you wo n’t be able to install Leopard on a non - Tiger drive . )
This clause was updated at 5:30 p.m. on October 27 to clarify information about the Erase and Install method and to include more inforation on arrangement requirement .
