Upgrade Unsupported Mac To Catalina

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After months of waiting, macOS Big Sur was released in November 2020. No matter how great macOS Big Sur is, you can experience performance issues as you update your Mac. The good thing is you can downgrade to the previous macOS version.

The download (from Catalina) will start – since it is almost 8 GB, it will probably take some time. Connect a flash drive. Choose “Create a bootable installer” from the options. Connect the bootable installer to the Mac that you need to update. Restart your Mac while holding down the Option / Alt key. If your Mac isn't compatible with the latest macOS, you might still be able to upgrade to an earlier macOS, such as macOS Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, or El Capitan. To get the latest features and maintain the security, stability, compatibility, and performance of your Mac, it's important to keep your software up to date. Here is an excerpt of an answer to a similar question which I believe answers yours. “All MacBook generations after the original MacBook1,1 Core Duo 1.83-2GHz one will run OS X 10.7 (the original MacBook will only run 10.6.8). The three generations shipping in 2007 top out at OS X 10.7.5. How to get Catalina on an older Mac. The problem is that, if you’re running an older unsupported machine, macOS Catalina simply won’t be available to download via the App Store. Even if you did manage to get a copy via third-party means, code baked into the install will stop it from running on unsupported hardware, but there is a workaround. After checking your Mac, if your Mac is in the unsupported list, you can install macOS Catalina slightly without this tool and steps. If your Mac is unsupported follow the steps below. Once the tool is there, open it. Click on Continue. MacOS Catalina Patcher.

There are two ways to revert from Big Sur to Catalina. The first one involves restoring a Time Machine backup. The second, which is a bit lengthy, explains how to downgrade to Catalina using a bootable installer. Whichever way you choose, we'll provide step-by-step instructions to help you downgrade.

Open this article on your phone to make sure you do everything step-by-step.


How to downgrade from macOS Big Sur using Time Machine

If you’ve backed up your Mac with Time Machine before upgrading to Big Sur, downgrading to Catalina will be easy. Here’s how to downgrade from macOS Big Sur to Catalina using Time Machine.

Upgrade unsupported mac to catalina download

1. Back up your data

First, back up everything. Your Mac probably contains your personal data and documents that you don’t want to lose. So, to keep those alive after the downgrade, you need to back up your data.

You can use Google Drive, iCloud Drive, or any other cloud you prefer. After the backup is done, you can move on to the next step.

Before you begin reverting your Mac to macOS Catalina, it’s worth trying fixing performance issues on macOS Big Sur. Maybe you won’t need to downgrade at all.

CleanMyMac X can help identify and solve performance problems on your Mac. It’s a dedicated Mac cleaner that clears old junk and runs optimization tasks. It’s notarized by Apple, which means it’s safe for your Mac. Get CleanMyMac X for free to run a quick performance scan.

2. Erase your Mac’s hard drive

The first step is plugging your Mac into power (the downgrade process may take a while, and you don’t want your Mac to power off unexpectedly).

You’ll need to erase your Mac’s drive. This will remove everything from your Mac, but you can restore your data later from a Time Machine backup.

Upgrade Unsupported Mac To Catalina
  1. Restart your Mac (Apple menu > Restart).
  2. Hold Command-R when your Mac’s rebooting. The Utilities menu should appear.
  3. Choose Disk Utility.
  4. Click Continue and select Startup Disk (usually located at the top of the list ).
  5. Press Erase.
  6. Select the APFS file format.
  7. Choose GUID Partition Map and confirm.

Wait for the process to complete. Only after every piece of data is removed, can you clean install macOS Catalina.

3. Use Time Machine to restore your backup

You can now restore all your files and data and bring your Mac back to the condition it was in before you installed macOS Big Sur.

If your Time Machine backup is stored on the external drive, plug it in your Mac.


So, to restore your Time Machine Catalina backup:

  • Restart your computer and hold Command-R when it reboots.
  • Select the Restore From Time Machine Backup option on the Utilities window.
  • Press Continue.
  • Choose your Time Machine backup disk.
  • Select the backup you want to restore from. Choose the most recent backup that occurred before you installed macOS Big Sur.
  • Then, select a destination disk, where the contents of your backup will be stored.
  • Click Restore and press Continue.

The process may take some time. Your Mac will restart running macOS Catalina.

How to downgrade from macOS Big Sur using a bootable installer

If you didn’t back up your Mac with the Time Machine, it’s too bad. But, you can still downgrade to the previous OS version. Just follow the instructions.

1. Back up your files and data

Backing up your data is important. It prevents you from losing all the files and data that have existed on your Mac's drive for a while. So, don’t forget to back up your Mac before you start downgrading to Catalina.

2. Create a bootable installer

A bootable installer will help you safely roll back to Catalina. Here’s how to create a bootable installer:

  1. You can go to the App Store and search for Catalina, then download it. Quit the installer, if it tries to install the OS.
  2. If your Mac already runs macOS Big Sur, download the macOS Catalina here.
  3. Get an external hard drive that has at least 12 GB of available storage and plug it in your Mac.
  4. Launch the Disk Utility app and erase your hard drive selecting Mac OS Extended format.

Now, it’s time to transfer your Catalina installer to your hard drive:

  1. Open Terminal (Applications > Utilities).
  2. Paste this command and press Enter:

sudo /Applications/Install macOS Catalina.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume

The downloaded file, which is your bootable Catalina installer, should be in your Applications folder. MyVolume is the name of the hard drive; if your hard drive or flash drive has a different name, replace MyVolume with the name of your hard drive.

  1. If prompted, enter your administrator password and press Enter again. Terminal won’t show anything when you type your password.
  2. Follow the instructions that appear in the Terminal.
  3. When Terminal says “done”, your hard drive should have the same name as the installer you downloaded (for example, Install macOS Catalina).

Quit Terminal and eject the hard drive.

Install macOS Catalina

Now, you can roll back from macOS Big Sur using the bootable installer.

  • Plug your hard drive (which is now your bootable installer) into your Mac.
  • Open System Preferences > Startup Disk. Choose your bootable installer as a startup disk and press Restart.
  • Your Mac should start up to macOS Recovery.
  • Make sure your Mac has an internet connection to download firmware updates (you can use the Wi-Fi menu in the menu bar).
  • In the Utilities window, select Install macOS.
  • Click Continue and follow the on-screen instructions.

Your Mac will then start installing macOS Catalina and will restart when it’s done.

Mac runs slowly after the update?

If your Mac is slow after the update, but you don’t want to perform this lengthy process and revert to the previous OS, you could try a quick solution. CleanMyMac X has a helpful Maintenance feature that could fix all possible problems on your Mac.

  1. Open CleanMyMac X.
  2. Go to the Maintenance module.
  3. Press View All 9 Tasks.
  4. Check the boxes next to the maintenance tasks you want to run.
  5. Press Run.

Wait till CleanMyMac X runs the set of fixes to speed up your Mac.

Reverting to the previous macOS may seem like a terrifying task. But if you open this article on your phone or another device and follow the instructions, it will be much easier and faster. Don’t forget to clear your Mac before the backup – you will save a lot of free space and remove old clutter that slows down your machine.


  1. Jan 25, 2019 All of the new and old Mac users will experience the new operating system update that will be widely accessible through the App Store and software update. This software update will provide the opportunity to install the macOS Catalina with all the superb features on their Macs.
  2. How to keep older Macs secure: a geeky approach (run Catalina on unsupported Macs) Posted on October 8th, 2019 by Jay Vrijenhoek. Note: This article was originally written for macOS Mojave, and has been adapted for macOS Catalina. From a security standpoint, using the latest version of macOS—the Mac operating system—is always preferred.

Helps you create a bootable USB drive for macOS Catalina which will work with older Macs, not officially supported by the operating system

But I would rather buy a second generation silicon mac to truly take advantage of the new OS features and remain on Catalina (or HS) for everything else. Or just bootcamp your old unsupported mac to windows 10 as the main OS and macOS as secondary to bring out some of its latent potential to 2021. I could not get it to properly install on imac 9,1. Mac OS X Server 1.0 is a operating system developed by Apple Computer.Released on March 16, 1999, it was the first version of Mac OS X Server. It was Apple's first commercial product to be derived from 'Rhapsody'—an eventual replacement for the classic Mac OS derived from NeXTSTEP's architecture (acquired in 1997 as part of Apple's purchase of NeXT) and BSD-like Mach kernel.

What's new in macOS Catalina Patcher 1.4.4:

  • Fixed compatibility with Catalina version 10.15.5
Read the full changelog

macOS Catalina Patcher (formerly macOS Mojave Patcher, macOS High Sierra Patcher and macOS Sierra Patcher) is a small yet powerful tool that can help you create a bootable USB drive that can be used to install macOS Catalina on Mac computers older than mid 2012, basically acting as a macOS Mojave patch for unsupported Macs.

The tool extends the list of compatible hardware to the Mac Pro, iMac and MacBook Pro computers released in early 2008, Aluminum Unibody MacBooks or MacBooks Air manufactured in late 2008, or white MacBooks and Mac Minis produced in early 2009.

Get the macOS Catalina Installer app and make sure you have access to a compatible USB drive

To be able to use the app you must make sure that you have a USB drive that has at least 8 GB available, and that you have the macOS 10.15 Catalina installer app on your Mac.

Macos Catalina On Unsupported Macs

Note that you can download the macOS image from the Mac App Store application only on a machine that supports Catalina: otherwise, you must find an alternative solution.

For your convenience, macOS Catalina Patcher offers you the possibility to download the image through its interface: just navigate to the Tools menu.

At the same time, you must prepare the USB drive with the help of the built-in Disk Utility application: just format the disk using the Mac OS Extended (Journaled) standard.

Easy to configure patcher tool that can create bootable macOS Catalina USBs

Within the main window, you must simply load the macOS 10.15 image you want to use and select the target USB drive. The app will verify the image to make sure everything is OK, and all you have to do is press the Start Operation button.

You have the option to monitor the process in the macOS Catalina Patcher main window, and the utility lets you know when the task is complete.

Mac Os Catalina On Unsupported Mac

Worth mentioning is that after you install the OS by using the macOS Catalina Patcher bootable drive, you must launch the macOS Post Install utility to get access to patches specifically designed for your Mac’s model.

Make a bootable drive that allows you to install Catalina on unsupported Macs

Mac Os Catalina On Unsupported Macs Os

Bottom line, if your Mac has been manufactured before early 2008, chances are that you will not be able to install macOS Catalina on your computer.

All things considered, macOS Catalina Patcher is a small and user-friendly utility designed to help you bypass this limitation if your Mac is not in macOS Catalina's compatibility list, created to be used as an unsupported Mac Mojave patch.

Upgrade Unsupported Mac To Catalina

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macOS Catalina Patcher was reviewed by

Upgrade Unsupported Mac To Catalina Download

Sergiu Gatlan

How To Install Catalina On Unsupported Mac

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SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Upgrade Unsupported Mac To Catalina Operating System

  • 64-bit processor
  • 16 GB USB drive
  • macOS Mojave Installer App
  • Early-2008 or newer Mac Pro, iMac, or MacBook Pro
  • Late-2008 or newer MacBook Air or Aluminum Unibody MacBook
  • Early-2009 or newer Mac Mini or white MacBook
  • Early-2008 or newer Xserve

How To Get Catalina On Unsupported Mac

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macOS Catalina Patcher 1.4.4

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Install Macos Catalina On Unsupported Macs

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runs on:
Mac OS X 10.6 or later (Intel only)
file size:
223.4 MB
filename:
macOS Catalina Patcher.dmg
main category:
System Utilities
developer:
visit homepage

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Upgrade unsupported mac to catalina operating system