How to find out the version of Mac OS X? How to find out the version of Mac OS X installed on a Macbook, iMac, Mac mini or Mac Pro.

Mac OS X went through seven distinct iterations during its development. An experienced user needs to be familiar with the differences between them, as well as be able to use the customization capabilities they provide. To determine which version of Mac OS X you are dealing with, you should select the About This Mac... option from the Apple menu (Figure 3.1). The dialog box that appears, in addition to other information about the computer, also displays the version number of Mac OS X it is running. However, unfortunately, this window does not display “what is this cat's name” or list the functionality that you might expect from it.

If you've set out to customize and reconfigure your Mac and aren't very familiar with earlier versions of Mac OS X, this could present a problem. Users who have recently switched to Mac OS X will have many questions. For example, what specific version number does Tiger have?

Was there an Exposé app in Mac OS X Jaguar? From what version did the iChat application appear as part of the operating system? Why does the command prompt look different than $? It is for this purpose that we need to provide a brief overview of all versions of Mac OS X, which will undoubtedly clarify the situation. The first to appear was Mac OS X Beta, which, of course, worked slowly and unstable, contained many bugs, but, nevertheless, was a serious alternative to Mac OS 9.

Mac OS X Beta introduced new features such as the Dock and the Aqua user interface. Then more advanced versions began to appear:

• Mac OS X 10.0- Cheetah - March 24, 2001. If you work with a convenient version of Mac OS X, the work of which you are quite happy with, then this is definitely not Cheetah. This first version of Mac OS X, although more stable than the beta version, nevertheless left much to be desired. Its positive qualities include the fact that Cheetah brought back the Apple menu, which was missing in Mac OS X Beta. However, as already mentioned, stability and speed were still far from perfect.
• Mac OS X 10.1- Puma - September 25, 2001. For Cheetah users, the upgrade to Puma was free. This version introduced for the first time such functions as Image Capture (for obtaining images from digital cameras) and DVD playback. This was the first version of Mac OS X intended to be the default operating system on new Mac models, although users had the option of downloading Mac OS 9.
• Mac OS X 10.2- Jaguar - August 23, 2002. Starting with this version, Mac OS X began to become more attractive and interesting for users. Jaguar introduced for the first time such applications and functions as iChat, Inkwell, Address Book, Bonjour (although in Jaguar this network function, which the Apple TV relies on, was called Rendezvous), Quartz Extreme and, finally, a file system with journaling (journaled filesystem).
• Mac OS X 10.3- Panther - October 24, 2003. With the release of Panther, Mac OS X introduced many new features, including Fast User Switching, Exposé, FileVault, iChat AV (an add-on to iChat for audio and video conferencing), and Safari. Of particular interest to users who actively work with Terminal is that, starting with Panther, the default shell has changed (from tcsh to bash). If you're running a version of Mac OS X earlier than Panther, you'll notice this difference right away. In your Terminal command line, the command prompt looks like %, while in later versions (as throughout this book) the prompt looks like $. There are a number of non-trivial differences between bash and tcsh, but the basic commands work roughly the same.
• Mac OS X 10.4- Tiger - April 29, 2005. If you have an Intel-based Mac, you're most likely running Tiger or Leopard. New features included in Tiger include Dashboard, Spotlight, Automator, Boot Camp, Dictionary and Quartz Composer.
• Mac OS X 10.5- Leopard - October 26, 2007. This version of Mac OS X included features such as Time Machine, Spaces, Quick Look, as well as a number of other, less noticeable innovations (about 300 in total).

It can be difficult to remember which model of MacBook you have, given that Apple doesn't clearly name them. Maybe your car is from mid-2010 or early 2011? What type of processor is installed? Is it possible to upgrade the RAM?

Processor, memory and operating system.

Video card.

Storage devices.

For HDDs and SSDs, you'll see a colored bar that shows storage usage by file type (music, movies, apps, photos, etc.). The numbers above this line will indicate how much free space is available to you on this disk.

In OS X, you can get complete information about the operating system, computer hardware, and installed applications by typing an easy-to-remember combination of words into the terminal. This article will teach you how to find out in less than a minute all the ins and outs of the computer that you have in your hands and understand the information received.

How to get the most detailed dossier about your poppy?

How can I save this information to a file?

System_profiler >info_system.txt

Saving to a file is not instantaneous. You have to wait a few tens of seconds. The result is a 2.6 MB text file.
Now you can open info_system.txt in a text editor and figure out, line by line, what useful things can be learned from it.

What is Accessibility Information?

The sections in the info_system.txt file are arranged in alphabetical order. First on the list is Accessibility Information. It tells you whether your Mac has accessibility options enabled.

By default, these options are disabled. You can enable them in System Settings-> Universal Access.

What can you find out about the applications installed on the system?

Next comes the Application section. It provides information about all programs that are installed on the system. In my case, the section took 3908 lines. For each application, the version, source, storage location, and whether it supports 64-bit processors are indicated.

What can you learn about computer hardware?

Starting with the Audio section there is a description of the iron filling of the poppy. For each device, brief technical information is given and it is indicated whether it is used by default.
The system_profiler command also provides information about the hardware in the Bluetooth, Camera, etc. sections.

Where can I find out about audio and video codecs installed on the system?

Information about them is in the Components section.

Where can I find out what version of Xcode is installed on my computer?

Around line 11128, the Developer section begins. It has details about the developer tools that are installed on the system.

How can I find out when an automatic hardware self-test was performed?

In the Diagnostics section you can find out the last time the computer was turned on and the associated device testing was carried out.

How can I find out which drivers and controllers are installed in OS X?

Drivers and controllers installed in OS X are described in the Extensions section.

Where can I find information about my video card?

On MacBooks, information about the video card is available in the GeForce section.

How can I find out the most complete information about the fonts installed on the system?

In the Fonts section. Here you can suddenly find out that the Arial Narrow font had several versions (the current one is 2.8), that it was invented by two people and that Monotype Corporation owns the rights to it.

How to find out which frameworks are installed in OS X?

Simply put, it consists of the open source Darwin subsystem, which controls the low-level functions of the system, and numerous closed frameworks that are responsible for the part of the OS that is visible to users and applications. Information about them is in the Frameworks section.

Where can I see information about all application installations and updates?

The Installation section stores a log of all installations from the moment the computer was first started.

Where can I see detailed information about all automatic network placements?

IN System Settings -> Net Only brief information about network connections is visible.

All their technical parameters can be read in the Locations section, info_system.txt files.

Where can I view the system log?

They are in the system report in the Logs section.

Where can I find information about power and battery settings?

In the Power section.

Where can I find information about system settings modules?

In the Preferences Panes section. If you look for the Visible:None line here, you can see the hidden settings. For example, on a MacBook Air, the CD/DVD drive settings are hidden in the graphical interface.

Where can I see information about printers installed on the system?

In the Printers section. Reading it, you will find that OS X can work with many Epson and Canon printer models without installing additional drivers.

Where can I find information about my hard drive?

In the Storage section.

Where can I see the synchronization service logs?

In the Sync Services section. Very interesting, who is Gracie?

Where can I find information about USB ports and devices connected to them?

In the USB section 🙂 And right in front of it is information about the Thunbderbolt port.

After updating to the latest version of Mac OS X Mojave, users notice that they are unable to install previous versions of the system. When you try to replace the OS, actions are blocked. Despite all the efforts of the developers, there are workarounds for installing previous versions of the system. They will be discussed in the article.

There are a number of reasons that encourage you to download previous versions of macOS and Mac OS X:

• Some software may not work in the new version of the system. This happens when using programs that are no longer supported by the manufacturer;
• the application requires the now unsupported Rosetta program. This is a wrapper to support PowerPC software after installing Intel processors;
• the visual or technical component of Mojave is not satisfactory;
• developers and testers need to have the maximum number of versions of Mac OS X. This will help check the stability of the programs being developed.

Many users have a similar need. Next we will look at answers to popular questions: how to download other versions of Mac OS X, where to find the installer. After considering them, the user will have all the necessary tools for quality work.

How to download older versions of Mac OS X?

Even before purchasing and installing Mojave, you can choose from other versions of the system. All files are offered in the official Mac App store on special tabs. The transition to them remains available when purchasing the OS (basically, no one has paid for updates on Mac OS X for many years).

It is possible to download previous versions of the system even from the App Store. Thanks to this method, the following versions of Mac OS X become available for download:

• El Capitan;
• Mavericks;
• Yosemite;
• Lion;
• Mountain Lion.

The installation method described below will not allow you to download the Snow Leopard version, which is described separately. The situation is similar with Mac OS X Sierra. The working method for downloading it is described below. Making it even more difficult to obtain an installer for the High Sierra version. The only way to achieve the goal in the latter case is to download the system version on another PC. You need to find a computer with High Sierra or an older version and download the installer on it.

It is important to understand that only those updates that were previously downloaded from the “Purchased” section are available in the App Store. If an update has never been added and downloaded from the Mac App Store, it won't appear in the Purchased tab. An additional reason for the lack of a separate version of Mac OS X may be the pre-installation of the OS. The PC immediately comes with one of the versions of the system; it will not be in the Mac online store.

How to get Sierra bootloader?

After the official release of the High Sierra version in 2017, Apple removed the Sierra version from the store from the “Purchased” section. This made it difficult to find the installation file and roll back to previous versions. At the same time, Apple provided an official link to the installer.

The link still works, but for Mojave users, searching for MacOS Sierra will show an "update not found" message. All attempts to download from the new system were unsuccessful. I had to switch to a computer with an old version of the OS and the installer loaded without problems.

How to download the High Sierra installer?

It will not be possible to download the High Sierra installer from the new version of the system. Apple's policy is strict and there is no workaround or reference provided. The only option for obtaining the installer is to save it before upgrading your PC on an old system. Sometimes a copy is saved in the system, it’s worth looking, maybe it’s still around somewhere.

How to get the installer:

1. Find a computer with old macOS.
2. Go to the App Store through a browser or a special application.
3. Log in to the site.
4. Go to the "Purchased" section.
5. Download the High Sierra installer.

If you don't have access to a similar computer, you can ask a friend to do the same steps and then transfer the file.

Important! You should not use public sites to download macOS. There is a high probability that the file is infected with Trojans. The security of the system after such an action will remain in question. It will not be possible to check the cleanliness of the file using an antivirus in advance.

How to download an older version of Mac OS X from the App Store?

If the update was previously installed or simply added to the “Purchased” section, nothing prevents you from downloading it. The method of performing the actions is similar for each version of the system.

What to do:

After clicking on the “Install” button, the installation process of the Mac version will not begin. The only thing that will happen is that the installer file will be added to the “applications” directory.

Clicking on the newly received file will not install the old system on top of the new version. If your Mac is running a newer version of OS X, a warning will appear and the process will end.

How to install an old OS on a new version of macOS or Mac OS X?

Although the standard installation method is not available, there is another way to achieve this goal.

To install the old system you will need:

1. Download the appropriate version of the system from the official store.
2. You need to create a bootable installer from the installation file. To do this, you will need an external hard drive or flash drive with at least 12 GB of free space.
3. Restore your Mac to factory settings by erasing all data from the drive.
4. Start the installation process using the removable drive created in step 2.
5. Restore the system using a restore point called Time Machine. It will roll back the system to a version that precedes the installation of the new system.

Downgrade does not work if other versions of the system have not been installed previously.

What should I do if the version of Mac OS X I need is not in the “purchased” section?

There are several ways to update your store information and find the right installer. The methods work if it is known that the required versions of macOS have been added to the “purchased” column.

What you can do:

1. Sign out of the App Store and sign in again.
2. Switch to another Apple ID from which the OS version was downloaded. An account with a different ID may be completely working.
3. Find a friend, acquaintance, system administrator or other person who has already downloaded the appropriate version of the system. All that remains is to persuade him to hand over the file.

The last, third method works for everyone, even for users who have never added an OS version to the “purchased” section. Usually finding a friendly person is not that difficult. Fortunately, copies of OS X are not tied to a specific account, so they can install and run on all Mac computers.

The only caution is not to download files from torrent sites. Today, the number of infected systems is steadily growing, and the risks of damage are really high. Often, pirated copies have adjustments that allow hackers access to the user’s computer.

How to download Snow Leopard?

Sometimes you need to install a version of Mac OS X that was never available from the Mac App Store. The Snow Leopard version is the first to ship from the Mac App Store. Starting with Snow Leopard, Apple introduced downloading new applications from the store. According to the logic of the developers, this version is the first, that is, it is installed on the PC by default. Therefore, there is no need to place it.

The only way to install the Snow Leopard version is to buy Mac OS X 10.6 out of the box. The discs are still sold on store shelves and online. Today you'll have to pay £20 to get Snow Leopard out of the box. To install the system, you need to have an optical drive, which came standard on older Macs.

How to download OS X Lion or Mountain Lion?

The principle of getting these older versions is similar to Snow Leopard. They can also be purchased through the Apple website for the same price of £20. After paying for the product, Apple will send a special code to download the system from the App Store.

Despite the presence of the installer on the computer, it cannot be run on new versions of the system. You first need to install the version of Snow Leopard, then Lion will work without problems.

How do I download OS X Leopard and earlier versions?

Apple actively supports developers on its own platform. A special section on the website has been created for them. All versions of macOS and Mac OS X starting from 10.3 are located here. Access to different OS versions is available at developer.apple.com/downloads.

Regular users are blocked from accessing the “Developers” section of the site. To open access, Apple requires a paid subscription for developers. You have to pay $100 annually for a subscription. Also, one of the conditions for access is the signing of a non-disclosure agreement.

To save money on purchasing versions of the system from the official website, you should look at eBay and Amazon. You can buy the full OS X Lion installer here for just £8.5. The older the system version, the more expensive it is. For example, for the Tiger version you will have to pay £90.

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How to find out the version of Mac OS X?

Sometimes situations arise when a user needs to know not only the version, but also the build number of the operating system installed on his Mac. Typically, you'll need this information when your device is running a beta version or when filing a bug report from Apple.

Why do you need to know the operating system version and build number?

This data may be needed when installing software that, for example, does not support older versions of OS X. This information is also important for beta testers who need to check which build of the beta version of the OS is installed on the device. Additionally, when filling out a bug report form, be sure to include your OS X version and build number so that Apple can reproduce the problem.

How to find out the version and build number of Mac OS X

1 . On your computer desktop, in the menu bar, click the Apple symbol ().

2 . Select " About this Mac" The OS X version is displayed directly under the heading " OS X».

3 . Click the version number to see the build number.

Even if the OS X version numbers are the same, the build numbers installed on Mac computers may differ. For example, after purchasing a new Mac, users may notice that the same OS version may have a different build number than what is installed on other computers. This just means that new Macs have a more recent version of the build installed. If the assembly is already out of date, you can update it using the tab Updates V Mac App Store.