Upgrade from OS 10.7.5 top latest version prevented.

[Ron Brurud]

How does one do it? I have gone to the Apple site and tried to download the latest OS. A message pops up wanting me to sign into our Apple account. No problem. The note book with all accounts and paaword is opened, id is entered, password is entered, and Apple says, "Nope. Not your id or password." Well, it was the last time we signed in. So, "forgot your id or password" is clicked. Our email is entered, the captcha identifier its entered, enter is clicked and . . . nothing. The little spinner spins and spins and spins.

After going through this process five or six times with the same results our computer is shut down. Torn out hair is swept up. Urge to write a nasty note to Apple is foiled because it would probably require signing in to our Apple account.

Strangely I did sleep well, and here I am now seeking guidance. How the devil does one comminicate with Apple?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.


Ron

 

[honestone]

OK, a couple of things here (and the typical standard questions!). First, what exact Mac model do you have? That will determine what Mac OS systems you can upgrade to.

Secondly, have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs? And if so, how have you done that?

Third, are you making backups to an external device? Again if you are doing that, how are you doing it?

Now, are you going to the Apple site via your browser, or are you going to the App store? If you have ever downloaded anything from the App store, you can see such software by clicking on the "Purchased" tab. However, to download anything from the App store, you'll need your "Apple ID" and password you have used for getting items from there. If that is what you are having trouble with, in terms to it being accepted, and you are positive you are using the right combination (it could be different than what you use on your Mac, as it depends on how you set that up), then you can try and call Apple.

I would not suggest "jumping" all the way from OS 10.7.5 to the latest Mac OS you can install (again, that will depend upon which Mac model you have). An intermediate one would be better. Also, no matter which OS you move to, you'll need to insure that any third party software you use is compatible with that newer OS. That might require downloading and installing updates to such programs.

 

[Ron Brurud]

iMac, 21.5 inch, mid 1911
Processor 2.5 GHz Intel Core i5
Memory 4 GB 1333 MHz DDR3
Graphics AMD Radeon HD 6750M 512 MB
Software Mac OS X Lion 10.7.5 (11G63)

Have not done any disk maintenance/repairs. No external backup.

My reason for wanting to update should have been mentioned, my apologies. I wanted to install MalwareBytesAnti-Malware. We have been plagued with offers to delete unwanted files, to clean up our hard drive, etc. MBAM has done an admirable job on my PC of getting rid of what was there and preventing new ones from loading, and it seemed advisable for the wife's iMac. Unfortunately it won't work with anything older than OS10.9.0.

Thanks for the warning concerning software compatibility, although upgrading the PC carries that same danger. I've had to download new drivers several times over the years.

Contact with Apple has been through Safari. My gripe is an old one. Since my first experience with Apple - a Gen 2 iPod - it seems that my id and password only work for short time and then are refused. Generally it has been an easy process to reset both and move on. Last night's hour long battle was frustrating to say the least.

Your reply posed a new question - can our iMac be upgraded to 10.9.x? If so, I'd like to upgrade even if it means downloading new drivers for the few programs we have. My search for an answer to that will continue.

Thanks for your answer.


Ron

 

[honestone]

"iMac, 21.5 inch, mid 1911"

I assume you mean "mid 2011". Apple did not make iMacs back in 1911 (just kidding)!

Your iMac can actually be upgraded to any Mac OS beyond OS 10.6.8:

http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/06/13/apple-reveals-macos-sierra-hardware-compatibility-list

As you can see, that link is for Mac models that can be upgraded to Sierra. Hence, in your case, you have a choice of 5 Mac OS versions to upgrade to:

Mountain Lion: OS 10.8.x
Mavericks: OS 10.9.x
Yosemite: OS 10.10.5
El Capitan: OS 10.11.6
Sierra: OS 10.12.2 (current version)

Not doing any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, and especially no backups, is not good. I especially would not recommend just upgrading from OS 10.7.5 to whatever "in place", that is, just letting the new OS overwrite the old one. You will need a detailed strategy to perform the upgrade. I would recommend upgrading to an intermediate OS, like Yosemite. See how that works for a while, and then, if you want, you can upgrade to whatever later.

One thing to be aware of regarding Sierra, though, is that sometime this first 1/2 year, Appel will be significantly changing the file "structure" in the Finder, and that is supposed to happen with a subsequent Sierra upgrade. I thus suspect A LOT of software will need to be upgraded to be compatible with that version of Sierra. For myself, I anticipate needing to wait a while before upgrading to that version of Sierra.

As for third party software needing upgrades, I actually was not talking about drivers, although in some cases, that is necessary (I needed to do that for my Logitech mice for Sierra compatibility). There is quite a lot of third party software for Macs, and in most cases, a lot of that software needs to be upgraded for newer OS compatibility. For example, I use the excellent password management program 1Password. For the last 3 Mac OS upgrades, it has been necessary for me to upgrade 1Password. Same for TechTool Pro, SuperDuper!, and Office "whatever". And, for the venerable, excellent, and well reviewed free software Onyx, that has usually required downloading a new version.

Not sure why you keep having issues with your user id and password, and when that happens. I have never had such issues.

 

[Ron Brurud]

Thanks for your advice. Unfortunately before reading it the password problem was solved and I installed Sierra, then Malware Bytes. Despite having Trend Smart Surfing, which I thought was protecting us, there were bunches of what MalwareBytes termed threats. The only thing it didn't get rid of was the PC Cleaner that comes up with Safari every time it's opened.

It turned out that there some kind of glitch on either the iMac or the internet connection that prevented updating our password. I was able to take care of it by using my HP laptop.

Next goal is to figure out how to do disk cleanup / maintenance. Backup is a good idea also, especially as the iMac is what the CFO uses for our finances.

Thanks again for your help. It appears I'll be on this site frequently.

 

[Cory Cooper]

The PC Cleaner issue is probably a Safari Extension.

Try this to remove it: Clean Secure PC Cleaner Fake Security Software Permanently on Safari

Also, let us know what other Safari Extensions are listed and we can advise.

C

 

[Ron Brurud]

Safari>prefernces>extensions shows no extensions listed. Maybe the PC Cleaner is a hold over from before the upgrade.

I'll try the app you suggested.

 

[Cory Cooper]

It isn't an app I am recommending - it's a link that will show you how to remove it.

It could be that your homepage was changed to the PC Cleaner page...did you check that?

C

 

[Ron Brurud]

Arrrg. Didn't,t check that. Will do.

 

[Ron Brurud]

Got it. No idea how that became my home page. Thanks.

 

[Cory Cooper]

It may have set itself during the "fiasco:.

So, I assume it is resolved now?

C

 

[Ron Brurud]

Resolved. I set a different home page and the annoyance is gone.

 

[honestone]

Thanks for your advice. Unfortunately before reading it the password problem was solved and I installed Sierra, then Malware Bytes. Despite having Trend Smart Surfing, which I thought was protecting us, there were bunches of what MalwareBytes termed threats. The only thing it didn't get rid of was the PC Cleaner that comes up with Safari every time it's opened.

It turned out that there some kind of glitch on either the iMac or the internet connection that prevented updating our password. I was able to take care of it by using my HP laptop.

Next goal is to figure out how to do disk cleanup / maintenance. Backup is a good idea also, especially as the iMac is what the CFO uses for our finances.

Thanks again for your help. It appears I'll be on this site frequently.

It looks like Cory was able to help you get your PC Cleaner resolved. But, it looks like you took quite a jump in the upgrade form OS 10.7.5 to (I assume) OS 10.12.2. Just hope your machine continues to function fine.

Again, it is important to insure that you have no other third party software that you are using. Thus, is the following blanket statement true? "You are using ONLY Apple software that came with the OS".

Now, given that you have not done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, and are not doing any backups, and that you upgraded "in place" (ie, basically letting Sierra overwrite Lion), I would strongly suggest you get started soon. The first thing you absolutely need to do is make a backup to an external device. Time Machine is OK< but a cloning program like either SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner would be much better, as each of them make a bootable backup.

Once you do that, you should start doing some disk cleanup on your own. Get rid of stuff you no longer need.

Next, I would recommend you first download the excellent freeware program Onyx (http://www.titanium.free.fr/onyx.html; make sure you get the first version on that list, as you are using Sierra). Next, purchase the excellent disk cleanup/maintenance/repair software TechTool Pro (http://www.micromat.com/) and install it.

Next, first run Onyx. Make sure you run its Repair Permissions feature. You'll most likely need to run that a few times. Then, run TechTool Pro. That should give you a clean system. After using your machine for a couple of days, and as long as things are good, make another backup.

 

[Ron Brurud]

My apologies for the delayed response. I downloaded GIMP - a photo editing program, but looked at it and never used it. To the best of my knowledge the dear wife has loaded no programs. She uses the iMac for email, FaceBook, Pintrest and shopping. She has put a couple different fonts on, and changes desktop images frequently. No games, no music, the only videos are those she finds on FaceBook. Everything else she uses came with the computer.

As a long time PC person, the warnings about skipping intermediate stages is a bit strange. Once can go from Windows 7 to 10 with no problems. What is the danger in going from OS 10.7.5 to 10.12.2 in one jump? Not trying to say PC is better, just trying to understand the differences in operating systems. Rest assured that as new versions of the Apple OS come out they will be applied in small steps.

The advice everyone has given to make a backup is good advice. My PC is backed up, and the iMac will be soon.

Thanks for the advice.

Ron

 

[Spawn_Dooley]

Once can go from Windows 7 to 10 with no problems. What is the danger in going from OS 10.7.5 to 10.12.2 in one jump?

It's all about researching properly before you upgrade. If your particular Mac can run the latest OS then there's nothing stopping you except you might likely run into compatibility issues with any 3rd party apps you might rely on. 3rd Party developers don't always keep time with Apple or Microsoft & many fall foul to apps they rely on no longer functioning under the new OS. So in that event sometimes it might be wiser to wait before you upgrade to the bleeding edge. Sometimes with such a big jump in OS versions it might require first upgrading to one particular OS version, kind of leap frogging of it onto the current OS version ... if that makes sense.

 

[honestone]

In addition to what Spawn_Dooley stated above, an associated issue is the lack of any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs. Maybe folks in the Windows world do that, but it is not advisable period. One thing that cold result in such a huge jump in the OS is a decrease in performance on your Mac, and again especially without any of the disk maintenance stuff already mentioned. I would advise not "upgrading in place", ie, having Sierra (OS 10.12.2) basically overwrite OS 10.7.5. Instead, make a backup, boot your Mac either from the bootable backup or from the (hidden) Recovery HD partition, then use Disk Utility there to Erase and Format your internal drive. Next, do a fresh, "virgin" installation of OS 10.12.2, and then use Migration Assistant to "migrate"/copy needed stuff from the backup. Of course, you need to first insure that any third party software you use is compatible with OS 10.12.