FAQs

I'll try to assemble some of the most common questions relating to this tool here.

Why is the installer not downloading?

This tool requires a good network connection since you are downloading a full macOS installer which are over 10 GB in size. Poor Internet connection with interruptions may result in failure. This is generally visible in the output of curl.

The installer downloads but then something fails. Why?

Also, are you running any security software? There have been reports that tools such as CrowdStrike and Microsoft Defender are blocking the construction of the installer from the downloaded components. If this happens, you could try the --fetch-full-installer option which uses Apple's softwareupdate command to obtain the installer.

Can Content Caching help obtain the installer faster?

Downloads using the default method are not stored in Content Caching. I've had opposing reports that the installers obtained with the --fetch-full-installer option are cached in a Content Caching server, or are not! I have not been able to test this myself.

Can you change the name of this script as it is confusing when we want to use it for upgrading macOS, not erasing it?

This is a legacy of the very first version of this script, which I released to take advantage of the then brand new --eraseinstall option of startosinstall, and combine it with installinstallmacos.py. The functionality of the script has grown considerably since then, particularly in relation to using it for upgrading macOS. Unfortunately the script is now too well known to change the name.

If it overly concerns you, you can of course change the name yourself. I have written the script so that the logs and output will show whatever the name of the script is.