OS Sierra: create bootable USB
Good damn day, all you beautiful readers. I have a quick how to for you.1. How to create a bootable usb flash that contains the latest Mac OS version Sierra
2. How to install from the bootable usb on a new SSD will be the next blog post.
The reason that you would want to do this vs just upgrading directly from the app store is that perhaps you don't know what the heck is on the hard drive and want a fresh install to create some space and speed up your OS. So if you want to simply upgrade your operating system, go to your app store, download Sierra (it's free) and follow its prompts.
So let's get into this.
Create a bootable USB drive.
Before we start, your usb flash drive needs to be at least 8 gigs and it is going to erase it so don't forget to back up anything else you want off there first.
Download Sierra OS from the app store. This is a big install so if your internet isn't great, it may take overnight to complete. When it's done, it will appear under your applications folder
1. Plug in your usb
2. Go to disk utility. Click the search icon on the top right hand corner of your screen and type in disk utility or go-> utility -> disk utility.
3. Click on your usb and click erase
4. Name it MyVolume, and the format must be OS X Extended (journaled) and lastly the scheme must be GUID Partition Map. - Name it MyVolume because the code I'm going to give you below needs it :)
5. Click erase and let it do it's thing.
Now let's copy the OS to the USB drive.
1. Go to your terminal. Do this by using the search icon on the top right hand corner of the screen and type in terminal or go -> utility -> terminal
2. Copy and paste this into your terminal and click enter:
/Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia
3. Then copy and paste this into your terminal and click enter:
sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyVolume --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sierra.app
IF it asks you for a password, it is your computer's password.
Well done, you've now created a bootable USB :)
