How to Install OS X Mountain Lion on Your Mac
How to Install OS X Mountain Lion on Your Mac
OS X Mountain Lion is finally here, and if you're like us, you're eager to install it and start playing with the more than 200 new features Apple has tucked away in its fur -- so let's have a look at what this process entails.
A new version of OS X is always an exciting time for Mac users, and Wednesday's big release of OS X Mountain Lion is no exception. Whether you're still running Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6 or the now defunct OS X Lion, OS X Mountain Lion is easily worth the $19.99 purchase from the Mac App Store.
Can I Upgrade to OS X Mountain Lion?
As with any new upgrade, your first stop should be Apple's "how to upgrade" web page, which details all of the Mac models eligible for OS X Mountain Lion. Unlike the upgrade from Snow Leopard to OS X Lion, not all Macs are created equal -- and some that run OS X Lion just fine will not be able to install OS X Mountain Lion at all.
Here's the list of eligible Macs, straight from Apple's website:
iMac (Mid 2007 or newer)
MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer)
MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)
MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)
Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)
Xserve (Early 2009)
Assuming your Mac is up to the task, the next step is to head to the Mac App Store and make your purchase -- but if you're on Mac OS X Snow Leopard, there's one more thing you'll need to do first.
Installing OS X Mountain Lion requires Snow Leopard 10.6.8, so make sure to run Software Update if you haven't already. That will allow OS X Mountain Lion to install without a hitch.
Buying OS X Mountain Lion
If you've purchased a new Mac since the WWDC keynote on June 11, you're eligible to get OS X Mountain Lion free through Apple's Up-to-Date Program. There's just one catch: You have to be patient and wait for them to send you a redemption code via email before you'll be able to install.
While that's certainly better than the old days of receiving a DVD in the mail, it's little consolation when everyone around you is installing the OS first. Be sure to hit up our step-by-step guide for the Up-to-Date Program.
For the rest of you, head to the Mac App Store and buy OS X Mountain Lion for $19.99. That's the cheapest Mac OS X update since 10.1 "Puma" in 2001, which was a freebie for those who had suffered through the initial 10.0 release.
Click the Buy button, then sit back as the OS X Mountain Lion installer (all 4.05GB of it) cascades onto your Mac as fast as your broadband connection will allow. Go ahead, we'll wait.
Installing OS X Mountain Lion
When the Mac App Store download is complete, you'll find an "Install OS X Mountain Lion" icon in your Applications folder, as well as in your Launchpad. Double-clicking it will make the magic start happening for you.
Now you'll be greeted by a splash screen with the image of a very serious mountain lion.
To proceed, click Continue, then click Agree twice to confirm that you do, in fact, agree to Apple's software license agreement. (But if you don't, clicking Disagree will grind things to a halt while you ruminate on said agreement.)
The installer will now find your boot drive, which for most of us is called Macintosh HD. Should you wish to install OS X Mountain Lion elsewhere, you can click "Show All Disks" to find another, otherwise you should be ready to go. Click Install to continue.
Next, the software will perform a brief installation prep -- although our mid-2010 27-inch iMac claimed this would take "about three minutes," it zipped by much quicker than that, followed by an automatic restart of the computer. (You can also click "Restart" to speed things along.)
Now the waiting begins as your Mac restarts and actually performs the installation onto your boot drive. In our case, the iMac reported this would take about 34 minutes, which turned out to be fairly accurate in this case.
When the installation is complete, your Mac will restart a second time and you should be looking at OS X Mountain Lion in all of its glory once the computer starts back up again.
Post-Installation Notes
OS X Lion users who have installed OS X Mountain Lion over the older version will have the easiest upgrade path. Log into your account and you're ready to rock -- that is, unless you chose not to configure iCloud prior to installing the new version.
In that case, you may see an Apple ID setup screen, which also applies to those making the transition from Snow Leopard. Enter the ID and password (or create one, if necessary), click Continue twice and you're in business. You may also be prompted to allow Location Services, which is required for using Find My Mac.
Of course, if you're installing from scratch onto a newly-formatted drive, you'll have a few more options, including choosing a Wi-Fi or Ethernet network as well as being offered to Transfer Information to This Mac, which allows users to move data from an existing Time Machine backup over to the new installation.
Don't be afraid if you get a screen notifying you of "incompatible software" -- this is standard with all major Mac OS X upgrades, and disables kernel extensions or even applications that Apple has found to be incompatible with the latest operating system release. (In our case, Snapz X Pro was found to be just such an offender.) These files will be moved to a new "Incompatible Software" folder on your startup disk rather than deleting them outright; users can choose to return them to where they were, but it's probably not advisable to do so.
We were also asked to again allow keychain access to our non-iCloud email accounts (including Gmail), and you'll want to choose "Always Allow" to make those prompts go away for good. You may also be prompted to install Java for apps that require it (which includes Presence, as shown above).
If you didn't run Software Update or check the Mac App Store Updates tab prior to installing OS X Mountain Lion, now would be a great time to do that to avoid any compatibility issues. For example, Apple has pushed out a ton of updates on the heels of OS X Mountain Lion's release for its own productivity apps, and there are likely to be others available as well.
Last but not least, it's recommended to move the OS X Mountain Lion installer to a safe location, just in case you want to reinstall it on another system. Although users can choose to download it again from the Mac App Store, it's likely to vanish when the next major version is released, much like OS X Lion did on Wednesday morning. Better safe than sorry!
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