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my Macbook Air (mid 2013 - running 10.11.16) is not being offered an update to Big Sur.
Support pages state that mid-2013 Macbook Air models can update to the latest OS, yet, this machine is not being offered the update.
The machine has enough avilable space and is on power.
i have power cycled several times and tried various avenues to instigate the download, yet no success.
any advice or reccomendations would be appericated
MacBook Air
The App Store Updates page only informs you of updates available for the OS you are running.
Installing a newer OS is called an upgrade.
Which OS you can upgrade to will be governed by which model and year your mac is.
As you are running Mac OS X El Capitan I would recommend upgrading to macOS High Sierra
before upgrading to macOS Big Sur.
Open Safari and click on this link,
How to get old versions of macOS – Apple Support
Go to the Download OS section and click on the OS you want to install.
Before upgrading make a full back up of your Mac.
Check that third party apps you use have updates available for the new OS.
Check that your printers/ scanners etc have updated drivers and software available for the new OS.
Connect your mac to your router via cable rather than rely on WiFi.
Do not use your mac while it is downloading
and do not use any other devices that share the same internet connection.
If the App Store says ‘Open’ then it is detecting a previous download of the install app
go to the Applications folder locate Install macOS ******.app.
Move it to the Trash, empty the Trash.
Restart, click on the link again, the App Store should say ‘Get' or 'Download'.
If you want to install Big Sur, open Safari and click on the link below.
How to upgrade to macOS Big Sur - Apple Support
If you are considering upgrading to Catalina or Big Sur be warned they do not support 32bit apps.
Your Mac is probably running 32bit apps and these will need to be updated to 64bit apps,
some updates may be free, some may be paid. Use this app to discover which apps you have
are 32bit, https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/ then contact the developers of the software to see
if they are offering 64bit updates.
The App Store Updates page only informs you of updates available for the OS you are running.
Installing a newer OS is called an upgrade.
Which OS you can upgrade to will be governed by which model and year your mac is.
As you are running Mac OS X El Capitan I would recommend upgrading to macOS High Sierra
before upgrading to macOS Big Sur.
Open Safari and click on this link,
How to get old versions of macOS – Apple Support
Go to the Download OS section and click on the OS you want to install.
Before upgrading make a full back up of your Mac.
Check that third party apps you use have updates available for the new OS.
Check that your printers/ scanners etc have updated drivers and software available for the new OS.
Connect your mac to your router via cable rather than rely on WiFi.
Do not use your mac while it is downloading
and do not use any other devices that share the same internet connection.
If the App Store says ‘Open’ then it is detecting a previous download of the install app
go to the Applications folder locate Install macOS ******.app.
Move it to the Trash, empty the Trash.
Restart, click on the link again, the App Store should say ‘Get' or 'Download'.
If you want to install Big Sur, open Safari and click on the link below.
How to upgrade to macOS Big Sur - Apple Support
If you are considering upgrading to Catalina or Big Sur be warned they do not support 32bit apps.
Your Mac is probably running 32bit apps and these will need to be updated to 64bit apps,
some updates may be free, some may be paid. Use this app to discover which apps you have
are 32bit, https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/ then contact the developers of the software to see
if they are offering 64bit updates.
Solved 👍, thank you. We have managed to install the new OS by updating to High Sierra first, which then updated to Big Sur.
MacBook Air mid 2013 can't find update to Big Sur
