having trouble updating

keirstian Said:

"having trouble updating: currently on high Sierra needing to update to big sur having a hard time finding where to update. its not in preferences or App Store"

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Verify Compatibility:

What's the Model of your Mac:

1. Go to: Apple Menu
2. Select: About This Mac
3. View: Second line-down
4. See if your Model is Shown Here: macOS Big Sur is Compatible with these Computers - Apple Support

If Shown....

Download the Installer from Apple:

Use Safari to download it. Get it Here: Use Safari to download macOS on your Mac - Apple Support

To be clear, software update generally means to install software to update the macOS currently running on the Mac; update Catalina 10.15.1 to Catalina 10.15.7, for example.

To update your current macOS, click the Apple  icon > About This Mac and then click Software Updates.... If there are any updates available for your Mac, they will be listed and you can apply them when you like.

A software upgrade is usually a generational step up to a newer macOS; upgrade from 10.13 High Sierra to 10.14 Mojave, for example, or from 10.15 Catalina to macOS 11 Big Sur.

❗️ Do NOT upgrade until you have made a Time Machine or other backup of your startup drive.

Learn How to Back up your Mac with Time Machine

How to Upgrade  macOS:

The macOS version you can upgrade to depends on the year your Mac was released.

Click the  (Apple) menu at the top left of your screen and choose About This Mac.

Check the Compatibility of your Mac with newer versions of macOS:

➡️ macOS 10.14 Mojave is compatible with the Macs listed here

➡️ macOS 10.15 Catalina is compatible with the Macs listed here

➡️ macOS 11 Big Sur is compatible with the Macs listed here

➡️ macOS 12 Monterey is compatible with the Macs listed here

❗️ – IMPORTANT – Your 32-bit apps won’t work in Catalina, Big Sur or Monterey.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208436

Use the free utility Go64 to check the compatibility of your apps:

https://www.stclairsoft.com/Go64/

✅ - IF your Mac and apps are compatible, then using Safari only, download the macOS upgrade installer app:

Click > Mojave,  Catalina,  Big Sur.

Once downloaded, double-click the “Install macOS [version]” app in the Applications folder to begin the upgrade.