Reinstall Os X Catalina

 

  1. Installing Macos Catalina
  2. Reinstall Os X Catalina
  3. Clean Reinstall Macos Catalina
  4. Reinstall Macos Catalina From Internet

To reinstall a new copy of macOS Catalina Latest or Earlier macOS Mojave, you need a good quality internet connection. Otherwise, you have to wait for a long time or Stuck the download in-between the installation. Failing finding it, Recovery downloads the currently installed version of macOS (or OS X), which is about 5GB. When complete, it installs it and reboots, and places the installer in the.

How to access and use the Internet Recovery mode on Mac computers?

Apple computers are well-known as stable devices with good performance and hardware specifications. The Mac operating system also includes various self-diagnosis and repair tools. Bear in mind, however, that these features might be susceptible to failure. When built-in tools or software-based solutions do not work, the last and most efficient solution is to reinstall the operating system. All modern Mac computers contain two separate methods to reinstall the operating system (by 'reinstall', we mean installation of a fresh OS X version). You can choose to install the operating system from a startup disk or via Internet Recovery.

In this article, we describe the second method: Internet Recovery to install the operating system version that came with the version of your computer. If your computer was released with OS X Mavericks, using Internet Recovery will install this particular version, while reinstallation from the recovery partition will result in a fresh version of the current operating system. Therefore, if you perform the reinstallation process via the Recovery utility, you will receive the same operating system version that existed prior to reinstallation. The Internet Recovery method is useful if you wish to downgrade the operating system. A big advantage of this method is the ability to bring back the computer to full functionality when software is corrupted. Note, however, that stable internet access is required to perform the reinstallation process via Internet Recovery. An unstable Internet connection can lead to the process crashing and no access to the computer. Therefore, you are advised to use an Ethernet network, rather than Wi-Fi. In this article, we walk through the entire Internet Recovery method.

Table of Contents:

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Requirements to access Internet Recovery Mode

Ensure that the Mac meets the minimum requirements to access Internet Recovery mode. All compatible computers are listed below. Bear in mind that some earlier versions of Apple devices might also use this feature. Apple state that Firmware updates grant access to Internet Recovery mode. If your device is older than the machines listed below, check the Apple firmware updates list here.

  • MacBook Pro (13-inch, Early 2011)
  • MacBook Pro (15-inch, Early 2011)
  • MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2011)
  • iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011)
  • iMac (27-inch, Mid 2011)
  • MacBook (13-inch, Mid 2010)
  • MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2010)
  • Mac mini (Mid 2010)
  • MacBook Pro (15-inch and 17-inch, Mid 2010)
  • iMac (21.5-inch and 27-inch, Mid 2010)
  • MacBook Air (11-inch and 13-inch, Late 2010)

If you wish to reinstall the Mac operating system, your network must use DHCP and WPA/WPA security methods. All authentication methods listed below are incompatible with macOS installation via Internet Recovery. If your network uses one of the methods listed, change the setting to a compatible configuration (at least for the purpose of the installation process).

  • WEP
  • WPA-Enterprise
  • Certificate-based authentication / 802.1x
  • Proxies (where specific proxy servers must be configured in network preferences)
  • Captive Wi-Fi networks (where you click an “Agree” button to access the Internet)
  • PPPoE (where there is no router handling the PPPoE connection)

Reinstall operating system by using Internet Recovery mode

When you are sure that the Mac is able to access Internet Recovery mode, there is another important task before installing the fresh operating system version. After a successful reinstallation process, the computer will contain only the default software (which is delivered with macOS). All personal data and applications that you have manually applied to the hard disk will be erased. To protect your personal data, create a backup with Time Machine or similar software. Finally, when you are ready to reinstall the operating system, click the Apple logo in the menu bar at top of the screen and select Restart or Shut Down. Once the system starts booting and you hear the startup chime, hold down the combination of Command, Option (Alt), and R.

Keep holding these keys until the animated globe appears with the message below stating 'Starting Internet Recovery' and 'This may take a while'. Note: If you are using a Mac laptop, use the built-in keyboard to access Internet Recovery Mode, since keystrokes might not register properly on external keyboards.

Next, select the Wi-Fi network. If you are not using an Ethernet network, click the drop-down menu and select the desired network. You must confirm access to a Wi-Fi network by entering the password. Then press Return on the keyboard or click the checkmark symbol on the screen to continue.

After successful authentication to achieve the network connection, the Mac will begin to download a recovery system image from Apple's servers. You will see a progress bar monitoring the status of the download. Depending on your internet connection, this process may take some time. Ensure that the computer is connected to the power adapter.

When the image is downloaded, the OS Utilities window will pop-up, giving access to the usual features, such as Restore from Time Machine Backup, Reinstall OS X, Get help online, and Disk Utility. From this point, the process will be similar to the reinstallation via recovery partition. Detailed information about how to install the macOS can be found in this article.

Jul 05, 2021 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions

There are many issues that people may encounter while installing the macOS update. One of the common problems is that the recovery server could not be contacted. When trying to install macOS High Sierra, Mojave, or Catalina, there is an error message popping up: The recovery server could not be contacted.

If your macOS update is also stopped by this error, you will find this post helpful. From this post, you will learn why the recovery server could not be contacted and how to fix it.

Catalina

What Does It Mean When the Recovery Server Could Not Be Contacted?

When installing a macOS update with a macOS installer, your Mac needs to reach the Apple server. When it says 'the recovery server could not be contacted, it means that your Mac failed to build a connection with the Apple server.

There are multiple culprits behind this issue.

  • Your Mac is disconnected from the network. A stable network connection is required for your Mac to successfully contact the Apple server.
  • The date and time on your Mac are not properly synced with the Apple recovery server.
  • The Apple server is overloaded with too many users trying to installing the new update at the same time. Whenever there is a macOS update recently released, the Apple server usually experiences a busy time.

Installing Macos Catalina

Solution 1: Check Network Connection on Mac

Firstly, you need to check if your Mac is connected to a proper internet connection. If your Mac is on a wired internet connection, you can re-plug the Ethernet cable to check.

If your Mac is using a Wi-Fi, you can access the Wi-Fi option from the top right corner of your screen to check it is connected to a stable Wi-Fi network.

The faster the internet, the quicker you can access the Apple recovery server.

Solution 2: Sync your Mac' Date and Time to Apple Recovery Server

If your Mac's date and times are not synced to the Apple recovery server. You can update these settings by utilizing these steps;

Step 1: First of all, close the error. This will open the macOS Utilities window.
Step 2: Next, you are required to choose the option 'Utilities' on the top menu bar.
Step 3: You will see the option 'Terminal', double click on it.
Step 4: Then type the following command line: 'ntpdate -u time.apple.com' and press enter.
Step 5: The above step might take some time. Once the process is completed, you can try reinstalling the macOS update again. Hopefully, your problem will be solved.

Also if the 'ntpdate -u time.apple.com' command-line failed to fix the recovery server could not be contacted on your Mac, you can try the following command.

  • Open Terminal.
  • Enter date. And hit Enter key. This will show the date of your Mac.
  • If the date and time are wrong, you should enter the current time with the following command line: date mmddhhssyy. For example, if it is July 20, 09:00 am, 2020, you should enter: date 0720090020 (July 20, 09:00 am, 2020,).
  • After that, quit Terminal and click Reinstall macOS to run the Catalina/Mojave installer again.

Solution 3: Install the Full Version of Mojave/Catalina Installer

Some users found that when they try to install a macOS update with the update installer from App Store, it just showed the error message 'the recovery server could not be contacted. However, after downloading a full version of the macOS installer, the installer can run without any error. Here is how you can get a full version of the macOS Catalina update.

Step 1Run Terminal.

Step 2For example, to download the full version of the macOS Catalina 10.15.3 Installer Application, enter the command line as below.

Reinstall Os X Catalina

  • softwareupdate --fetch-full-installer --full-installer-version 10.15.3

Step 3The installer will be downloaded in the Application folder.

Step 4Run the installer to install the macOS without the recovery server error.

Solution 4: Erase Your Disk and Reinstall macOS

In case you have utilized all the above methods and have not received any good results. Only then, you can erase your hard disk and reinstall macOS. You can enter the recovery mode to erase the hard disk. After that, reinstalling macOS can solve your problem. Follow the steps properly erase your hard disk and reinstall macOS;

Step 1Firstly, you need to restart your Mac.

Clean Reinstall Macos Catalina

Step 2When the Mac is starting, you need to press and hold CDM + R keys to enter the recovery mode.

Step 3In the Recovery mode, click Disk Utility and erase the Macintosh HD volume. This will delete all your data on your Mac so make sure you have backed up your important data.

Step 4After erasing your disk, you can reinstall macOS. This time, you won't see the recovery server could not be contacted error.

Reinstall Macos Catalina From Internet

If you have important data missing after the macOS update, you can get it back by using Recoverit Data Recovery software. The program is designed to recover photos, documents, videos, emails, etc. from the Mac computer after the data are deleted mistakenly or lost because of macOS reinstallation, factory reset, or virus.

Lost data can be recovered in 3 simple steps by Recoverit: select the drive of lost data, scan the drive, recover the files.

Download the free trial version of Recoverit Data Recovery to scan and find your needed files.

Conclusion

Many users complained about the recovery server could not be contacted error. Every error is solvable, only if you apply proper solutions. And to tackle the incidents that may happen in the macOS update, you need to back up your data before implementing any of the steps. In case your data is lost, you can recover it using Recoverit Data Recovery.

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