How To Make a MacOS Installer On a USB Stick.
If you want to download the latest macOS, you just need to go to the Mac App Store and download it. But what if you’re an IT professional working in a computer repair shop restoring Macs that need to reinstall macOS? What if your internet connection is at least unreliable where you are?
Well, accessing the App Store to reinstall macOS will be quite difficult and time-consuming. It will be much easier and faster for you to reinstall macOS if you already have a program on your USB stick ready to go.
Putting the latest and greatest macOS on a USB Stick
Before going pro, I have to get rid of the flaws. While creating a macOS installer is undoubtedly a great time saver, if you have a lot of Macs to work on, you have downside.
Since operating systems are constantly being updated to address security concerns, any version of the operating system that you end up putting on a USB stick will inevitably become invalid very soon. As such, you will have to regularly check for security updates and make sure that you also update the OS version on your drive using the method I am about to describe.
To do this, you will need access to a Mac computer and a good internet connection, and a USB drive with at least 8GB of storage. Make sure you have backups of everything on your flash drive, because the flash drive will be erased if you format it with Disk Creator.
How to create a macOS installer using Disk Creator
At the time of writing, the current macOS is Mojave. So, the first thing you need to do is go to the Mac App Store on a Mac connected to the Internet and download the operating system.
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This can be done by simply clicking the “Receive” button.
It will ask you if you are sure you want to download it (perhaps because it is already downloaded). Click “Yes” (you may have to log in using your admin ID) and it will start.
Depending on the speed of your internet connection, it will take 5-10 minutes to download the full file. When it’s done, you’ll find it in your Applications folder.
Then unzip and open Disk Creator. No installation required. Therefore, you will see it immediately.
First, choose which installer will be. In this case, it is “USB” (obviously, first make sure you have a blank USB drive inserted into your computer so that it appears in this menu).
Now click on “Select MacOS Installer”. This will open a window on your computer. Navigate to the Mojave file in the Applications folder and select it.
Finally, click “Create Installer” and let it do its job. You will be prompted to log in with an administrator password for authorization.
It will take about 10 minutes for the USB stick to properly format and get the installer up and running.
But when it’s complete, you will see this little window that tells you how to use it.
Creating the USB stick using the terminal
Since Disk Creator is free and easy to use, there is no reason not to use it. But some people just get a little nervous using third party software. If this applies to you, you can still create a USB installer using Terminal instead of Disk Creator.
Download Mojave as usual and insert a blank USB stick. Then in Terminal enter the following:
sudo / Applications / Install macOS install macOS mojave.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume / Volumes / Untitled - applicationpath / Applications / Install macOS install macOS mojave.app --nointeraction && say Done
When prompted, enter your password and wait for it to say “Done” in Terminal before removing the USB stick. Enjoy!
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