Aug 29, 2011  Install Mac OS X Lion - This is the exact file downloaded from the App Store, and may or may not include personal information in the attached files. InstallESD.dmg - This is the file packaged within the above. It is the actual installer, and is identical to what anyone who has installed Lion uses. I have two Macs with me: one is my personal, the other my office has given. Instead of downloading the installer twice (10 GB), It would be great to download the copy and once use it to upgrade multiple devices (iMacs/Mac minis). I have tried to find the dmg file but I haven't been able to find it, instead I was redirected to the App Store. Nov 08, 2011  Here is how to download a full disk install version of lion. Thread starter johnhurley. Does it mean that 10.7.2 is a unified version of the OS X Lion for all mac products? With what johnhurley said in the first post, does it mean that an offline Lion installer via the InstallESD.dmg of the Lion downloaded from Mac App Store finally works. Jul 26, 2012  How to fix the problem where the SharedSupport folder is not present in the Contents of the DMG. Believe it or not, your DMG is already that 'InstallESD.dmg' file.

1. Mac Os Installer Is Lacking File Contents Shared Support Installesd.dmg
2. Invalid Macos Installer It Is Lacking The File Contents/sharedsupport/installesd.dmg

So, you’ve decided to download an older version of Mac OS X. There are many reasons that could point you to this radical decision. To begin with, some of your apps may not be working properly (or simply crash) on newer operating systems. Also, you may have noticed your Mac’s performance went down right after the last update. Finally, if you want to run a parallel copy of Mac OS X on a virtual machine, you too will need a working installation file of an older Mac OS X. Further down we’ll explain where to get one and what problems you may face down the road.

A list of all Mac OS X versions

We’ll be repeatedly referring to these Apple OS versions below, so it’s good to know the basic macOS timeline.

STEP 1. Prepare your Mac for installation

Given your Mac isn’t new and is filled with data, you will probably need enough free space on your Mac. This includes not just space for the OS itself but also space for other applications and your user data. One more argument is that the free space on your disk translates into virtual memory so your apps have “fuel” to operate on. The chart below tells you how much free space is needed.

Note, that it is recommended that you install OS on a clean drive. Next, you will need enough disk space available, for example, to create Recovery Partition. Here are some ideas to free up space on your drive:

• Uninstall large unused apps
• Empty Trash Bin and Downloads
• Locate the biggest files on your computer:

Go to Finder > All My Files > Arrange by size
Then you can move your space hoggers onto an external drive or a cloud storage.
If you aren’t comfortable with cleaning the Mac manually, there are some nice automatic “room cleaners”. Our favorite is CleanMyMac as it’s most simple to use of all. It deletes system junk, old broken apps, and the rest of hidden junk on your drive.

Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.4 - 10.8 (free version)

Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.9 (free version)

Download CleanMyMac for OS 10.10 - 10.14 (free version)

STEP 2. Get a copy of Mac OS X download

Normally, it is assumed that updating OS is a one-way road. That’s why going back to a past Apple OS version is problematic. The main challenge is to download the OS installation file itself, because your Mac may already be running a newer version. If you succeed in downloading the OS installation, your next step is to create a bootable USB or DVD and then reinstall the OS on your computer.

How to download older Mac OS X versions via the App Store

If you once had purchased an old version of Mac OS X from the App Store, open it and go to the Purchased tab. There you’ll find all the installers you can download. However, it doesn’t always work that way. The purchased section lists only those operating systems that you had downloaded in the past. But here is the path to check it:

1. Click the App Store icon.
2. Click Purchases in the top menu.
3. Scroll down to find the preferred OS X version.
4. Click Download.

This method allows you to download Mavericks and Yosemite by logging with your Apple ID — only if you previously downloaded them from the Mac App Store.

Without App Store: Download Mac OS version as Apple Developer

If you are signed with an Apple Developer account, you can get access to products that are no longer listed on the App Store. If you desperately need a lower OS X version build, consider creating a new Developer account among other options. The membership cost is $99/year and provides a bunch of perks unavailable to ordinary users.

Nevertheless, keep in mind that if you visit developer.apple.com/downloads, you can only find 10.3-10.6 OS X operating systems there. Newer versions are not available because starting Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.7, the App Store has become the only source of updating Apple OS versions.

Mac Os Installer Is Lacking File Contents Shared Support Installesd.dmg

Purchase an older version of Mac operating system

You can purchase a boxed or email version of past Mac OS X directly from Apple. Both will cost you around $20. For the reason of being rather antiquated, Snow Leopard and earlier Apple versions can only be installed from DVD.

Buy a boxed edition of Snow Leopard 10.6
Get an email copy of Lion 10.7
Get an email copy of Mountain Lion 10.8

The email edition comes with a special download code you can use for the Mac App Store. Note, that to install the Lion or Mountain Lion, your Mac needs to be running Snow Leopard so you can install the newer OS on top of it.

How to get macOS El Capitan download

If you are wondering if you can run El Capitan on an older Mac, rejoice as it’s possible too. But before your Mac can run El Capitan it has to be updated to OS X 10.6.8. So, here are main steps you should take:

1. Install Snow Leopard from install DVD.
2. Update to 10.6.8 using Software Update.
3. Download El Capitan here.

“I can’t download an old version of Mac OS X”

If you have a newer Mac, there is no physical option to install Mac OS versions older than your current Mac model. For instance, if your MacBook was released in 2014, don’t expect it to run any OS released prior of that time, because older Apple OS versions simply do not include hardware drivers for your Mac.

But as it often happens, workarounds are possible. There is still a chance to download the installation file if you have an access to a Mac (or virtual machine) running that operating system. For example, to get an installer for Lion, you may ask a friend who has Lion-operated Mac or, once again, set up a virtual machine running Lion. Then you will need to prepare an external drive to download the installation file using OS X Utilities.

After you’ve completed the download, the installer should launch automatically, but you can click Cancel and copy the file you need. Below is the detailed instruction how to do it.

STEP 3. Install older OS X onto an external drive

The following method allows you to download Mac OS X Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks.

1. Start your Mac holding down Command + R.
2. Prepare a clean external drive (at least 10 GB of storage).
3. Within OS X Utilities, choose Reinstall OS X.
4. Select external drive as a source.
5. Enter your Apple ID.

Now the OS should start downloading automatically onto the external drive. After the download is complete, your Mac will prompt you to do a restart, but at this point, you should completely shut it down. Now that the installation file is “captured” onto your external drive, you can reinstall the OS, this time running the file on your Mac.

1. Boot your Mac from your standard drive.
2. Connect the external drive.
3. Go to external drive > OS X Install Data.

Locate InstallESD.dmg disk image file — this is the file you need to reinstall Lion OS X. The same steps are valid for Mountain Lion and Mavericks.

How to downgrade a Mac running later macOS versions

If your Mac runs macOS Sierra 10.12 or macOS High Sierra 10.13, it is possible to revert it to the previous system if you are not satisfied with the experience. You can do it either with Time Machine or by creating a bootable USB or external drive.
Instruction to downgrade from macOS Sierra

Instruction to downgrade from macOS High Sierra

Instruction to downgrade from macOS Mojave

Instruction to downgrade from macOS Catalina

Before you do it, the best advice is to back your Mac up so your most important files stay intact. In addition to that, it makes sense to clean up your Mac from old system junk files and application leftovers. The easiest way to do it is to run CleanMyMac X on your machine (download it for free here).

Visit your local Apple Store to download older OS X version

If none of the options to get older OS X worked, pay a visit to nearest local Apple Store. They should have image installations going back to OS Leopard and earlier. You can also ask their assistance to create a bootable USB drive with the installation file. So here you are. We hope this article has helped you to download an old version of Mac OS X. Below are a few more links you may find interesting.

These might also interest you:

Install clean macOS Sierra from USB

macOS Sierra 10.12 (previously known as OS X) was released in September 2016 as an update available through the App Store. You do not need to worry, much like in the case of previous updates, your user data as well as system settings and installed applications will be preserver when you update your OS.

However, some users might prefer to mae a clean installation of macOS Sierra and for that you will need to create a bootable installation USB drive. This article covers several ways how you can achieve this.

Four ways how to create macOS Sierra USB installation flash drive

First step - Get OS X Sierra installation app and prepare USB flash drive

Download macOS Sierra installer (Install macOS Sierra.app in Applications folder) from Mac App Store.

Prepare a USB flash drive with the Apple Disk Utility. If you did not already, you will have to format the USB drive with GUID Partition Table scheme selected and name it as Untitled. The minimal capacity of USB drive must be of at least 8 GB.

How to create macOS Sierra installation USB flash drive with createinstallmedia tool

The createinstallmedia is a command line tool, which allows users to simply create installation drive, distributed with macOS Sierra installer.

When you have prepared your USB flash drive and the macOS Sierra Installer is downloaded from the App Store ► open Terminal and type command:

sudo /Applications/Install macOS Sierra.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/Untitled --applicationpath /Applications/Install macOS Sierra.app --nointeraction &&say Done

In our case 'Untitled' is the name of USB flash drive! Replace 'Untitled' by name of your flash drive.
Wait a few minutes until your macOS Sierra installation USB drive is ready.

To install macOS Sierra ► restart computer ► hold the Option key and select Installation USB drive from the menu.

How to create macOS Sierra installation USB flash drive with Terminal

When your USB flash drive is ready and macOS Sierra installer downloaded from the App Store ► Open Terminal and type the following sequence of commands:

sudo hdiutil attach /Applications/Install macOS Sierra.app/Contents/SharedSupport/InstallESD.dmg

sudo asr restore -source /Volumes/OS X Install ESD/BaseSystem.dmg -target /Volumes/Untitled -erase -format HFS+

sudo rm /Volumes/OS X Base System/System/Installation/Packages

sudo cp -a /Volumes/OS X Install ESD/Packages /Volumes/OS X Base System/System/Installation/Packages

sudo cp -a /Volumes/OS X Install ESD/BaseSystem.chunklist /Volumes/OS X Base System

sudo cp -a /Volumes/OS X Install ESD/BaseSystem.chunklist /Volumes/OS X Base System

sudo cp -a /Volumes/OS X Install ESD/BaseSystem.dmg /Volumes/OS X Base System

hdiutil detach /Volumes/OS X Install ESD

Now wait until your bootable installation flash drive with macOS 10.12 Sierra is made.

To install macOS Sierra ► restart computer ► hold the Option key and select Installation USB drive from the menu.

How to create macOS Sierra installation USB flash drive with Disk Utility and Finder

When your USB flash drive is ready and macOS Sierra installer downloaded from the App Store ► Open Terminal and type:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles 1 && killall Finder

This command allows you to view hidden files in Finder.

Now Open Finder ► Applications ► Install macOS Sierra.app ► right click ► Select Show Package Contents option.

Navigate to Contents/SharedSupport ► Mount InstallESD.dmg file

Open OS X (even thought the system it's caled macOS now) Install ESD archive in Finder and mount BaseSystem.dmg archive

Connect USB drive and open Disk Utility (/Applications/Utilities)

Select the USB drive from the list of disks, click on Restore icon and use OS X Base System option as a source. When ready click on Restore button.

After the Restore process is finished, open Finder ► open USB drive (OS X Base System) ► go to the System/Installation folder and select Packages file and delete it.

Open OS X Install ESD volume in Finder, select Packages folder and copy them to System/Installation folder on USB drive.

Also copy BaseSystem.chunklist and BaseSystem.dmg files from InstallESD.dmg volume to root of USB flash drive (OS X Base System).

Now your macOS Sierra installation USB drive is prepared and ready for use.

To install macOS Sierra ► restart computer ► hold the Option key and select Installation USB drive from the menu.

How to create macOS Sierra installation USB flash drive with DiskMaker X

DiskMaker X tool is Wizard like tool that allows you create macOS installation disk. Download DiskMaker X to your Mac and copy it to Applications folder.

When you have prepared your USB flash drive and macOS Sierra installer is downloaded from App Store ► open DiskMaker X.

Invalid Macos Installer It Is Lacking The File Contents/sharedsupport/installesd.dmg

Macos.mojave.v10.14.18a391.dmg download. Select version of macOS (in our case macOS Sierra).

Select copy of macOS installation app.

Select USB drive that will be used for USB installation.

And wait a few minutes till the the DiskMaker X finish creating process. Information about progress are viewable in Notification center.

To install macOS Sierra ► restart computer ► hold the Option key and select Installation USB drive from the menu.