When upgrading from 10.5.8 to snow then to lion is it best to do a clean upgrade

when updating from 10.5.8 to snow then to lion is it best to do a clean install

In my opinion, one should ALWAYS do a clean install if at all possible, especially when jumping a version or two.  Some will say that an upgrade is all that is needed, and that's fine for some.  Me - I'm a clean freak.  I like to have my machines running as efficiently as possible with no clutter.  Perhaps it's just a left-over practice from my Windows PC days.  OS X is much more friendly than Windows when it comes to cluttering up drives, but it still happens on a much smaller scale. 
This is what I've been doing lately (and I say "lately" as "frequent", since Apple seems to want to release a new OS every few months it seems now).  Copy the entire contents of your current drive to an external drive and ensure you can boot from it and that everything is there.  Once you do that, wipe your primary HDD clean and do a fresh install of your new OS.  Import/reinstall everything from your previous drive onto the new OS.  While you are conditioning to the new drive and remembering things that you forgot about (you will forget something no matter how hard you try) you still have the old OS to boot to or retrieve data from.
I use Carbon Copy Cloner for my drive clones.  It's free, it's easy, and it works seamlessly.

Similar Messages

  • When I upgrade from OS10.5.8 to Snow Leopard will all my data transfer.  If I need to back up what is the best way to do this?

    I plan to upgrade from OS10.5.8 to Snow Leopard. Will all my data, applications and settings transfer automatically?
    If I need to back up what is the best way to do this?

    If everything works perfectly, your data should not be touched.
    Personally I never trust my data to everything working perfectly.
    I always backup everything twice at least.

  • I'm trying to upgrade from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard

    I'm trying to upgrade from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard but keep getting an error message, "This update requires Mac OS X version 10.6.".  Isn't Snow Leopard 10.6?....so now what?

    It sounds more like you are trying to use an updater rather than the Snow Leopard installer DVD. You might read over the following:
    How to Install OS X Updates Successfully
    A. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions:
    Boot from your current OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. Then select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list.  In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive.  If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now restart normally. 
    If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.0 for Tiger) and/or TechTool Pro (4.5.2 for Tiger) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
    B. Make a Bootable Backup Using Restore Option of Disk Utility:
    Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
    Select the destination volume from the left side list.
    Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
    Check the box labeled Erase destination.
    Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
    Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
    Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
    Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive.
    C. Important: Please read before installing:
    If you have a FireWire hard drive connected, disconnect it before installing the update unless you will boot from this drive and install the update on it. Reconnect it and turn it back on after installation is complete and you've restarted.
    You may experience unexpected results if you have installed third-party system software modifications, or if you have modified the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
    The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation, use the standalone installer (see below) from Apple Downloads to update.  While the installation is in progress do not use the computer.
    D. To upgrade:
    Purchase the Snow Leopard Retail DVD.
    Boot From The OS X Installer Disc:
    Insert OS X Installer Disc into the optical drive.
    Restart the computer.
    Immediately after the chime press and hold down the "C" key.
    Release the key when the spinning gear below the dark gray Apple logo appears.
    Wait for installer to finish loading.
    E. If updating:
    Download and install update(s) 
    Use Software Update, or
    Download standalone updater(s).

  • It's been a while since I upgraded my system.  Is there anything I should do before upgrading from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard other than backing up my files?  The transition should be pretty seamless, right?

    It's been a while since I upgraded my operating system.  Is there anything I should do before upgrading from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard other than backing up my files?  The transition should be pretty seamless after installation, right?

    How to Install OS X Updates Successfully
    A. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions:
    Boot from your current Tiger Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. Then select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger and later.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list.  In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive.  If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now restart normally. 
    If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.0 for Tiger) and/or TechTool Pro (4.5.2 for Tiger) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
    B. Make a Bootable Backup Using Restore Option of Disk Utility:
    Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
    Select the destination volume from the left side list.
    Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
    Check the box labeled Erase destination.
    Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
    Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
    Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
    Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive.
    C. Important: Please read before installing:
    If you have a FireWire hard drive connected, disconnect it before installing the update unless you will boot from this drive and install the update on it. Reconnect it and turn it back on after installation is complete and you've restarted.
    You may experience unexpected results if you have installed third-party system software modifications, or if you have modified the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
    The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation, use the standalone installer (see below) from Apple Downloads to update.  While the installation is in progress do not use the computer.
    D. To upgrade:
    Purchase the Snow Leopard Retail DVD.
    Boot From The OS X Installer Disc:
    Insert OS X Installer Disc into the optical drive.
    Restart the computer.
    Immediately after the chime press and hold down the "C" key.
    Release the key when the spinning gear below the dark gray Apple logo appears.
    Wait for installer to finish loading.
    E. If updating:
    Download and install update(s) 
    Use Software Update, or
    Download standalone updater(s).

  • My iPhone 4S no longer syncs after upgrading from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard 10.6.3

    y iPhone 4S no longer syncs after upgrading from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard 10.6.3 - any solutions out there?

    Thanks - got stuck with the upgrade to 10.6.8, but Apple Support was able to navigate me through that, the date settings caused a problem here.

  • I'm trying to upgrade from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard but my macbook keeps ejecting the disc.  It started to install the first time and said it needed to restart to finish, restarted but ejected the disc.  It ejects every time now.

    I'm trying to upgrade from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard but my macbook keeps ejecting the disc.  It started to install the first time and said it needed to restart to finish, restarted but ejected the disc.  It ejects every time now.  I've also installed the 10.5.8 combo update but that didn't help it.  I've tried restarting the macbook with the disc in, holding c, all that.  Why won't this work?!

    Zap the PRAM and Reset the SMC, then try again.

  • When upgrading from osx 10.7.4 to osx mountain lion I get the following Alert!  This update requires OS X version 10.8.

    When upgrading from osx 10.7.4 to osx mountain lion I get the following Alert!  This update requires OS X version 10.8.

    Sounds like you downloaded the 10.8.1 update instead of the Mountain Lion installer from the Mac App Store.
    You have to purchase Mountain Lion from the App Store to get to 10.8

  • HT1752 How do I upgrade from OS X 10.6.8 to mountain lion

    How do I upgrade from OS X 10.6.8 to mountain lion
    also need update for iphoto6

    Upgrading to Snow Leopard, Lion, or Mountain Lion
    You can upgrade to Mountain Lion from Lion or directly from Snow Leopard. Mountain Lion can be downloaded from the Mac App Store for $19.99. To access the App Store you must have Snow Leopard 10.6.6 or later installed.
    You can purchase Snow Leopard by contacting Customer Service: Contacting Apple for support and service. The price is $19.99 plus tax. You will receive physical media - DVD - by mail.
    Third-party sources for Snow Leopard are:
    Snow Leopard from Amazon.com
    Snow Leopard from eBay
    After you install Snow Leopard you will have to download and install the Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1 to update Snow Leopard to 10.6.8 and give you access to the App Store.
    You can purchase Lion by contacting Customer Service: Contacting Apple for support and service. The cost is $19.99 (as it was before) plus tax.  It's a download.
    Be sure your computer meets the minimum requirements:
    Apple - OS X Mountain Lion - Read the technical specifications.
    Macs that can be upgraded to OS X Mountain Lion
      1. iMac (Mid 2007 or newer)
      2. MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer)
      3. MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)
      4. MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
      5. Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)
      6. Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)
      7. Xserve (Early 2009)
    Are my applications compatible?
    See App Compatibility Table - RoaringApps - App compatibility and feature support for OS X & iOS.
    Am I eligible for the free upgrade?
    See Apple - Free OS X Mountain Lion upgrade Program.
    For a complete How-To introduction from Apple see Apple - Upgrade your Mac to OS X Mountain Lion.
    Model Eligibility for Snow Leopard and Lion.
    Snow Leopard General requirements
      1. Mac computer with an Intel processor
      2. 1GB of memory
      3. 5GB of available disk space
      4. DVD drive for installation
      5. Some features require a compatible Internet service provider; fees may apply.
      6. Some features require Apple’s MobileMe service; fees and terms apply.
    Lion System Requirements
      1. Mac computer with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, or Xeon processor
      2. 2GB of memory
      3. OS X v10.6.6 or later (v10.6.8 recommended)
      4. 7GB of available space
      5. Some features require an Apple ID; terms apply.
    iPhoto upgrade can be purchased on the App Store after you upgrade to Mountain Lion.

  • Music doesn't start when selected from playlist have to push pause then start. Always playing one track behind what is on screen

    Music doesn't start when selected from playlist have to push pause then start. Always playing one track behind what is on screen as my I-pad worksorks fine

    Same problem here, since upgrading to IOS-5.  Whenever I try to shuffle or play a genius mix (or even simply play an album) the iPod will skip the first one or two songs, play one song and then 'crash'.  I say 'crash' because it selects the next song and then nothing happens - the player isn't paused, and it appears to think it's playing, but the time bar doesn't change and no sounds come out.  Occasionally I've noticed the album artwork is wrong too.
    Rebooting does NOT work - I've tried it a number of times.
    Is this just an iPod problem??  If so, I would be surprised if Apple do anything quickly about it - they're more worried about iPhone problems I expect, and we (iPod users) are just the poor relations...  C'mon Apple - SORT IT OUT!!!!

  • How do you upgrade from Mac OS x 10.6.8 to Lion?

    How do you upgrade from Mac OS x 10.6.8 to Lion?

    First check to be sure your hardware meets the hardware requirements for Lion.
    Backup your data. I suggest a bootable clone as the way to go.
    Then open App Store and purchase and download the Lion installer.
    Then install Lion.
    Allan

  • HT2404 Can I upgrade from OS X 10.6.8 to OS Lion on an IMac purchased in 2006?

    Can I upgrade from OS X 10.6.8 to OS Lion on an IMac purchased in 2006?

    Look at general requirements
    http://www.apple.com/macosx/specs.html
    If it does not match you can't upgrade to Lion

  • Will I loose all my files and photos when I upgrade from 10.5.8 to Snow leopard

    I have purchased Mac OS X Snow Leopard from the Mac store and I am ready to install it. Will I loose all my files and photos when I install it ?  I am upgrading from 10.5.8 to 10.6.3 Snow leopard.

    Before embarking on a major OS upgrade, it would be wise, advisable and very prudent if you backup your current system to an external connected and Mac formatted Flash drive OR externally connected USB, Thunderbolt or FireWire 800, Mac formatted hard drive. Then, use either OS X Time Machine app to backup your entire system to the external drive OR purchase, install and use a data cloning app, like CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper, to make an exact and bootable copy (clone) of your entire Mac's internal hard drive. This step is really needed in case something goes wrong with the install of the new OS or you simply do not like the new OS, you have a very easy way/procedure to return your Mac to its former working state.

  • Upgrading from 10.5.8 to Snow leopard

    Is there an upgrade from my system to snow leopard???? or a complete reinstall??

    You have to purchase the Snow Leopard DVD ($29.00) and then upgrade your system. Or you can erase the drive and install from scratch. Your choice. If you choose to upgrade then do the following:
    System Upgrade and Installation Procedure
    Basic Caveats
    1. Disconnect all peripherals except the original mouse and keyboard.
    2. Quit all applications if this is not an installation from an Installer DVD.
    3. The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation you may have to erase the hard drive and reinstall from scratch.
    4. Once the installation begins do not use the computer in any way except to reply to dialog prompts or to restart when the installation is completed. This is especially critical during the installation stage known as "Optimizing the System."
    System Update Procedure
    A. Repair hard drive and permissions.
    Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
    Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger or Leopard.) After DU loads select your OS X volume from the list on the left, click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now restart normally.
    If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.1 for Leopard) and/or TechTool Pro (4.6.2 for Leopard) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X. Note that Disk Warrior will not work on Intel Macs.
    B. Clone your existing system to an external Firewire drive.
    How to Clone Using Restore Option of Disk Utility
    1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
    2. Select the startup or source volume from the left side list.
    3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
    4. Drag the startup or source volume to the Source entry field.
    5. Select the backup or destination volume from the leftside list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
    6. Check the box to Erase Destination. Skip this step if you've already formatted the drive.
    7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
    C. Decide upon an installation option.
    You have three upgrade options. If you use the Upgrade installation option be sure you have repaired the hard drive and permissions first and made your backup. If you choose the Archive and Install option then you only need to repair the hard drive. Note that Show Leopard does not have an Archive and Install option since that is done by default unless the drive is erased in advance.
    Neither of the above options will erase the disk. Some of your software may not work with a new system. You will need to upgrade those programs. It would be best to do the upgrades to your software before upgrading to the new system version.

  • Please help upgrade from 10.4.11 to snow leopard

    Hello. I have a client that is having trouble using a web based email I set up for him (Open Xchange). I wasn't having the same problems on my end, so I asked what he was running. It is a macbook 2.16ghz from mid 2007 and he's running 10.4.11.
    I would like to upgrade him to snow leopard, but I'm having a hard time trying to find it. I found an upgrade on download.com but not sure it will work since I believe it requires leopard which is another one I can't find. I tried the apple site with no luck and I would feel better getting it from them since I'm doing this to someone else's computer.
    Once I get it I read it's best to do a clean install, but for now if someone can tell me what's best I'd appreciate it. Do leopard then snow leopard or direct to snow leopard?
    I have an older copy of snow leopard myself, will that work? I purchased it separately--didn't come with computer.
    Thanks!
    2.16GHz MacBook mid 2007 white
    (MB062LL/A)
    cores : 2
    L2 cache(per processor) 4 MB
    Memory : 2 GB

    It will be an Actual CD.
    Before attempting any Major Upgrade... get yourself an External Hard Drive... and create a Bootable Clone Backup of your current Hard Drive...
    By far the easiest way to make such a Backup, is to use something like
    SuperDuper  http://www.shirt-pocket.com/
    or CCC  http://www.bombich.com/
    That way, should anything untoward happen during the Upgrade,
    you will NOT LOSE ANYTHING.
    (Get an EHD that is at least equal to your current Drive...)

  • How do I upgrade from 10.5.8 to Snow Leopard??

    My apologies if this answer can be found elsewhere, but I don't know where else to turn.   How can I upgrade from OS 10.5.8 to snow leopard so THEN I can update to Lion? Can't do anything unless I already have 10.6 or higher and I don't. Now what?  Everything on the apple store keeps pointing me to LION.  It's like they are forcing you to get Lion, however I can't do that if I don't have the previous upgrades.  Am I missing something?  Please forgive if this is a dumb question or maybe I'm missing an obvious answer somewhere. Thanks in advance!

    As others have stated... you now have to Telephone Apple to get a copy of Snow Leopard...
    Purchase Snow Leopard or Lion
    1-800-MY-APPLE or 1-800-676-2775
    Then... Before attempting any Major Upgrade... get yourself an External Hard Drive... and create a Bootable Clone Backup of your current Hard Drive...
    By far the easiest way to make such a Backup, is to use something like
    SuperDuper  http://www.shirt-pocket.com/
    or CCC  http://www.bombich.com/
    That way, should anything untoward happen during the Upgrade,
    you will NOT LOSE ANYTHING.
    (Get an EHD that is at least equal to your current Drive...)
    Also, Install as much RAM as your Mac will run...
    It is important to get the Correct and Matching RAM
    See Here  >  OWC RAM  >  http://www.macsales.com/
    Lastly... with regards to Lion...
    Check here for compatibility of 3rd party Software you may be using...
    http://roaringapps.com/apps:table
    Snow Leopard Tech Specs
    http://support.apple.com/kb/SP575
    Lion Tech Specs  >  http://support.apple.com/kb/SP629

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