I own a Macbook Air and wanted to extract an OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion InstallESD.dmg from the Air. However as OS X 0.8 Mountain Lion came installed on my Macbook Air i could not obtain the InstallESD.dmg from the App Store.
So i needed some way to obtain the InstallESD.dmg, this would allow me to burn it to disc (if my Air had a DVD drive) create an installable USB stick for OSX or simply create an ISO so i can burn the install DVD on Windows.
- Officially called OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion - Mac is no longer part of the name - the new operating system was released as a preview to developers back in February and will go on sale this summer.
- Apple is ready to unleash Mountain Lion - the new version of its hit operating system, which is set to make Macs even more like iPads. The new software will be available as a download via the Mac.
It turns out you can extract a full OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion install disc from your Macbook Air / Pro quite easily. I found some old instructions on Macworld aimed at doing the same for OSX Lion on a Macbook Pro also worked for OSX Mountain Lion on my Macbook Air.
Chrome extension ipad simulator. Just like the last few versions of Apple's laptop-and-desktop operating system, OS X Mountain Lion ($19.99) came out of the gate this morning as the best consumer operating system there is.
Here is how i obtained my InstallESD.dmg From my Macbook Air:
1. Open the Terminal, and type this command to list all partitions on your hard drive or SSD:
diskutil list
2. Look for ‘Recovery HD' in the list, and note its identifier. It will be something of the form diskXsY, where X and Y are numeric digits, for me the identifier was disk0s3
3. Type the following command to mount the recovery HD:
diskutil mount readOnly /dev/[identifier]
4. Replace [identifier] above with the identifier you obtained from step 2. So on my machine, I typed:
diskutil mount readOnly /dev/disk0s3
Your identifier could be different
5. The disk image inside the recovery HD is invisible, so use the Terminal to mount that too:
hdiutil attach '/Volumes/Recovery HD/com.apple.recovery.boot/BaseSystem.dmg'
6. Now, from the newly mounted Mac OS X Base System image, double-click the ‘Install Mac OS X Mountain Lion' application at the root of the disk.
7. Go through the license agreement. Once it asks you for a disk to install on, choose the external drive or spare partition. For this i used a 16gb USB memory stick.
8. Enter your admin password when prompted, and the installer will start downloading.
When the download has finished the installer will re boot your Mac, so we need to stop it from doing this.
MacWorld had the following tip:
Chrome browser version 64. Open an old-style (non-autosaving) application that still uses the traditional Save, Save As…, etc. commands in the File menu (I used TextWrangler) and make a new unsaved document, and type a few things in it. This will give you a little insurance against the installer rebooting the system, since the app won't let the system reboot until you respond to its message asking whether you want to save the document or not.
I just kept an eye on it and force closed it before the timer counted to 0.
9. Once the file finishes downloading, the installer will extract the InstallESD.dmg image from it and delete the package. This will be fine as long as you don't let the app restart your machine. Once the installer finishes download and prompts you to restart your Mac, force-quit it. Do this quickly, as it may automatically reboot for you after a 30 timeout period (although if you've got an unsaved document open, you should be able to prevent that).
10. If we look at the USB drive we told OSX to save the data to you should see an OS X Install Data folder
11. Open the OS X Install Data folder and you will find an InstallESD.dmg
12. This is your full OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion install disc, you can burn it to a DVD, image it to a USB flash drive to create a USB installation disc or use dmg2iso to convert the DMG to an ISO which can be burned by a popular image burning application, such as ImgBurn on Windows. The ISO can be used on Esxi, VmWare and so on if you decide to convert the DMG to an ISO.
13. The end result is your choice of installation media for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, I wanted to obtain an ISO so i could install OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion on my VmWare Esxi Server. As you can see OSX 10.8.3 was downloaded, as 10.8.4 was only released a few days ago i imagine eventually you should be able to get an up to date install dmg by doing this.
Article ID = 70Article Title = OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion Frequently Asked Questions FAQ
Article Author(s) = Graham Needham (BH)
Article Created On = 17th February 2012
Article Last Updated = 31st March 2015
Article URL = https://www.macstrategy.com/article.php?70
Article Brief Description:
Frequently Asked Questions about OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion
OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion Frequently Asked Questions
Q. When will Mountain Lion be available? A. Mountain Lion was released on the 25th July 2012. Q. How much does Mountain Lion cost? A. Mountain Lion was superseded by OS X 10.9 Mavericks but you can now buy a download redemption code for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion on the UK online store (£14.00). Q. How can I buy Mountain Lion? A. You can now buy a download redemption code for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion on the UK online store (£14.00). Q. How many computers can I install Mountain Lion on? A. Consumers - you can purchase once and install Mountain Lion on as many supported Macs as you own that areauthorised with your Mac App Store ID (Apple ID).A. Businesses, commercial, education and/or site licence users - You can install Mountain Lion on as manycomputers as you have purchased the software individually for or have a licensed installation for - there is a minimum purchase of 20licenses. Q. In our family/household the different Macs have different iTunes / App Store accounts onthem. Do I have to buy Mountain Lion multiple times? A. No. You can have more than one iTunes / App Store authorisation on a single machine. Use one ofthe iTunes / App Store accounts to authorise each computer in the family/household in turn todownload and install Mountain Lion (in the App Store application click on the 'Purchases' tab). However,please note that you will need to download Mountain Lion on each computer (at 4.3GB+ in size each time) toinstall or you will need to obtain the OS X Install Disc Image.
NOTE: Mac App Store authorisations are unlimited whereas the iTunes authorisation limit is 10. Q. What Macs can I install Mountain Lion on? A. Mountain Lion requires a 64 bit EFI based Mac with an Intel Core 2 Duo, i3, i5, i7 or Xeon processor, a minimum of2GB of RAM, 8GB of available disk space and modern graphics capability. Some early Intel Macs only have a 32 bit EFI and/or old graphics so you will not be able to run Mountain Lion on those computers. Supported Macs include:
- iMac (Mid 2007 or newer)
- MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer)
- MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)
- MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
- Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)
- Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)
- Xserve (Early 2009)
- Any Mac with integrated Intel GMA 950/X3100, NVIDIA GeForce 7300 or ATI/AMD Radeon X1900 graphics
- Intel Core 2 Duo MacBook and MacBook Pros from Late 2007 to Late 2008 (Model Numbers: MB061*/B, MB062*/B, MB063*/B, MB402*/A MB403*/A MB404*/A, MB402*/B - Identifiers: MacBook2,1, MacBook3,1, MacBook4,1, MacBookPro2,1, MacBookPro2,2)
- The Mid-2007 Mac mini (Model Numbers: MB138*/A, MB139*/A - Identifier: MacMini2,1)
- Late 2006 polycarbonate iMac (Model Number: MA710xx/A - Identifiers: iMac5,1, iMac5,2, iMac6,1)
- The original Early 2008 MacBook Air (Model Number: MB003LL/A - Identifier: MacBookAir1,1)
- The original 2006 Mac Pro and its 8-core 2007 update (Identifiers: MacPro1,1, MacPro2,1)
- Late 2006 and Early 2008 Xserves (Identifiers: Xserve1,1, Xserve2,1)
A. To check what 'model' you have the model number is usually printed on the outside of the computer somewhere.
A. To be more specific and exact you can check what 'Identifier' your Mac has by:
- If you are running Mac OS X 10.4.x/10.5.x/10.6.x go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'More Info…' button > (the System Profiler application will open) select 'Hardware' on the left and check what it says for 'Model Identifier' on the right. Then under Hardware on the left select 'Graphics/Displays' and check what it says for 'Video Card' on the right (you may have two cards listed, one for integrated graphics and one for discrete graphics).
- If you are running OS X 10.7.x go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'More Info…' button > (the System Information application will open) click 'Overview' in the top left (this will now show the 'Graphics' capability) then click the 'System Report' button > select 'Hardware' on the left and check what it says for 'Model Identifier' on the right.
- Use a different internet connection that does not have an internet access data cap in place.
- Go to an Apple Retail Store where you can install Mountain Lion from their local server.
- When Mountain Lion is installed it creates a special bootable emergency 'recovery' area on your hard disk.You can Use the OS X 'Recovery HD' to repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If you have created an emergency external USB recovery drive using Apple's Recovery Disk Assistant you can use it to boot your computer from and repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If you have a Time Machine backup disk it may have an OS X 'Recovery HD' partition on it which you can use to repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If you have obtained the OS X Disc Image you can use it to create an Install DVD then boot your computer from it and repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion.
- If you have created an External Installation Device you can use it to boot your computer and repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion.
- If you have created an Emergency Boot Drive for OS X you can use it to boot your computer and repair your hard disk.
- Your Mac has a special bootable emergency 'recovery' area on your hard disk. You can Use the OS X 'Recovery HD' to repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If you have created an emergency external USB recovery drive using Apple's Recovery Disk Assistant you can use it to boot your computer from and repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If you have a Time Machine backup disk it may have an OS X 'Recovery HD' partition on it which you can use to repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If your hard disk has died (or you have upgraded it) you can use your computer's 'Internet Recovery Mode' to reinstall Mountain Lion (internet connection required).
- If you have created an External Installation Device you can use it to boot your computer and repair your hard disk and/or reinstall Mountain Lion.
- If you have created an Emergency Boot Drive for OS X you can use it to boot your computer and repair your hard disk.
- Reminders (including location based reminders)
- Notes (including Notification Center)
- Accounts
- Game Center
- Mac App Store = only software downloaded and installed from the Mac App Store will run (highest security)
- Mac App Store and identified developers = only software downloaded and installed from the Mac App Store or that have been digitally signed by an authorised developer will run (medium security - default)
- Anywhere = no security and will let you install any software
Os X Mountain Lion Cost
Q. I've heard Mountain Lion no longer includes X11. Is this true? A. Yes. X11 on Mountain Lion now uses install on demand. When you first launch an app that requires X11 libraries, you are directed to a download location for the most up-to-date version of X11 for Mac e.g. XQuartz. Q. I've heard Mountain Lion no longer includes Web Sharing. Is this true? A. Sort of. Apple have removed the easy configuration of this feature (from System Preferences > Sharing) but the underlying software needed (Apache) is still included in OS X. DIYMacServer host a good site all about using and configuring OS X client as a server. Q. I've heard Mountain Lion no longer includes Xgrid Sharing. Is this true? A. Yes, it has been removed. Q. I've heard Mountain Lion supports using more than one Time Machine backup device. Is this true? A. Yes, you can 'add' additional devices in the Time Machine preferences so rotating Time Machine backup devices is now easier. Q. I've heard Mountain Lion allows you to drag and drop files using 'Screen Sharing'. Is this true? A. Yes, Screen Sharing now supports dragging and dropping files. Q. Is Siri coming to Mountain Lion? A. No, but part of Siri's technology is being used for a new feature 'Dictation'. This will allow you to speak instead of typing. It uses the built-in microphone on your Mac and the more you use it, the smarter it gets. Q. What Languages will Mountain Lion's Dictation support? A. At launch the following languages are supported but more may come in the future:- English (Australia)
- English (United States - American)
- English (United Kingdom - British)
- French
- German
- Japanese
- Mandarin
- Cantonese
- Spanish
- Korean
- Canadian English
- Canadian French
- Italian
Download Mountain Lion Os X
Q. What's this 'Power Nap' feature all about? A. Certain Mac models i.e. those with built in flash storage (currently MacBook Airs and the newMacBook Pro with Retina Display) can sync and download updates while they are asleep. Periodicallythe Mac will update Mail, Contacts, Calendar, Reminders, Notes, Photo Stream, Find My Mac and Documents in theCloud. When the Mac is connected to a power source, it downloads software updates and makes backupswith Time Machine. Q. Which Macs support the 'Power Nap' feature? A. Not all Macs support this feature as it appears to be dependent on the hardware in your computer, so basically older computers won't support this feature. Macs that officially support 'Power Nap' include:- MacBook Air (Late 2010 or newer) - supported with OS X 10.8.2 or later
- MacBook Pro with Retina Display (mid 2012 or newer)
- Mac mini (server) (Late 2012 or newer)
- iMac (Late 2012 or newer)
- Mac Pro (Black 2013 or newer)
- MacBook Air (Mid 2011 or newer)
- MacBook Pro (Early 2011 or newer)
- MacBook Pro with Retina Display (all models)
- Mac mini (server) (Mid 2011 or newer)
- iMac (Mid 2011 or newer)
- Mac Pro (Black 2013 or newer)
A. To check your Mac's 'Model Name' go to Apple menu > About This Mac > Overview tab if necessary > check for the computer name in the top line e.g. 'MacBook Pro' (this can only be checked with OS X 10.7 or later)
A. To check your Mac's model date version go to Apple menu > About This Mac > Overview tab if necessary > check the details after the Model Name e.g. 'Early 2015' (this can only be checked with OS X 10.7 or later) - to be more specific and exact you can check what 'Model Identifier' your Mac has by:
- If you are running Mac OS X 10.6 or earlier go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'More Info…' button > (the System Profiler application will open) select 'Hardware' in the top left > check what it says for 'Model Identifier' on the right.
- If you are running OS X 10.7 or OS X 10.8 go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'More Info…' button > (the System Information application will open) select 'Hardware' in the top left > check what it says for 'Model Identifier' on the right under 'Hardware Overview'.
- If you are running OS X 10.9 or later go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'Overview' tab in the top left > click the 'System Report…' button > (the System Information application will open) select 'Hardware' in the top left > check what it says for 'Model Identifier' on the right under 'Hardware Overview'.
Mountain Lion Os Iso
- If you are running Mac OS X 10.6 or earlier go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'More Info…' button > (the System Profiler application will open) select 'Graphics/Displays' under 'Hardware' in the top left (click the triangle down if necessary) > click on the 'Video Card' on the right to see the technical information below.
- If you are running OS X 10.7 or OS X 10.8 go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'More Info…' button > (the System Information application will open) select 'Graphics/Displays' under 'Hardware' in the top left (click the triangle down if necessary) > click on the 'Video Card' on the right to see the technical information below.
- If you are running OS X 10.9 or later go to Apple menu > About This Mac > click the 'Overview' tab in the top left > click the 'System Report…' button > (the System Information application will open) select 'Graphics/Displays' under 'Hardware' in the top left (click the triangle down if necessary) > click on the 'Video Card' on the right to see the technical information below. With OS X 10.11 or later here you will also find whether your GPU supports 'Metal'.
Article Keywords: OS X OSX 108 Mountain Frequently Asked Questions FAQ
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