1

I was trying to go back to OS X El Capitan with Recovery Mode, but after agreeing to the T&C, it tells me to choose a HD where to install the update, but it doesn't show up. What can I do? I'm currently running macOS 10.15.6 w/ my MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015)

enter image description here

EDIT: This is what the disk utility GUI and what the diskutil list shows. enter image description here

Improve this question
2
  • what is the output of recovery mode's diskutil list and/or recovery mode's GUI Disk Utility?
    – Matthew Barclay
    Commented Aug 29, 2020 at 17:03
  • Just added it to the question
    – MNM
    Commented Aug 29, 2020 at 17:27

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
4

'Going back' & 'update' are mutually exclusive terms.

You will need to re-format the drive to HFS+ first from Disk Utility. El Capitan cannot read or understand the APFS disk format that Catalina uses.

Your edit suggests you are still in Catalina & that your disk is currently APFS.
You will need to start from your external El Capitan boot medium [or from Internet Recovery] in order to be able to format your boot drive [you cannot format the drive you are booted from, for obvious reasons.]
Select the Physical disk in the left column [Apple SSD] & select Erase. Set to GUID/HFS Extended, Journalled.

Improve this answer
3
  • Where does that option appear in Disk Utility?
    – MNM
    Commented Aug 29, 2020 at 17:33
  • Click on the drive and there is a button that says "erase". It's grayed out in the question's picture, but still there.
    – Steve Chambers
    Commented Aug 29, 2020 at 17:48
  • Hi! I actually didn't need my whole HD to downgrade to El Capitan, so I ended up creating a Partition of the HD with format MacOS Extended (Journaled) where I could install El Capitan using Recovery mode. Thanks for the help though!
    – MNM
    Commented Aug 29, 2020 at 20:43
-2

You’re looking to downgrade to an earlier version of macOS. There are several ways of going about it. Be sure to read through the methods carefully before you start executing, as they involve erasing your disk, which is irreversible. https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/downgrade-macos-version/

Improve this answer
1
  • While this link may answer the question, it is better to include the essential parts of the answer here and provide the link for reference. Link-only answers can become invalid if the linked page changes.
    – Tetsujin
    Commented Feb 28, 2022 at 15:11

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .