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So I'm new at Mac... I bought a Macbook Pro Late 2011 and the previous owner didn't do a fresh install.

So I booted from the recovery partition, Disk Utility, erased the Macintosh HD and went to "Reinstall OS X Lion". The problem is I thought the recovery HD actually had the OS image, but it seems it doesn't. So it's downloading it but it says 43 hours remaining... (and the last time I tried it went to 50% and then said "couldn't download additional components" and I had to start over...)

I've Googled a lot and I saw it's possible to put Lion on a USB stick. Problem is, this MBP came with Lion pre-installed, so it's not in the Apple Store available for download.

So now I have an empty HD, waiting for Lion to download (45 hours...) and stuck.

What are my options? I don't want to use illegal images...

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  • I did it on a Mac mini (Early 2009) and it took me 20 minutes to download. So, it's not the computer or Apple, it's your Internet connection. Try using a 8Mbp/s minimum!
    – Frederick Marcoux
    Commented Mar 19, 2013 at 3:20
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    If you were able to download it in 20 minutes, you probably had something like a 25 Mbps connection. Even these days, that's a bit of a luxury for the average Internet user, I think.
    – L2G
    Commented Mar 19, 2013 at 4:30
  • OSX Lion file size is 3.5 Gig! So your Download speed is about 120kbps :(. If you do not have the luxury of 1Mbps or more...Turn off all other applications that use internet bandwidth. Inclusive all background applications. Do if overnight when the servers are not so bussy.
    – user44516
    Commented Mar 19, 2013 at 12:05

4 Answers 4

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Your option is to continue letting it download. Apple does give the installer file, through Recovery Mode.

It sounds like you have an exceptionally slow Internet connection. I recommend that you do this somewhere with a better connection.

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  • You'll need something on the order of 1 megabit/s if you want to be able to download it overnight.
    – L2G
    Commented Mar 19, 2013 at 4:33
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    If you are near any Apple Store they are also happy to accommodate. The one near my house has a 40mbps connection, which downloads it in approx. 10 minutes.
    – bispymusic
    Commented Mar 19, 2013 at 13:21
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    I did not think of going to apple store. Thats a good one. The only question is do I have to bring the six pack?
    – user44516
    Commented Mar 20, 2013 at 14:09
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    Absolutely! After all, you're visiting a Genius Bar!
    – bispymusic
    Commented Mar 20, 2013 at 16:05
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OSX Lion file size is 3.5 Gig!

So your Download speed is about 120kbps :(.

If you do not have the luxury of 1Mbps or more!

Turn off all other applications that use internet bandwidth.

Inclusive all background applications.

Do it overnight when the servers are not so bussy.

FYI: with 1 Mbps it will take about 7 hours. I usually go to a friend who has a 100 Mbps (100Base-T) and it takes 4 minutes for the same, well worth the trip and the six pack.

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Lion Disk Maker is an application programmed with AppleScript that you can use with Mac OS X 10.6, 10.7 and OS X 10.8 to burn a DVD or build a bootable drive from Mac OS X Lion or OS X Mountain Lion Installation program. As soon as you launch the application, it tries to find the OS X Install program with Spotlight. Then, it proposes to build a DVD or create a bootable install disk.

More Information:

http://liondiskmaker.com/

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I would suggest to go to Apple store and buy the usb with osx on it for something like $59.99 and you are good to go.

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    why spend hard earned money if one can get it with little patience.
    – Jadav
    Commented Mar 23, 2013 at 21:47

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