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Abstract

ent for the upgrade quite like a sudden failure due to filesystem or disk corruption. I’ve been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt. I’ve seen it happen many times over the years on both Mac and Windows systems.</p><p id="449e">It’s always a good idea to run a quick filesystem check <i>first</i>, just to make sure there are no major issues that need to be addressed.</p><figure id="5a29"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*CiRiIf1pMwobC6kqC-B4HQ.png"><figcaption>Image provided by the author</figcaption></figure><h1 id="ced0">Uninstall apps you don’t use</h1><p id="134b">If you’re like me, it’s easy to accumulate an abundance of applications you don’t use — or don’t use anymore.</p><p id="113f">Before you upgrade to a new OS, it’s a good idea to go through your applications and clean up any you don’t use. While it’s unlikely that installed apps will cause problems with the upgrade, it’s never a bad idea to remove programs that you’re no longer using.</p><p id="0222">I love the app called AppCleaner for this. It’s a freebie that will help you to find all the little bits that would typically be left over from uninstalling apps the “normal” way. There are lots of apps like it, and you could use any of the many out there, but this one has done a good job for me.</p><p id="3b53">If you’d like, there are other paid apps as well that include app uninstalling capabilities, but we won’t get into that here.</p><h1 id="071d">Check for updates for all the apps you’re keeping</h1><p id="80f5">Remember that immediately after you upgrade to the new OS, some of your apps may not work as expected and may not open at all without updates from their respective developers. Some may never receive an update to make them compatible, and many will have already been updated by their developers to ensure compatibility with the new system.</p><p id="4c37">If your apps were installed via the App Store, you can easily check for updates by clicking “Updates” on the lefthand side of the App Store window on your Mac.</p><p id="3561">For apps that were downloaded from other sources, you’ll need to consult their various developers or app stores. Some apps have a built in “check for updates” feature. Others, like those in the Adobe suite, receive updates through a third-party application. But for some, you’ll need to go to the developer’s website to download an updated version.</p><p id="2040">If you skip this step, your apps may still work just fine after installing macOS Ventura, but some may not — or they may not work as they’re supposed to.</p><h1 id="c2c5">Make sure you have enough disk space</h1><p id="baeb">In order for the update to download and install, you’ll need a sizable chunk of space on your local disk. Before trying to update, make sure to have at least 25GB of free space available. The installer for macOS Ventura is about 12GB (at last check), so it’s good to have at least twice that available for the installation.</p><p id="3230">Depending on the size of your Mac’s startup disk, you may need to uninstall some apps or offload some data to ensure you have enough room.</p><p id="d4ec">On macOS Monterey, you can see how much space you have available through the Apple menu > About This Mac > Storage.</p><figure id="5654"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*1OJsVMdYL3AdA40_reeeqw.png"><figcaption>Image provided by the author.</figcaption></figure><p id="44a2">If you click on the “Manage…” button, you’ll be presented with a screen from which you can see what’s taking up your space. It’s a good idea to check this out periodically and get rid of junk you don’t need.</p><figure id="4dc4"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*QBjgQth5K9T5ahQBMed7pA.png"><figcaption>Image provided by the author.</figcaption></figure><p id="b42e">If you’d like more detail, there are plenty of other apps out there, like Disk Inventory X, that can give you a full breakdown of what’s taking up your space so you can make an informed decision about what to do with your data. You may even find file

Options

s you didn’t know you had that were taking up space. Been there. Done that.</p><h1 id="1dbe">Charge your battery (if you have one)</h1><p id="bcc2">While macOS won’t let you install an update without being plugged into a power source, it’s not a bad idea to make sure your battery has some charge too before you start the installation.</p><p id="841f">In the unlikely event that you were to lose power — even for a moment — you don’t want your machine to shut off in the middle of an update, potentially leaving you with an unbootable computer.</p><p id="57ef">This doesn’t apply to desktop Macs, of course. For users of desktop computers doing important work, an backup battery is never a bad idea, even though they can be ugly and bulky.</p><h1 id="379f">Familiarize yourself with the new features and changes</h1><p id="6875">Every macOS version comes with new features and improvements. Ventura is no exception. Before you install the update, take a few minutes and read about what’s new and where to find things.</p><p id="9c8e">For example, System Preferences (now called System Settings in Ventura) looks a bit different than what you have come to know and love in recent versions of macOS.</p><figure id="93e1"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*OEigOUe-URU0zcTQlqgDTA.png"><figcaption>System Preferences in macOS Monterey 12.6. Image provided by the author.</figcaption></figure><figure id="9858"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*C85RBKaTeXpQUqbT8UCvGg.png"><figcaption>System Settings in macOS Ventura beta 8. Image provided by the author.</figcaption></figure><p id="36b6">This new settings interface is nice, and I think it will make a lot more sense for those who are less tech-savvy. But if you’re been used to the older “System Preferences” layout, it might take a moment to get oriented.</p><p id="a581">It would be good to learn about these and other changes ahead of time so you aren’t caught off guard when the time comes to upgrade.</p><h1 id="f879">Consider waiting a little bit to upgrade</h1><p id="dc06">As an IT guy and tech enthusiast, I’ve enjoyed using all sorts of new operating systems. And if there’s one constant across the board for all types of devices — Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, etc — it’s that there are <i>going</i> to be bugs. You can count on it. You can set your watch to it.</p><p id="cc42">When Windows 11 first launched, I chose not to upgrade my Dell to it full time because I knew from experience that there would be bugs. And there were. It took Microsoft some time to iron out a few glitches, and even now, they’re still working on some things.</p><p id="9037">As of right now, macOS Ventura has gone through eight public betas and lots of internal testing, but even the best testing team can’t catch every bug in a new operating system. Some issues won’t become apparent until the OS is rolled out to the masses, and people report that something isn’t working as it should.</p><p id="a704">As a general rule of thumb, I think it’s best to wait a week or so at least before upgrading a production machine to a new operating system. If you have a spare Mac laying around or you don’t mind restoring from a backup should something not work right, then there’s probably no harm in upgrading right away.</p><p id="bef5">But for me? I plan to wait just a bit.</p><p id="47f2">But secondly, some developers may need more time to update their software to work with macOS Ventura, and they may not have their updates ready on launch day. Unless you’ve checked that all the programs you need to use will definitely work just fine with macOS Ventura, it might be good to wait a few days or weeks before upgrading your main computer.</p><h1 id="ccb0">Looking forward to macOS 13</h1><p id="a7bc">Apple’s next version of macOS is sure to bring plenty of new features and toys. I’m personally excited for the ability to use my iPhone as a webcam (finally) and for some of the more security-focused changes.</p><p id="0640">According to Apple, we should see Ventura this October.</p></article></body>

How to Prepare Your Mac for macOS 13 Ventura

Apple’s latest OS is available to download now

Apple’s latest version of macOS is set for release this October, and I’m excited. I’m looking forward to many of the great new features this release is set to bring us. I’ve been trying out the beta builds of Ventura on one of my external Thunderbolt drives, and I have to say… it’s nice. Apple has made some nice changes.

But before you make the jump to Ventura, there are a few things you should do to make sure your system is ready.

Make sure your Mac can run Ventura

As with previous versions of macOS, not every Mac can run Apple’s latest OS officially. The devices that can run macOS 13 Ventura officially include:

iMac, 2017 and later
iMac Pro, 2017
MacBook Air 2018 and later
MacBook Pro, 2017 and later
Mac Pro, 2019 and later
Mac Studio, 2022
Mac Mini, 2018 and later
MacBook, 2017

Macs made in 2016 or earlier are, sadly, out of luck for this release without the help of a third party patching tool. The good news is if you can’t run Ventura, Monterey will still be supported for a while longer.

Make sure you have a recent Time Machine backup

Time Machine is one of the best features of macOS. I love that I can plug in my external SSD and let the system back up automatically, saving my files and settings without me even having to think about it. That’s convenient, and awesome.

Doctor Who fans may appreciate the name of my backup SSD. Image provided by the author.

Before you make any major change to your system — like upgrading to Ventura — make sure you have a good backup of your system. I cannot stress enough how important this is. This principle applies to you too, Windows users. It’s always better to take a few minutes to make sure you have a reliable backup than to realize too late that you don’t have one when you need it.

And trust me — I’ve been there a lot over the years. It’s a terrible feeling.

While backing up with Time Machine won’t, itself, affect how well your upgrade to Ventura goes, it will give you something to fall back on if the upgrade fails for any reason.

PSA: Please Back Up Your Mac Before Installing macOS 13 Ventura

It’s always better to have a backup. Always.

medium.com

Run first aid on your startup disk with Disk Utility

Apple’s Disk Utility is a nice tool with which you can run maintenance on the disk built into your Mac as well as on external disks. You can find this app in your Utilities folder.

The First Aid function checks a drive and filesystem for any issues and attempts to fix them. It’s not a bad idea to do this occasionally, but it can be especially important if you’re about to do a major upgrade of your OS.

Nothing will take the wind out of the sails of your excitement for the upgrade quite like a sudden failure due to filesystem or disk corruption. I’ve been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt. I’ve seen it happen many times over the years on both Mac and Windows systems.

It’s always a good idea to run a quick filesystem check first, just to make sure there are no major issues that need to be addressed.

Uninstall apps you don’t use

If you’re like me, it’s easy to accumulate an abundance of applications you don’t use — or don’t use anymore.

Before you upgrade to a new OS, it’s a good idea to go through your applications and clean up any you don’t use. While it’s unlikely that installed apps will cause problems with the upgrade, it’s never a bad idea to remove programs that you’re no longer using.

I love the app called AppCleaner for this. It’s a freebie that will help you to find all the little bits that would typically be left over from uninstalling apps the “normal” way. There are lots of apps like it, and you could use any of the many out there, but this one has done a good job for me.

If you’d like, there are other paid apps as well that include app uninstalling capabilities, but we won’t get into that here.

Check for updates for all the apps you’re keeping

Remember that immediately after you upgrade to the new OS, some of your apps may not work as expected and may not open at all without updates from their respective developers. Some may never receive an update to make them compatible, and many will have already been updated by their developers to ensure compatibility with the new system.

If your apps were installed via the App Store, you can easily check for updates by clicking “Updates” on the lefthand side of the App Store window on your Mac.

For apps that were downloaded from other sources, you’ll need to consult their various developers or app stores. Some apps have a built in “check for updates” feature. Others, like those in the Adobe suite, receive updates through a third-party application. But for some, you’ll need to go to the developer’s website to download an updated version.

If you skip this step, your apps may still work just fine after installing macOS Ventura, but some may not — or they may not work as they’re supposed to.

Make sure you have enough disk space

In order for the update to download and install, you’ll need a sizable chunk of space on your local disk. Before trying to update, make sure to have at least 25GB of free space available. The installer for macOS Ventura is about 12GB (at last check), so it’s good to have at least twice that available for the installation.

Depending on the size of your Mac’s startup disk, you may need to uninstall some apps or offload some data to ensure you have enough room.

On macOS Monterey, you can see how much space you have available through the Apple menu > About This Mac > Storage.

If you click on the “Manage…” button, you’ll be presented with a screen from which you can see what’s taking up your space. It’s a good idea to check this out periodically and get rid of junk you don’t need.

If you’d like more detail, there are plenty of other apps out there, like Disk Inventory X, that can give you a full breakdown of what’s taking up your space so you can make an informed decision about what to do with your data. You may even find files you didn’t know you had that were taking up space. Been there. Done that.

Charge your battery (if you have one)

While macOS won’t let you install an update without being plugged into a power source, it’s not a bad idea to make sure your battery has some charge too before you start the installation.

In the unlikely event that you were to lose power — even for a moment — you don’t want your machine to shut off in the middle of an update, potentially leaving you with an unbootable computer.

This doesn’t apply to desktop Macs, of course. For users of desktop computers doing important work, an backup battery is never a bad idea, even though they can be ugly and bulky.

Familiarize yourself with the new features and changes

Every macOS version comes with new features and improvements. Ventura is no exception. Before you install the update, take a few minutes and read about what’s new and where to find things.

For example, System Preferences (now called System Settings in Ventura) looks a bit different than what you have come to know and love in recent versions of macOS.

System Preferences in macOS Monterey 12.6. Image provided by the author.

System Settings in macOS Ventura beta 8. Image provided by the author.

This new settings interface is nice, and I think it will make a lot more sense for those who are less tech-savvy. But if you’re been used to the older “System Preferences” layout, it might take a moment to get oriented.

It would be good to learn about these and other changes ahead of time so you aren’t caught off guard when the time comes to upgrade.

Consider waiting a little bit to upgrade

As an IT guy and tech enthusiast, I’ve enjoyed using all sorts of new operating systems. And if there’s one constant across the board for all types of devices — Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, etc — it’s that there are going to be bugs. You can count on it. You can set your watch to it.

When Windows 11 first launched, I chose not to upgrade my Dell to it full time because I knew from experience that there would be bugs. And there were. It took Microsoft some time to iron out a few glitches, and even now, they’re still working on some things.

As of right now, macOS Ventura has gone through eight public betas and lots of internal testing, but even the best testing team can’t catch every bug in a new operating system. Some issues won’t become apparent until the OS is rolled out to the masses, and people report that something isn’t working as it should.

As a general rule of thumb, I think it’s best to wait a week or so at least before upgrading a production machine to a new operating system. If you have a spare Mac laying around or you don’t mind restoring from a backup should something not work right, then there’s probably no harm in upgrading right away.

But for me? I plan to wait just a bit.

But secondly, some developers may need more time to update their software to work with macOS Ventura, and they may not have their updates ready on launch day. Unless you’ve checked that all the programs you need to use will definitely work just fine with macOS Ventura, it might be good to wait a few days or weeks before upgrading your main computer.

Looking forward to macOS 13

Apple’s next version of macOS is sure to bring plenty of new features and toys. I’m personally excited for the ability to use my iPhone as a webcam (finally) and for some of the more security-focused changes.

According to Apple, we should see Ventura this October.