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I'm new to this site, so pardon me if I do or say something wrong.

I have an old MacBook late 2008 unibody that has Linux installed on it (3 different linuxes, don't ask why). I bought this MacBook second hand a while ago. I wanted to install Linux on my Mac but didn't know what I was doing back then, and accidentally deleted the whole MacOS and everything. Currently, I'm tripple booting my "Linuxes" via "rEFInd". I want to install the latest MacOS available for my model but I don't know how to do it. Where would I find a DMG and how would I install it. Could anyone guide me or help me? I don't have any warranty nor do I have an Apple store where I live.

Thanks,

Rocky Cipher
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  • Do you still have the installation disks with the OS? Do you have access to another Mac? Can you boot into Recovery with Cmd-R during Boot? – nohillside Nov 07 '19 at 06:39
  • I don't have any installation disks, nor do I have another Mac unfortunately. I can however boot into recovery, yes. – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 06:46
  • And by installation disks I'm hoping you mean the CD or USB Drives. – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 06:46
  • Can‘t you install the OS again from Recovery? – nohillside Nov 07 '19 at 06:48
  • Sorry, That's the first thing I tried. It says that the OS is not installed or something like that. It's been a while since I've checked but that option doesn't work – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 06:59
  • Could I install Mac with an ISO or DMG flashed to a USB? – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 07:01
  • Don‘t know whether a 2008 Mac can boot from a USB stick. There should be other Q&As on this here somewhere (I‘m on the phone currently so searching is a pain) – nohillside Nov 07 '19 at 07:34
  • Does the DVD drive work? Do you have another machine that can burn a double layer (DL) DVD? Can you get a DL DVD? Do you have another Mac you can use? If so, what model and which version of macOS (OS X) is installed? – David Anderson Nov 07 '19 at 07:35
  • @DavidAnderson , Yes the DVD drive works. I have linux on this same machine so I guess it can write to the DVD. I don't have another mac. Also, all my linuxes that I've installed, have been installed from a USB with the help of the rEFInd boot manager. – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 07:41
  • Have you heard of themacgo.com? I've heard that they have working DMGs. – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 08:03
  • So when you say "Get to boot" that would mean you couldn't get it to boot any OS right? Or just MacOS. If by that you mean "no OS can be booted from USB" then that's definitely incorrect as I've booted several (Even windows) from USB in my Late 2008 Unibody. – Rocky Cipher Nov 07 '19 at 08:14
  • OK, I'm going to recuse myself under the "not enough coffee" clause, with a side order of "too many cooks" & back out of this one. – Tetsujin Nov 07 '19 at 08:24

2 Answers2

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You can obtain the latest Build of El Capitan (10.11.x) directly from Apple via this link.

Screenshot Apple

As for creating a bootable USB installer, I would recommend converting the dmg to an iso via AcetoneISO.

It'll convert the DMG to an ISO for you. After that, create the bootable USB with your new yourmacos.iso using DD.

dd if=/path/to/yourmacos.iso of=/dev/sdX && sync

I don't know if you are familiar with this but dd does byte by byte copying and sync ensures that all data has been written to your USB (so you can savely unplug/eject it afterwards).

xxausstar
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2

The latest version of macOS (OS X) for your Mac is El Capitan (10.11.x). Tetsujin 's answer covers how to get El Captan. However, you will probably first need to get Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6.8) installed. I can no longer find a link where you can purchase a Snow Leopard DVD from Apple. The Snow Leopard license agreement states you can purchase a used copy of the DVD, but you can not legally download an ISO to burn to a DVD. However, once Snow Leopard is installed you probably are going to upgrade to El Capitan. This upgrade can be downloaded and installed at no cost. Apple assumes, if upgrading from Snow Leopard, that Snow Leopard was legally obtained.

So, if you still want to download a Snow Leopard ISO, there is a link to one possible way to do so. After installing Snow Leopard, you will need to download and install the Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1 before installing El Capitan. (Actually, I would download the update to a flash drive before installing Snow Leopard.)

David Anderson
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