Apple has been offering public betas for macOS for a couple of years now as a way for those interested in testing out the upcoming software on their Macs, and providing feedback. If that's you, you'll need to sign up, enroll your Mac, download macOS Sierra, and install it. It's not an overly complicated process, but we're here to walk you through it and, if you need it, a place to get extra help.

Apple occasionally offers updates to iOS, watchOS, tvOS, and macOS as closed developer previews or public betas for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and Mac (sadly, no public beta for the Apple Watch). While the betas contain new features, they also contain pre-release bugs that can prevent the normal use of your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Apple TV, or Mac, and are not intended for everyday use on a primary device. That's why we strongly recommend staying away from developer previews unless you need them for software development, and using the public betas with caution. If you depend on your devices, wait for the final release.

Note: This guide is being updated in real time. If you are seeing old content, refresh the page or come back later.

How to make a back up of your Mac

If you can't wait until the official release of the next Mac operating system this fall, then you should consider getting the public beta of El Capitan right now. Here's how to install it. Apple has announced new OS X 10.11 on WWDC last June naming it OS X El Capitan.This July, as Apple has announced before, OS X El Capitan Public Beta is ready to be downloaded and installed.

1. Apr 6, 2016 - Just over two weeks after posting OS X El Capitan 10.11.4 for public. It's also available as a standalone download via Apple's Dev Center.
2. OS X El Capitan is expected to be released to the public in the fall after the beta testing process is complete. What's new in public beta 5: Safari welcome screen - When opening Safari for the.

Before joining the public beta, you need to make a backup of your Mac. That way, if something goes wrong, of if you're simply not happy and want to revert to OS X El Capitan, you can go right back to where you started.

Even if you back up every night, you'll want to make double, triple sure you're covered. So make a manual backup now. Here's how to do it with Time Machine. Even if you use something different or additional, like SuperDuper!, make sure you manually start a backup now.

1. Click on the Time Machine icon in your Mac Menubar.
2. Click on Backup now.
   

Let the backup finish before proceeding.

Note: If you're not adverse to the Terminal, you can also make a bootable El Capitan installer as way to jumpstart reversion, if needed.

How to register your account for the macOS Sierra public beta

If you've already joined a public beta for OS X in the past, you don't need to register again for macOS Sierra. Simply sign in with the same Apple ID. If you've never joined a public beta before, you'll need to start by signing up with your Apple ID.

1. Go to beta.apple.com in Safari on your Mac.
2. Click on Sign up to get started. (If you've already signed up for a previous public beta, Click on Sign in and skip to 'How to enroll your Mac', below.)
3. Enter you Apple ID email address and password.
4. Click Sign in.
   

Once you're signed up and signed in, it's time to start downloading.

How to enroll your Mac in the macOS Sierra public beta

Downloading the macOS Sierra public beta is done through the Mac App Store but requires a special code (like a promo or gift code). The code is provided for you on the website, but is also automatically entered for you when you click to begin the process.

1. Go to beta.apple.com, if you're not there already.
2. Click on the macOS tab, if it's not highlighted already.
3. Click the Download macOS Sierra public beta access utility button.
4. Open the file from your Downloads window.
5. Double-click the package to run the installer.

When the installer is finished downloading, the Mac App Store will automatically open to the Updates section. Click Update to download and install the public beta software. After the software has been downloaded, your Mac will automatically restart.

If the latest public beta does not appear on the Updates list, restart your Mac. Then, open the Mac App Store and click the Updates tab.

The public beta update can take a long time to finish downloading, depending on the size. You can check the status in the Updates tab of the Mac App Store.

How to install the macOS Sierra public beta

The macOS Sierra installer will automatically open when it's downloaded. If it doesn't, or if you prefer to do it later, you open Install macOS Sierra Public Beta at any time via Spotlight or Launchpad, or from the Application folder in the Finder.

1. Launch Install macOS Sierra Public Beta app, if it's not launched already.
2. Click Continue at the bottom.
   
3. If prompted to make a backup, and you didn't before, click Continue in the dropdown. If you just made a backup, click Cancel.
4. Click Continue at the bottom once your backup completes, or if you skipped it.
5. Click Agree to accept the licensing terms.
6. Click Agree again to confirm.
   
7. Click on the drive you want to install onto (if you have multiple options; most people won't.)
8. Click Install.
9. Enter you administrator password and click OK.
10. Click Restart (if your Mac doesn't restart automatically, or you don't want to wait).
    

Once your Mac reboots, it'll be running macOS Sierra. There's a brief bit of setup you'll need to go through, however, as the system will have changed enough that it'll need your login to complete the update.

Once that's done, you'll be ready to rock macOS Sierra.

What's new, and what if you don't like it?

To help ease your way into everything, make sure you check out our macOS Sierra preview and our comprehensive macOS FAQ for all the details!

And, if you ultimately decide macOS Sierra 10.12.6 isn't for you, you can still revert back to macOS 10.12.5.

Update July 5, 2017: Apple has released macOS Sierra 10.12.6 public beta 6 for members of the Beta Software Program. If you already have the macOS Sierra public beta installed, head to Mac App Store > Updates and download away. If you've been waiting for beta 6 to get started with macOS testing, keep reading and we'll walk you through the set up!

Running beta software

Main

This post may contain affiliate links. See our disclosure policy for more details.

OS X El Capitan (/ɛlˌkæpɪˈtɑːn/el-KAP-i-TAHN) (version 10.11) is the twelfth major release of OS X (now named macOS), Apple Inc.'s desktop and server operating system for Macintosh computers. It is the successor to OS X Yosemite and focuses mainly on performance, stability and security.^[2] Following the Northern California landmark-based naming scheme introduced with OS X Mavericks, El Capitan was named after a rock formation in Yosemite National Park, signifying its goal to be a refined version of Yosemite.^{[citation needed]} El Capitan is the final version to be released under the name OS X; its successor, Sierra, was announced as macOS Sierra. El Capitan received far superior reviews when compared to Yosemite.

Download El Capitan Public Beta Download

The first beta of OS X El Capitan was released to developers shortly following the 2015 WWDC keynote on June 8, 2015.^[3] The first public beta was made available on July 9, 2015.^[4] There were multiple betas released after the keynote. OS X El Capitan was released to end users on September 30, 2015, as a free upgrade through the Mac App Store.^[5]

• 2Features
  • 2.2Applications
• 4Reception

System requirements[edit]

All Macintosh computers that can run Mountain Lion, Mavericks, or Yosemite can run El Capitan,^[6] although not all of its features will work on older computers.^[7] For example, Apple notes that the newly available Metal API is available on 'all Macs since 2012'.^[8]

These computers can run El Capitan, provided they have at least 2GB of RAM:^[9]

• MacBook: Late 2008 or newer
• MacBook Air: Late 2008 or newer
• MacBook Pro: Mid 2007 or newer
• Mac Mini: Early 2009 or newer
• iMac: Mid 2007 or newer
• Mac Pro: Early 2008 or newer
• Xserve: Early 2009

Of these computers, the following models were equipped with 1GB RAM as the standard option on the base model when they were shipped originally. Download torrent tron 1982 bluray 1080p. They can only run OS X El Capitan if they have at least 2GB of RAM.

• iMac: Mid 2007 - Early 2008
• Mac Mini: Early 2009

The following computers support features such as Handoff, Instant Hotspot, AirDrop between Mac computers and iOS devices, as well as the new Metal API:^[10]

• iMac: Late 2012 or newer
• MacBook: Early 2015 or newer
• MacBook Air: Mid 2012 or newer
• MacBook Pro: Mid 2012 or newer
• Mac Mini: Late 2012 or newer
• Mac Pro: Late 2013

The upgrade varies in size depending upon which Apple Mac computer it is being installed on, in most scenarios it will require about 6 GB of disk space.^[11]

Features[edit]

OS X El Capitan includes features to improve the security, performance, design and usability of OS X. Compared to OS X Yosemite, Apple says that opening PDFs is four times faster, app switching and viewing messages in Mail is twice as fast and launching apps is 40% faster.^[12][13] The maximum amount of memory that could be allocated to the graphics processor has been increased from 1024 MB to 1536 MB on Macs with an Intel HD 4000GPU.^[14] OS X El Capitan supports Metal, Apple's graphics API introduced in iOS 8 to speed up performance in games and professional applications.^[15] Apple's typeface San Francisco replaces Helvetica Neue as the system typeface.^[16] OS X El Capitan also adopts LibreSSL in replacement of OpenSSL used in previous versions.^[17]

Window management[edit]

OS X El Capitan introduces new window management features such as creating a full-screen split view by pressing the green button on left upper corner of the window or Control+Cmd+F keyboard shortcut, then snapping any supported other window to that full screen application. This feature is slightly similar to, although less extensive than, the snap-assist feature in Windows 7 (and later) and several Linuxdesktop environments, such as GNOME.^[18] OS X El Capitan improves Mission Control to incorporate this feature across multiple spaces. It also enables users to spot the pointer more easily by enlarging it by shaking the mouse or swiping a finger back and forth on the trackpad.^[19]

Applications[edit]

Messages and Mail[edit]

OS X El Capitan adds multi-touch gestures to applications like Mail and Messages that allow a user to delete or mark emails or conversations by swiping a finger on a multi-touch device, such as a trackpad. OS X also analyzes the contents of individual emails in Mail and uses the gathered information in other applications, such as Calendar. For example, an invitation in Mail can automatically be added as a Calendar event.

Maps[edit]

Apple Maps in El Capitan shows public transit information similar to Maps in iOS 9.^[12] This feature was limited to a handful of cities upon launch: Baltimore, Berlin, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, New York City, Paris, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Shanghai, Toronto and Washington D.C.

El Capitan Update Download

Notes[edit]

The Notes application receives an overhaul, similar to Notes in iOS 9. Both applications have more powerful text-processing capabilities, such as to-do lists (like in the Reminders application), inline webpage previews, photos and videos, digital sketches, map locations and other documents and media types. Notes replaces traditional IMAP-based syncing with iCloud, which offers better end-to-end encryption and faster syncing.^[20]

Safari[edit]

Safari in El Capitan lets users pin tabs for frequently accessed websites to the tab bar, similar to Firefox and Google Chrome. Users are able to quickly identify and mute tabs that play audio without having to search for individual tabs. Safari supports AirPlay video streaming to an Apple TV without the need to broadcast the entire webpage. Safari extensions are now hosted and signed by Apple as part of the updated Apple Developer program and they received native support for content blocking, allowing developers to block website components (such as advertisements) without JavaScript injection.^[21] The app also allows the user to customize the font and background of the Reader mode.^[22]

Spotlight[edit]

Download El Capitan Dmg

Spotlight is improved with more contextual information such as the weather, stocks, news and sports scores. It is also able to process queries in natural language. For example, users can type 'Show me pictures that I took in Yosemite National Park in July 2014' and Spotlight will use that request to bring up the corresponding info.^[23] The app can now be resized and moved across the screen.^[24]

Photos[edit]

Photos introduced editing extensions which allows Photos to use editing tools from other apps.^[25]

System Integrity Protection[edit]

OS X El Capitan has a new security feature called System Integrity Protection (SIP,^[26] sometimes referred to as 'rootless'^[27][28]) that protects certain system processes, files and folders from being modified or tampered with by other processes even when executed by the root user or by a user with root privileges (sudo). Apple says that the root user can be a significant risk factor to the system's security, especially on systems with a single user account on which that user is also the administrator. System Integrity Protection is enabled by default, but can be disabled.^[29][30]

Release history[edit]

Download Yosemite

Reception[edit]

Upon release, OS X El Capitan was met with positive reception from both users and critics, with praise mostly going towards the overall functionality of the new features and improved stability. Dieter Bohn of The Verge awarded the operating system a score of 8.5 out of 10;^[31] while Jason Snell of Macworld was also positive, rating it 4.5 out of 5.^[32]

Issues[edit]

After the 10.11.4 update, many users started reporting that their MacBooks were freezing, requiring a hard reboot.^[33] This issue mostly affects Early 2015 MacBook Pro computers, although many others have reported freezes in other models.^[34] Several users created videos in YouTube which showed the freezes.^[35][36][37] Soon after this, Apple released the 10.11.5 update, which contained stability improvements. Apple later acknowledged these problems, recommending their users to update to the last point release.^[38]

After the December 13, 2016 release of Security Update 2016-003, users reported problems with the WindowServer process becoming unresponsive, causing the GUI to freeze and sometimes necessitating a hard reboot to fix.^[39] In response, on January 17, 2017, Apple released Security Update 2016-003 Supplemental (10.11.6) to fix 'a kernel issue that may cause your Mac to occasionally become unresponsive' and at the same time released an updated version of Security Update 2016-003 which includes the fix released in the supplemental.^[40] Users who have not previously installed Security Update 2016-003 are advised to install the updated version to reach build 15G1217, while users who have already installed the December 13, 2016 Security Update 2016-003 only need to install the supplemental update.

References[edit]

1. ^'OS X version 10.11 El Capitan on Intel-based Mac computers'. The Open Group. Archived from the original on October 15, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
2. ^Bonnie Cha. 'Apple Announces OS X El Capitan, With Focus on Performance, Experience'. Re/code. Archived from the original on June 9, 2015.
3. ^'Apple refines its computer software further with Mac OS X 'El Capitan''. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
4. ^Andrew Cunningham (July 9, 2015). 'The OS X El Capitan public beta arrives: Where to get it and how to install it'. Ars Technica. Archived from the original on May 25, 2017.
5. ^Benjamin Mayo (September 30, 2015). 'Apple releases OS X El Capitan, featuring full-screen Split View, new Notes, revamped Spotlight Search, Safari 9 and more'. 9to5Mac. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015.
6. ^Keizer, Gregg (June 14, 2016). 'Apple strikes older Macs from macOS Sierra list'. Computerworld. Archived from the original on June 15, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
7. ^Cunningham, Andrew (June 8, 2015). 'If your Mac or iThing runs Yosemite or iOS 8, it can run El Capitan and iOS 9'. Ars Technica. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
8. ^Dhiraj, Rav (June 2015). 'What's New in Metal, Part 1'(pdf). Apple Developer. Apple. p. 84. Archived(PDF) from the original on June 17, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
9. ^'Upgrade to OS X El Capitan - Apple Support'. Apple Support. Apple. September 20, 2016. Archived from the original on June 21, 2017.
10. ^Cunningham, Andrew; Hutchinson, Lee (September 30, 2015). 'OS X 10.11 El Capitan: The Ars Technica Review Ars Technica'. Ars Technica. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
11. ^Williams, Rhiannon (September 30, 2015). 'How to download OS X El Capitan'. The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on November 15, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
12. ^ ^ab'Apple - Press Info - Apple Announces OS X El Capitan with Refined Experience & Improved Performance' (Press release). Apple Inc. Archived from the original on June 8, 2015.
13. ^'Apple — OS X El Capitan'. Apple. Apple. June 2015. Archived from the original on June 24, 2015. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
14. ^Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU搭載のMacをOS X 10.11 El CapitanにアップデートするとVRAMの割り当て分が増加。 [Increase in VRAM allocation for Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU in Mac OS X 10.11 El Capitan] (in Japanese). Appleちゃんねる. October 5, 2015. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015.
15. ^'OS X El Capitan puts the pedal to the Metal'. techreport.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015.
16. ^Stinson, Liz (June 9, 2015). 'Why Apple Abandoned the World's Most Beloved Typeface'. Wired. Archived from the original on June 13, 2015. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
17. ^'Apple iOS 9: Security & Privacy Features'. Medium. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved October 24, 2015. OS X 10.11 ships with LibreSSL.
18. ^'Apple Announces OS X El Capitan With Split View, Contextual Spotlight, Updated Apps and More, Launches in Fall'. macrumors.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2015.
19. ^'A tiny update to the cursor in Apple's latest Mac OS solves an annoying problem every computer user can relate to'. businessinsider.com. Archived from the original on June 22, 2015.
20. ^'iOS 9 & OS X 10.11 to bring 'quality' focus, smaller apps, Rootless security, legacy iPhone/iPad support' (Press release). 9to5mac.com. Archived from the original on June 22, 2015.
21. ^Weinstein, Brian; Christensen, Alex (June 2015). 'Safari Extensibility: Content Blocking and Shared Links'(PDF). Apple Developer. Apple. pp. 6–68. Archived(PDF) from the original on June 20, 2015. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
22. ^'El Capitan: Adjust Safari's Reader Settings - The Mac Observer'. The Mac Observer. Archived from the original on April 15, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
23. ^'Apple announces revamped Spotlight search in OS X El Capitan'. 9to5Mac. Archived from the original on June 9, 2015.
24. ^'10 tiny features I love about OS X El Capitan'. iMore. Archived from the original on January 3, 2017. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
25. ^'Make Apple Photos for OS X more powerful with an editing extension'. Macworld. Archived from the original on November 28, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
26. ^Cunningham, Andrew; Hutchinson, Lee (September 29, 2015). 'OS X 10.11 El Capitan: The Ars Technica Review'. Ars Technica. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
27. ^Cunningham, Andrew (June 17, 2015). 'First look: OS X El Capitan brings a little Snow Leopard to Yosemite'. Ars Technica. Archived from the original on June 19, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
28. ^Slivka, Eric (June 12, 2015). 'OS X El Capitan Opens Door to TRIM Support on Third-Party SSDs for Improved Performance'. MacRumors. Archived from the original on June 19, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
29. ^Martel, Pierre-Olivier (June 2015). 'Security and Your Apps'(PDF). Apple Developer. Apple. pp. 8–54. Archived(PDF) from the original on June 19, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
30. ^'What's New in OS X'. Mac Developer Library. Apple. June 8, 2015. At section OS X v10.11. Archived from the original on June 11, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
31. ^Bohn, Dieter (September 29, 2015). 'OS X El Capitan review: Everyone's an expert'. The Verge. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
32. ^Snell, Jason (September 29, 2015). 'OS X El Capitan review: Mac upgrade that's as solid as a rock'. Macworld. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
33. ^Hardwick, Tim. 'Mac Users Reporting Widespread System Freezes With OS X El Capitan 10.11.4 Update'. Archived from the original on May 16, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
34. ^'Macbook Pro 2015 with OSX El Capitan 10.11.4 system wide freeze'. MacRumors Forums. Archived from the original on May 16, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
35. ^WannaKnowMyName (April 21, 2016), 10.11.4 freeze, retrieved May 14, 2016
36. ^Patrick Bright (April 27, 2016), Early 2015 Macbook Pro 10.11.4 Safari/System Freeze, retrieved May 14, 2016
37. ^mey han (April 5, 2016), Macbook air early 2015 screen freeze problem with el capitan, archived from the original on April 8, 2017, retrieved May 14, 2016
38. ^'If MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) becomes unresponsive when a web browser is running - Apple Support'. support.apple.com. Archived from the original on July 6, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
39. ^'Avoid Security Update 2016-003 for OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 - Jamf Nation'. www.jamf.com. Archived from the original on March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
40. ^'Apple fixes El Capitan kernel issue in supplemental security update'. AppleInsider. Archived from the original on March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.

External links[edit]

• Official website at the Wayback Machine (archived September 2, 2016)

Download El Capitan Iso

Download El Capitan Public Beta 2017