If you are a developer, or just curious about how to use the next version of MacOS, you can install beta of the upcoming version on your Mac. But what do you do when you no longer want to run beta?
If the beta crashes with your Mac, you’re annoyed to set aside hours each week when installing the latest update, or you want to keep the latest stable version instead of ruining things by reading the next update.
We’ll follow the simple steps in detail below to move from the macOS Ventura beta to the final version of macOS Monterey (or even to the latest officially released version from the Monterey beta), but they are basically as follows:
- Quit the Apple macOS beta program.
- Install macOS Monterey using one of the detailed methods below.
It’s easy enough, but along the way you may encounter some problems, so read on for a full explanation of the steps.
Apples
How to leave macOS beta program
The first step is to remove yourself from Apple’s macOS beta program as this will prevent beta updates from coming to your Mac.
Here’s what you should do:
- Open System Preferences on your Mac.
- Click on Software Update.
- On the left, below the Cog icon, you’ll see the message: “This Mac is registered in the Apple Beta software program”. If you want to stop receiving beta updates for your Mac, click Details.
- A pop-up will appear to confirm that you want to restore the default update settings. This will indicate that no current updates will be removed but you will no longer receive beta updates. Click Restore Default to confirm this.
As explained on the last screen, this will not remove the beta from your Mac, meaning you will no longer receive beta updates (unless you sign up for beta again).
How to remove macOS beta from a Mac
Now that you have released the beta program you will no longer receive updates – but you will be stuck with the beta version running on your Mac.
There are several ways you can get back out of beta in the latest full version of the Mac operating system The method will depend on which version of macOS you want to back up and whether you have made a backup.
Fortunately, it is easy to downgrade from beta to macOS Monterey or earlier macOS (although it is more difficult to downgrade to anything before High Sierra because Apple has started using a completely new filing system (APFS) from High Sierra). Read: How to install an old MacOS.
If you want to remove the beta and go back to the previous version of macOS, you have a few choices: The easiest way is to install the current version of macOS via software update. However, there are many different ways to get back to the previous version of macOS, which we will discuss below.
How to reinstall MacOS Monterey (or older)
After removing your Mac from the beta program, you will be able to install macOS Monterey on your Mac. Here are some options:
Reinstall Monterey with System Preferences
Follow these steps to install the current version of macOS
- Open System Preferences on your Mac.
- Click on Software Update.
- You should search for Mac updates. When it confirms that an update is available for your Mac, you can click on more information to get a closer look at what the update brings. When you are ready to update your Mac, click update now
- You will see a message that you must restart your Mac to update. Depending on whether the time is right now for your Mac to work half an hour or more, you can choose not to start now or restart.
Here’s more tips for installing macOS on your Mac. Including what to do if you encounter problems installing macOS.
What to do if you do not download your Mac Monterey
If you find that the Monterey software is not available for download via update – perhaps your Mac mistakenly believes that it is already running the software – you can trick your Mac to download the full version of the software and install it using the Mac App Store.
- Open the Mac App Store.
- Click this link for Monterey on the Mac App Store (or this link for Big Tune, or this link to Catalina).
- Click Get and your Mac installer will offer to download.
- The Software Update window will open from System Preferences. Make sure you want to download the software, you will also see a warning that you are downloading an older version of the OS, ignore it.
- Wait for MacOS to download – this may take some time and you may need to restart when your internet connection is down.
- Once it’s downloaded, click Open and wait for it to install. Hope this takes some time …
You may see a message stating that the software is already installed. Just make sure you want to proceed with the download and once you have the installer you will be able to install the final version in beta.
Reinstall macOS Monterey through recovery
It is also possible to download and install an older OS using the built-in recovery mode (this may be the fastest method – if your web connection is good). But it depends on which version you are reverting. Here’s how to do it: How to reinstall MacOS using recovery mode.
Here’s how to reinstall the latest compatible version of MacOS on your Mac using Recovery:
- Restart your Mac.
- Hold down Option + Command + R until the Apple logo appears on an Intel-powered Mac. If you have an M1-Series Mac, you’ll need to press and hold the power button until you see the Loading Startup Options screen where click on Options and then continue. See how to get started on Mac in recovery mode.
- You will see the Reinstall MacOS option. Click on it and the recovery will install the latest version of macOS compatible with your Mac.
Alternatively, if you do not wish to return to Monterey, press Shift + Option + Command + R to reinstall the version of macOS installed on your Mac when purchasing your Mac.
Downgrade the beta through Time Machine
This is another option, but it is important to remember that any changes you make to your backup will not be included since you started running MacOS Beta. All data on your Mac will be deleted during the recovery process and only the last backup data you made will be restored, so be sure to make a separate copy of what you don’t want to lose (or at least copy it) on iCloud).
After unregistering your Mac from the beta program, follow these steps, as above:
- Plug in the hard drive that is located to back up your time machine.
- Restart your Mac.
- Hold down Command + R until the Apple logo appears on an Intel-powered Mac. If you have an M1-Series Mac, you’ll need to press and hold the power button until you see the Loading Startup Options screen where click on Options and then continue. See how to get started on Mac in recovery mode.
- Now that you are in macOS recovery, you will see the option to restore your time machine from backup. Select it and click Continue.
- Select your backup source and click Continue again.
- Choose the right backup – the last one before you install the beta (You can check this by looking at the macOS version column).
We have a guide here to recover from time machine.
Reinstall macOS using a boot drive
Currently it’s easy to download the latest version of Monterey from the Mac App Store – but it’s much more complicated if you want to install an older version of MacOS because Apple has made it difficult to download older versions of MacOS in Catalina. It’s not easy, but fortunately, we have instructions on how to get an older version of the Mac operating system.
Once you get the version of macOS you want, you need to follow these instructions: How to create a boot drive for macOS.
Once your boot drive is ready, follow these instructions to reinstall an older version of macOS.
- Make sure you are connected to the Internet
- Click the Apple logo> Restart.
- Press Command + R until your computer reboots.
- When you enter recovery mode, click on Disk Utility> Continue.
- Select your startup disk.
- Click Erase (Yes, you need to delete your drive before you can continue).
- If your Mac uses APFS (probably if you run something from High Sierra) select APFS from the format list. In rare cases your Mac is using HFS +, for example if you have a fusion drive, you need to choose Mac OS Extended (Journal) from the format list.
- If the scheme is available, select the GUID partition map. Click on Erase.
- Wait for the deletion process to complete before you exit Disk Utility.
- Now, to reinstall macOS … make sure the boot drive is plugged into your Mac.
- Click the Apple logo> Restart.
- Hold the option when restarting your Mac if it is an Intel model. If your Mac is M1-series or later press and hold the power button until you see the options.
- You will see a list of startup disk options, select your bootable drive where you want to run with the version of macOS.
- Click Continue and wait for it to install
Now you can restore your settings and data from the last backup you did before installing Beta.
How to get back to Sierra or earlier
As we mentioned above, if you go back to a version of MacOS from Big Sur, Catalina, Mozave or High Sierra that goes back to their previous version, it’s a little more complicated because Apple has made it harder to get older installers, and (probably related) Apple a Switched to new file system.
Back when Apple stopped trying to make APFS work on Fusion drives while it was testing High Sierra Beta (an early version of the beta that it supported on Fusion Drive), the company issued the following instructions to downgrade from the APFS version to the HFS + version. Since Mojave brings APFS to hard drives and fusion drives, you probably need to keep this in mind when downgrading your Mac if it is so well equipped.
- Back up a time machine.
- Download the Mojave installer from the Mac App Store.
- Create a bootable installer like the one above.
- Press Alt / Alt as soon as you turn on your Mac.
- Choose the macOS Mojave installer as your startup disk.
- Select Disk Utility.
- Select Show all devices.
- Select your drive and click Erase.
- Change the MacOS Extended (Journal) format.
- Rename your drive to something else.
- Exit Disk Utility.
- Choose Reinstall MacOS and select the new drive name as your target.
- Choose to transfer your data from your Time Machine backup once setup assistant (Time Machine is not yet using APFS, so it should work now).
We’ll say this again: before you install the older version of the Mac operating system, make sure you have made a copy of all your important files. Note that you will not be able to recover the backup files of the time machine after running the beta – as it will also restore that version of MacOS – so make a separate backup of these.