Appalachian State University's IT currently follows the model of supporting the latest released version of macOS (following an internal testing period) and one version previous. The currently supported operating system versions are: macOS 10.15 (Catalina) and macOS 11 (Big Sur).

If your device is eligible for an upgrade, you may have received a macOS Upgrade Notification. You can view the macOS Upgrade Notifications article for more information about the notifications or continue with the steps below to upgrade macOS:


Upgrades, while generally very safe, do run minimal risk of data loss. Please ensure your data is backed up to another location before initiating any upgrade. One of our Desktop Support Specialists will be happy to assist with this process. Please visit tech.appstate.edu and submit a request for Computer Support.


Installing Currently Recommended Version of macOS through Self Service:

  1. In your Applications folder, launch the Self Service app.
  2. You will be greeted with the Featured page that shows new or recommended apps. Navigate to the Categories on the left and select ASU-Operating Systems.
  3. Select the Upgrade to Big Sur (macOS 11) item.
  4. Please make sure to read the popup before proceeding, as it warns against starting the upgrade during critical work. Once you have finished reading, click the Upgrade button to begin upgrading your Mac.
  5. Self Service will notify you that the upgrade has successfully started, and will ask you to log out from your Mac.

### Warning: When you select upgrade, your Mac will download necessary components and will need to restart to perform the installation. **Before proceeding, save your current documents, quit any open applications, and copy all files and user data to another computer or backup drive.** If this is a laptop, please connect to a charger at this time. This process could take an hour or more to complete and your Mac will be unavailable during this time.

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