Nov 24, 2020 In order to run High Sierra on your Mac, you will need at least 8 GB of available disk space. I know this space is a lot but once you did the upgrade to macOS High Sierra, you'll get more free space because of the new Apple File System and HEVC which is a new encoding standard for videos. Running out of space on your hard drive can be a big problem for many MacBook users. You can view how much space certain files are using on your hard drive by selecting About This Mac from the Apple menu. Where you can see different categories, such as Audios, Music, Movies, Apps, Backups and how much of your hard drive space is being consumed.
The new operating system for Mac has been officially released at the September keynote 2017 and the hype is real. With a lot of tweaks and refinements, the new macOS High Sierra promises a user experience deemed for the future of technology, bringing Apple one step closer to VR, AR and gaming capabilities.
But before you get to test the new features and fine-tunings, you'll need to get your hands on High Sierra. While this step is easy since the new update is available for all users, you still need to have a compatible Mac. Which brings us to the subject of this article: how to find out if your Mac can run masOS High Sierra and what are the system requirements for macOs 10.13. Eager to find out? Let's go!
The minimum only ensures that your Mac will start up, operate, and be able to run a basic application or two. It doesn't guarantee your Mac or the applications will run well, or that your graphics, audio mixing, or video production applications will have enough scratch space to function though. If you want to dive into the specifics of how much space each app or file is taking up, click 'Manage' for a full breakdown. How to check your Mac storage via 'Disk Utility' 1.
macOS 10.13 High Sierra Compatibility
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Now, if you've been running macOS 10.12 so far, we've got great news for you! Your Mac should also run macOS 10.13 High Sierra without any issues. Not sure which version of macOS you have? Find out by opening the Apple menu and clicking on About this Mac.
If you discover you are running an older version of macOS, don't despair, as there is still hope.
Fruity loops mac. Here's a complete list of the Mac desktop and notebook devices that support macOS High Sierra:
Late 2009 or newer models:
MacBook | MacBook Retina | iMac |
2010 or newer models:
MacBook Pro | MacBook Air | Mac Mini | Mac Pro® |
In short, any Mac from 2009 or newer has the configuration to support macOS 10.13 High Sierra. This comes to support Apple's credo that any device made more than 7 years ago is too old and obsolete to support the newer capabilities in software development. However, devices between 5 and 7 years old are held in a sort of esteem by Apple who names them 'vintage', thus they still offer support (at least some kind) for them.
System requirements for macOS High Sierra
It's interesting that the macOS High Sierra requirements and technical specifications are the same as for macOS Sierra. That's great news for those who own older Mac models. They will also have access to all amazing innovations a new OS offers. But note that the new Macs with more powerful processors will make more out of macOS High Sierra. The more powerful the hardware, the better the performance will be. So keep your expectations realistic.
Probably you are also interested in macOS High Sierra space requirements. To run High Sierra, you'll need 8 GB of available disk space. But you would be surprised to know that once you've upgraded to macOS High Sierra, you'll have a lot of free space thanks to the new Apple File System and HEVC — a new encoding standard for video. As a result, your files, photos, mail, apps and videos will occupy less space on your Mac.
Please note that there is one more thing that can help you manage the space on your Mac and perfectly prepare it for the upgrade — a cleaning app like CleanMyMac X. With its help, you'll remove all the junk your Mac contains in just two clicks — system junk, app leftovers, large hidden files, etc. An average user finds about 74 GB of potential junk to clear out. Just imagine how much free space you'll have for the good things! Try it out. The tool is free to download.
How much space do you need for macOS High Sierra
To install or upgrade to the new macOS High Sierra, you'll need at least 8 GB of free space. However, be prepared to be amazed. Once you upgrade to the new system, you'll notice a bunch of free space as you begin to use it, due to its improved files system and the videos that take it easier on the space they occupy.
How to Understand What Apps Aren't Compatible with macOS High Sierra
In the move to further merge macOS with iOS, 32-bit computing apps will soon no longer be supported — as all apps for iOS are 64-bit. Sadly, some of them may be your old favorites. To check if any of your apps are 32-bit try this:
- Launch Spotlight by pressing Command + Space bar.
- Start to type in System Information and click Enter when it appears.
- Find the Software section in the System Information.
- Click Applications and wait until they load.
- The right column in the Applications table will show if the app is 64-bit.
As simple as that!
The truth is that the earlier versions of some applications might not be supported by macOS 10.13. But it's difficult to say exactly what apps aren't compatible with macOS High Sierra right now because developers update them on a daily basis. The best option is to visit the app's official site and check this information.
So, if you want to use your favorite apps, make sure to update them to the latest version. Otherwise, they won't run on macOS High Sierra.
We hope our article was useful and you found all information about mac High Sierra compatibility and requirements you wanted to know. Starting September 25th you get access to all the latest improvements of a new version of macOS. To make it shine on your machine, prepare your Mac for the upgrade. Stay tuned!
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Optimized Storage helps you save storage space space by storing your content in iCloud and making it available on demand:
- When storage space is needed, files, photos, movies, email attachments, and other files that you seldom use are stored in iCloud automatically.
- Each file stays right where you last saved it, and downloads when you open it.
- Files that you've used recently remain on your Mac, along with optimized versions of your photos.
If you haven't yet upgraded to macOS Sierra or later, learn about other ways to free up storage space.
Find out how much storage is available on your Mac
Choose Apple menu > About This Mac, then click Storage. Each segment of the bar is an estimate of the storage space used by a category of files. Move your pointer over each segment for more detail.
Click the Manage button to open the Storage Management window, pictured below.
Manage storage on your Mac
The Storage Management window offers recommendations for optimizing your storage. If some recommendations are already turned on, you will see fewer recommendations.
Store in iCloud
Click the Store in iCloud button, then choose from these options:
- Desktop and Documents. Store all files from these two locations in iCloud Drive. When storage space is needed, only the files you recently opened are kept on your Mac, so that you can easily work offline. Files stored only in iCloud show a download icon , which you can double-click to download the original file. Learn more about this feature.
- Photos. Store all original, full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud Photos. When storage space is needed, only space-saving (optimized) versions of photos are kept on your Mac. To download the original photo or video, just open it.
- Messages. Store all messages and attachments in iCloud. When storage space is needed, only the messages and attachments you recently opened are kept on your Mac. Learn more about Messages in iCloud.
Storing files in iCloud uses the storage space in your iCloud storage plan. If you reach or exceed your iCloud storage limit, you can either buy more iCloud storage or make more iCloud storage available. iCloud storage starts at 50GB for $0.99 (USD) a month, and you can purchase additional storage directly from your Apple device. Learn more about prices in your region.
Optimize Storage
Click the Optimize button to save space by automatically removing watched movies and TV shows. When storage space is needed, movies or TV shows that you purchased from Apple and already watched are removed from your Mac. Click the download icon next to a movie or TV show to download it again.
Your Mac will also save space by keeping only recent email attachments on this Mac when storage space is needed. You can manually download any attachments at any time by opening the email or attachment, or saving the attachment to your Mac.
Optimizing storage for movies, TV shows, and email attachments doesn't require iCloud storage space.
Empty Trash Automatically
Empty Trash Automatically permanently deletes files that have been in the Trash for more than 30 days.
Reduce Clutter
Reduce Clutter helps you identify large files and files you might no longer need. Click the Review Files button, then choose any of the file categories in the sidebar, such as Applications, Documents, Music Creation, or Trash.
You can delete the files in some categories directly from this window. Other categories show the total storage space used by the files in each app. You can then open the app and decide whether to delete files from within it.
Learn how to redownload apps, music, movies, TV shows, and books.
Where to find the settings for each feature
The button for each recommendation in the Storage Management window affects one or more settings in other apps. You can also control those settings directly within each app.
- If you're using macOS Catalina or later, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Apple ID, then select iCloud in the sidebar: Store in iCloud turns on the Optimize Mac Storage setting on the right. To turn off iCloud Drive entirely, deselect iCloud Drive.
- If you're using macOS Mojave or earlier, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click iCloud, then click Options next to iCloud Drive. Store in iCloud turns on the Desktop & Documents Folders and Optimize Mac Storage settings.
- In Photos, choose Photos > Preferences, then click iCloud. Store in iCloud selects iCloud Photos and Optimize Mac Storage.
- In Messages, choose Messages > Preferences, then click iMessage. Store in iCloud selects Enable Messages in iCloud.
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- If you're using macOS Catalina or later, open the Apple TV app, choose TV > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Files. Optimize Storage selects 'Automatically delete watched movies and TV shows.'
- In you're using macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes, choose iTunes > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Advanced. Optimize Storage selects 'Automatically delete watched movies and TV shows.'
- In Mail, choose Mail > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Accounts. In the Account Information section on the right, Optimize Storage sets the Download Attachments menu to either Recent or None.
Empty Trash Automatically: From the Finder, choose Finder > Preferences, then click Advanced. Empty Trash Automatically selects 'Remove items from the Trash after 30 days.'
Other ways that macOS helps automatically save space
With macOS Sierra or later, your Mac automatically takes these additional steps to save storage space:
- Detects duplicate downloads in Safari, keeping only the most recent version of the download
- Reminds you to delete used app installers
- Removes old fonts, languages, and dictionaries that aren't being used
- Clears caches, logs, and other unnecessary data when storage space is needed
How to free up storage space manually
Even without using the Optimized Storage features described in this article, you can take other steps to make more storage space available:
- Music, movies, and other media can use a lot of storage space. Learn how to delete music, movies, and TV shows from your device.
- Delete other files that you no longer need by moving them to the Trash, then emptying the Trash. The Downloads folder is good place to look for files that you might no longer need.
- Move files to an external storage device.
- Compress files.
- Delete unneeded email: In the Mail app, choose Mailbox > Erase Junk Mail. If you no longer need the email in your Trash mailbox, choose Mailbox > Erase Deleted Items.
Learn more
- The Storage pane of About This Mac is the best way to determine the amount of storage space available on your Mac. Disk Utility and other apps might show storage categories such as Not Mounted, VM, Recovery, Other Volumes, Free, or Purgeable. Don't rely on these categories to understand how to free up storage space or how much storage space is available for your data.
- When you duplicate a file on an APFS-formatted volume, that file doesn't use additional storage space on the volume. Deleting a duplicate file frees up only the space required by any data you might have added to the duplicate. If you no longer need any copies of the file, you can recover all of the storage space by deleting both the duplicate and the original file.
- If you're using a pro app and Optimize Mac Storage, learn how to make sure that your projects are always on your Mac and able to access their files.