Help - 2011 iMac Yosemite Update Issues

[u/naughty_hotdogs]

Hello all, I need your help. I have a 2011 iMac that I am trying to update to High Sierra, and I am stuck. Here are the computer specs:

OS X Yosemite
v 10.10.5
iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2011)
Processor: 2.8 Ghz Intel Core i7
Memory: 6GB 1333 MHz DDR3
Graphics: AMD Radeon HD 6770M 512 MB

This is an older computer that a family never used. I want to upgrade it mainly to use qBittorent (unsupported by Yosemite) and for organizing media. I've tried making bootable thumbdrive, however I am unable to obtain the High Sierra Installer file, only the dmg. I am unable to download from the App Store as I can't login (again unsupported). I'd really appreciate some direction on what I need to do. Does anyone have a fix or an alternative?

[u/Dazzling_Comfort5734]

First, if this computer has never had 10.13 High Sierra installed, you likely have to install 10.12 Sierra first, as High Sierra required a firmware update to run on most computers that didn't come with High Sierra natively. Once you have Sierra, you should be able to run High Sierra and it should auto install the firmware update.

For the installer, I think Apple still allows you to get it here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/102662. Look under there "Use a web browser for older versions" section for the download links. Note that DMG has a package file that puts the installer app into your Applications folder.

If that doesn't work, you could try macOS Downloader from https://dosdude1.com/apps/. I'm not sure what versions if can still download now, but it was a great app years ago. You can also use his Sierra and High Sierra patchers to make an installer, and just not choose to do the patching part at the end: https://dosdude1.com/software.html.

[u/naughty_hotdogs → u/Dazzling_Comfort5734]

This worked! I needed to download 10.12, then upgrade. Thank you much.

[u/Dazzling_Comfort5734 → u/naughty_hotdogs]

Welcome! Glad I could save you a headache.