1. Im trying to reinstall El CApitan on my 2008 iMac and i get errors. Namely, 'this item is temporarily unavaiable' and sometimes 'this boot disk is corrupt'. I formatted my usb drive in order to get around the corrupt message. However I dont know where I can get legitimate usb image of El Capitan. I hope you can help. Kind regards, Tim.
2. Reinstall El Capitan on a computer already running it. Reinstall while keeping files, applications, and settings; Reinstall while erasing everything on your computer; Upgrade from previous versions to OS X 10.11 (El Capitan) From the Apple menu, select App Store. When the App Store opens, search for and download El Capitan.

Hi, I bought mac book and need to install os. Every thing is deleted. When I start, I get 4 options on OS X utilities I press Reinstall OS X then I press continue Then Agree Then I select disk where to install OS X The it ask for Apple ID and password When I enter my Apple ID and password which I use on iPhone 6, it says 'this item is temporarily unavailable. I am getting a 'This item is temporarily unavailable, try again later' message, after signing in with my apple ID (which i had from ipads). What i have tried: 1. Change the date through Terminal to 2016. Get help online and log into iCloud on the Mac, then go back and try to install.

On this page:

• Reinstall El Capitan on a computer alreadyrunning it

Upgrade from previous versions to OS X 10.11 (El Capitan)

This Item Is Temporarily Unavailable El Capitan Reinstallation

1. From the Apple menu, select App Store....
2. When the App Store opens, search for and download El Capitan. If you don't already have an Apple ID, you'll need to create one. You can monitor the download process in the 'Purchased' section of the App Store.
3. Once the download is complete, the installer should automatically open.

   If it doesn't, or you don't want to complete the installation at this time, you can come back later and double-click Install OS X El Capitan in your Applications folder.

   Within the installer, click Continue, agree to the license agreement, and then choose the disk where you want to install El Capitan.

   After you begin the installation, your computer may need to restart more than once before finishing, and then you may be asked to enter basic information.

4. From the Apple menu, select App Store..., and then install any available updates.

Reinstall El Capitan on a computer already running it

Reinstall while keeping files, applications, and settings

1. Restart your computer, and immediately hold down command-r until the gray Apple logo appears.
2. If prompted, select your main language and then click the arrow.
3. Click Reinstall OS X, and then Continue. Follow the instructions on the screen, and then choose your hard disk. Click Install, and enter your Apple ID information if prompted.
4. When the installation is complete, select App Store... from the Apple menu, and install any available updates.

Reinstall while erasing everything on your computer

1. Restart your computer, and immediately hold down command-r until the gray Apple logo appears.

2. If you see a screen asking you to select your main language, choose it, and then click the arrow.
3. Click Disk Utility, and then Continue.
4. In Disk Utility:
   1. Click your hard disk in the left column, and then click the Erase tab.
   2. Next to 'Format:', make sure OS X Extended (Journaled) is selected. In the 'Name:' field, give your disk a name. Click Erase.
   3. Once it's completed, quit Disk Utility.
5. Click Reinstall OS X, and then Continue:
   1. Follow the instructions on the screen, and then choose your hard disk.
   2. Click Install. If prompted, enter your Apple ID information.
   3. Once the installation is complete, you'll be asked to enter basic information, and have the option to transfer data from another computer or backup.
6. From the Apple menu, select App Store, and then install any available updates.

Mac 911 is a place you can come with no judgement, even if you managed to erase your Mac’s startup disk and you’re not sure what to do next. It happens! (In the spirit of confession, I managed to delete the core operating system off my first Unix system in 1994, because I thought, “This file takes up too much space!”)

Fortunately, Apple has you covered with macOS Recovery. You may know this tool, introduced way back in Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, as a way to start up your computer to run Disk Utility without having your startup drive mounted, to reinstall macOS, and for a number of other technical purposes.

macOS Recovery occupies a small, invisible partition on your startup drive, and lives quietly there until you need it. But what happens if you erase the entire drive, including this hidden partition?

Macs can reach out over the internet and bootstrap themselves back into operation, as the Mac firmware—software built into a Mac that’s persistent and isn’t dependent on the operating system being installed—knows how to connect to the internet and reach Apple’s servers.

Start up your Mac from a shut down state or restart it, then immediately hold down Command-R. The Mac should recognize that there’s no macOS Recovery partition installed, show a spinning globe. You should then be prompted to connect to a Wi-Fi network, and you enter a password.

At this point, the Mac should start to download the recovery files from the internet and show a status bar. When complete, it should reinstall macOS Recovery and reinstall macOS on the main partition. (If your main macOS partition had system files become damaged or missing, your other files will remain intact, as this reinstallation only installs and replaces system files and apps.)

Command-R should reinstall the latest version of macOS that you had previously installed on this computer. However, you have other keystroke options depending on which version was previously installed.

Apple changed the start keys with macOS Sierra version 10.12.4. If you have ever installed that version on your Mac, no matter what version (or no version) is currently installed, you have these options.

• Command-Option-R: Upgrade to the latest version of macOS that works on your Mac, which may not be the very latest release of macOS for older Macs.
• Command-Shift-Option-R: Reinstall the version of macOS that your Mac shipped with.

With older versions of macOS:

• Command-Option-R: Reinstalls the version of macOS that your Mac shipped with.

This Mac 911 article is in response to a question submitted by Macworld reader Luke.

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This Item Is Temporarily Unavailable El Capitan Reinstall

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