I have had some random problems with Big Sur since 11.3 (ex. photo screensaver doesn't work anymore, much slower & the 'beach ball' is showing up all the time, etc.) I assume anything that I have added to my Mac since then will be gone? I have a Time Machine backup but wasn't sure if I could restore individual items and even if I did, I don't remember exactly what I have put on it since then....
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Thinking about downgrading to original Big Sur OS because new update is causing problems....
- Thread starter ToddJ
- Start date
-
- Tags
- 11.3 big sur macos revert time machine
- Sort by reaction score
Before downgrading to an earlier version, consider doing a clean install of Big Sur. That may fix the current problems you are experiencing.
And then I can still restore my data from Time Machine (I know that might be a dumb question on my part lol)
Yes, you should be able to restore your data from TM after doing a clean install. You will need to use Migration Assistant.
Dumb question...what is the best way to do a clean install? I found some websites but wasn't sure what the best way it was to wipe out the hard drive and then restore the OS (hoping to do it without using a USB drive since they are slow and unreliable....) I was going to try with 11.3 just to see if it works better with a clean install (then restore the data from Time Machine) and if it is still slow then I wanted to try to bring back 11.2.3.2(?)
I did a clean wipe of my drive then used a USB installer to do a clean install. I had no issues. Yes the USB method is slower but then time is not critical for me. I just got a nice cup of coffee to enjoy while the install process was happening. I'm now on 11.5 beta and have noticed improved system-wide performance. Everything seems snappier than on previous versions... I am liking what I have been seeing with the recent updates...
I have not used fusion drives in years... the install I did was with a blade M.2 SSD. They are much more reliable and fast.
see computer list in my sig...
be sure to have another, non-TM backup. A CCC clone in a 3-2-1 backup strategy will copy faster than TM, and is less likely to get corrupt.
CCC also validates each backup and can (if user enabled) replace corrupt destination files.
@ToddJ definitely use CCC.
@ToddJ
You did not specify model of the machine you own. If it is a laptop, I strongly suggest to invest in an SSD; you will see performance degradation otherwise (in comparison to those who do have SSD). The other item I would recommend is maximizing RAM.
Installing OS on a fusion drive is in no way different than doing so on an SSD.
If you want to erase your drive completely (you will loose all the data on that drive) and install completely fresh system, boot into recovery, then use disk utility to erase your drive. Once that is completed, use same recovery menu to re-install Mac OS. Please be aware that only the Mac OS (which can run natively on your machine) will be installed with that procedure. If your machine is compatible with Big Sur, than Big Sur (latest official release) will be installed on your "clean" drive. Thereafter, you can use Migration Assistant to move your data back from a backup ( A disclaimer: I never had to use Migration Assistant)
A less destructive way to reinstall OS, involves booting into recovery and simply choosing "re-install Mac OS" from disk recovery menu. Under normal circumstances, operating system will be reinstalled (latest compatible version) without erasing other data on your disk. However, there is never any guarantee of total success, therefore you should always have a recent verified backup.
One other necessary precaution is to check your drive thoroughly with disk utility to assure it is in good working order, and not about to fail.
Please follow the attached link, and do read Apple's official instructions: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204904 (click on the link, or copy and paste link into your browser) It's only one page and very clear.
Hope this may be of same Help
27 inch iMac 13,2 with 1 TB Fusion Drive , 24 GB RAM, 3.4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7, Big Sur 11.5 beta1