Cannot upgrade to macOS Ventura 13.5.2

[Spillou]

Hello !

I try to upgrade mac computers to the latest version of Ventura, 13.5.2. I have Big Sur and Monterey OS and downloaded the installer through the mac App Store but when I want to install from it, it says that macOS Ventura cannot be installed on this computer. I was thinking about the updates deferral, but some computers haven't that profile installed. And when I use the software update, it doesn't install the latest version of the OS.

On one computer, I installed Big Sur => Ventura 13.4.1 from the software update and once it was done, it only proposes 13.5.1. When I tried to install the 13.5.2 installer from Jamf => App Store, it still said that Ventura cannot be installed on that computer. I don't know how to proceed to be able to install the latest version of macOS. Is there a way to check if a deferral is configured ?

Any help is welcome !

[Ashok_A]

@Spillou - If you dont find an Major OS update deferral profile, then could be you are attempting to upgrade to macOS ventura from an device that is not compatible for the upgrade. Please see this guide: https://support.apple.com/en-in/HT213264

Best practise is to have a Smart Computer Group created to list Ventura Compatible devices and proceed with your action. Refer to this community post to have a SCG created. 

https://community.jamf.com/t5/jamf-pro/macos-ventura-hardware-compatibility-regex/m-p/267461/highlig...

As macOS Sonoma is going to be released sooner, it is highly recommended to have one SCG for Sonoma as well: 

https://community.jamf.com/t5/jamf-pro/smart-group-for-macos-14-sonoma-incompatible-devices/td-p/292...

Let me know if that works

[Spillou]

I have this on Mac mini M1 2020 and later. They are compatible for the upgrade. I tried a tail -f /var/log/install.log | grep deferral, but nothing appeared. I may think that there isn't any deferral configured. But still can't find where the problem is.

Note: I made some troubleshooting and it appears that it's the 18MB file from the App Store that has some problems. When I copy the 12GB installer from my Mac, there is no problem. I got that file from the system settings => general => software update and it downloaded the full installer.

[jtrant]

A third-party tool like erase-install is going to be your best bet. Despite the name, it can be used for in-place upgrades.

Create a Smart Group for eligible Macs as above, and use the erase-install script with a Self Service policies to allow your users to upgrade to the required OS.

[Spillou]

@jtrant Thank you, I'll check for that.
Anyway, I found a way to bypass that: I made a .dmg (12 Gb for a .pkg, it fails with Composer) and deployed it on the computers. No more problem. But it's a bit weird that the Ventura installer from App Store does'nt work as expected...

[piotrr]

You are not alone. Sometimes things just don't work. It's like the opposite of the marketing slogan.