How do I associate OS X Lion with my Apple ID with no computer capable of purchasing Lion online?
February 25, 2012 2:04 PM Subscribe
Long story short, I have a Macbook Air that is completely formatted. I'm trying to install Lion from a USB drive and I'm getting an error that my Apple ID is not associated with a copy of Lion. I'd like to buy Lion with my Apple ID, but apparently I need to get to the AppStore to do this. I do not have access to another Mac, but I have the following: Windows with iTunes, an iPhone, an iPad. Is there anyway I can buy OS X Lion on these devices so I can continue my installation?
Best answer: I don't know of any way to do what you're looking to do. Neither the iOS devices nor Windows are going to let you into the Mac App Store.
The "proper" procedure here (that is, what Apple will likely tell you) is probably to reinstall the OS that shipped with the machine from the USB disk that would have accompanied it, and then to purchase and upgrade to Lion.
That said, if you have a USB installer it should work. I'm going to assume that because it didn't work, it's not an official installation disk (I apologize if I'm mistaken). If this is the case, perhaps you can go back to the source from whence you acquired it and get a better one?
Another option would be to try an Apple Store - it looks like there are several near you. If you don't have the original install disk, they may be willing to reinstall the OS that came with the machine for you. You could then proceed with a purchase and install as above. As far as I know, they still sell USB Lion install disks, too, which shouldn't have the AppleID limitation.
posted by unsound at 2:19 PM on February 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
The "proper" procedure here (that is, what Apple will likely tell you) is probably to reinstall the OS that shipped with the machine from the USB disk that would have accompanied it, and then to purchase and upgrade to Lion.
That said, if you have a USB installer it should work. I'm going to assume that because it didn't work, it's not an official installation disk (I apologize if I'm mistaken). If this is the case, perhaps you can go back to the source from whence you acquired it and get a better one?
Another option would be to try an Apple Store - it looks like there are several near you. If you don't have the original install disk, they may be willing to reinstall the OS that came with the machine for you. You could then proceed with a purchase and install as above. As far as I know, they still sell USB Lion install disks, too, which shouldn't have the AppleID limitation.
posted by unsound at 2:19 PM on February 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
The Apple store will sell you a USB key that has a copy of Lion on it which does not have this requirement, or you can go in and they will help you get it tied to your account I suspect.
posted by TimeDoctor at 3:18 PM on February 25, 2012
posted by TimeDoctor at 3:18 PM on February 25, 2012
Where did you get the USB drive? I've installed Lion on a Macbook Air and a Macbook with a USB key made from the App Store Lion. Both worked without ever asking me for an Apple ID before the install. It asked for an ID during initial setup to configure, but didn't prevent it from installing.
posted by narcoleptic at 3:51 PM on February 25, 2012
posted by narcoleptic at 3:51 PM on February 25, 2012
I wouldn't often say this, but you're probably best just using the Pirate Bay and then purchasing afterwards to equal up your morals. Download it on Windows, stick it on a USB key, go.
posted by jaduncan at 4:44 AM on February 26, 2012
posted by jaduncan at 4:44 AM on February 26, 2012
I'm not clear with some specifics. A couple questions:
a) Did you buy a used MBA that was formatted with no recovery disks? If so, ask the person who resold it to you for the DVDs that came with it originally.
b) If not, how did your MBA become formatted? Did you mistakenly format it, or get a new hard disk?
If you purchased this MBA and/or Mac OS X Lion from the App Store, you should be able to run Recovery and recover your Lion installation. When turning on your MBA, press Command+R. The Recovery HD should take a while to load/download, but it will eventually appear, and you should be able to reinstall Lion.
If you didn't purchase Lion from the App Store, you have a few options here:
a) Ask a friend with a MBA and Lion (important: must be the same year and model as yours) if s/he would be willing to re-download Lion and then put it on a USB drive for you. That way, you can just reinstall Lion without having to go through the verification process, as the installer would detect the MBA as being the same model and install accordingly.
b) If your MBA was purchased/made prior to July 2011, it should have came with the Snow Leopard DVD. Insert the DVD and install Snow Leopard, then update to 10.6.8 through Software Update and then upgrade to Lion via the App Store ($29.99). However, if you choose this option, I would wait until this summer, because Mountain Lion will be released then, so purchasing Lion at this point may be a bit of a waste.
c) Follow jaduncan's suggestion and just download a pirated copy of Lion, then make up for it.
I need more information from you at this point - such as the MBA being used or new? What year and model is it? Sorry, but the whole recovery scenario can be a bit complicated without specific information to help me prune it down. Be specific, so I can better help you pursue the best option while saving you time, hassle, and money.
posted by dubious_dude at 4:58 AM on February 26, 2012
a) Did you buy a used MBA that was formatted with no recovery disks? If so, ask the person who resold it to you for the DVDs that came with it originally.
b) If not, how did your MBA become formatted? Did you mistakenly format it, or get a new hard disk?
If you purchased this MBA and/or Mac OS X Lion from the App Store, you should be able to run Recovery and recover your Lion installation. When turning on your MBA, press Command+R. The Recovery HD should take a while to load/download, but it will eventually appear, and you should be able to reinstall Lion.
If you didn't purchase Lion from the App Store, you have a few options here:
a) Ask a friend with a MBA and Lion (important: must be the same year and model as yours) if s/he would be willing to re-download Lion and then put it on a USB drive for you. That way, you can just reinstall Lion without having to go through the verification process, as the installer would detect the MBA as being the same model and install accordingly.
b) If your MBA was purchased/made prior to July 2011, it should have came with the Snow Leopard DVD. Insert the DVD and install Snow Leopard, then update to 10.6.8 through Software Update and then upgrade to Lion via the App Store ($29.99). However, if you choose this option, I would wait until this summer, because Mountain Lion will be released then, so purchasing Lion at this point may be a bit of a waste.
c) Follow jaduncan's suggestion and just download a pirated copy of Lion, then make up for it.
I need more information from you at this point - such as the MBA being used or new? What year and model is it? Sorry, but the whole recovery scenario can be a bit complicated without specific information to help me prune it down. Be specific, so I can better help you pursue the best option while saving you time, hassle, and money.
posted by dubious_dude at 4:58 AM on February 26, 2012
Forgot to add, but it seems like you were trying to reinstall Lion from a USB drive that loads the recovery information for Lion, but does not have the actual installer (as in, the USB will load the Recovery partition for Lion and download Lion, which apparently is where you hit the snag, because the installer saw that your laptop and the specific Apple ID did not tie together somehow). That's why it's best you get a full copy of Lion from either a friend or across the ocean from pirates (ha, ha), and install accordingly. Additional information would help, big time!
posted by dubious_dude at 5:03 AM on February 26, 2012
posted by dubious_dude at 5:03 AM on February 26, 2012
Dubious, the MBA does not have a DVD drive. One must either have an external drive or do an associated ( networked) drive setup. However I believe you are correct stating that he does not have a truly installable version of Lion. Here's a link to creating an installer. NOTE: This will only work on a freshly downloaded Lion, PRIOR to installation. It requires using files that Lion deletes during or after installing.
posted by Gungho at 6:34 AM on February 26, 2012
posted by Gungho at 6:34 AM on February 26, 2012
Oops, thanks for catching my mistake, Gungho. It kind of slipped my early-morning mind that MBAs do not have DVD drives. D'oh! That's what I get for resisting the MBA and instead getting a beautiful, optical-equipped MBP ;)
The link provided is a good one. If you can find a friend with a similar-model MBA and Lion, it's quite easy to mount the Recovery HD, run the Installer to download the true installer (compressed in a DMG file within the installer), copy the DMG image, then cancel the installation so your friend's MBA won't be affected. It'll require some voodoo, but nothing that will impact or harm the friend's MBA.
Here's the link for getting a full Lion installer from a Lion-equipped MBA (if you use a friend's iMac, Pro, or MBP, the installer will fail because the installer will download the specific image fitted for the MBA. Kind of a pain, I know, but MBA's are so ubiquitous these days, so it should be easy to find a friend, a good WiFi connection, and ~a couple hours.
If you're able to find a friend with a MBA with Lion installed (but the MBA was originally for Snow Leopard), you can reference to Gungho's link. You can ask your friend if s/he is willing to use his/her Apple ID on your MBA only for the purposes of "activating" the installation - Apple allows unlimited installations on all household computers using one Apple ID, so there's no way for them to enforce it.
Do keep us updated with what happens.
posted by dubious_dude at 7:08 AM on February 26, 2012
The link provided is a good one. If you can find a friend with a similar-model MBA and Lion, it's quite easy to mount the Recovery HD, run the Installer to download the true installer (compressed in a DMG file within the installer), copy the DMG image, then cancel the installation so your friend's MBA won't be affected. It'll require some voodoo, but nothing that will impact or harm the friend's MBA.
Here's the link for getting a full Lion installer from a Lion-equipped MBA (if you use a friend's iMac, Pro, or MBP, the installer will fail because the installer will download the specific image fitted for the MBA. Kind of a pain, I know, but MBA's are so ubiquitous these days, so it should be easy to find a friend, a good WiFi connection, and ~a couple hours.
If you're able to find a friend with a MBA with Lion installed (but the MBA was originally for Snow Leopard), you can reference to Gungho's link. You can ask your friend if s/he is willing to use his/her Apple ID on your MBA only for the purposes of "activating" the installation - Apple allows unlimited installations on all household computers using one Apple ID, so there's no way for them to enforce it.
Do keep us updated with what happens.
posted by dubious_dude at 7:08 AM on February 26, 2012
Grr, sorry! I'm spazzy this morning - for the link I wanted to provide - here!
posted by dubious_dude at 7:11 AM on February 26, 2012
posted by dubious_dude at 7:11 AM on February 26, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by hooray at 2:10 PM on February 25, 2012