How to Install the Latest Version of macOS Big Sur

Are you ready to roll out the latest version of macOS Big Sur to your end-users? If so, this article will guide you through the process of installing the latest version of macOS using the `startosinstall` binary.

Before we dive into the installation process, it's essential to understand what the `startosinstall` binary does. This binary is included in the installer application and is used to trigger an automatic upgrade when upgrading from macOS Sierra or later. In this article, we'll review the tools you need to use to build your workflow, link you to some existing scripts, and perhaps inspire you to build your own.

To get started, let's look at the documentation around the `startosinstall` binary. This gives us a lot of good information to start with. Here are the basic commands:

* `/Applications/Install macOS Big Sur.app/Contents/Resources/startosinstall -agreetolicense -nointeraction -forcequitapps`

+ `-agreetolicense`: Agree to the license you printed with `-license`.

+ `-nointeraction`: Collect a password from stdin without interaction.

+ `-forcequitapps`: On restart, applications are forcefully quit.

+ `-stdinpass`: Collect a password for authorization with an interactive prompt.

You can also use the following options:

* `-user`: An admin user to authorize installation. This is the default if no users are logged in.

* `-preservecontainer`: Preserves other volumes in your APFS container when using `-eraseinstall`.

* `-newvolumename`: The name of the volume to be created with `-eraseinstall`. Optionally specify the name of the new volume with this option.

* `-eraseinstall`: (Requires APFS) Erase all volumes and install to a new one.

* `-installpackage`: The path of a package (built with `productbuild(1)` to install after the OS installation is complete. This option can be specified multiple times.

To bypass the `rebootdelay`, send SIGUSR1 back to `startosinstall`. You can also specify a PID to which to send SIGUSR1 upon completion of the prepare phase using the `-pidtosignal` option.

Finally, you can set the delay before rebooting at the end of preparing with the `-rebootdelay` option. This delay is in seconds and has a maximum of 300 (5 minutes).

If you'd like to learn more, you can view the softwareupdate help page by running the `/usr/sbin/softwareupdate help` command.

By following these steps, you'll be able to successfully install the latest version of macOS Big Sur on your end-users' devices. Happy installing!

Macos big sur latest version