Using a 10-year old computer now is like driving a 20-year-old car

I have both.

Rafał Rybnik
An Idea (by Ingenious Piece)

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Probably a comparison to an old BMW car would be more appropriate. But the author has a Mazda 😅. (pic. by the author from iMac & Mazda)

Recently, I came into possession of an iMac 12.1 (21.5-inch, Mid 2011). I need a second computer to function as a home server. A used, pretty powerful (4-core, 18 GB RAM) all-in-one computer. A built-in display is a nice bonus for fast settings adjustments without using SSH or VNC. After replacing the HDD with an SSD, it was time to install the system. What is the latest version of Mac OS X that supports this model?

Eh, High Sierra.

Great system.

But old.

Still great.

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Hackintosh on an iMac?

High Sierra is slightly outdated and doesn’t support some newer software (Office 360, Homebrew displays warnings). After checking if there is some Hackintosh-ish patch, I’ve noticed this is possible to install even Big Sur! However, it is highly unrecommended, if you have AMD Radeon graphic card, because of lack of acceleration support. It means that Radeon turns the newer Mac OS X into a slideshow.

Guess what card is in my iMac? Bingo…

So I will give High Sierra a shot.

Why most of you won’t need a…

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Rafał Rybnik
An Idea (by Ingenious Piece)

I write to stock up my business toolbox. Marketing, politics, AI.