How do I install an instance of Yosemite on VMWare Fusion 7?

[trixiesirish]

Just got a Mac Mini with Yosemite preinstalled. I want to install an instance of Yosemite on my VM running Fusion 7. How do I do that? Do I download Yosemite from the App store? Will doing that create any problems?

I'm learning terminal, and I feel much better about futzing with it in a sandbox.

[WoodyZ]

Have a look at: Installation Instructions for VMware Fusion 6.0.2 and Later

Works with OS X 10.10.x on VMware Fusion 7.

[trixiesirish]

Yeah, that link is not working. 🙂

[WoodyZ]

trixiesirish wrote: Yeah, that link is not working. 🙂

I just clicked on it and it's working just fine!

Have a look at: Guest Operating System Installation Guide

Scroll down to "Mac OS X Server" and click on "OS X 10.9"

As I previously said.. "Works with OS X 10.10.x on VMware Fusion 7.".

BTW As a general rule I test all links I post both before and after posting!

[trixiesirish]

Well, now that I've clicked the link for the fifth or sixth time, it's now working. 😉 Could be out of your control. Outages happen. Thank you.

[vmxmr · Accepted solution]

Just got a Mac Mini with Yosemite preinstalled. I want to install an instance of Yosemite on my VM running Fusion 7. How do I do that? Do I download Yosemite from the App store? Will doing that create any problems?

I'm learning terminal, and I feel much better about futzing with it in a sandbox.

I think the people above are missing the point. Trixie (?) got a Mac with Yosemite already installed, but wants a second copy in a virtual machine so Trixie can practice terminal commands without fear of messing up her production machine. The question is how to get a copy of Yosemite so that Trixie can install it in a virtual machine.

None of my Macs came with Yosemite, so I was easily able to obtain it from the App Store. It is free from Apple. Even though your Mac came with Yosemite, I assume that you can get your own copy of the Installer from the App Store. Based on that assumption, here is what I suggest:

OBTAINING YOSEMITE

* First, try to get a copy of Yosemite from the App Store yourself, even though you are already running Yosemite. In the App Store, search for "os x yosemite". The icon is a white circle with a large X in "Utilities". Go ahead and "Get" it or "Buy" it or "Download" it. It will download to your Applications folder. The file is called "Install OS X Yosemite.app". (NOTE: You may not see the ".app" part of the filename.)

* If that doesn't work, ask a friend with an older Mac to get a copy of Yosemite with their Mavericks or older Mac. Remind them NOT to launch "Install OS X Yosemite.app" in their Applications folder! They should copy it out of their Applications folder and put it on a flash drive or DVD ROM or hard drive for you. (IMPORTANT: Even if your friend wants to install Yosemite, they must make a separate copy of the installer first. As soon as it is installed, Yosemite deletes its own installer automatically from the Applications folder only, but not copies that were made elsewhere.

INSTALLING YOSEMITE IN A VMware VIRTUAL MACHINE

* Move the "Install OS X Yosemite.app" file from Applications to another folder. If it is on a flash drive, you can leave it there.

* Launch VMware Fusion.

* Create a New virtual machine (File menu->New, Virtual Machine Library "Add->New", or command-N).

* Choose Install from disc or image. Click Continue.

* Click Use another disc or disc image..., then navigate to the "Install OS X Yosemite.app" file. Click the Open button in the dialog box, then click Continue.

(Note: There is no need to open the "Package" to find the "installESD.dmg" file. You simply select the "Install OS X Yosemite.app" file and VMware Fusion does the rest for you.)

* If you wish to Customize Settings (change RAM, disk space, etc.), do it now. Otherwise click Finish. The OS X Yosemite installer will boot and run. It will say "Creating installation medium... This may take a few minutes." On my computer, it took more than "a few" minutes. 🙂

* Choose the appropriate language (probably English, if you are reading this!). Next, click "Install OS X", then Continue.

* Continue installing OS X as usual.

* Remember to update OS X (Software Update) and also install VMware Tools.

[trixiesirish]

Downloading. I wasn't sure if downloading from the App Store would create a problem with what I already have. I have all my files set so I can see the extension. I even have my hidden files to view. I can use Coda 2.5 to futz with them, if I need to, which I don't in this case.

Thank you for instructions on getting it into my Yosemite VM. Assuming it ever finishes downloading, I'll take care of it this week.

[trixiesirish]

Well, I finally had a chance to do this, vmxmr, and despite an initial hiccup (the instructions could be slightly clearer), I now have OSX installed on my VM. Thank you so much for your help! Now I can go break things on terminal safely.:smileylaugh:

[vmxmr]

trixiesirish

Well, I finally had a chance to do this, vmxmr, and despite an initial hiccup (the instructions could be slightly clearer), I now have OSX installed on my VM. Thank you so much for your help! Now I can go break things on terminal safely.

You're welcome. I am glad it worked out for you. I tried to be as clear as possible, so sorry. Anyway, it would be helpful to me (and others) would appreciate it if you could add whatever is missing to make it clearer. That way I can learn from my mistakes and others will understand what to do better. Thank you!

[trixiesirish]

No! It was instructions from the KB, which, of course, I can't find the specific article I remember seeing. Anyway, I was just a little flummoxed at the installation asking me which HD I wanted to put it into, and I see my Mac Hard Drive image. So I was thinking, "What?" The second time I tried, I figured, "What the heck," and I clicked it, remembering that this was installing in a virtual machine, and not my main computer.

But thrilled it worked. 🙂 I hate being afraid of CLI, but I hate bricking my computer more. So this lets me make mistakes. I can always create another VM of OS X.

When I build websites, I use a program called DesktopServer that lets me do the same kind of thing locally. Everything is encapsulated, including the database, so if I screw something up in a huge way, I just remove the instance and create a new one.

[vmxmr]

Remember that you can use VMware's "Snapshot" feature to take an image of your virtual machine before you run a command. If you don't like what happened, simply revert to the previous snapshot. Have fun with the command line!

[Eldaras]

Hi trixie,

I'm not sure if this will work with Fusion 7, as I have Fusion Pro 7.1 on a MacBook Pro (but I assume that they should be pretty similar in this aspect). I recently created a yosemite vm by

* go to file -> new

* On the new screen, click on the button that says "More options"

* select "Install OSX from Recovery Partition"

* and follow the normal process to create a VM

When you boot the VM, the OSX recovery process will download yosemite automatically (will take a while, as it's a few GB)... and by the end you'll have brand new Yosemite install. Since the download takes quite long (at least on my broadband), I suggest you to create a snapshot as soon as the installation completes, so you can always go back to that if required (or just clone the VM).