Do not proceed if you don’t wish to permanently erase that Mac, and do not proceed without a backup of your stuff. You will also need to be comfortable erasing everything on the old Mac because you need to erase MacOS and all data in order to install Chrome OS Flex on the computer. To try this out yourself, you’ll need the Chrome browser. How to Install Chrome OS Flex on Older Mac If converting an older Mac into a Chromebook appeals to you, you will need a USB flash drive that is 8GB or larger (this becomes the installer drive for Chrome OS), the Chrome web browser (this is where the initial config tool and installer is made), and the Mac must have at least 16GB of storage, and be from the 2010 model year or later.

Google Chrome OS Flex runs on any Mac from 2010 or newer, so you can get Chrome OS running on hardware that has long stopped being supported by Apple. And perhaps you’ll be able to breathe new life into that older Mac that’s otherwise collecting dust?Ī downside however, is that by installing Chrome OS Flex onto the older Mac, the Mac will no longer have MacOS on the computer, since Chrome OS becomes the operating system on that Mac. You also get to tinker around with a different operating system, based on the Chrome web browser. One potential advantage to this is the Mac gets an operating system that still receives security updates, whereas some old Mac models that are otherwise perfectly great running machines may no longer receive MacOS security updates, and that matters to some users.

Install google chrome on mac