How to create sonoma bootable disk on Windows PC or Mac?

Hi,

why USB? Shut down the Mac (hard: hold power button for 15 sec). If Mac is shut down. Press and hold the powerbutton until you see the "Options" button. Here you reinstall macOS, without USB. What is depreacated, by the way on M-Macs.

Best Regards,

Alx

Ultradmg, one of the best apps for creating macOS bootable USB on Windows PC and Mac! It can easily create Sonoma boot disk by burning the dmg file to USB.

https://www.microonn.com/create-macos-bootable-usb-drive

Using the Terminal app that comes with macOS, you can write the macOS Sonoma installer to a USB flash drive to create a Sonoma bootable disk for installing or system recovery by typing in Apple's official createinstallmedia command, which is completely free, requires no additional software, and has a simple Terminal interface for those who are familiar with the command line. It takes about 5 - 10 minutes to create and supports all macOS versions.

Using the command line to make Mac Sonoma bootable disk with the createinstallmedia command has many advantages, but it is not intuitive for newcomers to the command line, requires a 12-14GB installer to be downloaded and a stable internet connection, and requires a backup of the USB data as it will be wiped out during the operation. The USB data is erased during operation, so you need to back up your data in advance.

While creating a Sonoma boot disk on PC or Mac can set you up for some cool upgrades. Using Terminal can be a bit daunting if you don’t have much experience with it. One typo, and you might find yourself in a world of trouble. God forbid you accidentally format the wrong drive or something! 

If you're working off an external drive, there’s always a risk of losing data especially if you’re not careful during the formatting process. It’s crucial to back up what you have before diving into this, trust me. Sometimes, hardware just doesn’t get along. Even if you create Sonoma boot disk on PC or Mac smoothly, there’s still no guarantee that the installation will work without a hitch on certain machines. 

If you’re not used to these kinds of tasks, the whole process can be frustrating and annoying. You might end up feeling like you’re doing the Mac version of rocket science. Even if you follow all the steps correctly, there’s a chance you might run into errors that can leave you scratching your head. Those error messages can sometimes sound like they’re written in a different language!

Give a try on DiskMaaker X a completely free macOS bootable USB creation app. It writes the macOS Sonoma installer to USB via a graphical interface to create Sonoma bootable USB disk for those who prefer a mature tool that is open source, stable and easy to use.

Insert a USB flash drive with at least 16GB capacity and open Disk Utility. In the Disk Utility interface, locate and select the USB flash drive, and tap the Erase option.

In the pop-up setting window, you can set the name by yourself; select Mac OS Extended as the format; select GUID Partition Map as the scheme. 

After finishing the settings, tap Wipe and exit Disk Utility when the operation is finished.

Start the software, tap 'Create a Boot Disk', select 'macOS Sonoma', select USB flash disk, tap 'Choose this disk', confirm the prompt to erase USB, and enter the administrator password. 

Wait for about 10-15 minutes, and a success message will be displayed after macOS Sonoma bootable disk is completed. Rename the USB flash drive to Install macOS Sonoma, right-click on the USB in Finder, and securely eject the USB drive.

Mist is a completely free and open source macOS application to create macOS bootable USB including Sonoma. It downloads the macOS Sonoma installer and creates a bootable USB through a graphical interface without command line operation, which is suitable for novice users and users who want to avoid command line operation, and simplifies the whole process by providing one-stop support for making Mac Sonoma bootable in straightforward way.

Step 1: Download and Install Mist

Please download this free app from Github and install it on your Mac.

Step 2. Prepare the USB flash drive

Insert a USB flash drive with a capacity of at least 16GB and open Disk Utility. In the Disk Utility interface, select the USB flash drive and tap the Erase option.

In the pop-up setting window, you can fill in the name as you like; select Mac OS Extended (Log) as the format; select GUID Partition Map as the scheme. When the settings are finished, click Wipe and exit Disk Utility when the operation is finished.

Step 3. Download macOS Sonoma installer

In the Mist interface, tap Download tab. Select macOS Sonoma, tap Download, and wait for the download to complete 

Step 4. Create Bootable USB

In the Mist interface, switch to the Create Bootable Installer tab.Select the macOS Sonoma installer you just downloaded, select the USB flash drive in the drop-down menu, tap Create, confirm the prompt to erase the USB, and wait for about 10-15 minutes for Mist to finish creating it automatically.

Step 5. Verify and Eject USB

Once completed, the USB flash drive is renamed to Install macOS Sonoma. Right-click Eject USB in Finder to safely remove it.

Creating Sonoma bootable disk can be a bit tricky, especially if you’re doing it on a Windows PC or a Mac.  Make sure your hardware supports macOS Sonoma. Check Apple’s official site for compatibility and always download the correct version. You don’t want to end up with a fancy USB stick that won’t boot! If you’re downloading from the App Store on a Mac, ensure the download completes fully before you move on. You can usually find it in the Applications folder. If it’s a Windows PC, get it straight from Apple’s official site to avoid any craziness. When you’re ready to create Sonoma boot disk using Terminal, double-check those commands. A small typo can wreck the whole process. Follow a reliable guide step-by-step, and don’t rush it.

Be sure you've got enough space free for the macOS installation itself after you boot from your USB stick. Clean up your disk a bit if you’re low on space. Make sure your Mac has all the latest software updates installed before you start, especially if you’re using an older Mac. This can help prevent unexpected issues. Always eject your USB drive properly before you physically remove it. This helps avoid corruption and keeps your drive in good shape for its next use.

What You'll Need If Create Sonoma Boot disk:

• USB Drive: At least 16GB is preferred. Make sure it’s empty or you don’t mind wiping it.
• Mac: Yep, you need a Mac to create the boot disk.
• macOS Sonoma Installer: Grab it from the App Store. Just search for “macOS Sonoma” and hit download. It might take a little while depending on your internet speed.

Steps to Create Sonoma Boot Disk:

1. Take that USB drive and plug it into your Mac.
2. Open Disk Utility (you can find it using Spotlight with Command + Space and typing “Disk Utility”).
3. In Disk Utility, select your USB drive from the list on the left (make sure you select the correct one).
4. Click on Erase at the top, fill in the details like this:
   * Name: You can call it “Sonoma” or whatever.
   * Format: Choose Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
   * Scheme: Select GUID Partition Map.
5. Hit Erase and wait for it to finish. This will wipe the drive clean.
6. Once the download is complete, it should pop up automatically in your Applications folder. If it’s not there, you can manually check.
7. Open Terminal (again, use Spotlight for this).
8. You’re gonna type a command that tells your Mac to create sonoma boot disk. Here’s what you type:
   sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Sonoma.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/Sonoma
9. Make sure to replace “Sonoma” in the command with whatever you named your USB drive if you picked a different name.
10. Hit Enter, and it’ll ask for your password. Type it in (you won’t see it as you type) and hit Enter again.
11. Terminal will ask if you’re sure you want to erase the USB drive. Type Y and hit Enter. It’ll start creating the boot disk, and this might take a bit, so go grab a snack or something.
12. Once it’s done, you’ll see a message saying it’s complete. Eject your USB drive and you’re golden!