Operating System (Personal Devices) Upgrading
Before You Start
Make sure your power supply is securely connected at both ends. Please be connected to a fast and reliable internet connection such as the eduroam wifi, direct ethernet in your office. Download speeds at home will vary depending on the speed and reliability of that internet connection.
Make sure to backup your data. You can find more information at: Backing up Your Data
Make sure your computer has been updated fully prior to the upgrade using the following articles from Apple and Microsoft:
Quit all your open applications prior to running the upgrade.
How long will it take?
Upgrade often require a large data download and times can vary depending on computer hardware and your internet connection. In our testing, upgrades finishes fastest when done on campus with newer computers taking about an hour to complete. On older hardware and off campus VPN connections, upgrades may take several hours or more to complete. To prevent the upgrade from interrupting your work, we suggest starting the upgrade at the end of a day, and making certain the upgrade is running before leaving it to run overnight.
Steps
macOS
For macOS, Apple releases a new major version every year for free.
Follow these instructions from Apple on how to download and install the latest version of macOS.
Windows For Students and Faculty/Staff with Personally Owned non-Geneseo Computers
For Windows, in many cases you can upgrade your computer by visiting the Microsoft Windows 10 Download website.
If the above does not work, your Geneseo account will allow you to download and install Windows 10 Education from a partner website called On the Hub.
For Students, your Geneseo account will allow you to download Windows 10 Education for free from On the Hub.
For Faculty/Staff your Geneseo account will allow you to download Windows 10 Education for a low price of $15 from On the Hub
For help installing Windows 10, visit Microsoft's Upgrade to Windows 10: FAQ page: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12435/windows-10-upgrade-faq
For Faculty/Staff Geneseo Owned Computers
If you have a computer provided by the college, upgrading your Operating System is quick and easy. Visit the page Upgrading Your Operating System for more information, in most cases the installation will take less than an hour, so make sure to run it when you won't need your computer immediately.
If you are having trouble upgrading your Operating System, please contact your TSP for assistance.
Troubleshooting
Upgrade is running slowly
The speed of the upgrade depends on a variety of factors including your internet connection, the age of the computer that's being upgraded, and the age of the OS that the computer is currently running. To prevent the upgrade from interrupting your work, we suggest starting the upgrade at the end of a workday, and making certain the upgrade is running.
The computer doesn't have enough space to perform the upgrade
If the computer does not have enough space to perform the upgrade you will need to clear space on your hard drive. One way to preserve space on your hard drive would be to move files to a server or on cloud storage. Click here to create a request for advice on how to make space on your computer to perform the upgrade.
How can I tell what OS version I'm currently running?
Why upgrade?
Security upgrades - The most important reason to upgrade systems is to patch the vulnerabilities that exist in older operating systems. Both Apple and Microsoft have changed the way they handle their older operating systems and CIT has to keep up by enforcing a new upgrade process.
Efficiency - Both Apple and Microsoft have made the code running their operating systems smaller and more efficient. In recent years, it's become more common to have upgrades improve a computer's performance.
New features - New operating systems come with new features which empower clients with the ability to do more with existing hardware.