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MacOS Recovery is the built-in recovery system of your Mac. You can use the apps in macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac to repair your internal disk, reinstall macOS, restore your files from a Time Machine backup, set security options, and more. Reinstalling macOS requires an internet connection. Question: Q: MacBook Air - Internet Recovery Mode Getting stuck Halfway I have a early 2015 MacBook Air, running Mac OS Catalina - 10.15.6 For your info, this Mac is not having any personal data and no iCloud setup, basically it is an empty Mac at present.

Jul 05, 2021 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions

There are many issues that people may encounter while installing the macOS update. One of the common problems is that the recovery server could not be contacted. When trying to install macOS High Sierra, Mojave, or Catalina, there is an error message popping up: The recovery server could not be contacted.

If your macOS update is also stopped by this error, you will find this post helpful. From this post, you will learn why the recovery server could not be contacted and how to fix it.

What Does It Mean When the Recovery Server Could Not Be Contacted?

When installing a macOS update with a macOS installer, your Mac needs to reach the Apple server. When it says 'the recovery server could not be contacted, it means that your Mac failed to build a connection with the Apple server.

There are multiple culprits behind this issue.

• Your Mac is disconnected from the network. A stable network connection is required for your Mac to successfully contact the Apple server.
• The date and time on your Mac are not properly synced with the Apple recovery server.
• The Apple server is overloaded with too many users trying to installing the new update at the same time. Whenever there is a macOS update recently released, the Apple server usually experiences a busy time.

Solution 1: Check Network Connection on Mac

Firstly, you need to check if your Mac is connected to a proper internet connection. If your Mac is on a wired internet connection, you can re-plug the Ethernet cable to check.

If your Mac is using a Wi-Fi, you can access the Wi-Fi option from the top right corner of your screen to check it is connected to a stable Wi-Fi network.

The faster the internet, the quicker you can access the Apple recovery server.

Solution 2: Sync your Mac' Date and Time to Apple Recovery Server

If your Mac's date and times are not synced to the Apple recovery server. You can update these settings by utilizing these steps;

Step 1: First of all, close the error. This will open the macOS Utilities window.
Step 2: Next, you are required to choose the option 'Utilities' on the top menu bar.
Step 3: You will see the option 'Terminal', double click on it.
Step 4: Then type the following command line: 'ntpdate -u time.apple.com' and press enter.
Step 5: The above step might take some time. Once the process is completed, you can try reinstalling the macOS update again. Hopefully, your problem will be solved.

Also if the 'ntpdate -u time.apple.com' command-line failed to fix the recovery server could not be contacted on your Mac, you can try the following command.

• Open Terminal.
• Enter date. And hit Enter key. This will show the date of your Mac.
• If the date and time are wrong, you should enter the current time with the following command line: date mmddhhssyy. For example, if it is July 20, 09:00 am, 2020, you should enter: date 0720090020 (July 20, 09:00 am, 2020,).
• After that, quit Terminal and click Reinstall macOS to run the Catalina/Mojave installer again.

Solution 3: Install the Full Version of Mojave/Catalina Installer

Some users found that when they try to install a macOS update with the update installer from App Store, it just showed the error message 'the recovery server could not be contacted. However, after downloading a full version of the macOS installer, the installer can run without any error. Here is how you can get a full version of the macOS Catalina update.

Step 1Run Terminal.

Step 2For example, to download the full version of the macOS Catalina 10.15.3 Installer Application, enter the command line as below.

• softwareupdate --fetch-full-installer --full-installer-version 10.15.3

Step 3The installer will be downloaded in the Application folder.

Step 4Run the installer to install the macOS without the recovery server error.

Solution 4: Erase Your Disk and Reinstall macOS

In case you have utilized all the above methods and have not received any good results. Only then, you can erase your hard disk and reinstall macOS. You can enter the recovery mode to erase the hard disk. After that, reinstalling macOS can solve your problem. Follow the steps properly erase your hard disk and reinstall macOS;

Step 1Firstly, you need to restart your Mac.

Step 2When the Mac is starting, you need to press and hold CDM + R keys to enter the recovery mode.

Step 3In the Recovery mode, click Disk Utility and erase the Macintosh HD volume. This will delete all your data on your Mac so make sure you have backed up your important data.

Step 4After erasing your disk, you can reinstall macOS. This time, you won't see the recovery server could not be contacted error.

If you have important data missing after the macOS update, you can get it back by using Recoverit Data Recovery software. The program is designed to recover photos, documents, videos, emails, etc. from the Mac computer after the data are deleted mistakenly or lost because of macOS reinstallation, factory reset, or virus.

Lost data can be recovered in 3 simple steps by Recoverit: select the drive of lost data, scan the drive, recover the files.

Download the free trial version of Recoverit Data Recovery to scan and find your needed files.

Conclusion

Many users complained about the recovery server could not be contacted error. Every error is solvable, only if you apply proper solutions. And to tackle the incidents that may happen in the macOS update, you need to back up your data before implementing any of the steps. In case your data is lost, you can recover it using Recoverit Data Recovery.

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Reinstalling the OS of your Mac is sometimes required as a last resort option when troubleshooting a certain software problem. If none of the other fixing methods have worked out so far, this final fixing method should be enough to bring things back to normal and restore your Mac to its regular state.

However, before you continue with the macOS reinstallation, we advise you to make sure that you have indeed exhausted all other options and made sure that this really is the only thing that you haven’t tried so far. If that is your case and you are sure you wish to continue, here is a guide that can help you with the reinstallation process.

Accessing macOS Big Sur Recovery

MacOS Recovery is a special mode that gives you access to different system repair tools that can help you deal with different issues that your Mac has. In the macOS Recovery Mode, you can use the Time Machine backup tool, get online help for your problem, erase the hard drive of your Mac, reinstall your macOS, and more.

Entering Recovery Mode is a bit different depending on whether your Mac has an Apple Silicon or an Intel processor. To find out the type of processor that your Mac has, click on the Apple Menu, select About this Mac, and look at the information in the window that opens. If you see an entry labeled Chip with the model of the chip written after it, this means that your Mac is with an Apple Silicon processor. If instead of that there is a “Processor” entry followed by the specific processor model, it means that your Mac is equipped with an Intel processor. Depending on which one of the these two your Mac has, do either of the following:

• Macs with Apple Silicon processors: With the computer turned off, press and hold down the Power Button, wait for the Startup Options screen to get displayed on your screen, and then release the button. Now select the Options icon and click on Continue.

• Macs with Intel processors: Make sure that your Mac is connected to the Internet and turn it off. Then start the computer and immediately after that hold down the Command ⌘ + R keys from the keyboard. Keep holding them until the Apple logo (or another image) gets displayed on the screen.

If your Mac requires you to log in to any of your Mac accounts, select an account you know the password for and that has Admin privileges.

Reinstalling macOS Big Sur from Recovery Mode

Now that you have entered Recovery Mode on your Mac, it is time to reinstall the OS of the computer.

1. From the Utilities screen of the macOS Recovery, select the Reinstall option and click on Continue.
2. Follow the on-screen instructions and steps – they will guide you through the whole process.
3. Be sure to adhere to the following tips while in the process of reinstalling macOS.
   • Do not put your Mac to sleep or close its lid while the reinstallation process is underway. While macOS is being reinstalled, your Mac may restart several times and the screen may go black and stay that way for several minutes – even if this happens, stay patient and wait for the process to complete. Until macOS gets reinstalled, do not close, put to sleep, or turn off your MacBook!
   • If you are asked to unlock the disk of your Mac, do so by filling in the password that you use to log in to your main Mac account.
   • If the macOS installer cannot find your disks or it tells you that the installation cannot be completed on the specified disk, you may first need to erase that disk and try again.
   • If you are given the choice between installing Macintosh HD or Macintosh HD Data, pick the first option.

Once the installation of macOS is complete, you will be asked to set up the preferences of the computer. Complete the set up according to your personal preferences and you will be good to go.

If you have reinstalled the OS because you intend to sell or give away your Mac and want to allow its new owner to set it up themselves, press Command-Q to close the Setup Assistant and leave the setting-up process to the future owner of the computer. After that, click on the Shut Down button to turn off the Mac.

Additional options and tips for installing/reinstalling macOS

The default setting of macOS Recovery is that it will install the latest version of the operating system that was previously installed on the computer. If you want, you can get it to install a different version of the OS by using one of the following options:

Os X Catalina Internet Recovery

• On a Mac with an Intel processing unit, you can press down and hold the Option + Command + R keyboard combination (instead of the Command ⌘ + R combination) as soon as you turn on the computer. This will cause macOS Recovery to install the latest stable macOS version that is compatible with the machine. There are two exceptions here:
  • If macOS Sierra 10.12.4 or another later version of macOS has never before been installed on the computer, the macOS version that will get installed will be the one that originally came with the machine, or another macOS version that is closest to the original one.
  • If the computer is equipped with the Apple T2 Security Chip and a macOS update has never before been installed on the machine, macOS Recovery will install the latest version of the OS that was installed on the computer.
• If your Mac previously had the macOS Sierra 10.12.4 version of the OS or a later version, you can also use the Shift + Option + Command + R combination once you start the computer (press and hold the mentioned buttons) instead of the two previous combinations to make macOS Recovery install the OS version that was originally on your Mac when you bought it or the closest other OS version that is still available.
• To install a different macOS version that macOS Recovery doesn’t allow you to install, you can instead go to the App Store and install the desired OS version from there.
• Another way to reinstall your macOS is to create a bootable USB drive and install the desired OS version from it.
• If the logic board of your Mac has just been replaced after your machine has been repaired by a technician, it is likely that macOS Recovery will only offer you to install the latest OS version that is compatible with the computer.
• If the entire disk of your Mac has just been erased (instead of only the startup volume), macOS Recovery will probably only allow you to install the version of the OS that came with the computer when you first bought it (or the closest other available macOS version).