OS X 10.11 El Capitan is easy to install if you have to download it from Mac App Store. But for users looking to do a clean install on their Macs, here is our simple guide to create a bootable USB drive for El Capitan using the free app, DiskMaker X.
DiskMaker X is the simplest tool to use to create an OS X bootable disk. It requires no usage of Terminal so anyone can easily use it. All you need is the DiskMaker X app (latest version is 5.0.1 at the time of writing this guide) and you must have downloaded (but not begun installation) El Capitan from the Mac App Store.
- When you launch DiskMaker X app, it will show you the below options. The app can be used to make bootable drives for Mavericks and Yosemite too but for this guide, we shall focus on El Capitan.
- Make sure that you have a USB drive connected to your Mac, which is at least 8GB in size and has no important files on it. The drive will be erased during the process.
The benefits of doing a clean install can be better battery life, performance and less chances of bugs. - DiskMaker X uses search to automatically find the setup file for El Capitan. More times than not, it will easily find. After that, it will guide you through the steps to name ur USB drive, format it and get admin permissions so it can continue.
To boot using the USB drive, restart your Mac and as soon as the screen turns on, hold down the option key and you should see the Startup Manager. Select your USB drive here and it will continue booting with the El Capitan setup.
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