Bootabler, Bootable Disk/ISO maker

[Cyberdevs]

Hi guys,

I've been working on a new project to create macOS Installer bootable disk and I've integrated my ISO Image Creator app with it.

 

It's the first RC version so there might be bugs and issues so I'll be appreciated if you test the app and give me feedbacks. I tried my best and did some extensive testing to make sure there are no surprises but I might have overlooked some issues.

 

Here is a recap of what this app will do:

Spoiler

Bootabler (Bootable Disk/ISO Maker)

Create bootable macOS installation media with ease

Bootabler is a powerful yet easy-to-use macOS utility that helps you create bootable installation media for macOS. Whether you need to reinstall macOS, upgrade an offline Mac, or create virtual machine disk images, Bootabler streamlines the entire process with a modern, intuitive interface.

Key Features

One-Click USB Creation - Select an installer and target disk, and let Bootabler handle the rest
Automatic Installer Detection - Scans your Applications folder to find macOS installers
ISO/DMG Creation - Generate bootable disk images for virtual machines
Package Installation - Install macOS installer packages (.pkg files) directly
Intelligent SIP Handling - Automatically adapts to your System Integrity Protection status
Real-Time Progress Tracking - Detailed step-by-step progress monitoring
Secure Admin Privileges - Safely handles required admin privileges with secure password management
Custom Volume Icons - Automatically applies appropriate icons to created installation media

System Requirements

macOS 11.0 (Big Sur) or later
Administrator privileges
For USB creation: A USB drive with at least 16GB storage capacity (for macOS Sequoia use a 32GB flash drive)
For ISO creation: At least 16GB of free disk space (for macOS Sequoia you'll need a up to 40GB of free space)
Compatible macOS installer.app applications and InstallAssist.pkg files

Usage

Add Installers: Bootabler automatically detects macOS installers in your Applications folder, or you can add them manually
Select Target: Choose a USB drive or create an ISO file on your Desktop
Create Media: Click to start the creation process with real-time progress monitoring

Bootabler is perfect for IT professionals, system administrators, tech savvy individuals and anyone who needs to create macOS installation media frequently. Stop struggling with command line tools and complex procedures - Bootabler makes the entire process visual, reliable, and stress-free.

Made by MacMeUp
© 2025 MacMeUp. All rights reserved.

 

 

Known issues:

1. The app crashes on some old computer using OCLP (test bench: MacBook Pro Later 2011 OCLP 2.3.3 macOS Monterey)

2. The progress steps are visually different on Hacks and Macs. Due to SIP restrictions on Mac computers the SIP either needs to be disabled or another approach should have been used to use createinstallmedia properly.

 

I hope you all enjoy this app.

 

Bootabler v 1.2

[strangeron]

On the first try, the USB EFI partition was not created. When I tried with Terminal, there was no problem. On the second try, the USB Installer was created without any problems.

The problem may be caused by me.

Thanks Yes, it is really stress free. 👍😂

[Cyberdevs]

@strangeron

Thanks for the feedback

The best way to use the app is to erase the disk with disk utility as macOS Extended Journaled with GUID partition scheme first to avoid any issues.

As I see in the pictures on your system SIP is enabled so the app deployed the terminal method. on systems that SIP is fully or partially disabled the UI is different and the app handles the createinstallmedia command itself.

[strangeron]

1 hour ago, Cyberdevs said:

The best way to use the app is to erase the disk with disk utility as macOS Extended Journaled with GUID partition scheme first to avoid any issues.

You're right. That's how I solved it. Thanks.

[Cyberdevs]

@eSaF I'm glad that the issue is resolved and you liked the app 

Thanks a lot for your time and feedback

 

Cheers!

[Anto65]

Congratulations for this app, simple, intuitive and functional
Both in the creation of the ISO and the Installer-USB.  

 

[Cyberdevs]

45 minutes ago, Anto65 said:

Congratulations for this app, simple, intuitive and functional
Both in the creation of the ISO and the Installer-USB.  

 

Thanks a lot

i’m glad you liked it 

[Cyberdevs]

@eSaF

About the this comment" All steps are virtually automated, the one thing I would advise is to use the Mac builtin 'Disk Utility' app to format the drive prior to using Bootabler."

There is a reason for this, the app doesn't offer to erase the disk it erases the volume instead and the reason is when I was creating the ISO Image Creator app I wanted to use the ISO images for creating a multiboot USB disk with various versions of macOS Installers on it, and when we use createinstallmedia command it will erase the volume to create the bootable disk, the same principal is used in Bootabler, if you want to have a multiboot USB disk for different Macs (which I personally use for my daily work) this function is the best way to go.

 

I assumed the USB disk used for creating a bootable macOS installer was already formatted with disk utility HFS+J (Mac OS Extended (Journaled)) format by the end user. But since you're the second person to mention this I'll see if I can add the function to offer the user to erase the whole disk if they want to format the USB disk before starting the process.

[Cyberdevs]

Hi guys, I've updated the Bootabler and updated the link in the first post.

I've made some improvements and added sparkle for auto update, made some improvements in the ISO and DMG creation progress steps ( @eSaF USB Creation still needs to be more accurate and I'm working on it).

Please check and see if there are any issues.

@miliucoI would like to know how did you like the app so far.

 

Cheers

[Anto65]

Hi, same error for both despite having given authorization (Sip and Gatekeeper disabled)
Prepared USB also via Diskutility

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

[Cyberdevs]

@Anto65 thanks for the feedback.

That's unfortunate! let me see if I can reproduce the same error. everything was working fine on my end before publishing the app.

[Anto65]

8 minutes ago, eSaF said:

@Anto65 I have seen that error popup in version 1.0 ....

 

🤷‍♂️ another Installer , same error 

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 8, 2025 by Anto65

[Cyberdevs]

@Anto65 and @eSaF

 

I guess I have a clue about that error but I'm testing few thing just to make sure, I use an external USB SSD disk for all the tests which is much faster than regular USB memory stick, and I don't get that error. I'm using a USB flash drive right now.

I think the timeout error is because of the fact that the time period for terminal to have the admin privileges is 5 minutes and when that time is up it ends with error 15.

These two where ok on the SSD external disk:

Spoiler

This is when I use USB Flash drive:

 

Spoiler

 

[Cyberdevs]

@eSaF and @Anto65

 

I'll increase the timeout and test to see if that resolves the issue and get back to you.

Thanks a lot for your time and tests. I hope to fix this issue ASAP.

[Anto65]

@Cyberdevs  You cannot extend the admin privileges or turn it off altogether ?

 

Edit :

 

Seen now, we wrote almost temporarily 😀  ... thanks

Edited May 8, 2025 by Anto65

[Cyberdevs]

Just now, Anto65 said:

@Cyberdevs  You cannot extend the admin privileges or turn it off altogether ?

The createinstallmedia command requires admin privileges and since the app uses that command to create the bootable USB disk or the ISO image I can't turn it off. I changed the timeout from 300 seconds to 1800 seconds but the process is now stuck at 79% on a regular USB 3.0 memory stick, I might find another way to resolve this issue 

[miliuco]

Not tried yet. I’ve been out of home. I’ll comment. 
You are going deeper into swift 🙂

[Cyberdevs]

5 minutes ago, miliuco said:

Not tried yet. I’ve been out of home. I’ll comment. 
You are going deeper into swift 🙂

Nice, have great time. Yeah I'm trying to make sense of it and learn more about Swift and programming in general. 

[Cyberdevs]

@Anto65 and @eSaF

 

I updated the app and now you can download it from the app itself or use the link in the first post. The new version is 1.2 so I hope you don't face the previous issues (fingers crossed)

If there was any issues please let me know.

[Cyberdevs]

@eSaF

Thanks Bro! I really appreciate your time and feedback. I did several tests on a USB Stick and so far no timeout error. Hope you find the new version as smooth as it should be.

[Cyberdevs]

Yay! 

[Anto65]

 

As soon as I get home I'll try it 😅

[Cyberdevs]

@Anto65

 Yeah you and me both

[Anto65]

All smooth    , I let the app format the USB

 

@Cyberdevs Towards the end it asked me for another permission regarding the Finder ( I didn't read it well )  ... is this the fix you used ?

 

Spoiler

 

Edited May 8, 2025 by Anto65

[Cyberdevs]

@Anto65

Thanks for the update and your time for testing the app.

The second permission alert is ok, the app requires to have access to removable media and the desktop folder (for creating DMG/SIO images).

 

The fix I used was at first to increase the timeout time and then I realized it's not required to have the timeout so I removed it. I'm glad that the issue is fixed!

 

Cheers!