My late 2009 iMac has a SSD (upgraded four years ago) and it ran just fine on Catalina. Over the years it went through eight OS changes and carried along lots of legacy baggage such as 32 bit apps and hundreds of plist and other config files, slowing things down and hogging drive space.
Imac 2009 Catalina Patcher Windows 10
Download old versions here.
1.0b1 - 6/24/2019
• Initial release
1.0b2 - 6/24/2019
• Fixed a compatibility issue with Mac OS X version 10.6 through 10.8
1.0b3 - 6/25/2019
• Removed the need to set the boot-args key of your NVRAM before installation
1.0b4 - 6/26/2019
• Fixed a crashing issue some users may experience
1.0b5 - 6/30/2019
• Added an all-new post-install tool, which will now be applied automatically after the system is installed
1.0b6 - 7/1/2019
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch
1.0b7 - 7/5/2019
• Added a new patch for legacy Marvell Ethernet controllers
• Added a new patch for legacy Intel Parallel-ATA/IDE controllers
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch
1.0b8 - 7/10/2019
• Patch Updater, a program used to update and re-install system patches, is now included with Catalina Patcher
1.0b9 - 7/11/2019
• Software APFS booting implementation is now included, and now no longer requires native APFS BootROM support to run Catalina
1.0b10 - 7/14/2019
• An option to disable the software APFS booter is included, allowing installation of it to be skipped even on machines on which it is required
• Fixed an issue where the kextcache may not get rebuilt after automatic installation of post-install patches
1.0b11 - 7/16/2019
• Updated to add support for Catalina Developer Preview 4/Public Beta 3
1.0.1 - 7/23/2019
• First non-beta release
• All installation methods are now fully implemented
• Added logging functionality in order to pinpoint issues if they do occur
1.0.2 - 7/25/2019
• Fixed an issue with the in-place installation feature
• In-place installation now no longer requires a machine with native APFS BootROM support
1.0.3 - 7/31/2019
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 5/Public Beta 4
1.0.4 - 8/3/2019
• Fixed an issue with a portion of the in-place installation feature
• Improved logging verbosity, and error handling
1.0.5 - 8/8/2019
• Fixed an issue with a portion of the in-place installation feature
1.0.6 - 8/9/2019
• Added a new boot disk selection feature for machines that do not support APFS booting natively, allowing you to easily switch between multiple macOS installations on different APFS volumes
1.0.7 - 8/20/2019
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 6/Public Beta 5
1.0.8 - 8/21/2019
• Fixed an issue where performing a forced cache rebuild using the Post-install tool may result in an unbootable system
• Added an option to allow users to disable the automatic Post-install patch installation feature for debugging purposes
1.0.9 - 8/28/2019
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 7/Public Beta 6
1.1.0 - 8/29/2019
• Improved the macOS installer app downloader implementation
• Fixed a potential prelinkedkernel rebuild issue with the post-install tool
1.1.1 - 9/10/2019
• Added new fixes for Legacy Video Card patches
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 8/Public Beta 7
1.1.2 - 9/11/2019
• More improvements made to the Legacy Video Card patches, drastically reducing the size of the application
1.1.3 - 9/23/2019
• Added official support for Catalina Developer Preview 9/Public Beta 8
1.1.4 - 9/24/2019
• Fixed an issue where the kextcache may not get rebuilt properly after applying post-install patches
1.1.5 - 9/25/2019
• Fixed a compatibility issue with the Legacy Video Card Patch and Catalina Developer Preview 9/Public Beta 8
1.1.6 - 10/7/2019
• Added support for the final release of Catalina
• Fixed minor UI inconsistencies
• Fixed an issue with the APFS booter during the installation process
1.1.7 - 10/8/2019
• Fixed an issue where the installation of Catalina would not work properly on machines using an encrypted APFS volume with the APFS booter
1.1.8 - 10/15/2019
• Added installer app support for macOS 10.15.0 w/ supplemental update (app version 15.0.33)
• Added new Volume Control Patch for some iMac systems
• Fixed an issue with the APFS booter implementation
1.1.9 - 10/15/2019
• Fixed an issue with the Legacy Video Card Patch
1.2.0 - 10/19/2019
• Added new SSE4.2 emulator, 'MouSSE' by Syncretic, which fixes the compatibility issue with newer Metal-compatible AMD video cards and the MacPro3,1
1.2.1 - 10/29/2019
• Added support for Catalina version 10.15.1
1.2.2 - 11/1/2019
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch, fixing an issue where users may experience crashes when using Notification Center on machines with non-Metal video cards
1.2.3 - 11/2/2019
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch, finally fixing the long-present grey Menu Bar and Finder Sidebar issues users would experience in Light Mode with non-Metal video cards. Huge thanks to @ASentientBot and @testheit for their work on developing these patches
1.3.0 - 12/11/2019
• Added support for Catalina version 10.15.2
• This version also supports Catalina version 10.15.3
• Added a feature to detect whether or not certain Mac models need to have newer system firmware installed
1.3.1 - 3/24/2020
• Added support for Catalina version 10.15.4
1.3.4 - 3/25/2020
• Due to major issues with 10.15.4, this version of Catalina Patcher has been reverted to 10.15.3 support only
1.3.5 - 3/28/2020
• Fixed all 10.15.4 issues, 10.15.4 support has now been fully restored
1.3.6 - 3/31/2020
• Fixed an issue where AMFI may prevent some third-party applications from launching in 10.15.4
1.4 - 3/31/2020
• Fixed a minor SIP issue
• Fixed an issue where brightness control and/or Night Shift options would not appear under the Displays pane of System Preferences
1.4.1 - 4/6/2020
• Fixed an issue where permissions for some third-party applications may not work
1.4.2 - 4/16/2020
• Fixed an issue where Safe Mode may not work on some systems
• Added more warnings to alert users if their machine needs a system firmware update in order to boot from APFS volumes
1.4.3 - 4/17/2020
• Added support for creating bootable Recovery partitions
1.4.4 - 5/28/2020
• Fixed compatibility with Catalina version 10.15.5
• This version also supports Catalina version 10.15.6 and 10.15.7
1.0b1 - 6/24/2019
• Initial release
1.0b2 - 6/24/2019
• Fixed a compatibility issue with Mac OS X version 10.6 through 10.8
1.0b3 - 6/25/2019
• Removed the need to set the boot-args key of your NVRAM before installation
1.0b4 - 6/26/2019
• Fixed a crashing issue some users may experience
1.0b5 - 6/30/2019
• Added an all-new post-install tool, which will now be applied automatically after the system is installed
1.0b6 - 7/1/2019
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch
1.0b7 - 7/5/2019
• Added a new patch for legacy Marvell Ethernet controllers
• Added a new patch for legacy Intel Parallel-ATA/IDE controllers
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch
1.0b8 - 7/10/2019
• Patch Updater, a program used to update and re-install system patches, is now included with Catalina Patcher
1.0b9 - 7/11/2019
• Software APFS booting implementation is now included, and now no longer requires native APFS BootROM support to run Catalina
1.0b10 - 7/14/2019
• An option to disable the software APFS booter is included, allowing installation of it to be skipped even on machines on which it is required
• Fixed an issue where the kextcache may not get rebuilt after automatic installation of post-install patches
1.0b11 - 7/16/2019
• Updated to add support for Catalina Developer Preview 4/Public Beta 3
1.0.1 - 7/23/2019
• First non-beta release
• All installation methods are now fully implemented
• Added logging functionality in order to pinpoint issues if they do occur
1.0.2 - 7/25/2019
• Fixed an issue with the in-place installation feature
• In-place installation now no longer requires a machine with native APFS BootROM support
1.0.3 - 7/31/2019
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 5/Public Beta 4
1.0.4 - 8/3/2019
• Fixed an issue with a portion of the in-place installation feature
• Improved logging verbosity, and error handling
1.0.5 - 8/8/2019
• Fixed an issue with a portion of the in-place installation feature
1.0.6 - 8/9/2019
• Added a new boot disk selection feature for machines that do not support APFS booting natively, allowing you to easily switch between multiple macOS installations on different APFS volumes
1.0.7 - 8/20/2019
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 6/Public Beta 5
1.0.8 - 8/21/2019
• Fixed an issue where performing a forced cache rebuild using the Post-install tool may result in an unbootable system
• Added an option to allow users to disable the automatic Post-install patch installation feature for debugging purposes
1.0.9 - 8/28/2019
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 7/Public Beta 6
1.1.0 - 8/29/2019
• Improved the macOS installer app downloader implementation
• Fixed a potential prelinkedkernel rebuild issue with the post-install tool
1.1.1 - 9/10/2019
• Added new fixes for Legacy Video Card patches
• Added support for Catalina Developer Preview 8/Public Beta 7
1.1.2 - 9/11/2019
• More improvements made to the Legacy Video Card patches, drastically reducing the size of the application
1.1.3 - 9/23/2019
• Added official support for Catalina Developer Preview 9/Public Beta 8
1.1.4 - 9/24/2019
• Fixed an issue where the kextcache may not get rebuilt properly after applying post-install patches
1.1.5 - 9/25/2019
• Fixed a compatibility issue with the Legacy Video Card Patch and Catalina Developer Preview 9/Public Beta 8
1.1.6 - 10/7/2019
• Added support for the final release of Catalina
• Fixed minor UI inconsistencies
• Fixed an issue with the APFS booter during the installation process
1.1.7 - 10/8/2019
• Fixed an issue where the installation of Catalina would not work properly on machines using an encrypted APFS volume with the APFS booter
1.1.8 - 10/15/2019
• Added installer app support for macOS 10.15.0 w/ supplemental update (app version 15.0.33)
• Added new Volume Control Patch for some iMac systems
• Fixed an issue with the APFS booter implementation
1.1.9 - 10/15/2019
• Fixed an issue with the Legacy Video Card Patch
1.2.0 - 10/19/2019
• Added new SSE4.2 emulator, 'MouSSE' by Syncretic, which fixes the compatibility issue with newer Metal-compatible AMD video cards and the MacPro3,1
1.2.1 - 10/29/2019
• Added support for Catalina version 10.15.1
1.2.2 - 11/1/2019
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch, fixing an issue where users may experience crashes when using Notification Center on machines with non-Metal video cards
1.2.3 - 11/2/2019
• Updated the Legacy Video Card Patch, finally fixing the long-present grey Menu Bar and Finder Sidebar issues users would experience in Light Mode with non-Metal video cards. Huge thanks to @ASentientBot and @testheit for their work on developing these patches
1.3.0 - 12/11/2019
• Added support for Catalina version 10.15.2
• This version also supports Catalina version 10.15.3
• Added a feature to detect whether or not certain Mac models need to have newer system firmware installed
1.3.1 - 3/24/2020
• Added support for Catalina version 10.15.4
1.3.4 - 3/25/2020
• Due to major issues with 10.15.4, this version of Catalina Patcher has been reverted to 10.15.3 support only
1.3.5 - 3/28/2020
• Fixed all 10.15.4 issues, 10.15.4 support has now been fully restored
1.3.6 - 3/31/2020
• Fixed an issue where AMFI may prevent some third-party applications from launching in 10.15.4
1.4 - 3/31/2020
• Fixed a minor SIP issue
• Fixed an issue where brightness control and/or Night Shift options would not appear under the Displays pane of System Preferences
1.4.1 - 4/6/2020
• Fixed an issue where permissions for some third-party applications may not work
1.4.2 - 4/16/2020
• Fixed an issue where Safe Mode may not work on some systems
• Added more warnings to alert users if their machine needs a system firmware update in order to boot from APFS volumes
1.4.3 - 4/17/2020
• Added support for creating bootable Recovery partitions
1.4.4 - 5/28/2020
• Fixed compatibility with Catalina version 10.15.5
• This version also supports Catalina version 10.15.6 and 10.15.7
Imac 2009 Catalina Patcher
- So I want to install macOS big sur on my 2009 27' iMac. I currently have the Catalina patcher on it but want big sur. When I try to install big sur with patched sur, I can't move my mouse once I get into recovery mode. Anyway, if I upgrade my iMac will I have better success? I am willing to upgrade the hdd to a ssd, upgrade the GPU, and CPU.
- 2010 15'/17' MacBook Pro, 2010 iMac, (if equipped with a Core i5/i7) Late 2009 27' iMac: A fix has been created, but it requires OpenCore. Even if OpenCore eventually turns out to be absolutely required for these Macs, a future release of this patcher may still be helpful in providing support for these Macs' hardware.
- If you want to install MacOS Big Sur, the Guide is here; UPDATED Catalina GUIDE IS HERE; https://www.youtub.
- MacOS Catalina Patcher. Early-2009 or newer Mac Mini or white MacBook. — The 2007 iMac 7,1 is compatible if the CPU is upgraded to a Penryn-based Core 2 Duo.