This Item Is Temporarily Unavailable on Mac

What does “This item is temporarily unavailable” mean on Mac?

On older Macs, This item is temporarily unavailable will usually appear when you’re trying to update or reinstall macOS, and you’re asked to log into your Apple account. It’s usually caused by an incorrect Apple ID, date and time issues, or disk partition errors.

A note from our experts: 

 

Trying to fix This item is temporarily unavailable by yourself can quickly get very tricky. If you need more help, get in touch with MacKeeper’s Premium Services team. They know Macs inside out, and they’re ready and willing to support you, any time, any day.

 

Here’s how it works:

1. Download MacKeeper and run it.
2. Select Premium Services from the side menu.
3. Click Chat Now, and explain your problem to the online agent.
4. They’ll respond quickly and explain your options.

How to fix “This item is temporarily unavailable” on Mac?

To fix This item is temporarily unavailable, make sure you’re using the right Apple ID and that your login details are correct too. Also, check the time and date are set properly on your Mac. If nothing works, you may need to do a clean installation of macOS.

1. Use the correct Apple ID

You may be asked to sign into your Apple ID when you’re reinstalling macOS. If so, the first thing we’re going to try is logging in with the correct ID. By that, we meant the Apple ID you originally used when you first installed the operating system. Otherwise, your macOS may struggle to authenticate you, leading to the This item is temporarily unavailable error message or Mac software update not working.

If you don’t have an Apple ID or iCloud account, move on to our next tip.

2. Sign in to iCloud and Apple ID

If you’ve never used an Apple ID or iCloud on your Mac, that can also lead to This item is temporarily unavailable. We suggest creating a new account and then trying to install macOS again. This is what you need to do:

1. While in Recovery Mode, choose Get Help Online.
2. Click Continue, which will open Safari.
3. Visit the iCloud website and create an account.
4. Switch back to the macOS installation window and log in with the new iCloud account.

3. Set the correct date and time

Crazy as it may seem, we’ve seen This item is temporarily unavailable come up on Macs simply because the time and date aren’t set correctly. You can force your Mac to synchronize the clock like this:

1. While you’re still in Recovery Mode, select Utilities > Terminal from the menu bar at the top of your screen.
2. Type sudo sntp -sS time.apple.com, and press Return.
3. Enter your admin password and press Return again.  
4. Now try to continue with your macOS installation.  

4. Clear system junk and cache

Cached data can help your Mac open files and folders more quickly, but over time, these temporary files can build up and slow your computer down. While it’s possible to clear our cached data manually, it’s time-consuming and risky, so we strongly recommend using MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup feature instead.

You can clean junk files with MacKeeper’s Safe Cleanup like this:

1. Open MacKeeper and select Safe Cleanup.
2. Click the Start Scan button.
3. When the scan is finished, check the results, and click Clean Junk Files.
4. Now try installing macOS again.

If you’re having problems with your Mac’s built-in cleaning options not working, read our guide on fixing MacBook cleaning mode issues.

5. Use Internet recovery to reinstall macOS

You might see the This item is temporarily unavailable error when trying to update macOS from an installer you downloaded from the App Store or online. It’s possible that the installer you downloaded isn’t compatible with your Mac. In that case, our next tip is to try your Mac’s internet recovery mode, if it has one. Here’s how:

1. Turn off your Mac, and then power it back up.
2. Immediately press and hold Cmd+Opt+R (on some Macs, it may be Shift+Cmd+Opt+R).
3. When you see a spinning globe, you can release the keys.
4. Choose Reinstall macOS, and follow the on-screen instructions.

6. Erase and repartition Macintosh HD

We’ve left this solution to the end for a reason—erasing and repartitioning your system disk will erase all your programs, data, and settings. It’s a complete fresh start, but it might be your only option if nothing else works.

The macOS erase and partition process is too long to explain fully in this article, but here’s a quick overview of what you need to do:

1. Put your Mac in recovery mode.
2. Open the Disk Utility tool.
3. Erase and proceed with the repartition of your drive in an Apple disk format.
4. Install macOS from the internet or from a USB disk.

Easy solutions are a chat away

This item is temporarily unavailable generally affects older versions of macOS, and it usually appears when you’re installing the OS and are asked to log into your Apple account. That’s why several of our tips here revolve around changing your Apple ID or time settings—anything that might affect authentication on Apple’s servers. Internet recovery might work better, but in the most extreme cases, you may need to do a clean macOS install.

Although these kinds of issues can sometimes be fixed with a few tweaks, they’re often much more complicated. If you’re in any doubt, it’s well worth getting in touch with the MacKeeper’s Premium Services team. Available 24 hours a day, they’re experts in everything Apple, and they’ve already fixed over a million Mac issues to date—including macOS installation errors and Finder not working on Mac. Just download MacKeeper and see if our support team can solve your issue.