macOS full installer links via terminal

[tywebb]

To find the macOS full installer links one can run these commands in terminal:

Public releases

macOS Sequoia

for file in $(curl -# https://swscan.apple.com/content/catalogs/others/index-15-1.sucatalog | grep com_apple_MobileAsset_MacSoftwareUpdate.plist | grep -Evw '(com_apple_MobileAsset_MacSoftwareUpdate.plist.integrityDataV1|InstallInfo.plist)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g); do
    curl -# $file | egrep -EA 1 '(>Build<|OSVersion)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g | sed -e s/"<key>"//g -e s/"<\/key>"//g -e s/\ //g
    echo $file | sed -e "s/com_apple_MobileAsset_MacSoftwareUpdate.plist/InstallAssistant.pkg/g"
done

macOS Sonoma

for file in $(curl -# https://swscan.apple.com/content/catalogs/others/index-14-1.sucatalog | grep Info.plist | grep -Evw '(Info.plist.integrityDataV1|InstallInfo.plist)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g); do
    curl -# $file | egrep -EA 1 '(>Build<|OSVersion)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g | sed -e s/"<key>"//g -e s/"<\/key>"//g -e s/\ //g
    echo $file | sed -e "s/Info.plist/InstallAssistant.pkg/g"
done

macOS Ventura

for file in $(curl -# https://swscan.apple.com/content/catalogs/others/index-13-1.sucatalog | grep Info.plist | grep -Evw '(Info.plist.integrityDataV1|InstallInfo.plist)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g); do
    curl -# $file | egrep -EA 1 '(>Build<|OSVersion)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g | sed -e s/"<key>"//g -e s/"<\/key>"//g -e s/\ //g
    echo $file | sed -e "s/Info.plist/InstallAssistant.pkg/g"
done

Betas

macOS Sequoia

for file in $(curl -# https://swscan.apple.com/content/catalogs/others/index-15seed-1.sucatalog | grep com_apple_MobileAsset_MacSoftwareUpdate.plist | grep -Evw '(com_apple_MobileAsset_MacSoftwareUpdate.plist.integrityDataV1|InstallInfo.plist)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g); do
    curl -# $file | egrep -EA 1 '(>Build<|OSVersion)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g | sed -e s/"<key>"//g -e s/"<\/key>"//g -e s/\ //g
    echo $file | sed -e "s/com_apple_MobileAsset_MacSoftwareUpdate.plist/InstallAssistant.pkg/g"
done

macOS Sonoma

for file in $(curl -# https://swscan.apple.com/content/catalogs/others/index-14seed-1.sucatalog | grep Info.plist | grep -Evw '(Info.plist.integrityDataV1|InstallInfo.plist)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g); do
    curl -# $file | egrep -EA 1 '(>Build<|OSVersion)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g | sed -e s/"<key>"//g -e s/"<\/key>"//g -e s/\ //g
    echo $file | sed -e "s/Info.plist/InstallAssistant.pkg/g"
done

macOS Ventura

for file in $(curl -# https://swscan.apple.com/content/catalogs/others/index-13seed-1.sucatalog | grep Info.plist | grep -Evw '(Info.plist.integrityDataV1|InstallInfo.plist)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g); do
    curl -# $file | egrep -EA 1 '(>Build<|OSVersion)' | sed -e s/"<string>"//g -e s/"<\/string>"//g -e s/\ //g | sed -e s/"<key>"//g -e s/"<\/key>"//g -e s/\ //g
    echo $file | sed -e "s/Info.plist/InstallAssistant.pkg/g"
done

It will display the build number and full installer link like this (for the latest Sequoia 15.3 beta 2 released yesterday):

            Build
            24D5040f
--
            OSVersion
            15.3
https://swcdn.apple.com/content/downloads/28/34/072-51435-A_8IYJ8M9I05/bomemn8ilakew9lp6yuibcx27ud4n9859o/InstallAssistant.pkg

How to verify the build number - even before downloading it

These links are also often available on websites such as https://appledb.dev and https://mrmacintosh.com so if you get the links from these sites instead it would also be prudent to know how one can verify the build number for the InstallAssistant.pkg link in so doing one can replace the g at the end of the link with a m, download the resulting InstallAssistant.pkm file and open with TextEdit, so for the one I used as example we get this link

https://swcdn.apple.com/content/downloads/28/34/072-51435-A_8IYJ8M9I05/bomemn8ilakew9lp6yuibcx27ud4n9859o/InstallAssistant.pkm

showing this information inside

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?><pkg-info identifier="com.apple.pkg.InstallAssistant.Seed.macOS15Seed" postinstall-action="none" version="24.3.5040.6" format-version="2" auth="root" generator-version="IASUProductGenerator-26.0.1" relocatable="true" useHFSPlusCompression="true" overwrite-permissions="true"><payload numberOfFiles="946" installKBytes="49136"></payload><bundle path="./Applications/Install macOS Sequoia Beta.app" CFBundleShortVersionString="20.3.02" CFBundleVersion="20302" SourceVersion="1868000000000000" id="com.apple.InstallAssistant.Seed.macOS15Seed"></bundle><bundle-version></bundle-version><upgrade-bundle><bundle id="com.apple.InstallAssistant.Seed.macOS15Seed"></bundle></upgrade-bundle><update-bundle></update-bundle><atomic-update-bundle></atomic-update-bundle><strict-identifier></strict-identifier><relocate></relocate><scripts><postinstall file="./postinstall.sh" component-id="com.apple.InstallAssistant.Seed.macOS15Seed"></postinstall></scripts></pkg-info>

and where it says version="24.3.5040.6" we read the build this way:

second number 0,1,2,3,... is A,B,C,D,... and fourth number 1,2,3,4,... is a,b,c,d,...

whereupon we find 24.3.5040.6 is build 24D5040f - which concurs with information produced by the terminal command

Note the public releases and release candidates don't have the fourth number.