It installs an app named Install Version Name. Open that app from your Applications folder to begin installing the operating system. MacOS Sierra 10.12 can upgrade El Capitan, Yosemite, Mavericks, Mountain Lion, or Lion; OS X El Capitan 10.11 can upgrade Yosemite, Mavericks, Mountain Lion, Lion, or Snow Leopard; OS X Yosemite 10.10 can. Launch the App Store and ⌥ -click the Purchases tab. An 'Install' button should appear next to Lion. Click it to re-download the installer. Once the installer finishes downloading, go to your Applications folder to find the installer itself. It is called Install Mac OS X Lion. Further steps to get the DMG image. Right now I need a clean install Lion. But my mbp was pre-installed Lion when I purchased it. I use some trick from google to option - click in app store but can't find the Lion. Tried download Lion from recovery disk, downloaded but It can't install for some reason.
To get the latest features and maintain the security, stability, compatibility, and performance of your Mac, it's important to keep your software up to date. Apple recommends that you always use the latest macOS that is compatible with your Mac.
Learn how to upgrade to macOS Big Sur, the latest version of macOS.
The version of macOS that came with your Mac is the earliest version it can use. For example, if your Mac came with macOS Big Sur, it will not accept installation of macOS Catalina or earlier.
If a macOS can't be used on your Mac, the App Store or installer will let you know. For example, it might say that it's not compatible with this device or is too old to be opened on this version of macOS. To confirm compatibility before downloading, check the minimum hardware requirements:
Safari uses these links to find the old installers in the App Store. After downloading from the App Store, the installer opens automatically.
Safari downloads the following older installers as a disk image named InstallOS.dmg or InstallMacOSX.dmg. Open the disk image, then open the .pkg installer inside the disk image. It installs an app named Install [Version Name]. Open that app from your Applications folder to begin installing the operating system.