Can the Mavericks install binary be shared between two different apple accounts? My question is similar to Re-use Mavericks install file, but instead of re-using the Mavericks install file on my own Macs, I would like to make a copy for a friend (so he doesn't have to download such a huge file over his slow connection).


Is this legal?


A side thought; Does this question even make sense if the binarys have the same checksum?

Is there anything unique to the install file? (e.g.: My app store account details.)


I was thinking if we dropped it in place in the /Applications dir and then he went to the app store and "bought" it, it would detect the file was already in place and proceed as if it had been downloaded.

(Not trying to do anything dodgy, just trying to save him from downloading a file that I already have.)
Yes, you can reuse the downloaded installer across Macs, even if they're using a different Apple ID account for The App Store. The installer contains nothing in it that prevents it from being used this way.

Data about App Store accounts comes from existing user data on the machine during the upgrade, it's not embedded in the downloaded installer.

The legalities of doing this seem fine: the upgrade is free and the user is required to accept the EULA when they run the installer application, before the install begins, so you're not bypassing some acceptance of this agreement by sharing the installer instead of downloading it from the App Store.

Edit and field test: A friend used my pre-downloaded copy of the installer on his MacBook Pro tonight and it worked just fine.