{"id":33870,"date":"2025-01-18T00:36:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-18T00:36:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/apple-2\/how-to-reinstall-mac-os-x-from-scratch\/"},"modified":"2025-01-18T00:36:02","modified_gmt":"2025-01-18T00:36:02","slug":"how-to-reinstall-mac-os-x-from-scratch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=33870","title":{"rendered":"How to reinstall Mac OS X from scratch"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\n

For whatever reason, you have decided that you want to reinstall the system from scratch, restoring your machine to an \u201cout-of-the-box\u201d state. Regardless of the reason, this is not something to be undertaken lightly. The possibility of data loss looms any time you erase your primary hard drive. Further, if you do the job wrong, whatever problem you\u2019re trying to solve may not even be solved. Fortunately, there are some easy steps you can take to do the job right.<\/p>\n

Before I start, note that if you are trying to get the machine ready to sell, you should follow some slightly different directions. See\u00a0How to prepare your Mac for sale<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Step 1: Back up!<\/h2>\n

Backing up your data is something you should be doing on a regular basis \u2013 every single day, for most people. However, any time you propose erasing your primary data storage, it becomes critical. You\u00a0must<\/em>\u00a0do it right, or you will risk losing data. So how do you do it right? Most importantly, make redundant backups. If you only have one backup, remember that when you erase your hard drive, those backups become the one-and-only copy of your data. That\u2019s an extremely vulnerable state to be in. Don\u2019t put yourself in that state. Before erasing the hard drive, make sure you have a minimum of two completely separate backups, on completely separate media, and preferably made with two different backup programs. I highly recommend Time Machine to back up to one hard drive or a Time Capsule, and\u00a0Carbon Copy Cloner<\/a>\u00a0to back up to one or more additional hard drives.<\/p>\n

Note that, for the purposes of these instructions, I will assume that you have a backup clone (ie, an exact copy of your hard drive\u2019s current state) made with something like Carbon Copy Cloner.<\/p>\n

Also, note that if you\u2019re running Lion or later (Mac OS X 10.7 and up),\u00a0before making that clone backup,\u00a0it would be extremely helpful if you were to run the following command in the Terminal (to make sure your user Library folder is visible on your backup):chflags nohidden ~\/Library<\/p>\n

Step 2: Erase the hard drive<\/h2>\n

If you plan to install Snow Leopard (Mac OS X 10.6), or any previous system, insert the appropriate Mac OS X install disc and restart the computer. Hold down the \u2018c\u2019 key as soon as you hear the chime, then let go when you see the Apple logo. The system should eventually boot into the installer, where you first must choose a language. Do so, then choose Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.<\/p>\n

If you are reinstalling Lion (Mac OS X 10.7) or later, restart the computer and hold command-R as soon as you hear the chime. When you see the Apple logo, you can let go. This will start the computer in recovery mode. Once you have fully booted into recovery mode, open Disk Utility.\u00a0Note that when you begin the install process, you will need to download about 4 GB of data, so be sure your internet connection can handle that before proceeding.<\/p>\n

Once in Disk Utility, you need to select your hard drive in the list and select the Erase tab. Select \u201cMac OS Extended (Journaled)\u201d from the Format pop-up, if that\u2019s not already chosen, then click the Erase button. When Disk Utility is finished, choose Quit from the Disk Utility menu.<\/p>\n

Step 3: Reinstall<\/h2>\n

This step is pretty simple \u2013 just follow the directions to reinstall the system on the newly-erased drive.<\/p>\n

One important thing to know, though, is that you don\u2019t want to let the installer import anything from backups when it finishes. That can import more than you want, and that could very well bring back whatever bad settings file or third-party software or whatnot that is causing the problems you\u2019re trying to solve in the first place. Instead, when the installer finishes, import nothing, and go through the setup process as if this were your first computer.<\/p>\n

Step 4: Update<\/h2>\n

Once your system restarts successfully, you will need to be sure that it is fully up-to-date. From the Apple menu, choose Software Update, and install any updates that show up. Installing from older system disks can leave you with a somewhat outdated system, so you\u2019ll want to be sure that you take care of bringing it back up to speed.<\/p>\n

If you reinstalled Mac OS X 10.7 or 10.8, this should not be an issue, since you will have downloaded the most up-to-date version. Still, it can\u2019t hurt to go ahead and check for updates anyway.<\/p>\n

Step 5: Reconfigure<\/h2>\n

Once your clean, new system is up and running and fully updated, work on getting all the settings back to the way you like them. Don\u2019t worry about getting things like Mail or iTunes set up again yet, though. Just make sure to do things like get connected to your wireless network, get your mouse\/trackpad settings back the way you like them, set up your printer again, etc.<\/p>\n

Step 6: Import data (selectively!)<\/h2>\n

At this point, you can manually copy your user data from the clone backup back into your new user folder. Don\u2019t try to copy any settings files \u2013 nothing from your Library folder, for example \u2013 just documents.<\/p>\n

When it comes to restoring data for apps that are not document-centric, like iTunes, iPhoto or Mail, you need to find and copy the data from your backup to the same location on your new drive. The items you need to copy for such apps are found in the following locations (note that the \u2018~\u2019 means \u201cyour home folder\u201d):<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
iTunes<\/td>\n~\/Music\/iTunes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
~\/Library\/Preferences\/com.apple.iTunes.plist<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
iPhoto<\/td>\n~\/Pictures\/iPhoto Library<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
~\/Library\/Preferences\/com.apple.iPhoto.plist<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mail<\/td>\n~\/Library\/Mail<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mac OS X 10.7 and earlier: ~\/Library\/Preferences\/com.apple.mail.plist<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mac OS X 10.8: ~\/Library\/Containers\/com.apple.mail<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n

Copy the files\/folders from those locations on the backup to the same location in your new user folder. For other apps, you may need to search for instructions on where to find the data and preference files.<\/p>\n

Step 7: Reinstall applications<\/h2>\n

At this point, you can start reinstalling any other applications you might have had installed. Do not try to copy them from your backup. Reinstall them from the original disks, or download them from the original source.<\/p>\n

Note that if you\u2019re trying to solve problems like frequent system crashes or performance problems, this step is one that you should draw out over an extended period of time. Don\u2019t just slap every application you had back onto the new system! If you do, and one of those applications was causing the problem, you\u2019ll never know which one it was and you\u2019ll be back at square one, with a lot of time wasted. Install third-party applications one at a time, with a period of testing afterward to be sure the problem doesn\u2019t come back.<\/p>\n

Once you have completed the seventh step, you should have your machine back to a state pretty close to where it was before, though hopefully without the issues that caused you to go to all this trouble in the first place.<\/p>\n

Tags:\u00a0Mac OS X<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For whatever reason, you have decided that you want to reinstall the system from scratch, restoring your machine to an \u201cout-of-the-box\u201d state. Regardless of the reason, this is not something to be undertaken lightly. The possibility of data loss looms any time you erase your primary hard drive. Further, if you do the job wrong, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11768],"tags":[11553,22528,1660],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-33870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-apple-2","tag-mac","tag-reinstall","tag-scratch"],"yoast_head":"\nHow to reinstall Mac OS X from scratch - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=33870\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to reinstall Mac OS X from scratch - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"For whatever reason, you have decided that you want to reinstall the system from scratch, restoring your machine to an \u201cout-of-the-box\u201d state. 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