When your Mac computer reaches a certain usage time, one of the main ways to keep it working is by formatting the operating system. However, this is not a process that should be done right off the bat, since it carries certain risks.
To get started, formatting a computer implies the removal of all data stored on the hard driveso if you find yourself in the need to carry out this process, you must take the necessary precautions and considerations to do it safely.
For this, it is recommended that you read this note, in which we will teach you what you need to know about formatting your Mac’s hard drive in different versions of OS Xin addition to the factors that you should take into account before doing so.
Considerations before formatting MacOS
To perform the format process on your Mac, it is necessary to take into consideration certain factors that involve data, files and applications stored in the .
Among the points that you should be aware of, the following stand out:
All saved files will be deleted
The first thing to keep in mind is that formatting your Mac hard drive will delete all files stored on it, so all data not backed up will be completely lost. For this reason, It is best to make a backup copy of all essential files stored on your Maceither in the cloud, on a USB stick or an external hard drive.
Installed apps and plugins will be removed
This point is usually overlooked, but it can be really important. Plugins are small packages that are installed on your computer and add functionality to the system. When formatting is performed, these packages are completely removedso it is necessary to keep track of the installed plugins in order to download them again once the format is complete.
All factory settings will be restored
Formatting the hard drive restores the factory settings of the system, so If you have made any changes to adapt the system to your preferences, these changes will be completely removed. Since these settings cannot be backed up, It is always useful to review how these settings are adjusted so that you can leave them to your liking, once the formatting is done.. It is also convenient to perform this review in applications whose settings you have edited.
All stored account data will be deleted
All the data of the applications and accounts to which they are registered, are stored in the cache of the applications, which means that it will also be deleted during the formatting process. These dates are extremely important to maintain continuous access to all your accountsso it is necessary to confirm and backup them before formatting your Mac, so that you can start your sessions again without any setbacks.
Reinstalling Mac OS X requires patience
Regarding this point, The main recommendation is to be patient, since unless you have the CD to install the operating system, the reinstallation process is quite slow. not including additional procedures such as partitioning recovery and the formatting itself. The process is fairly simple, since it does not require much user interventionhowever, it is quite long, so it is recommended to do it in advance.
Format or restore to factory settings. What are the differences and when to do one or the other?
While these actions can have similar effects on an operating system, the reality is that formatting is a very different procedure than restoring factory settings, mainly because of the thoroughness of the removal of the content. Formatting a computer is not exactly the action of deleting its content, but to assign a new file system to a hard drive partition which, as a consequence, deletes all data stored on it.
You will need to manually reinstall all drivers, plugins, and applications. Factory reset, on the other hand, is a feature of the operating system that allows you to return to the original installation of the computerwhich translates to removing all downloaded content, while keeping the drivers and preset applications on the Mac. Both options have their uses for different types of situations.
Factory reset is useful to remove accumulated junk from the computer, and resolve small software malfunctions, at the cost of some backed up data. The formatting is complete, deleting all the data and the contents of the hard disk in its entirety, forcing the user to perform the installations of the programs from scratch. This depth of cleaning makes it particularly useful for solving serious problems, such as viruses on the hard drive.
Learn how to format Mac OSX from scratch
Though the procedure to format your Mac computer is relatively simpleit is necessary to emphasize that there are certain differences in the process when it comes to different versions of the operating system, so we will teach you how to perform it in the most recent version, as well as in older versions.
Let’s see next:
On MacOS Monterey
Is about the latest version of Mac OSfrom which it is no longer necessary to carry out the entire formatting process to recover a clean operating system and without any type of file installed, nor data stored from any owner.
In order to carry out this process, you must meet the following requirements:
- A Mac with a chip Apple Siliconor with Intel chip and T2 security chip
- macOS Monterey installed
These requirements are mutually exclusive as if you do not have the required chips, you will not be able to carry out this process even if you have macOS Monterey installed.
If you meet the requirements, follow the steps below:
- follow the route “Menu > System preferences > Erase all content and settings”
- Enter your administrator password and click “Continue”
- Enter your Apple ID password, click “Erase content and settings”
- Wait for the progress bar to complete, after which the Mac start screen will appear, with its classic “Hello” in multiple languages
You must bear in mind that when carrying out this process, You must have your Mac computer connected to the current to prevent it from being discharged during the procedure.
On an old version of Mac
They have a standard procedure for deleting data of the hard drive. Since they do not have the functionality that the Monterey version provides, it will be necessary to carry out the procedure for a correct deletion of the data.
You must be guided by the following steps:
- Connect the power adapter to your Mac to prevent it from downloading
- Make sure it’s connected to the internet preferably through a wired connection.
- Click on the Apple logo, in the upper left and select the option “Restart” in the drop down menu
- Once your Mac restarts, press the keys “CMD + R” simultaneously, and hold them down until it displays the Apple logo, a rotating globe, or an alternate home screen, depending on the version you are using
- When prompted, enter your password and select “Continue”
- You will see the popup window of “MacOS Utilities”where you select the option “Disk Utility” on the list. Then click “Continue”
- You will be able to see the startup disk of your Mac, which will appear on the left side and is called Macintosh HD by default. You’ll also see your Mac’s data drive labeled as “Macintosh HD – Data”
- Select the data unit, click “Edit” and click on “Delete APFS Volume” in the drop down menu. Then, confirm the option by clicking on “Remove”
- Choose Macintosh HD click on “Edit” and select the option “Erase”. Then you can modify the name if you wish, and you must select a format. Make sure this is “APFS” either “macOS Extended”, note that disk utility will display the recommended format.
- click in “Erase”, and enter your Apple ID information if prompted.
You may come across cases where Disk Utility doesn’t show Mac data drivenevertheless, this is not a problem. All you have to do is skip this step and skip to the next.
Find out how to restore MacOS data
To restore Mac data, we will make use of an integrated tool called Time Machine, through which you can make an automatic backup of all the data on your computer, from apps and music, to photos and documents.
The first thing you should do is create a backup, for which you just have to follow these steps:
- Connect an external storage device to your Maceither a USB or an external hard drive
- follow the route “Apple menu > System Preferences > Time Machine”
- click on “Select Backup Disk”select the name of the disk and click on “Disk”
Once this is done, Time Machine will perform backups every certain periodwhich you can use to recover the most important data on your Mac when necessary.
Once the backup is done:
- Connect the Time Machine backup disk to your Mac and turn it on
- follow the route “Applications > Utilities > Migration Assistant”
- When opening the Migration Assistant, select the option “From a Mac, Time Machine backup, or startup disk”.
- Select the Time Machine backup you want to upload and click “Continue”
- Check the information you want to Transfer and select “Continue” to start the data transfer.
Disable Apple Music, iCloud, and iMessage on Mac before selling or giving it away
If the case arises in which you want to sell, give away or transfer your Mac, The first thing you should think about is certain apps from which you should unlink your accounts before handing over the devicesince if you do not, the modifications made on this computer will affect the operation of your account on other computers.
Here’s how to disable basic Apple Music, iCloud, and iMessage features:
Apple Music
You Apple Music account is tied to iTunes and it is through this that you can listen to all the songs you have acquired. Since it is a personal list, you need to sign out of your iTunes account before transferring ownership of your Mac, so that your playlists are not altered by external intervention. To do this, all you have to do is follow the route “Music > Account > Sign Out”.
iCloud
It is a set of tools in the cloud, in the form of a storage service platform, which allows centralizing all of a user’s information so that it can be shared between different Apple devices when necessary. The data this feature stores is highly personal, so before you transfer ownership of your Mac, you need to sign out of this account from your…
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