How to reset your Mac (macOS or OSX) to default settings and erase the disk?

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2. Mac Os X Factory Reset
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As a Mac user, you would never wish to make your iCloud or personal hard disk data public. Therefore, if you are selling/giving away your mac or iOS device, you must wipe all data from your computer or mobile device. The best way is to perform a factory reset, which may also be useful when your computer or mobile device has problems. You can delete all data manually, but this will take a great deal of time and you might not be able to delete certificates and licenses, which you have purchased and added to your apps.

Furthermore, a factory reset will return your mac or mobile device to the default settings - wiping all data will make it appear as if it has just been unpacked from the box. This article demonstrates the factory reset with other tips and information.

This means unless your Mac is over 5 years old and is missing capability required by the software you run, then it should perform reasonably similar to when you purchased it. Continue reading → This entry was posted in Troubleshooting and tagged lag, OS X, slow mac on March 31, 2016 by Topher Kessler. In Addition, there Are some differences for Mac desktop computers. Resetting SMC on MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air. If the battery is removable: Turn off your Mac. Remove the battery. Press the power button and hold it for a few seconds. Reinstall the battery. Press the power button to turn on your Mac. If the battery is non-removable.

Table of Contents:

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Check works before you start performing any factory reset

High Sierra works on Apple's latest file system called APFS. Users rarely encounter problems when resetting their Macs, however, sometimes an error appears displaying 'Could not create a Preboot Volume for APFS install'. Apple support states that you should choose macOS extended when formatting your drive, and not the new file system, APFS. If, however, you have already started to reset your system and have this problem, there is a solution. First, shut down your Mac, and then hold down Option, Command and R while turning on your computer. This combination will start an Internet Recovery and you can try to reinstall High Sierra. You may be forced to repeat this step several times until it works.

Create an BackUp

Create a backup of everything you will/may need in a future. Use Time Machine or another application to backup your system. We recommend that you make two cloud and two physical (local or remote) backups. Also consider using drive cloning apps such as Carbon Copy Cloner, Super Duper, ChronoSync, or similar. These create an identical copy of your drive and, unlike Time Machine, are bootable backups (i.e. if your computer ever stops working, you can boot your computer directly from these copies).

Disable FileVault

FileVault encrypts the entire disk to protect against unauthorized access to data stored on your startup disk. People rarely use this feature, but you may need to check it out, especially if you log in in with your account password (FileVault requires password secured log in).

How to disable fileVault?

Enter System Preferences and choose Security & Privacy. Then select the FileVault tab, click the lock button to unlock it. Enter an administrator name and password and turn off FileVault. Then, restart your Mac.

When your computer loads, decryption of your startup drive begins in the background. Decryption of all disks on your mac will take some time - you can check progress by entering the FileVault tab in Security & Privacy preferences.

Remove iTunes Authorizations

iTunes has a built-in authorization tool used to grant permission to access all iTunes content from the device/s you authorized. The maximum number of authorized devices is five, so do not give away your iTunes content and access permissions when selling your old mac.

Your content will not be deleted from your device when you deauthorize it - you will simply deny permission to access protected content (which can be recovered anytime by re-authorizing the same device). Do not skip the deauthorize step, since if you sell your authorized device and later decide you wish to deauthorize it, you will be forced to deauthorize all of your devices and then re-authorize all usable devices again. This will be time-consuming and inconvenient.

How to deauthorize your Mac:

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Open iTunes (login with your Apple ID if required). From the menu bar at the top left of your screen, choose Account, select Authorizations, and finally click on 'Deauthorize This Computer...' If required, enter your Apple ID and password and click Deauthorize.

Deactivate programs and remove authorizations

Many third-party applications require machine authorization and activation, especially image, audio/video editing, and software design packages. For example, most Adobe programs require activation. To activate an application, log in with a valid user licence. Deactivation dissociates an application from a valid user licence, so if you need to use the same application on another device, you do not need to uninstall - simply deactivate and use the licence on the other machine. Look up your programs list to find and deactivate programs.

Sign Out your iCloud

Find my Mac ensures you have a copy of your iCloud data before proceeding.

Open the Apple menu at the top left of your screen and select System Preferences. Then, choose iCloud and Sign Out. Ensure you have removed all personal data by selecting Delete From Mac in each pop-up. All of your data such as iCloud contacts, calendar signs, etc. will be wiped from your Mac.

Sign Out of iMessage

Open your iMessages applications Preferences and select Accounts, choose your account and click sign out.

Factory Reset MacBook Air and other Macs using macOS Recovery

macOS Recovery is a segment of the built-in recovery system. The utilities menu allows you to fully erase the internal hard drive. If you require a clean and fresh installation of your operating system, you can reinstall macOS to clear all private associations, such as your data, user accounts, Apple ID, etc.

How to reset your Mac using macOS?

Turn on or restart your MacBook and hold down the Option, Command and R keys until you see the Apple logo, and then release them. When the Utilities window pops up, startup is completed. Use Disk Utility to wipe your startup and any other internal hard disks. Select your drive name from the sidebar and click Erase. In the format menu, choose Mac OS Extended (unless you are using High Sierra), and above, select APFS, type a new name for your disk (we recommend that you leave the default - Macintosh HD) and click Erase. Note: this will wipe all data on the disk, including personal files and data.

Once erasing is complete, return to the recovery menu, select Reinstall macOS, and follow the on-screen instructions. When the Mac completes the installation, it will restart to a setup assistant. If you are selling/giving away your mac and wish to leave it in a factory default state, do not follow the assistant - just press Command and Q, and then click Shut Down. If you are retaining your Mac, follow the assistant and set up your clean system.

Restore from Time Machine backup

If you have a Time Machine backup, use it to restore. This procedure will erase the disk and then replace all data from a backup - this will return the computer to the state prior to the backup. To perform this, launch your macOS Recovery and choose Restore from Time Machine Backup. Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed. Another way to reinstall macOS is by using Apple App Store. Open the App Store and use the search field. Once you have found a version, download and install it.

Video showing how to reset your Mac to default settings:

Need to restore Mac to factory settings?

If you decide to sell or give away your Mac, you'll need to wipe your data in order to set up your Mac like a new one. Not only is it essential for your privacy, but it is also the right way to prepare your MacBook for another owner. Resetting Mac to factory settings includes several steps. Here’s the brief outline of them:

• Data backup
• Deauthorizing iTunes on macOS Mojave or earlier
• Signing out iCloud and iMessage
• Resetting NVRAM
• Erasing Mac hard drive in Recovery Mode
• Reinstalling macOS

Continue reading to learn how to factory reset MacBook Pro or any other Mac computer just as it was new.

Note: This guide is relevant to Mac Pro, iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air.

The ultimate checklist to factory reset MacBook Pro

Step 1. Back up your data

When you factory reset MacBook Pro, all the information you have on your hard drive is wiped off. That’s why you need to create a backup to save your important files and data. This is like cloning your hard drive and keeping it for some time.

You can manually back up all your files and apps by copying everything to an external drive or iCloud. However, the faster and more secure way to back up your Mac is Time Machine — Mac’s built-in software. It allows you to recover individual files and restore your whole hard drive in the event of a catastrophe.

However, before you use Time Machine, make sure to clean up your Mac. You don’t want to back up all the junk it contains, do you? Plus, a backup will go faster and more smoothly if your Mac is not cluttered. For a quick cleanup, you can use a utility like CleanMyMac X. It will help you remove large and old files, useless apps, caches, and system junk in two clicks.

Here's how to clean GBs of junk in under 5 minutes:

1. Download CleanMyMac X and launch it.
2. Click Scan.
3. Click Run.

Once you’ve cleaned up your Mac, enable Time Machine backups:

1. Go to the Apple menu in the top left corner of your screen and choose System Preferences.
2. Select Time Machine.
3. Click the Select Disk button.
4. Choose the disk you’d like to use as a Time Machine backup, then click Use Disk.

That’s it!

Note that your first backup may take a long time, depending on how many files you have. But don’t skip this step — the backup will allow you to restore all your data should something goes wrong when you factory reset Mac.

Once your files are backed up, next be sure to disable any services associated with your system, including iCloud, Music, and Messages, and deactivate programs on your Mac. Just take your time to sign out of everything to avoid those “after the sale” calls from a new user.

Step 2. Deauthorize iTunes

Note: This step is required only if you're using macOS Mojave or earlier.

Did you know you can authorize up to 5 computers, which means you can play your content just on 5 different Macs? That’s why you need to make sure your computer is not linked to your iTunes account when it gets a new owner. Don’t save this step for later.

Here’s how to sign out of iTunes:

1. Open iTunes on your Mac.
2. Click Account in the menu bar.
3. Choose Authorizations > Deauthorize This Computer.
4. Provide your Apple ID and password.
5. Click Deauthorize.

Do you need to turn off FileVault to do a factory reset?

Some sources on the Internet recommend turning off FileVault before doing a factory reset. FileVault encrypts your data and prevents unauthorized access to the information on your startup disk. So, even if you are going to sell your Mac, the purchaser won’t be able to access your data as they’d need your password to decrypt it. Complete factory reset covers erasing your startup disk (described in Step 7), which will make the recovery of your data impossible. Therefore, there is no need to turn off FileVault, as your data can’t be accessible in any readable form after you erase the drive.

Step 3. Sign out of iCloud

Sign out of iCloud to make sure that any remnants of the cloud data, such as bookmarks, notes, reminders, etc., are not visible to a new user.

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Follow these steps to turn off iCloud:

1. Choose Apple menu > System Preferences.
2. Select Apple ID.
3. Select Overview in the sidebar.
4. Click Sign Out.

If you're running macOS Mojave or earlier, go to Apple menu > System Preferences, choose iCloud. Then click Sign Out.

Step 4. Sign out of iMessage

Before you restore Mac to factory settings, be sure to sign out of iMessage. Here’s how to do that:

1. Open up Messages.
2. Click Messages in the menu bar in the top left corner of your screen.
3. From the drop-down menu, choose Preferences.
4. Click iMessage, then click Sign Out.

As simple as that!

Step 5. Reset NVRAM

NVRAM (nonvolatile random-access memory) is a type of memory your Mac uses to store certain settings, such as your selected startup disk, sound volume, screen resolution, and the last kernel panic. Resetting NVRAM will restore certain features you might have changed previously.

1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Start up your Mac and press and hold Option-Command-P-R.
3. Hold the keys for 20 seconds, then release.

If you have a Bluetooth mouse or keyboard paired with your computer, you need to unpair it before giving away or selling your Mac. Go to Apple menu > System Preferences. Click Bluetooth and select the device you want to unpair. Then, click the 'x' button to unpair the device.

Step 6: Restart Your Mac in Recovery Mode

Once you’ve backed up your data and signed out of everything, you are ready to wipe your Mac and give it a fresh start with a new owner. The following steps will tell you how to restore Mac to factory settings. This is pretty simple. Go to the Apple menu in the top left corner of your screen and choose Restart. As the system restarts, hold the combination of Command and R keys together — you’ll notice the Recovery Mode window.

Step 7: Erase Mac hard drive

If you plan to sell or give away your Mac, you need to erase your Mac’s startup disk. The startup disk is built-into your MacBook. Its default name is Macintosh HD.

1. Start up your Mac and press Command-R until you see an Apple logo.
2. Choose Disk Utility in the utilities window.
3. Click the Continue button.
4. Your built-in startup disk is the disk named “Macintosh HD” unless you renamed it before. It's always the first item listed in the Disk Utility sidebar.
5. Select Macintosh HD.
6. Click Erase at the top of the Disk Utility window and enter the next details:
Name: Macintosh HD
Format: APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
7. Click Erase Volume Group. You may need to enter your Apple ID for confirmation.

When the process is complete, select other internal volumes in the sidebar and press the '—' button to delete them. Then, quit Disk Utility.

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Step 8: Reinstall your operating system

Congratulations, you’ve reformatted your hard drive and reset your Mac to factory settings. Now you can reinstall your operating system. Simply click Reinstall macOS from the utilities menu. Confirm that you really want to do it and follow the instructions you’ll see on the screen.

Once the macOS is installed, a setup assistant will appear. However, if you are not going to keep your Mac, it would be better to quit the setup process and let the new owner enter all necessary information. Hold down the Command-Q keys and then choose Shut Down to turn off your Mac but leave it waiting for a new user.

That’s all. Now your Mac is clean and ready for a fresh start.