How To Reset An Apple Macbook Air – The editors select and review the products themselves. If you make a purchase through affiliate links, we may earn commissions to help support our efforts.
Mac is generally reliable. But like any computer, sometimes things go wrong. Before you spend a lot of money on a new Mac, try a factory reset, which wipes your computer and installs a clean version of macOS. A factory reset is also the best way to prepare your old computer for a new owner to ensure that no data falls into the wrong hands.
How To Reset An Apple Macbook Air
On Intel-based Macs, the process has remained the same for years, but Apple’s transition to silicon has changed the process of removing and reinstalling the operating system. After upgrading to macOS Monterey, some computers will get a new option to wipe all content and settings. Here’s how to wipe the hard drive and reinstall the system on a Mac, whether it has an Apple M1 chip or Intel components.
Apple Macbook Air (m2, 2022)
Please note that after you reset your computer, you will not be able to recover any deleted data left on the drive. If you think you still need something from your hard drive, we suggest you start saving it using Time Machine or syncing your important files with iCloud.
Some Macs have a new data wipe option. If you’re running macOS Monterey on an Apple silicon Mac or an Intel-based Mac with an Apple T2 chip (Opens in a new window), the Uninstall Assistant is available. From the menu bar, open System Preferences > Erase All Content and Settings.
Enter your administrator password in the Removal Wizard, and then check the items you want to remove. In addition to erasing all settings, media, apps, and data for all accounts and volumes on the drive, the tool will sign you into iCloud, remove Touch ID fingerprints, disable location services, Bluetooth devices, and remove Apple Wallet items.
At this point, you have one last chance to create a Time Machine backup before continuing. Click Open Time Machine and install if you haven’t already.
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Enter your Apple ID password and then complete the removal process. Once done, your Mac will be restored to factory settings. If you don’t plan to keep this computer, you’re done. Otherwise, you can go through the setup wizard as if you were starting up your Mac for the first time.
Another Mac setup option is Disk Utility, which is available to all users. You must install macOS Recovery to access the wipe data and OS installation options. How to do this depends on the chip in your computer.
If you have an M1 Mac or an Intel-based Mac with a T2 chip, shut down the computer completely and press the power button until the startup options appear on the screen. Select Options to go to the recovery screen.
If your Mac has an Intel processor and does not have a T2 chip, restart your computer. From there, press and hold Command + Run until the Apple logo appears. Release the buttons and allow the Mac to start up and boot into Recovery.
Easy Steps To Factory Reset Your Macbook
If your computer has frozen and normal reset methods don’t work, try using the Control + Command + Eject (or Power key) keyboard shortcut.
Regardless of how you get here, you must select a user with administrative rights and enter their account information before accessing the computer’s startup options. After the MacOS recovery is complete, select Disk Utility and select the volume you want to erase.
Have you already created other volumes on your hard drive? If so, remove them first. Select a section and press the minus (-) button to mute the sound. Now you can go to the hard drive. Select Macintosh HD and click the Delete button on the toolbar at the top.
A dialog box will appear asking you to enter a name and format for the disc. Save the name as Macintosh HD and make sure the format is set to APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled). To remove the driver, click Remove Volume Group (or Remove if this button is not displayed).
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If you want to completely wipe your computer and avoid errors during reinstallation, you should make sure that other internal drivers are also removed. In the Disk Utility window, go to Disk Utility > Quit Disk Utility and return to the Recovery screen.
If you plan to sell your computer, you can stop here and let the new owner install a clean version of macOS. For those who plan to keep their Mac, the next step should be to reinstall MacOS on the computer.
Your computer must be connected to a power source and connected to the Internet. Return to the macOS Utilities screen, click Reinstall macOS, and follow the instructions to download a new version of the operating system.
If you backed up your files to an external storage device using a Time Machine backup, you can now restore those files using Migration Assistant as part of the reinstallation process. You’ll be asked if you want to transfer data from another Mac or a Time Machine backup. Select Time Machine and continue the file recovery process.
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If you choose not to restore your backup now, you can always return to the macOS recovery screen and select Restore from Time Machine. To restore backup files, select the appropriate backup from the list.
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Jason is a content generator. He believes that technology companies are bad, but you can use technology in everyday life. I’m a Mac owner, Android user, dark mode advocate, and tech bounty hunter. Before arriving, Jason was a technical writer, copywriter, and freelancer covering baseball, comics, and more for various outlets. When he’s not writing and editing, he reads comics, plays Nintendo Switch, and spends time with his wife and two cats, or a combination of the three. Live: Pixel Event Pixel Watch Fire TV vs. Frame TV Hellraiser Review Audio Deal. The best Prime Day pizza toppings
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Matt Elliott is a technical writer, PC tester, and Mac user who has lived in New Hampshire for over a decade.
Are you sure you erased all your data from this Mac before selling it? Recheck.
Tired of your old MacBook? Maybe you’re looking to upgrade to a MacBook Pro 14 or 16, or you’re getting into the desktop space by pre-ordering the recently announced Mac Studio. You may also see the M2 MacBook Pro coming later this year.
However, before buying a new MacBook, you can find some money to pay for a new one by selling your old Mac. But first, you’ll need to transfer your data to the new Mac and erase the old one.
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If you’re giving your Mac to a friend or family member, reusing it, or donating it to an organization, you may want to erase all your data and files before parting with it.
This is important security you don’t want to miss. Your Mac’s hard drive contains sensitive data that you don’t want to find, even if you trust the next owner of the laptop. There is always a chance that some malware will get in and expose your data.
Here’s how to wipe all data and factory reset your old Mac.
After you’ve moved your data to your new Mac or done a final backup to keep your data safe, it’s time to erase all traces of your data from your device. First, you need to sign out of all your accounts. Years ago this was done through iTunes, but now you have to manually quit three apps – Music, TV and Books. Open any of these apps and go to Account > Permissions > Deauthorize this PC. You need to enter your Apple ID and password and click “Authorize”.
How To Reset Macbook Air
Next, you need to turn off Find My Mac and sign out of iCloud. Go to System Preferences > Apple ID, click iCloud in the left pane, and uncheck Find My Mac. Then click the Overview button in the left pane and click the Log Out button.
Finally, you need to exit Messages. Open the Messages app, go to Messages > Options, tap the iMessage tab, then tap Sign Out.
If you’re giving your old Mac to a child or someone else in your household, it’s a good idea to remove all Bluetooth devices from it so you can control your new Mac with a mouse or keyboard.
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