Performing a factory reset on your MacBook or Mac can solve many macOS problems, and is important. If you are selling. Here is how to reset a Mac, whether it’s an iMac, Mac mini, or MacBook. This tutorial also includes the macOS Catalina method for deleting the new Macintosh HD-Data partition which you will need to do if you are reselling or if you want to do a clean install. Well, in the article, we are going to talk about How To Factory Reset Your MacBook Air – Fully Explained. Let’s begin.
If you have opted to sell your MacBook Air to someone else, a factory reset will make sure that all of your private and personal information is deleted. Make sure that another user can log in and begin using your former MacBook Air is also important to seller ratings. And it relieves the hassle of having to remove your information after the transaction is completed.
By backing up your MacBook Air with Time Machine and performing a factory reset of your MacBook Air. Your machine will feel like you just unboxed it for the first time.
With macOS Mojave available, it is the perfect time to get your computer back up-to-date and running well. Mojave is chock full of new enhancements and system changes that will keep your Air running well for years to come. However, keep in mind that macOS Mojave is only compatible with MacBook Airs manufactured after mid-2012.
If you are unfamiliar with the process of performing a factory reset on your MacBook Air. Follow these steps below to ensure that all of your information is backed up and the reset is done properly.
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Backup Your Data with Time Machine
Apple makes it really easy to backup your data on your MacBook Air. Time Machine and an external hard drive will allow you to backup all of your documents, applications, and all other important information.
When you have your drive plugged into your computer and you are ready to go. Then open up the Time Machine application on your Mac.
This is accessible either through Launchpad (the Mac application launcher) or by tapping on the Apple menu icon, selecting System Preferences. And then clicking on the Time Machine option.
This will display some general information about Time Machine, including when and what data it backs up. If you don’t plan on keeping your hard drive connected at all times to your MacBook Air, you can also do a one-time backup using Time Machine.
Use your mouse to click on “Select Backup Disk,” and select your hard drive from the list of devices connected to your computer. Tap on “Use Disk,” and your hard drive will be saved as a Time Machine backup drive.
Once your Time Machine has been set, macOS will do backups every twenty-four hours to make sure. That you always have an up-to-date back up available in case you ever need to restore your Macbook Air. Of course, since we are planning on completely resetting the laptop. You can also choose to force a backup at any time by heading into the Time Machine menu and tapping “Back Up Now.”
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You can also choose what Time Machine backs up just hit the ‘Options’ menu at the bottom of the Time Machine inside System Preferences. Depending on the number of files on your device, your first backup might take a while.
If you’d like to do a fresh install of macOS, without transferring over every application installed on your computer. Head into your options menu to control what is and is not backed up.
Once you have finished your backup, make sure to safely eject your drive from your MacBook Air before unplugging the drive.
In order to properly eject your external hard drive: Open the Finder and tap on the name of the device. Click on the ‘Eject’ icon (an arrow with a line underneath). If your MacBook won’t allow you to perform this task. It is likely the backup is not complete or another application is still using your external hard drive.
Factory Reset your MacBook Air
Once you have backed up your user data to either Time Machine or the backup application of your choice. Then it is time to factory reset your Macbook Air. This process can help you solve most sorts of bugs and problems with your Macbook. That also includes issues with slowdowns and freezing applications.
A reset will generally increase the speed of your machine back to what it was when you first got your machine in its original state. A factory reset’s also a necessary process if you are looking to sell your MacBook Air. In order to remove any and all user data left on the computer.
macOS has a built-in recovery disk utility to help you erase and reinstall the operating system. That you can redownload from inside the boot display on your Mac.
You can also choose to download macOS Mojave from the Mac App Store on your device. Create a bootable USB drive from the download file. You can find instructions for that here. But For now, we will be looking at how to reset your MacBook Air from the boot screen on your device. Also, note that this does require an active internet connection.
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To begin, start by hitting the Apple icon in the top-left corner of your MacBook’s display. Choose “Restart” from the drop-down menu and be ready to press some keys on your keyboard.
When the Apple logo reappears on your MacBook Air’s display, press and holds down ‘Command + R’ on your keyboard. Don’t let go of these keys until you see the macOS ‘Utilities’ window appear on your display.
Once this window appears, you can release the ‘Command + R’ keys on your keyboard. Here, you will see various different options for selection, as shown above. If you want to reinstall macOS over your current file system, click “Reinstall macOS.”
To factory reset your device, however, click “Disk Utility” at the bottom of the list.
Reinstall macOS on Your Macbook Air
Now your newly-reset MacBook Air starts via quitting out of Disk Utility by selecting “Disk Utility,” then “Quit.”
This will return you back to the ‘macOS Utilities’ display we used earlier. This time, select “Reinstall macOS” from this list.
Since your files, applications, and other user data have already been deleted from your system. This option will simply install a new version of macOS on your hard drive.
This will open the macOS Installer, that walks you through reinstalling the newest version of macOS directly onto your MacBook Air.
Then the installer will ask you to choose the disk you’d like to install your system on (again, most MacBook Airs have only one storage drive built into their systems. Until you’ve personally added another, so select the default drive).
When you tap Install, you may be asked to allow some permissions, after which your computer will begin to download macOS. This download will take some time, especially if you’re on a slower internet connection. Be patient as the reinstall is completed. This may take a few hours so be sure to allow yourself time to reboot the system and get back to work.
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When macOS has finished downloading, you may need to start the installation manually by accepting the install on your computer. Once the laptop has finished installing your operating system. It should automatically restart and boot into the macOS Welcome screen. Prompting you to start a new account on the system and to set up your system.
If you are planning on selling your laptop, you can more or less power off the device here—your MacBook Air has been returned to its factory state and is safe to be shipped off ready for another user. This also prevents the purchaser from accessing any of your personal or private information.
Time Machine Backup Restore
When you have finished setting up your reformatted Mac. Then you will need to restore the files you saved onto your external hard drive using a Time Machine backup. Time Machine makes it easy to restore from any of the saved backups on your device. And this includes performing this action on newly-formatted computers. Here’s how to do it.
- Start by opening up Time Machine, either from your dock or, if you have removed the shortcut from your dock, by clicking the Apple icon in the menu bar on the top of your display, selecting “System Preferences,”. And then select “Time Machine.”
- With your external hard drive plugged into your MacBook Air, you can use Time Machine to browse through your files to find what you want to restore. The timeline on the right side of your MacBook’s display will show the date and time of each backup, allowing you to slide through the list and find the correct or most recent backup to restore from.
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As you select the file or files, you can hit the restore button to restore them back to your device. If you want to preview a file. Then select a specific file, and tap on the spacebar key on your keyboard.
Alternatively, if you want to restore everything from your Time Machine backup, you can use the same macOS recovery display we used earlier in this guide to format and reinstall macOS.
Simply hit “Restart” on your device in the Apple logo, wait for your machine to power back on, and hold ‘Command + R’ on your keyboard when the Apple icon appears on your display.
When you are back in the macOS ‘Utilities’ display, select “Restore from Disk Utility,” and follow the instructions on the screen to restore your backed-up apps and files to your computer.
Error While Restoring
While this is not something you will want to do regularly, it is rather surprising how a simple reinstall can make your aging Mac feel brand new again. To keep your MacBook Air running smoothly, perform this reset every couple of years.
If you run into any issues with restoral contact Apple Support. Some users have reported a “No Bag Entry” error whenever trying to restore older software. If this happens; your MacBook Air is having trouble connecting to the App Store and therefore is unable to reinstall macOS.
You will want to make sure that your MacBook Air is connected to a strong wifi source. Users have reported that public wifi will not allow your MacBook to perform the restoral.
Conclusion
Alright, That was all Folks! I hope you guys like this article and find it helpful to you. Also if you guys have further queries related to this article. Then let us know in the comments section below. We will get back to you shortly.
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