BjoKib

BjoKib

Music producer that has worked as an apple service technician.

Install macOS Cleanly Can Solve Problems

Occasionally a clean install of macOS is the only thing that can solve problems with your Mac. This because it is difficult to pinpoint exactly whats causing issues with your system. In addition: if you have tried the suggestions in the articles below. Its probably time to try this last step: a clean install of macOS. I know the hassle to do this, especially if you have years of data laying around. Still, its probably less work to do a reinstall comparing to sending it off to someone. The positive aspect of doing this is that your system will feel fresh and new again.

Try the suggestions in these articles before you do a clean install. Or jump down to Preparing to install macOS to get started now.

Preparing to install macOS

There are things you should have ready or at least thought about before you embark on a clean install.

  • Backup your data, I suggest use an external hard-drive
  • Check App Compatibility
  • Have Install DVD, USB Stick or Internet Installation ready
  • Mac OS X Compatibility Guide (Supported macOS for your Mac)

Backup your data

This is a given, always backup your data. I assume you read this article because you want to solve a problem with your Mac. Therefore I won’t tell you to use time-machine to create your backup this time. My goal of this article is to get your reinstalled system to be as lean and untouched as possible while retaining as much as possible of your data. Although I recommend using time machine to do your backups. However, if you have a software issue with your system there is a risk that time machine brings that issue over to your new installation with its backup.

When your system is reinstalled, data copied over and made sure is working correctly. Then go ahead and start using Time Machine for your new backups.

For now, I want you to prepare an external hard drive, copy all of your personal data from your user folder (pictures, music, downloads, documents, desktop etc) over to that drive.

Amazon have a huge selection of cheap external hard drives. Make sure to get one with a little more capacity than your Macs drive. Disk utility, a tool in the /Applications/Utilities folder can show you the size of your internal drive. You might as well find it because you are going to use it later on if you follow this article.

In the backup, do not forget things such as browser bookmarks, notes, archived e-mails. Obscure apps you never are able to find again. If you have saved files outside of your user folder, make sure to include that as well.

Some applications are back-up-able by just coping the application file itself from the Applications folder. This usually works with simple apps. Software suites like Adobe or Microsoft Office often need to be re-installed again.

Check App Compatibility

Are you coming from an old version of Mac OS X and use older software you have to make sure the apps you want to use works on the version of macOS you plan to install. This is done with a quick google search. If not, you need to research and find out if there are new versions available. Or maybe there are some good open source alternatives available now.

Make sure you have original installation media for apps you are using, or have a way of getting hold of software before you initiate a clean install of macOS. Its not always as easy as just coping the application over unfortunately.

Install DVD, USB or Internet installation?

If your backup is ready now is the time to figure out how you should install macOS fresh. In my opinion a fresh install includes formatting your hard drive, wiping everything on it and starting the installation.

If your system is somewhat working, or if you have access to another Mac I would download the latest available installation from the App Store. I would close the installer that opens after downloading and create an installation USB stick using the free software: DiskMaker X. You will need an 8GB+ USB stick for this step. We don’t want to install macOS over an already problematic installation. We want to format, and do a clean install.

Make sure to unplug any backup hard drive connected to your Mac! Only connect the USB stick you just created. You don’t want to accidentally delete your backup drive when installing, right?

Restart your Mac while holding the Option (⌥) key down. After a while you should be able to start up from the usb stick you just created.

Erase and repartition your drive

When you are in the installation you should be able to find utilities and disk utility. From there you should create a new partition / wipe your hard drive.

install macOS disk utility

A Warning: Erasing your drive destroys all data on that drive. Make absolutely sure that your backup is alright. Again, remember to have your backup drive disconnected while you do this to prevent accidentally formatting your backup drive.

  • Click on View and select Show All Devices.
  • Click the device in the sidebar you want to format and click erase.
  • Give it a name, for example Macintosh HD.
  • In the map-popup menu select GUID Partition Map.
  • Click erase, then Done.

Exit out of disk utility and you can proceed with the installation of macOS.

Internet Recovery

You can initiate Internet recovery if you don’t have access to a working Mac or are unable to create USB stick. This installation routine will download the macOS version that came shipped with your Mac. Meaning if you want to upgrade to a newer version you will have to do that through App Store after installing via Internet Recovery. You can go ahead and upgrade directly from macOS at this time, after you have made a clean installation it should be fine.

To initiate an internet recovery: Restart, hold down the Command (⌘) – Option (⌥) – R key combination immediately upon restarting. When you see a spinning globe you can release the keys and let it load, it may take a good while as it has to download several GBs of data. I recommend doing this with an ethernet cable connected to your router if you can. It works on WiFi as well though.

Installation DVDs

You can buy the installation DVDs directly from Apple. As of this writing its still possible to buy Snow Leopard directly from Apple. Go to the online store and search for it. You can get installation DVDs from amazon and probably eBay as well.

To start up from a DVD you hold the C key pressed during startup. This tells the Mac to boot from the DVD.

Post Installation Steps

When you have created your user account and are inside a new, freshly installed system. The first thing you should do is to update your system by starting App Store, and let it update.

If your system is older, click the Apple symbol in the menubar and update from there.

When everything is up to date, and your system is running alright my recommendation is that you try using it for a while before copying over your backup. If things are running smoothly then you can go ahead and copy over your personal files and the data you backed up earlier.

Check again if you can access and use everything. If thats the case I recommend formatting the external drive you used, and configure it as a Time Machine backup drive instead.

When you have a new system up and running I recommend checking out the articles below:

2022

Good to Know Before Buying a Mac

Some things you should know before you buy a Mac. Computers are changing, and how we did things 10 years ago is not necessarily how we do things today.

Is Mac Studio Good for Music Production?

The Mac Studio can absolutely be used for music production. So long as the software and plugins you use are updated to take advantage of the M-based CPUs. Ma...

Rumor: New M2-based Macs on its way

According to several articles and rumors Apple is in the process of updating their M1 chip. It will likely be called M2 although its not confirmed. And be us...

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2021

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2020

How to Fix Issues with macOS Big Sur

So you installed the macOS Big Sur update hoping to enjoy the new features…but now you’re frustrated because all you seem to have are issues and problems – t...

Look out for new Macs on November 10 Event

Apple announced a new event this month. November 10 we will be gettings news about new Apple products. The event will probably be like we have seen the last ...

Look What Happens with the iPhone 12 Pro

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No 14-Inch MacBook Pro Yet, This is Why

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13-inch MacBook Pro Gets an Update Today

As rumored Apple released an update to the 13-Inch MacBook Pro. In November 2019 Apple released the 16 Inch MacBook Pro where they went back to the scissor k...

Test Front Page

## [14 Easy Ways To Speed Up a Painfully Slow Mac](https://all-about-apple.com/slow-mac-performance-this-article-solves-it/)

7 Ways to Fix MacBook Pro Overheating

MacBook overheating is often caused by software that stops responding. Its easy to check and fix by yourself. Also make sure to use the right Thunderbolt por...

Macs running Apple CPU in the future?

Update 29 Apr, 2020: So here we are again, I originally posted the article about Apple CPU in Macs on Oct 30, 2016. Sharing my thoughts on why Apple is going...

Spotlight for Windows? Try Wox

Apple doesn’t make spotlight for Windows, but the open source alternative Wox is a really good alternative.

16 Inch MacBook Pro Review: I Am Returning It

<span data-tt=”{“paragraphStyle”:{“alignment”:4,”writingDirection”:1},”font”:{“name”:””,”pointSize”:13}}”>This will probably be the last article I make...

Opening 12 Inch Retina MacBook Pro

In this video, I am opening the 12 Inch Retina Macbook Pro using the excellent iFixit Pro Tech Toolkit (affiliate link to Amazon). In this case, I had to rep...

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2019

16-Inch MacBook Pro Is Here

As rumoured, Apple released the 16-Inch MacBook Pro set to replace the 15-Inch model. Here are the most important new changes and features to this new laptop...

16-Inch MacBook Pro Could Appear Soon

According to images uncovered in a macOS catalina beta, it seems like Apple is working on a 16-Inch MacBook Pro. This was first uncovered by the blog: MacGen...

The $6000+ Mac Pro 2019 – My Thoughts

A 2019 Mac Pro is not on my shopping list mostly because of the price, but that doesnt mean I dont want it. Here are some of my thoughts about this computer ...

Install macOS on Older Unsupported Macs

With the free tool macOS Patcher from dosdude1.com its possible to install a version of macOS that your Mac officially doesn’t support. This is a video that ...

Flexgate – a new MacBook Pro Problem?

I don’t like to use that word, but since people are searching for it I guess I have to … flexgate. Apple may have a new big problem on their hands. That said...

AirPower may Release Soon

It has been a while now since Apple teased their charging mat for devices such as iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods. The release was anticipated in 2018 but du...

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2018

Install macOS Cleanly Can Solve Problems

Occasionally a clean install of macOS is the only thing that can solve problems with your Mac. This because it is difficult to pinpoint exactly whats causing...

iPad Pro 2018 may Come with A Slight Bend

If you notice a slight bend in your iPad Pro you should embrace it. The little bend adds to the character of the device and is an result of Apples highly adv...

Qualcomm and Apple isn’t exactly friends

Qualcomm was recently granted an injunction on iPhone 6s through iPhone X in China. The Fuzhou Intermediate People’s Court have decided that Apple violates t...

My favourite apps for macOS

My absolute favourite app for macOS has to be Magnet. Its a window manager for macOS that works in a lot of similar ways to the native Windows manager. Drag ...

2019 iPhone X Models Allegedly Uncovered

In a video we see the 2019 models of iPhone X Apple is planning to release at the end of this summer. Apple usually refresh their iPhones each year around th...

Nice Collection of 5k wallpaper

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2018 MacBook Pro Benchmark

John Poole the founder of primate labs that makes the benchmarking app Geekbench is getting more and more information about the performance of the new 2018 M...

2018 MacBook Pro Max Specs and Pricing

Apple just released their updated lineup of MacBook Pros for 2018. The design is the same compared to the earlier 2017 models with specs bumps as you would e...

Stellar Phoenix Mac Data Recovery

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macOS now has official support for eGPUs

With macOS 10.13.4 Apple introduced official support for eGPUs. A eGPU is a box that contains an graphics card, making it possible to do graphic intensive ta...

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2017

Preparing for macOS High Sierra Update

Apple will soon release their new version of macOS called High Sierra. This update will mostly focus on under the hood improvements and new / updated technol...

Setapp Educational Pricing Tier

Setapp have now released a new pricing tier for educational customers. An annual plan which equals to $4.99/mo. All you’ll need is a working EDU email.

Save Space On Your Mac: Try CloudMounter

I recently got the opportunity to try CloudMounter. Its a great little tool for users that have low space on their devices because it allows to mount Dropbox...

iPhone 7 Special Edition (PRODUCT RED)

iPhone 7 special edition (product red) was released by Apple today. If you buy a product in this category you support the fight against AIDS. A percentage of...

Unable to Type in Spotlight Search Bar

I am unable to type in the spotlight search bar occasionally. I can bring it up using the command + space shortcut. The input field appears as it should be d...

Windows Alternative to Mac Apps

What if you wanted to move away from the Mac ecosystem and go back to Windows? The applications you used in macOS, do they have good alternatives on Windows?

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2016

Super Mario Run for iPhone and iPad Out Now!

Are you ready to play the beloved Mario character on your iPad or iPhone? Super Mario Run was just released by Nintendo and is available from the App Store. ...

Remove Duplicate Files on Your Mac

I like keeping things tidy, both in my home and on my computers. A cluttered and unorganised life is undesirable. Even though I have good control of most asp...

Add Spacer To Your Macs Dock

To add a spacer to your Macs dock so that you can organise the icons a little better you just have to right click the dock and select add…. nope, sorry. Did ...

Restore 2016 MacBook Pro Startup Chime

With the release of the MacBook Pro in 2016 Apple also decided that the classic startup chime from 1999 had to go. If you are dealing with grief due to this ...

MacBook Pro Docking and USB-C Dongles

With Apples move to USB-C only on their laptops you may need some adapters until manufacturers hop on the far superior USB-C standard. The most basic adapter...

Print To PDF From Your Mac

You dont need third party software to create a PDF file from something you want to print. This functionality is built into macOS. If you have a document, web...

Lowest Mac Volume Still Too Loud?

Did you know you can lower the volume on your Mac even more? Without making it completely silent? If you hold the shift and alt key while pressing the volume...

Quickly Resize macOS Window Edge

Move the cursor (mouse pointer) to the edge of the window you want to maximize and make sure the pointer shows two arrows, then double click.

DFU Restore Mode on iPhone 7

If your restoration attempts using iTunes or apple configurator have failed you may have some luck trying a DFU Restore. This can also be helpful if your iPh...

iPhone 7 Plus Photos Edited From RAW

Photography is one of my hobbies and with the new 12 MP camera in the iPhone 7 Plus I was eager to try it out. Usually I haul my Nikon D810 full frame DSLR b...

macOS Upgrade Preparations

Usually doing a macOS upgrade is pretty much straightforward. With that said: it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.

2TB iCloud Storage Now Available for $19.99

Apple have silently upgraded their available iCloud storage tiers, adding 2TB storage as an option. 2TB is a lot of storage but with future high resolution v...

Seriously, Why Buy a Mac Computer?

Why buy a mac computer, a hotly debated topic where no one agrees, ever. I am going to dispel some myths that hopefully will help guide you on the right path.

When to Buy Mac? Not now!

When to buy a Mac is subjective. If you need a computer right now and can’t wait then now is the time you should buy it. With that said if you have some pati...

iPhone GPS Apps I Use

When the iPhone and App Store was new, the iPhone GPS apps available at that time felt somewhat bulky and expensive. Now I used Google Maps during our vacati...

How To Develop iPhone Apps Using Swift

Developing for the iPhone is fun and rewarding. Apple gives you the complete package you need to be successful for free. The only thing you need to bring is ...

Problems Installing Older OS X Versions?

I had to load an older OS X system onto one of our Macs at work but I couldn’t for the life of me get it to install. In this case it was OS X Mavericks but t...

Apple Recalls Duckhead Adapters

Apple recalls duckhead adapters sold with MacBook laptops and iPads. A design flaw that could potentially lead to electrical shock is the reason for this rec...

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2015

Mac Mini Server – Host Your Own Blog

Using a Mac Mini Server is a nice way to set up your very own home web server. You can for example set up and host your own free wordpress blog or make a gal...

Apple Repair Programs

Apple sometimes have repair programs for different products. Meaning they repair your product free of charge if it is covered.

How To Activate TRIM in OS X

If you have a third party SSD in your Mac it is now possible to activate TRIM support for that drive. It is built into the OS natively from Apple (from 10.10...

Hackintosh – Viable Long Term?

You may have heard about the Hackintosh community. A place where tech interested people come together to get their home built computer rigs running the lates...

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2014

Magic Mouse With Multi-Touch (Mini-Review)

Apple always want to redefine things and the way we use computers so they have the Magic Mouse with Multi-Touch capabilities. Instead of using mechanical but...

Yosemite fixes SMB problems?

I have had some issues with Windows file sharing between a desktop Windows 8.1 based PC and a Mavericks equipped Mac. I even wrote an article about it on ano...

Windows 10 or OS X? Both Please!

People discuss all the time whether they should use Windows or OS X. A lot of people have their own opinion about which OS is “the best” and discussions can ...

OS X Yosemite goes flat

Apple today revealed some information about their next big update to OS X. As the title says it will be named OS X Yosemite after the national park with the ...

Run Any Windows Game on your Mac

Now we have a good way to play almost any Windows game on your Mac. You don’t even need a dedicated GPU on your Mac because you are going to use other hardwa...

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2013

Setting Up iCloud Calendar for Family Use

I haven’t given up my dropbox account yet. Sometimes I just want to store some damn files without having to rely on some application. iCloud doesn’t work tha...

Free Mac Wallpaper for Retina Macs

Its not hard to find a free mac wallpaper today. Many websites gather a lot of them and offers them for download. You should also know that many of the image...

Give Your Mac the SSD Speed Boost

If you haven’t heard already giving your mac SSD may add a few more years to its lifetime. For regular use like surfing the web and doing some light photo wo...

Good Games for Macs, Yes They Exist

Sure! Games for Macs is not something non existent. In fact the Mac is gaining more and more support from game developers. As more people use products from A...

Considering Apple Computer Financing?

Use Apple Computer Financing if you don’t have the cash you need to pay for a new Apple product upfront. Remember that you often pay a lot more for the produ...

A Brief History of OSX

Here you have a little short history of OS X and the different releases during the years. This is a brief history where you learn about the major milestones ...

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2012

Playing Diablo 3 On Mac

Blizzard announced Diablo 3 in June 2008 although the development of this game first started in 2001. It was first released in 2012 and at the same time sett...

Readying Your Apple Mac Computer

Your apple mac computer is usually good to go after you have completed the initial setup and entered your details. Tweaking and adjusting things is not reall...

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2011

Age of Mythology For Mac

Age of Mythology is a RTS (Real Time Strategy) game available for Macs. If you are interested in mythology and like a good strategy game this is a safe bet g...

Finding The Best Mac Software Is Not Hard

A lot of the built in software is useful. It is nothing new that operating systems come with pre – installed applications, almost all of them do. With OS X i...

Mac Mini Mediacenter, Small & Easy HTPC

Using a mac mini mediacenter is one of the smartest move I have made. I have tried many different home theater solutions without being completely satisfied. ...

Problem Ejecting Your Macs DVD or CD?

Get that stuck DVD CD out Some are struggling with the fact that they have a CD that refuses to eject itself when you press the eject-button. This can be rat...

Use Mac Backup Software, Mac Backups

Let us find Mac Backup Software but remember that a Mac is just like a regular PC in so many ways. It has a hard drive, a motherboard, memory, CPU and so on....

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2010

Change The Timemachine Backup Interval

Apple doesn’t want us to change all settings in our os and the time machine backup interval is one of them. By default this backups your computer every singl...

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