How to back up and wipe your Mac

Jun 11, 2024 07:08 PM - 4 months ago 50708

As slick and polished arsenic macOS is, it tin slow down complete time, arsenic you adhd record aft record and programme aft programme to your Apple system. After a fewer years of dense use, nan thought of wiping your Mac and starting again from a factory-fresh cleanable slate starts to make much and much sense.

This isn’t conscionable thing to do if you want to clear retired nan clutter and hole persistent problems, though: resetting your Mac is besides important erstwhile you’re trading it aliases passing it on. You don’t want anyone other poking astir successful your files aliases your web browsing data, and a reset stops that from happening.

Resetting a Mac is reasonably straightforward, but you do request to make judge everything connected it is backed up earlier you get started (or astatine slightest everything you want to keep). You should already person backups successful place, but if you haven’t yet sewage astir to mounting them up, we’ll explicate what your options are up of moving a afloat reset.

How to backmost up macOS

There are plentifulness of ways to do this, truthful prime nan 1 that useful champion for you. Even better, prime two: strictly speaking, you should ever person a mates of copies of your astir important information — otherwise, if 1 of your backups goes down for immoderate reason, you’re near without a information net. As a result, putting together immoderate operation of unreality and section backups is usually a bully idea.

iCloud tin backmost up cardinal folders and app data.

Screenshot: Apple

iCloud is now nan default backup action for macOS, though you only get a measly 5GB of room for free, truthful you’ll astir apt person to upgrade to backmost up your full Mac: pricing starts astatine $0.99 per period for 50GB of space, and it covers photos, videos, and files saved to cardinal folders connected macOS.

You whitethorn person already configured iCloud erstwhile you first sewage your Mac and group it up. To get group up aliases make changes afterward:

  • Open nan Apple paper successful macOS.
  • Choose System Settings (macOS Ventura aliases later) aliases System Preferences, past click connected your name.
  • Select iCloud.
  • Make judge each nan apps that you want to sync to iCloud are doing so: click Show More Apps (or Show All) to spot nan afloat list.

At nan apical of nan screen, you tin spot really overmuch of your iCloud retention abstraction is being utilized and which types of files are utilizing up astir space. 

macOS besides offers Time Machine, which puts record backups connected section retention drives connected via cables aliases complete Wi-Fi:

  • From System Settings, prime General.
  • Choose Time Machine > Add Backup Disk.
  • Follow nan instructions to take a thrust and commencement backing up.

By default, hourly backups are kept for 24 hours, regular backups for nan past month, and play backups for months earlier that. To make changes to nan setup, click connected nan Time Machine icon connected nan paper barroom (it looks for illustration 2 timepiece hands pinch an arrow astir them).

Both iCloud and Time Machine should backmost up everything important connected your Mac, including files saved to nan desktop — conscionable make judge you’re utilizing nan designated folders connected your Mac for photos, videos, documents, and music.

You don’t person to spell pinch an Apple action for your backup. Tools for illustration Google Drive and Dropbox activity conscionable for illustration iCloud does, syncing circumstantial folders to nan web and updating changes arsenic soon arsenic they’re made. 

These options should mean you’re good covered successful position of having your information backed up, but it’s worthy doing a afloat audit earlier resetting your Mac. Can each your applications beryllium installed again from nan web? Are each your emails, messages, and section media libraries safely stored location else? Are each nan files successful nan folders they request to beryllium in?

Once you’ve verified that each your information is backed up location and tin beryllium brought backmost aft you’ve wiped your Mac, you’re fresh to return nan adjacent step.

How to reset macOS

Over nan years, Apple has gradually refined nan process of resetting your Mac, and thankfully, it’s now easier than it’s ever been: there’s moreover a friends Erase Assistant instrumentality to guideline you done nan process.

  • If you’re utilizing macOS Ventura aliases later, unfastened nan Apple paper and take System Settings (or System Preferences).
  • Click General, past Transfer aliases Reset.
  • Select Erase All Content and Settings to commencement nan assistant.

Along nan way, you’ll beryllium shown a summary of nan information you’re deleting and asked for your Apple ID password truthful you tin beryllium signed retired of each nan applicable apps and services (so this Mac is nary longer tied to your Apple ID).

The last surface you’ll spot will beryllium a dialog container pinch an Erase All Content & Settings fastener connected it: erstwhile you click this, there’s nary going back. Your Mac will beryllium securely wiped and past restarted, and nan setup surface will look arsenic if you were mounting it up for nan first time.

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