When you want to give away or sell your Mac, ensure that you have its disk wiped out. This is a mandatory step to ensure that all your data is erased and there is no chance of compromise on your personal information. This may also be a requirement when you just want to start your Mac from scratch.
We have curated a step-by-step guide that will help you wipe your Mac disk securely.
Backup Your Data:
- The most important step is ensuring you have all your data backed up safely. Move up all your data to the cloud or another drive that you have handy.
Deauthorize Your iTunes Account:
- Now, navigate and open iTunes. Click on the Account menu, navigate to Authorizations, and select it,
- Under Authorizations, choose the Deauthorize This Computer option.
Sign Out of iCloud:
- To sign out of iCloud, navigate to System Preferences, select Apple ID, and then select iCloud.
- You will find the Sign Out button. Click on it.
Restart Your Mac in Recovery Mode:
- Now, restart your Mac. As soon as it starts restarting, press the Command + R keys until you find the Apple logo appearing.
Access Disk Utility:
- Your Mac is now in Recovery Mode. Here, select the Disk Utility option from the macOS Utilities window.
- Click on Continue.
Select the Drive You Want to Erase:
- In Disk Utility, on the left, you will find a list of all the available drives of your Mac.
- Select the drive you want to erase.
Choose Erase Option:
- After selecting the disk, click on the Erase button.
- You can find this located at the top of the Disk Utility window.
Configure Erase Settings:
- In this step, you must provide a few configuration details to erase your disk.
- You will have to start by providing a name for the chosen disk, and you will have to choose the format, which is usually Mac OS Extended or APFS. You must also give the scheme, usually the GUID Partition Map.
Optional: Secure Erase
- This step is optional. To ensure added security, you can erase your data securely.
- Just click on Security Options and glide the slider to the desired level of security.
Please note that the more further you glide the slider, the higher the security level. More security level takes more time to complete.
Confirm and Erase:
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- Now, click on the Erase option to begin the process of erasing your data. The time taken for this step depends on the size of the drive you have selected and the security level that you have customized.
Reinstall macOS (If Necessary):
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- To prepare your Mac for a new user, you must reinstall the macOS. For this, exit the Quit Disk Utility, navigate to macOS Utilities, and choose the Install macOS option.
Follow On-Screen Instructions:
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- You will be shown some installation steps. Just follow them and complete the installation of macOS.
Turn Off Your Mac:
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After the installation process is completed, shut down your Mac. Go to the Apple menu and select the shutdown option.
Follow the above-mentioned steps carefully to ensure that you can securely wipe your Mac drive of all its data before you consider handing it over to someone else.
