Clean Installs

[bingefeller]

Hi guys,

I read on another forum that some people seem to do a clean install of Mac OS on their machines every year or so, whether they need it or not. I'd never heard of this before and thought that I'd ask here to see if this is common practice?

 

[miles01110]

Pointless, IMO. Clean installs are only needed if you're having major problems.

 

[rprebel]

It's a nice preventative measure, but kind of a pain in the neck. I'd rather fix problems as they come along.

Personal preference.

 

[someguy]

...whether they need it or not.

That right there should tell you there is no logic behind it.

 

[bingefeller]

That right there should tell you there is no logic behind it.

I know there's no logic behind it, I was just throwing the question out to get some opinions.

 

[someguy]

I know there's no logic behind it, I was just throwing the question out to get some opinions.

That's fine, but it's not really a matter of opinion. There is no need to do a clean install of any OS simply because of the elapsed time since it was last performed.

If you're having severe issues, it may come to that in rare and unfortunate situations. If you're not, don't fix what isn't broken.

 

[maflynn]

OSX is not like windows that you need to reinstall it over and over.

The only times I've reloaded OSX is when I'm replacing the drive or upgrading to a new version or bought a new mac and want to install the OS to my specifications not to what apple thinks I should have

 

[Hellhammer]

If you have no issues, then there is no point. It may be worth it if you have a lot apps and other crap installed and you want to get rid of them. The real way of doing a clean install is to start from a scratch, just transfer your data and then download and reinstall all apps you need, and only the ones you need. If you use TM backup, then it's nearly useless procedure as you would transfer all the crap back