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Formatting the Hard Drive

G

gilad50303

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 11, 2009
9
0
Hey everyone,
I'm selling my old white Macbook so I can purchase the new Unibody one. I wasn't sure how exactly to "wipe" my old hard drive on Mac. Do I have to install the OS all over again? Did my Macbook come with the disc so I could do this? If not, is there a way to wipe everything without formatting the hard drive?
Thanks!
 
Use the gray discs that came with it. You can Erase and Install the OS again, and it will be fresh for the buyer.
 
Yes, to wipe ur Harddrive(if thats really what you want to do, cause they will have to install the OS themselves from scratch), Boot into your Restore Dvd that came with your computer select your language etc, but before you do anything there, click the Utilitys menu in the Menubar and select Disk Utility.
Select Your Harddrive from the sidebar of Disk util, and from there click the Erase tab. Make sure its on Mac OS X Extended (Journaled)
 
Thanks for the help guys. I won't have to purchase the OS all over again right? The grey discs, they'll have everything to wipe it, but also will put the OS back on the computer right? Not just wipe it and that's it I hope.
Thanks!
 
the way i said, just wipes the HDD. It reinstalls nothing. if you want to reinstall (and wipe in the process), just boot into the disks, and follow the instructions on the screen that it gives you.
 
Thanks guys that helps a lot. When should I insert the discs? Can I start them while my computer is running or boot them up like you said? When I boot them up are there any keys I have to press?

Thanks again,
 
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