I accidentally deleted my mac hard drive and my mac won't work

[Cybrax-etc]

I have a imac from mid 2011 with 8 GB Memory & 3 TB Hard Drive running Mac OS X 10.10.5.

Since yesterday my mac will boot and then shut down. So I went to Mac OS utilities and went to disk and accidentally deleted my 3TB hard drive. Then I wanted to get a fresh copy of Yosemite and it is asking me to choose a disk, there is no disk to choose. Since I accidentally deleted it!

PLEASE HELP! I HAVE NO BACKUPS OR ANYTHING!

 

[Audit13]

Boot into I'm internet recovery to download and install the OS.

Access internet recovery by pressing command+option+r during right after hearing the chime.

 

[Cybrax-etc]

Boot into I'm internet recovery to download and install the OS.

Access internet recovery by pressing command+option+r during right after hearing the chime.

Thanks but I have a windows keyboard for my mac from Logitech and to use the command I use the windows icon so what do I use for the option for the keyboard?

 

[Audit13]

Use the same windows key and see what happens.

 

[CoastalOR]

Thanks but I have a windows keyboard for my mac from Logitech and to use the command I use the windows icon so what do I use for the option for the keyboard?

Mac Option = Windows Alt
Mac key = Windows key
Control = Ctrl
Option = Alt
Command (four leaf clover) = Windows
Delete = Backspace
Return = Enter

 

[Cybrax-etc]

Mac Option = Windows Alt
Mac key = Windows key
Control = Ctrl
Option = Alt
Command (four leaf clover) = Windows
Delete = Backspace
Return = Enter

Thanks
[doublepost=1506285463][/doublepost]

Use the same windows key and see what happens.

When I do the internet recovery does it reset my data, because I have a final cut pro x project that i have been working on for months.

 

[hallux]

Thanks
[doublepost=1506285463][/doublepost]

When I do the internet recovery does it reset my data, because I have a final cut pro x project that i have been working on for months.

No. In fact - if you reinstall the OS you risk corrupting any data that has even a chance of being recoverable on the drive.

 

[Cybrax-etc]

Thanks

 

[Mac03ForLife]

Well... First thing I would say is that accidents happen.... I would take your HDD to a computer shop near your house (Micro Center will do), and have them do a restore on it. I dont exactly know what they do, but it does work, and you should be able to get your data off and into a USB drive, or other SATA drive of your choosing.

Then, have them format the drive, (of if you have a SATA to USB cable you can do it yourself using Disk Utility on the Mac (if you have another one).).

Then, reinstall the OS, and you're golden.

Happy Mac-ing!

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

Once you get up-and-running again, I suggest you do this:
1. Get a USB3 backup drive
2. Get CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper
3. Use CCC or SD to create a cloned backup up your drive.
4. Keep it handy.

Do this, and it will save you a lot of trouble in the future.

 

[ZapNZs]

If you want to recover files that you deleted, stop using the drive IMMEDIATELY.

The more you do with this drive, the less likely these files will be recoverable. If you reinstall OS X on this drive after deleting the files, you are going to make it that much harder to get your files back (if you do not have a backup on a second drive.)

 

[spooklog]

It would help me figure out what's going on if you describe exactly what you see in drive utility--or better yet post a screenshot. Normally it isn't possible to delete a hard drive. Thanks.

 

[Cybrax-etc]

Boot into I'm internet recovery to download and install the OS.

Access internet recovery by pressing command+option+r during right after hearing the chime.

After I go to internet recovery it took me to a mac os 10.7 format mac os utilites to install lion or the other options. Do I have any chance of recovering my data if I install os x lion

[doublepost=1506389519][/doublepost]After I go to internet recovery it took me to a mac os 10.7 format mac os utilites to install lion or the other options

[doublepost=1506389578][/doublepost]After I go to internet recovery it took me to a mac os 10.7 format mac os utilites to install lion or the other options

[doublepost=1506389658][/doublepost]

If you want to recover files that you deleted, stop using the drive IMMEDIATELY.

The more you do with this drive, the less likely these files will be recoverable. If you reinstall OS X on this drive after deleting the files, you are going to make it that much harder to get your files back (if you do not have a backup on a second drive.)

After I go to internet recovery it took me to a mac os 10.7 format mac os utilites to install lion or the other options. Can I recover my data at this stage because i have a final cut project that i have been working on since 2 months

 

[Cybrax-etc]

I have a imac from mid 2011 with 8 GB Memory & 3 TB Hard Drive running Mac OS X 10.10.5.

My mac wasn't booting so I went to internet recovery mode and it went to Mac OS Lion based utilities and a while later it shows ? mark! Help

Previous thread : https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...-mac-hard-drive-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/
[doublepost=1506392589][/doublepost]

I have a imac from mid 2011 with 8 GB Memory & 3 TB Hard Drive running Mac OS X 10.10.5.

My mac wasn't booting so I went to internet recovery mode and it went to Mac OS Lion based utilities and a while later it shows ? mark! Help

Previous thread : https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...-mac-hard-drive-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/

Mac OS Utilities image that pop upped after internet recovery

 

[DeltaMac]

Internet recovery does not boot to your hard drive.
As you have the intermittent flashing folder, and a shut down --- those issues may mean that your hard drive is failing.
I hope you have a good backup of your drive.

If you can boot to your recovery system partition (booting with Command+r), that should offer a reinstall of your current system (10.10.5?). If you CAN'T boot to your recovery system, that may be another symptom of a failing hard drive.

Booting to internet recovery will give you the choice to reinstall the system which originally shipped with your iMac - Lion.
If you CAN install Lion, then you may possibly be able to update to Yosemite again. That will assume that you have a bootable drive with the Yosemite installer - or you can download the Yosemite installer app, which should be available to you in the App Store/Purchased tab, assuming that you "bought" Yosemite through the App store when it was still the current system. You also COULD get a bootable Yosemite installer on a USB thumb drive. Several eBay sellers offer those for purchase.

 

[jem101]

Cybrax-etc

Whatever you do, if you want any chance of ever getting your data back - DON"T TRY A RECOVERY!
and I apologise for the shouting - but it really is important.

The internet recovery option downloads the version of the OS which was originally shipped with your iMac (Lion would be about right), it will install and then your iMac will be exactly as it was when you first unboxed it, no user account, no applications, and certainly no data!

What needs to be done is the iMac should be booted off an additional (external) boot disk and recovery tools run on it to see what they can salvage from the internal drive. The more you try to reinstall the OS, the less chance there is of anything being recoverable - hence all the advise above about leaving it alone.

You'll probably need to take the whole iMac somewhere (getting the drive out is not an easy job), where they have the tools and expertise to do this. Once they have recovered what data they can, then you can go ahead and clean-reinstall the OS on the machine, set up your account, install the applications, put your data back etc.

And then, in the name of all that's holy, get yourself an external disk and set up the Time Machine backups, because it absolutely will happen again at some point.

Since you originally said that your Mac kept shutting down soon after a reboot, I am curious as to what you wee doing with the Disk Utility, and I'm also not sure how you can delete your boot volume using it - but I suppose stranger things have happened.

Good luck

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

After I go to internet recovery it took me to a mac os 10.7 format mac os utilites to install lion or the other options. Do I have any chance of recovering my data if I install os x lion

Get another Mac, and put your iMac in target mode with a Firewire or Thunderbolt (Can't remember if that model has it) cable. Then get your stuff out, safe and sound.

 

[ZapNZs]

After I go to internet recovery it took me to a mac os 10.7 format mac os utilites to install lion or the other options. Can I recover my data at this stage because i have a final cut project that i have been working on since 2 months

No, you can NOT recover data at this stage if you erased the drive (can you tell us exactly what you did to "delete" it?) Continuing to use the computer can result in an increasingly lesser chance of recovering the files & a higher recovery bill.

If this project is important and financially valuable, I suggest you stop using the computer immediately and seek professional data recovery services (that is, you remove [or have someone remove] the hard drive from your iMac, send the hard drive to a data recovery firm, and the firm recovers the data and sends it to you on a separate external hard drive.) The more you use the system, the less chance of success and more expensive the recovery can be. You could be looking at anywhere from $200 to $4,000, depending on what has happened. If this is a high-dollar project, this is a justifiable expense. As DeltaMac noted, your hard drive may be failing or have failed - given it's age is at the point where failure rates increase and all of these issues, it is probably wise to replace it. If this is the case, you again need professional data recovery services. You will also need to replace the failing hard drive with a new one.

Because we still are not clear on exactly what you did in erasing the drive, I highly recommend having a professional do this work if the files are important.

Here is a Proposed Plan-Of-Action:

1. Determine what actually happened -- When you say you 'deleted' the hard drive, what exactly did you do? (did you erase it in Disk Utility? - tell us what you did step-by-step)
2. Determining if the hard drive has failed -- you can take the system to an Apple Authorized Service Provider who can perform SMART diagnostics on the drive and determine if this is a case of accidental deletion, or accidental deletion combined with physical disk failure. They will also give you a spot analysis on your options for recovery.
3. Determining if anything else is wrong with the iMac -- the AASP can run a diagnostic on the machine to check for other causes of failure
4. Data Recovery -- removing the drive from the iMac, sending it out for recovery, and getting your files back
5. Fixing the iMac -- replacing the hard drive with a new drive, reinstall OS X
6. Implementing a proper backup solution -- most likely, this is either going to cost a lot of money to recover your files, or you will have to accept the data loss (and income/productivity loss that comes with it.) A good backup solution will ensure you never have to deal with this again, such as using Time Machine or Carbon Copy Cloner with an external disk drive. One copy of your important files is a huge gamble. Two copies of your important files are good. Three copies are golden, and provide wider spectrum coverage against the many different causes of data loss.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:
Be aware that if you take the advice given above, about "professional data recovery", it could well run into the thousands of dollars.
Is the data on the drive really worth that much to you?

I recommend that you do this:

1. You're going to have to get ahold of an external drive that can boot your Mac to the finder. If you don't have a "second Mac" with which to make one, you'd best go to an "independent Apple service provider" (NOT an "Apple Store", I don't think they'll help), and ask the tech there to create a bootable external drive with OS 10.11 on it.
2. Now, take the bootable drive to YOUR iMac and connect it.
3. Press the power-on button and IMMEDIATELY hold down the option key and KEEP HOLDING IT DOWN
4. The startup manager will appear. Use the mouse pointer to select the EXTERNAL drive, and hit return.
5. Does the iMac now boot from the external drive? If the internal drive is the only problem, it should.
6. When you get to the finder, can you "see" the internal drive? Does it mount on the desktop?

IF you can get this far and IF you can see the internal drive, you -may- be able to copy your important data from it to another drive (either the external boot drive, or a USB flash drive, or SOMEWHERE ELSE).

IF you CAN'T "see the drive" at this point, other measures may be needed.

But you need to do the above FIRST, before you can expect to get anywhere else.

And again -- all the time that you're doing this -- keep this word in the back of your mind:
"BACKUP"...

 

[Cybrax-etc]

Big thanks to everyone who helped. The only solution to this problem is to go to internet recovery mode and reinstall original OS (lion) and then upgrade from there. Looks like my data and final cut project data is gone, because if I was to recover this data it seems to be costly to recover the drive and the data isn't that valuable plus I got the footage.

DETAILED EXPLANATION ON WHAT HAPPENED

I turned my mac and immediately turned it off then booted the mac later (a day or two later ). When I turned it on it loaded halfway and got stayed there then shut down.
So I went to recovery mode/ mac os utilites and tried to burn drive and reinstall fresh copy of os (yosemite), but all failed and somehow deleted hard drive .

Then I went to MacForums and got advice to do internet recovery mode, and then showed up a mac os lion based mac utilites. I later went down to eat dinner and my mac was shut down and then I booted it back and showed a folder with ?. So now I'm here and later gonna reinstall original os lion and then upgrade to El Captain. Then desperately work on final cut project like crazy and finish it in 3 days,

 

[Cybrax-etc]

Trying to install Mac OS Lion from internet recovery mode & I get this message. Help! Any Ideas or Solutions ?

[doublepost=1506828308][/doublepost]

OP:
Be aware that if you take the advice given above, about "professional data recovery", it could well run into the thousands of dollars.
Is the data on the drive really worth that much to you?

I recommend that you do this:

1. You're going to have to get ahold of an external drive that can boot your Mac to the finder. If you don't have a "second Mac" with which to make one, you'd best go to an "independent Apple service provider" (NOT an "Apple Store", I don't think they'll help), and ask the tech there to create a bootable external drive with OS 10.11 on it.
2. Now, take the bootable drive to YOUR iMac and connect it.
3. Press the power-on button and IMMEDIATELY hold down the option key and KEEP HOLDING IT DOWN
4. The startup manager will appear. Use the mouse pointer to select the EXTERNAL drive, and hit return.
5. Does the iMac now boot from the external drive? If the internal drive is the only problem, it should.
6. When you get to the finder, can you "see" the internal drive? Does it mount on the desktop?

IF you can get this far and IF you can see the internal drive, you -may- be able to copy your important data from it to another drive (either the external boot drive, or a USB flash drive, or SOMEWHERE ELSE).

IF you CAN'T "see the drive" at this point, other measures may be needed.

But you need to do the above FIRST, before you can expect to get anywhere else.

And again -- all the time that you're doing this -- keep this word in the back of your mind:
"BACKUP"...

Help: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...e-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/#post-25153433
[doublepost=1506828395][/doublepost]

No, you can NOT recover data at this stage if you erased the drive (can you tell us exactly what you did to "delete" it?) Continuing to use the computer can result in an increasingly lesser chance of recovering the files & a higher recovery bill.

If this project is important and financially valuable, I suggest you stop using the computer immediately and seek professional data recovery services (that is, you remove [or have someone remove] the hard drive from your iMac, send the hard drive to a data recovery firm, and the firm recovers the data and sends it to you on a separate external hard drive.) The more you use the system, the less chance of success and more expensive the recovery can be. You could be looking at anywhere from $200 to $4,000, depending on what has happened. If this is a high-dollar project, this is a justifiable expense. As DeltaMac noted, your hard drive may be failing or have failed - given it's age is at the point where failure rates increase and all of these issues, it is probably wise to replace it. If this is the case, you again need professional data recovery services. You will also need to replace the failing hard drive with a new one.

Because we still are not clear on exactly what you did in erasing the drive, I highly recommend having a professional do this work if the files are important.

Here is a Proposed Plan-Of-Action:

1. Determine what actually happened -- When you say you 'deleted' the hard drive, what exactly did you do? (did you erase it in Disk Utility? - tell us what you did step-by-step)
2. Determining if the hard drive has failed -- you can take the system to an Apple Authorized Service Provider who can perform SMART diagnostics on the drive and determine if this is a case of accidental deletion, or accidental deletion combined with physical disk failure. They will also give you a spot analysis on your options for recovery.
3. Determining if anything else is wrong with the iMac -- the AASP can run a diagnostic on the machine to check for other causes of failure
4. Data Recovery -- removing the drive from the iMac, sending it out for recovery, and getting your files back
5. Fixing the iMac -- replacing the hard drive with a new drive, reinstall OS X
6. Implementing a proper backup solution -- most likely, this is either going to cost a lot of money to recover your files, or you will have to accept the data loss (and income/productivity loss that comes with it.) A good backup solution will ensure you never have to deal with this again, such as using Time Machine or Carbon Copy Cloner with an external disk drive. One copy of your important files is a huge gamble. Two copies of your important files are good. Three copies are golden, and provide wider spectrum coverage against the many different causes of data loss.

Help: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...e-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/#post-25153433
[doublepost=1506828451][/doublepost]

Internet recovery does not boot to your hard drive.
As you have the intermittent flashing folder, and a shut down --- those issues may mean that your hard drive is failing.
I hope you have a good backup of your drive.

If you can boot to your recovery system partition (booting with Command+r), that should offer a reinstall of your current system (10.10.5?). If you CAN'T boot to your recovery system, that may be another symptom of a failing hard drive.

Booting to internet recovery will give you the choice to reinstall the system which originally shipped with your iMac - Lion.
If you CAN install Lion, then you may possibly be able to update to Yosemite again. That will assume that you have a bootable drive with the Yosemite installer - or you can download the Yosemite installer app, which should be available to you in the App Store/Purchased tab, assuming that you "bought" Yosemite through the App store when it was still the current system. You also COULD get a bootable Yosemite installer on a USB thumb drive. Several eBay sellers offer those for purchase.

Help: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...e-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/#post-25153433
[doublepost=1506828519][/doublepost]

No. In fact - if you reinstall the OS you risk corrupting any data that has even a chance of being recoverable on the drive.

Help: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...e-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/#post-25153433
[doublepost=1506828567][/doublepost]

Boot into I'm internet recovery to download and install the OS.

Access internet recovery by pressing command+option+r during right after hearing the chime.

Help: https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...e-and-my-mac-wont-work.2071684/#post-25153433

 

[ZapNZs]

I believe this has to do with your account not being associated with the version of macOS you wish to install. In order to continue, I believe you need to log into the AppleID that was associated with the computer when it was new (it's been a while since I've used Lion so I might be wrong.)

Alternatively, you can make a bootable installer on another Mac, where you create a flash drive with OS X, then put it in the Mac you wish to do the install on, boot into the flash drive, and install OS X onto that Mac's hard drive.

(Of course, if the hard drive is failing, you are still going to have issues even if you can get it installed.)

 

[DeltaMac]

Purchase Lion from Apple.
You can do that from this link.

You get a redemption code that you can use at the App Store, when you can download the installer app.
Use the app to create a bootable USB installer.
Boot to that installer. Erase your drive with Disk Utility. Reinstall OS X.
Done. (except for the likely problem with a failing hard drive, of course)

 

[teidon]

One thing OP could do is to restore the partition table to what it used to be. As his machine has been in unusable state, I believe all the data are still intact - just not accessible because the partition information was deleted by the user. Re-creating the partition with the exact same settings as the original would restore everything back to the state they were before the partition was deleted. You could use a live Linux that comes with an application called TestDisk. That could be used to restore the partition but using it requires some computer skills and/or a good How-To.

But if the partition doesn't contain anything useful, an easier solution is to create USB install media and just reinstall the OS. You can download macOS installers (for example High Sierra) from Apple and create the USB install media either on Mac or Windows.

 

[Cybrax-etc]

I believe this has to do with your account not being associated with the version of macOS you wish to install. In order to continue, I believe you need to log into the AppleID that was associated with the computer when it was new (it's been a while since I've used Lion so I might be wrong.)

Alternatively, you can make a bootable installer on another Mac, where you create a flash drive with OS X, then put it in the Mac you wish to do the install on, boot into the flash drive, and install OS X onto that Mac's hard drive.

(Of course, if the hard drive is failing, you are still going to have issues even if you can get it installed.)

Thanks but Mac Os Lion is $19.99 all the older os cost money. Since Apple made a promise to free upgrades the new os are free, so i was wondering if could make a bootable El Captain or Yosemite installer instead of paying for lion?
[doublepost=1506866045][/doublepost]

Purchase Lion from Apple.
You can do that from this link.

You get a redemption code that you can use at the App Store, when you can download the installer app.
Use the app to create a bootable USB installer.
Boot to that installer. Erase your drive with Disk Utility. Reinstall OS X.
Done. (except for the likely problem with a failing hard drive, of course)

Thanks but Mac Os Lion is $19.99 all the older os cost money. Since Apple made a promise to free upgrades the new os are free, so i was wondering if could make a bootable El Captain or Yosemite installer instead of paying for lion?
[doublepost=1506866107][/doublepost]

One thing OP could do is to restore the partition table to what it used to be. As his machine has been in unusable state, I believe all the data are still intact - just not accessible because the partition information was deleted by the user. Re-creating the partition with the exact same settings as the original would restore everything back to the state they were before the partition was deleted. You could use a live Linux that comes with an application called TestDisk. That could be used to restore the partition but using it requires some computer skills and/or a good How-To.

But if the partition doesn't contain anything useful, an easier solution is to create USB install media and just reinstall the OS. You can download macOS installers (for example High Sierra) from Apple and create the USB install media either on Mac or Windows.

Thanks but Mac Os Lion is $19.99 all the older os cost money. Since Apple made a promise to free upgrades the new os are free, so i was wondering if could make a bootable El Captain or Yosemite installer instead of paying for lion?