i just bought a macbook pro and i want to do a clean install but it didn't come with the install disks. is there a way to do it without buying new disks?
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no install disks. help!
- Thread starter parkm13
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simsaladimbamba
Guest
You bought it used? You could get the Snow Leopard DVD for 29 $ and use that to do a clean installation. Otherwise you need to contact Apple to get the Restore DVDs, which include iLife. It should cost around the same as the Snow Leopard DVD.
ok so there is no way to get around it? would i be better off buying the box set that has iwork ilife and snow leopard?
simsaladimbamba
Guest
You could go the illegal way, but I think discussing it here is not allowed.
What MBP do you have and what Mac OS X version does it have?
simsaladimbamba
Guest
Then buying the Box Set would be a waste of money, as Apple will send you the Restore DVDs for 30 $ or so and if you want to upgrade to iLife '11, you only need to spend 50 $ (in the case, iLife '11 was not included with that MBP), making the purchase of both items at least 50 $ less expensive than the Mac Box Set.
it didnt come with ilife 11. so if i buy the restore disk ilife and iwork not in the set it will cost less?
simsaladimbamba
Guest
Ah, I forgot about iWork being included in the Mac Box Set. Strange though, that a one month old MBP does not come with the Restore DVDs. Did it at least come with the box?
Anyway, if you want iWork, iLife '11 and Mac OS X Snow Leopard, the Mac Box Set might be your best bet, but it may still use the retail version of Mac OS X 10.6.3, which is older than the version your MBP came with (10.6.4) and normally one can't install an older version of Mac OS X as the one that came with the Mac. What about creating a new Admin user and deleting the old account?
yeah it came with the box. the person i bought it from lost the disks. if i do make a new account then delete his will that get rid of everything he had on the mac or not?
I would go the less-than-legal route. But if it's only $30 from Apple, that's also a good option.
simsaladimbamba
Guest
It will get rid of everything the user had stored in its account, as all your personal files and settings/preferences are stored inside the user folder.
If the user stored information outside of the user folder, you might need to hunt it down, but that is rarely the case, unless the user didn't know how to use a Mac (likely).
It is safe to delete the other user folder, if you made sure, your user account is an admin account.
ok i will do that. i have another install disk somewhere from when i updated my imac. can i still use it if it had been used once before?
simsaladimbamba
Guest
Does the serial number on the box match with the serial umber shown in System Profiler? If not, it might be a case of stolen property.
not at all... if you wernt a nice person you could probably do bad things with what he left.. You could always try to call apple. I got them to send the disks for free. Just say your new mac didn't come with them 😉 Technically true.
Click apple then about this mac. Then click on system profiler.
Click the hardware tab. It is one of the lines toward the bottom.
GGJstudios
macrumors Westmere
You can also click > About This Mac and click on the line under Mac OS X until it shows the serial number. Clicking that line rotates between Build number, OS X version and Serial Number.
ok well that worked too. so im happy its not stolen. does anyone here want to mail me their install disk lol?
GGJstudios
macrumors Westmere
Grey install disks are specific to the model they shipped with. They will not work on other models.
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