Security while in apple repair shop.

[Davidharry]

This point has been in my mind for some time.Regarding if the time does arrive that my MacBook Air might have to go to a apple store or even sent away for repair.
Not long after I had this MacBook I hat to take it to my local apple store for a WiFi fault,as it was then I had nothing much of important on the MacBook.
But as time has moved on I have some important private documents and some other info that is also private.what would be the best way to overcome this situation if ever a time comes again that I have to take it to apple repair centre,Some advice would put my mind at rest of what does one do to protect the private items.
One reply I had from a friend was to delete all the items on the hdd to an external hdd,that sounds a bit much of a major problem.
Any help Please. To put my mind to rest.
David.

 

[Apple fanboy]

This point has been in my mind for some time.Regarding if the time does arrive that my MacBook Air might have to go to a apple store or even sent away for repair.
Not long after I had this MacBook I hat to take it to my local apple store for a WiFi fault,as it was then I had nothing much of important on the MacBook.
But as time has moved on I have some important private documents and some other info that is also private.what would be the best way to overcome this situation if ever a time comes again that I have to take it to apple repair centre,Some advice would put my mind at rest of what does one do to protect the private items.
One reply I had from a friend was to delete all the items on the hdd to an external hdd,that sounds a bit much of a major problem.
Any help Please. To put my mind to rest.
David.

Encrypt the data? But making a copy to an external HD should be part of your back up strategy anyway.
So removing the sensitive data from your Mac prior to repair isn't that big of a hassle.
Of course if your Mac isn't working, you might not have that as an option!

But I also doubt the technicians are looking through your stuff.

 

[Davidharry]

Encrypt the data? But making a copy to an external HD should be part of your back up strategy anyway.

Regarding backup. I do use the time machine on a regular bases.
Encrypt the data. Could you please give me some info on this method Please.
Many Thanks.David.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Regarding backup. I do use the time machine on a regular bases.
Encrypt the data. Could you please give me some info on this method Please.
Many Thanks.David.

Here you go.
https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT204837

I think Apple use a guest account when they test your hardware.

 

[Davidharry]

Many thanks will have a good look at that later on this afternoon.

I notice your Behind the lens,UK. I'm near Swansea.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Many thanks will have a good look at that later on this afternoon.

I notice your Behind the lens,UK. I'm near Swansea.

Near Birmingham. There's quite a few British guys on here.

 

[saulinpa]

I think Apple use a guest account when they test your hardware.

Apple service has always asked for password. I suppose you could create a separate guest account now for possible future issues.

 

[Boyd01]

Use a program like Carbon Copy Cloner to make an exact, bootable copy of your computer - you should be doing this regularly anyway. Then if you need to have it repaired, erase the disk and restore it when you get it back.

 

[Davidharry]

many thanks all for the info.
Regarding the Carbon Copy Cloner where would be the best place to get it from and is it easy to use.
Thanks David.

 

[MacDawg]

many thanks all for the info.
Regarding the Carbon Copy Cloner where would be the best place to get it from and is it easy to use.
Thanks David.

You can find it here:
https://bombich.com

And yes it is very easy to use

 

[Davidharry]

Thanks. Had a look at the software looks fine also looked on google on how to use it.
But can't find the solution to reinstall from an external drive if something goes wrong with the original internal ssd.
Any further info Please. Will leave you in peace then.
Thanks once again.David.

 

[saulinpa]

Apple's solution is to use Time Machine backups. Then when you get a new SSD do an Internet Recovery to re-install MacOS. At the end of the install it prompts to restore user data and programs from a backup.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201250

 

[MSastre]

Thanks. Had a look at the software looks fine also looked on google on how to use it.
But can't find the solution to reinstall from an external drive if something goes wrong with the original internal ssd.
Any further info Please. Will leave you in peace then.
Thanks once again.David.

CarbonCopyCloner makes a bootable clone of your drive, so if you need to restore your original one, you boot up from the clone, then again using CCC, copy the clone to your internal drive. Simple.

 

[Davidharry]

Okay for all that info.
I,m all new to this MacBook setup, Please bare with me for a while. I can understand the clone part of the original internal to an external hdd. Got that and understood.
now to the bit I,m not quite with. After I make the clone then reformat the original to cure any faults that I had with it,How do I get to get the clone back to the internal from the external hdd.Thats the bit I don't follow.
Sorry to sound dull I'm a late starter at 68years old.
Thanks David.

 

[Boyd01]

As @MSastre said, you first make a bootable clone. If you hold down the option key when you turn on the computer, it will let you choose the startup disk. Choose your clone and it will then be running from the external disk. Now you can simply run Carbon Copy and use it to clone the external drive back to the internal SSD.

But you have a new computer that works fine, so just use it and be happy. Most likely you will never need to do any of this. But it is a good idea to make a bootable clone and update it regularly - just in case. BTW, I am also 68 but have been using computers since 1967, got an Apple ][ in 1978 and my first Mac in 1985.

 

[Davidharry]

Thank You very much for that. That I understood Got it in one.
Many thanks very much appreciated . David.

 

[Davidharry]

Just did a clone of my MacBook using the carbon copy clone. It was straight forward enough for a new guy like me.
Lets hope I won't need it.
thanks for all your help.
David.

 

[MSastre]

Thank You very much for that. That I understood Got it in one.
Many thanks very much appreciated . David.

I said the same thing but may have been too succinct in my reply. I'm 74 btw. Before doing any major upgrades of system or programs, it's always a good idea to update your clone first. Then if any upgrades or updates cause a problem you can easily get back to where you were before by using the clone. Much faster than TM.

 

[lehrblogger]

I use both Time Machine and Carbon Copy Cloner to make backups of my computer to external hard drives, and I think the suggestions above are good. As a matter of best practice, I like to have at least two copies of my data on physically distinct hard drives at any given time, in case one drive were to suddenly break. That means that, if I'm going to erase my computer hard drive for any reason, I would want a back up on not one, but two, external drives, at least until I'm able to restore.

If there's only a few files and folders that you consider to be private, you might consider keeping them in an "encrypted disk image" as described by Apple here. While the term sounds pretty technical, you can simple think of one as a folder that requires a password to open. Then when you're done, you eject the folder (the "mounted" disk image) like you would any other drive. That would allow you to grant someone access to your computer while still protecting your private files.

 

[Cobalt50]

Just sent my MacBook in for a repair. These guys have it right. I made a clone of my HD with CCC. I reinstalled the OS on my machine and sent it in. (If you have Filevault enabled that is all you have to do). When the MacBook came back I used Migration Assistant to draw the data off the external clone.