In this article, you discover all you need to know to install or reinstall OS X, if you should have to.Reinstalling is a hassle because although you won’t lose the contents of your Home folder, applications you’ve installed, or the stuff in your Documents folder (unless something goes horribly wrong or you have to reformat your hard drive.
Apr 18, 2020 Mac OS X 10.5 - Leopard Mac OS X 10.6 - Snow Leopard. Step 2: Launch Remo Recover (Mac) wizard and click on the Recover Volumes/Drives button. Select the hard disk drive/volume from where you want to recover data and click Next. Step 3: The software deep scans the drive and displays all recovered data from it.Go through the list of recovered files and Preview them. Apr 23, 2020 Here you go, now you know how to reinstall Mac OS X, speed up your Mac with CleanMyMac X, do proper backups with Get Backup Pro, and even recover lost files with Disk Drill. Best of all, you can try CleanMyMac X, Get Backup Pro, and Disk Drill absolutely free for seven days via Setapp, a platform with more than 170 cool macOS utilities. Make sure that your Mac is half or fully charged before you go for reinstalling macOS. Also, ensure that your system is connected to a reliable and strong internet connection. Use Recoverit data recovery software for Mac if you end up losing your files. The software can help you to recover lost files after reinstalling Mac OS X. Dec 26, 2017 Step Three: Reinstall macOS. With your information wipe complete, you are now ready to reinstall macOS. If you booted from a functioning recovery partition, click the “Reinstall macOS” button. The installation process will begin. If you booted from an. Oct 10, 2012 Question: Q: If I reinstall osx will I lose my data? IMac, Mac OS X (10.5.8) Posted on Oct 9, 2012 9:51 PM. Reply I have this question too (437) I have this question too Me too (437) Me too. All replies Drop Down menu. First Page 1 of 1 Page 1/1 last Loading page content.
macOS Mojave is here and by now you may have installed it and started playing with some of its new features, like the new Continuity Camera that lets you use your iPhone as a scanner on your Mac, or the new Gallery view in Finder, or maybe the new screenshot tools.
However, it’s also possible, given that macOS Mojave is a very new release and still being fine tuned by Apple, that you’ve run into problems and need to reinstall. Thankfully, that’s very easy to do. Before we get to that, however, it’s worth eliminating one other possible cause of the problems you may be experiencing.
When you install an OS on top of another OS, and then do the same the following year when the next version comes out, your Mac accumulates lots and lots of files that it doesn’t need. These are added when applications are installed, when they’re run, and when applications like Photos, Safari, and iTunes are used. Over time these junk files can hamper the performance of your Mac. The solution is to give your Mac a cleanup. We recommend CleanMyMac X. It scans your Mac for junk files and recommends to delete them safely. It can claw back tens of gigabytes of disk space, and improve your Mac’s performance. Give it a go, you can download it for free here, and see how much disk space it can give you back.
Before you reinstall macOS Mojave
There are two types of reinstallation. One installs a new copy of macOS Mojave over the current version and leaves everything else intact. The other erases your entire startup disk and installs a clean version of Mojave. The latter is more likely to fix problems and help your Mac run faster, but you’ll have to reinstall all your applications and reconfigure all your settings.
Whichever of the two options you choose, you should back up your Mac first. If you use Time Machine to backup to an external disk or a network drive, you can restore all your applications and settings from that backup after you reinstall macOS Mojave. If you plan to run a clean reinstallation, that’s definitely the simplest route. If you prefer not to use Time Machine, you can use any other backup application, or clone your entire disk.
If you’re reinstalling because you’re going to sell or give away your Mac, you should sign out of iCloud, iTunes, and iMessage first, then run a clean installation.
How to reinstall macOS Mojave
Once you’ve backed up your Mac, you’re ready to begin the reinstallation process.
The simplest way to install macOS Mojave, and the method that Apple recommends, is to go to the App Store, find Mojave in the Quick Links section on the right hand side of the front page, click it and then follow the instructions to download and install it.
If you’re having trouble with the App Store, or you need to run a clean install, you can do the following.
1. Restart your Mac using one of the following keyboard commands:
- Command+R — this will reinstall the version of the OS that was most recently installed on your Mac.
- Command+Option+R — this will reinstall the latest version of the OS that is compatible with your Mac.
2. When the macOS window appears, if you’re not performing a clean installation, skip to step 7.
3. Click on Disk Utilities and choose the Erase tab.
4. Give your disk a name, choose APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled), and if Scheme is available, set it to GUID Partition Map.
5. Press Erase.
6. When it’s finished, quit Disk Utility to go back to macOS Utilities.
7. Choose Reinstall macOS.
8. Click Continue and follow the instructions. You’ll be asked to choose the disk you want to install macOS Mojave on, if you down’t see your startup disk, select Show All Disks.
9. Select Install and wait for the installation to complete and your Mac to restart.
If you ran a clean installation, you’ll be taken to the Setup Assistant to go through the process of reconfiguring your Mac. If you made a Time Machine backup before reinstalling, make sure it’s connected.
During setup, you’ll be asked if you want to transfer data from another Mac or a backup. Choose that option then navigate to the Time Machine backup to restore data. You’ll be given the option to transfer any or all of: Applications; user accounts; other files and folders; and computer and network settings. Choose the option you want and press Continue.
If you don’t transfer data during setup, you can do it at any time using Migration Assistant in Applications>Utilities.
Reinstalling macOS Mojave is very easy. Just make sure you backup your Mac first and download CleanMyMac X(free version) to give it a good clean up!
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Jun 08, 2020 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions
It is quite easy and straightforward to reinstall macOS using in-built recovery mode. You don’t have to be a technical expert to do this task. That’s why a lot of Mac users use the recovery mode for reinstalling their OS. But, there is question always going in their user’s mind when it comes to reinstalling OS X and it is that “does OS X recovery delete everything?”
So, if you’re also one of those users having the same concern, then you have come to the right page. Here, you will get to learn everything about reinstalling Mac in recovery mode and what to do if you end up losing your important files after reinstalling macOS in recovery mode.
Part 1. Will Reinstalling OS X Delete My Files?
Many users when they use internet recovery mode to reinstall Mac OS, some questions might come to their mind, such as “if i reinstall OS X will it delete everything” or “does internet recovery mode erase data”. Well, you need to first understand what is mac internet recovery is to know about answers to questions that are going in your mind.
1. What Is Mac Internet Recovery
Internet recovery is quite a helpful feature included in all OS X and macOS. The main principle of internet recovery is to troubleshoot OS X and restore the Mac system to its default settings. Moreover, internet recovery enables you to reinstall the macOS version when your interval drive is damaged and corrupt. It is also helpful if you’ve replaced your internet drive with a higher and new storage device, but you completely forgot to make a bootable version of your Mac OS X on USB media.
In case of internet recovery, your system downloads that macOS version that came with your specific Mac from Apple servers. Thus, it means you aren’t downloading the most recent macOS version with internet recovery. However, it effectively tests the hardware components and memory for any problems. Well, internet recovery mode allows you to:
- Scan and repair your connected drives using Disk utility
- Erase and reinstall macOS, which was factory-preloaded.
- Restore your Mac system from a Time Machine backup.
- Inspect your internet connectivity or connection.
2. What Is Reinstalling Mac OS
Well, reinstalling macOS in recovery mode can aid you in replacing the current problematic OS X with a clean version easily and quickly. Generally, you have to reinstall OS X for troubleshooting purposes. The answer to the question “does reinstall macOS erase everything” is that simple reinstalling OS X won’t delete your files either erase your drive or disk, making it perfect for troubleshooting.
You don’t have to erase your Mac unless you are giving or selling your Mac or having a problem that needs you to erase the data. Thus, reinstalling OS alone from Mac recovery mode doesn’t affect your data, files, user settings, apps, etc. It will only re-install the fresh copy of OS X on your Mac.
If you are wondering how long does it take to reinstall OS X? Then, the short answer is it all depends on the speed of your internet connection and system.
Part 2. Data Loss during Reinstalling Mac in Recovery Mode
There is no doubt that basic reinstall Mac OS doesn’t erase your data, but that doesn’t mean at all your data and files are always kept safe. That’s why we recommended that you should backup your data before you reinstall macOS using recovery mode. You never know when you have to go through a data loss situation. Keep in mind that there is no chance of losing your files if you have already created a backup somewhere else.
You might don’t know that there are many factors that can cause data loss after reinstalling macOS. Here, we are going to list some of the factors you must know before you reinstall:
- No backup: There are many Mac users who save their important data on the main hard drive without creating any backup of data. No doubt reinstalling macOS doesn’t cause data loss, but chances of losing data don’t go away completely. That’s why reinstalling without backup can make you face data loss.
- Inaccurate operation: When it comes to reinstalling macOS, the chances are that you may perform inaccurate operations during the process, which can make you lose your important files. Sometimes, you fail to understand instructions on how to reinstall Mac OS X and skip a few steps and you end up losing your files.
- System corruption: It might be the case that your Mac system gets corrupted or damaged. Thus, in such cases, the reinstalling process can erase your data on Mac first before it reinstalls the clean macOS version.
- System Incompatibility: In some cases, if you encounter with system compatibility issue while reinstalling macOS, then there are chances of losing your data on Mac.
- Other reasons: In the procedure of reinstalling OS X, there are many other factors, such as virus attack, sudden power failure on Mac, or Mac internet recovery error may lead to your data being lost.
Part 3: How to Recover Lost Files after Reinstalling Mac OS?
Well, does reinstalling OS X delete files on your Mac? As we mentioned earlier, there are chances of losing your important files when you reinstall or upgrade OS X. There is no doubt that it is quite frustrating to lose your crucial files. Luckily, there is a reliable way available you can try to get back your lost files.
1. The Best File Recovery Software for Mac
You can get rid of your frustration of losing important files with the help of RecoveritData Recovery software for Mac to recover lost files after reinstalling the OS, no matter whether it is latest or earlier macOS. When it comes to Mac OS X file recovery, among various options, we recommend that you should give a try to Recoverit data recovery software for Mac. With the help of this software, you can easily and effectively recover files you lost after reinstalling the Mac OS. It can help you to get back various types of files, such as photos, videos, documents, archives, etc.
Recoverit - The Best Word File Recovery Software
Will I Lose Software If I Reinstall Mac 10
- Recover Word documents from all storage devices like Mac.
- Recover 1000+ types and formats of files in different situations.
- Scan and preview the files before you recover them from MacBook hard drive.
In a case like recovering data after reinstalling Mac OS X or macOS, Recoverit data recovery software is sure to get back your lost data.
Will I Lose Software If I Reinstall Mac Without
2. How to Recover Files on Mac in 3 Steps
You can get the Mac desktop folder or any other content back using Recoverit by following these steps.
Step 1: Select the Recycle Bin Recovery mode
Once the software is installed successfully on your Mac, run it. Now, you will be moved to the main interface of the software. Here, you need to choose the source hard drive location from where you’ve lost your files.
Step 2: Scan the Location
Now, the software will start “All-around” scan on the chosen hard drive to look for the lost files. This process will take a few minutes.
Step 3: Preview and Recover
Once the scan completes, the software will display all files you can recover. So, choose those files you want to get back and hit on the “Recover” button.
In this way, you can easily get your documents that were disappeared back on Mac. In case if the quick scan was not able to fulfill your requirements, then you can do a deep scan as well. To do this, click on the “All-around Recovery” and wait as Recoverit would extract data from your Mac’s storage. While the deep scan would take more time than the quick scan, the results would also be far better.
Part 4. How to Prevent Losing Data When Reinstalling Mac?
Are you looking for tips for reinstalling Mac OS X without losing data? If so, here we have mentioned some tips and tricks that can help you to avoid losing data when reinstalling Mac.
- The first and foremost tip is to back up your important files before you begin with the process of reinstalling macOS. It is the best way to prevent your data from being lost. You can back up your data using Time Machine backup or you can transfer your data to the external hard drive.
- When you are reinstalling macOS, follow the instructions carefully and if you accidentally omit one step, then you might lose your data.
- Before you reinstall the Mac OS X, make sure that you have enough space for the reinstallation process so that it won’t stop or pause due to insufficient space.
- Make sure that your Mac is half or fully charged before you go for reinstalling macOS. Also, ensure that your system is connected to a reliable and strong internet connection.
- Use Recoverit data recovery software for Mac if you end up losing your files. The software can help you to recover lost files after reinstalling Mac OS X.
Conclusion
We hope that you now got an answer to your question - “does installing OS X delete everything”. The guide has covered all ins and outs of reinstalling Mac in recovery mode. We recommended Recoverit file recovery for Mac to users who want to recover files they get lost after reinstalling Mac OS X.
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