How to restore Mac OS on a MacBook. Parallel installation of Mac OS X and Windows on Hackintosh. Attention! All data will be deleted from Mac

Greetings to all! The question is really very useful, but as practice shows, not many users use this method of clean installation of the Mac OS X operating system. First, I would like to define what a clean installation of Mac OS is - this is a complete reinstallation of the same or another version of Mac OS X in advance formatted disk partition.

Why do many people strive for a clean installation?

The answer is simply banal, in order to get rid of all the bugs, changes made and errors of the already installed operating system. Errors can occur both due to the fault of the OS itself, for example, due to an error with access rights to folders and files, making any changes to system files when installing programs using the installation method, or due to the fault of the user himself who tried to configure something by forcibly replacing or changing system files. As a rule, such a change entails a number of consequences - the system begins to lag, slow down, and various errors appear during operation.

What you will need for a clean installation of Mac OS while saving data:

• Flash drive from 8 GB. The size of the flash drive depends on the installation method. If you have a saved installation image of Mac OS on your PC or in the App Store, then you can write it to a flash drive using the terminal (the easiest way), using disk utility (more difficult), for this you will need a flash drive of at least 8 GB . If there is no image, and you don’t want to use it from a torrent, then it is possible to install via the network using a recovery partition; to create a flash drive with a recovery partition, a 1 GB flash drive is enough - this method is perfect for owners of real Apple equipment; on Hackintosh, problems may arise problems, not always, but still. You can find out how to cut an installation flash drive on our website; we described a lot of methods for different versions of Mac OS, so don’t be lazy to look through the sections or use the search.
• Time Machine backup or installed system on another hard drive partition. After a clean installation, we lose all data: installed and configured programs, photos, music and much more, which takes a lot of time to restore and configure. This is exactly why we need a copy of Time Machine or the system on another partition; in this case, we will extract only the information we need and will not affect system files - the Mac OS installer itself will not allow us to replace them with damaged ones. As a result, we will get a brand new and clean OS, but with our own programs and personal files, documents, photos, videos, music, etc.

At first, the process is no different from a regular installation. We insert a flash drive, boot from it, go into disk utility and format the hard drive partition on which a clean Mac OS will be installed, and start the installation. After some time has passed, we will see this window; it is the settings from it that will allow us to save our data!

In this window, we need to select the first item - Transfer data from a Mac computer, Windows PC, Time Machine backup or boot disk. Select this item and click continue.

We choose what we will transfer from from an installed system on another partition or from a Time Machine backup.

Select the backup date from which you want to transfer data. In my case, there is only one copy, so the list is almost empty. If you use Time Machine for a long time and create automatic copies, the list will be more impressive.

After which we will be provided with a list from which we can choose what exactly we want to transfer. Programs, documents, music, photos, system settings and the like. From this list, select everything.

We select, confirm and wait for the information to be transferred to the new system. The duration of this procedure directly depends on the amount of data being transferred and the speed of the hard drive.

After which we log into ICloud or skip the step - this is the same as during a normal installation. With this method, an account does not require creation; it will be transferred from the specified location, so the password will be from the same account.

After this is done, we get the purest Mac OS, but with the full amount of our information and working programs on board, and we can immediately get to work, rather than copying, installing and configuring.

Attention hackintosh people. When transferring data in this way, all the kexts that you previously needed to install on the system, such as network, video, for USB, etc. , will be transferred from the copy and will not require re-installation. But if you manually patched ALC or another quest, you will have to repeat the procedure, since the installer will not skip the changed files. You can also delete a blank kext from the Mac OS library and install a modified one taken from a copy using the kext utility.

The second way to transfer data to the OS:

The second method is not much different, the procedure is absolutely the same, but it is already suitable for users who did not use the Migration Assistant during installation. You can also transfer all data from another installed operating system or Time Machine copy. But in a slightly different way.

Most users traditionally switch to a new version of OS X by simply clicking the “update” button in the App Store. Undoubtedly, this is the easiest method, but at the same time it is not always the most effective, since over time many Mac users notice that their system is no longer as fast as it was at the beginning of operation, and updating does not solve the problem.

Users who constantly change and reinstall software on their Mac are especially susceptible to this problem. The reason for the decrease in performance is precisely various system garbage and “residues” from deleted programs that safely remain in place during the update. That is why many people prefer to install a “clean system”.

Things to remember before installing from scratch

First of all, be sure to back up your system. To do this, the standard set of OS X programs includes a wonderful Time Machine utility.

Also be sure to make sure that all your contacts, calendars, mail, etc. synced with iCloud (settings>iCloud)

Clean installation of OS X El Capitan step by step

2. Reboot the Mac while holding down the key option(aka alt).

3. Select a USB flash drive as boot media.

4. After the Mac boots Recovery from the USB flash drive, visually it will happen like this:

open Disk Utility and format the Mac hard drive.

5. To do this, select the hard drive partition in the panel on the left, then in the top panel click erase(do not change the format and name) then click again erase(at the bottom).

6. After formatting is complete, close Disk Utility and select reinstall OS X.

7. In the next window, select only the formatted hard drive and after completing the installation process you will receive a crystal clear OS X El Capitan.

By the way, you can reinstall the system from scratch without bothering with a flash drive. True, you need to have Capitan installed on your Mac before, also from scratch, otherwise the version of the system that came “in the box” will be installed.

So, if such a need arises, then restart your Mac while holding cmd+R, open Disk Utility and format the hard drive as shown above. Then you also choose Reinstall OS X and wait for the installation to complete.

Sooner or later the day comes when you need to reinstall the Mac OS operating system on your MacBook PC. This task is no more difficult than reinstalling Windows. This is what we will talk about.

operating system on MacBook

The reasons for reinstalling the MacOS operating system on a Mac computer are as follows:

• Damage or wear of the built-in storage device (HDD);
• selling or donating a MacBook to another person;
• “moving” to another MacBook (a newer model, but maintaining the previous version of the MacOS system);
• transferring data to Apple gadgets or to another computer.

What happens when reinstalling MacOS:

• “from scratch”, including formatting the built-in disk;
• reinstallation “on top”, preserving personal data and applications (macOS update).

For example, using the MacAppStore, you can upgrade your version of OS X Lion and OS X Mountain Lion to a newer version - OS X Mavericks.

Here are the steps to follow when selling or transferring your Mac to someone else. It deserves special mention.

1. Backup personal data from a MacBook to a separate media or cloud service.
2. Disabling special services and functionality that manage data copying and transfer.
3. Erase all personal information from the disk.

Attention! Before you start reinstalling MacOS on your MacBook PC, take the trouble to save all your data on an external drive! This will be discussed first.

Backing Up Data Using Time Machine

The Time Machine application is designed to backup personal files from a MacBook and restore them back to it. But it requires external USB drives (HDD, SDD drives) formatted in MacOS Extended or Xsan - FAT/NTFS file systems designed for Windows and Android are not supported. If the disk was previously formatted in FAT/NTFS formats, the MacBook will not accept it if you refuse to reformat it “for yourself.”

The Time Machine application is launched from the MacOS system preferences in the Apple menu. When you connect an external hard drive, a corresponding notification will appear.

Do you really want to destroy all data recorded on this drive in a different format?

If the external drive has already been formatted, the Time Machine application will give the go-ahead for its use. Confirm your request.

Do you really want to copy your data to this drive?

If Time Machine does not show disk selection, do the following.

Interestingly, backups in the Time Machine program are fully automated - the backup copy is “refreshed” hourly, and their storage is organized, so you won’t get lost in them. In addition, copying is also possible to an Apple server (like iCloud) and to local network storage that supports the Apple File Protocol. All this often helps, if you need to reinstall MacOS, to avoid losing precious working time.

After copying all your data, you can start reinstalling MacOS.

Reinstalling MacOS on Mac

There are several ways to reinstall the MacOS operating system on a MacBook: a “clean” installation from a flash drive, installation “over” a previous version (updating from MacAppStore) and restoring MacOS from a backup.

How to reinstall Mac OS from an installation flash drive

The preliminary steps are as follows.

1. Download the Mac OS X installation image from the Mac App Store or third-party sites.
2. Once the download is complete, right-click on the downloaded file and select “Show package contents.”
3. Go to the /Contents/SharedSupport/ folder, copy the InstallESD.dmg file to a safe location on your disk, and mount it to your MacOS desktop.

We will need the Disk Utility application included with MacOS. The next steps are as follows.

1. Launch MacOS Utilities and select Disk Utility.

   Select MacOS Disk Utility

2. Insert the USB flash drive that is intended to be installed.
3. Launch the “Our media” component (the name of the flash drive will appear in the title) - the “Partition the disk” tab will open.

   Give the drive a name that makes it easy to find

4. Select the partition location and under the Options button, check “GUID Partition Scheme.”

   Click OK button

5. Open the "Recover" tab. Make the MacOS image the source, and the flash drive the “destination”, and click on the “Restore” button.

   Specify what and where to copy

Disk Utility will create an installation flash drive automatically, and it does this operation quite reliably. When copying is complete, Disk Utility will notify you.

Congratulations! The MacOS installation flash drive has been created! You can restart your MacBook. Preparing to install MacOS is as follows.

All! MacOS installation has started. The MacOS operating system will install automatically - this will take 30-100 minutes, depending on the performance of your MacBook. After it, your PC will be immediately ready for use.

How to install the system without formatting the internal drive

Installing MacOS without erasing the disk means downloading and installing MacOS updates directly from the MacAppStore. An installation flash drive is not needed here. This is reminiscent of updating iOS on smartphones and tablets over the air. This method is good for those who once bought a MacBook - and are not going to change it, but, on the contrary, will work on it for many years, because MacBook computers, like Apple iDevice gadgets, are very high quality, reliable and convenient.

Before updating, check whether your MacBook meets the hardware requirements of the new version of MacOS - otherwise it will slow down.

Not every previous version of MacOS can be updated to the desired version. So, if your MacBook is running macOS Snow Leopard (10.6.8) and your MacBook will run macOS Sierra, first upgrade to macOS X El Capitan.

The version of MacOS Sierra is taken as an example. Other copies are searched for and “installed” in exactly the same way. Your actions are as follows.

If you have OS X El Capitan 10.11.5 (or more recent), the macOS Sierra version downloads silently. You will then be prompted to install this version.

Click on the install button

During the installation of MacOS, the PC restarts several times. If this version does not suit you (the performance of the MacBook has dropped), “roll back” to the previous one (for example, OS X El Capitan), with which the PC performance was very satisfactory.

Restoring MacOS from a backup

For example, we take a “rollback” from MacOS Sierra (10.12) back to OS X El Capitan (10.11) or OS X Yosemite (10.10). Let's say there are backups made in the Time Machine application before installing MacOS Sierra.

Important! You can only restore a MacOS system from a backup to the same MacBook. Trying to transfer your copy of the MacOS system with data to another PC in this way is useless. Use other methods.

1. Connect your external drive to your MacBook and save your existing files to Time Machine, naming the new copy MacOS Sierra.
2. Open your previous copy of OS X Yosemite with Time Machine on a different drive after connecting it to your MacBook.
3. Restart your MacBook while holding Command+R on your keyboard. The familiar MacOS recovery menu will open.
4. From the OS X Utilities menu, select Restore from Time Machine Backup.
5. Once in the “Recover from Time Machine” recovery window, click on “Continue”, and then specify the source - the disk with the OS X El Capitan “backup”.
6. The saved copy should be: In the case of OS X El Capitan, the MacOS version should be 10.11.x. Click the Continue button. Specify the installation disk to restore from a copy, click on “Restore”.

Ready! The OS X El Capitan version will be reinstalled.

Transferring a copy of the operating system and your data to another MacBook

Go to Programs/Utilities and open Migration Assistant. The structure of your files and folders will be preserved.

Click to continue

When running, the application requires closing all other running programs.

If both computers are working, but you still want to duplicate your version of MacOS and all data on the second computer, connect the computers to each other using a LAN cable via a Wi-Fi wireless network. Connecting directly using a Thunderbolt or FireWire cable will require running your previous Mac in backup mode, which will make the Assistant experience a little more complicated. However, both methods work clearly. You can connect an external disk with a backup copy to the new PC instead of the previous PC - in this case, the operation of the Assistant on the new PC will not change significantly.

So, the procedure is as follows. As an example, we take the normal operating mode of a previous PC with “Assistant”.

All! The copy session has started. This can take anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, depending on the amount of data and the performance of both Macs.

Problems encountered when reinstalling MacOS

Problems when updating or “rolling back” may be as follows.

1. No recent backups. You once disabled backup yourself. Copy your files now to avoid losing them by starting the process manually. Enable backup.
2. An error occurred during the next backup or when restoring personal data from a previous copy. The external drive that was previously recorded is unsuitable for further use. Contact an Apple service center or certified computer repair shop to restore your data. This procedure is not free.
3. Error during the next MacOS update. Your Mac PC may no longer be supported. This happens once every few years. You will continue to use the current version of MacOS until you replace your Apple PC.
4. The computer began to work noticeably slower than before the update. The minimum system requirements of the next new version are equal to or exceed the technical specifications of your PC. “Roll back” to any previous version of MacOS. Typically, Apple tries to prevent this from happening - it simply stops supporting older computers, just as it is no longer possible to install iOS 10.x on iPhone 4x devices.
5. After several active years, your PC suddenly began to freeze despite the fact that you did not update MacOS. Maybe it's time to replace the internal HDD/SSD drive? Try to back up your important data before replacing the internal drive - while something is still being read from it.
6. It is impossible to “roll back” to one of the previously installed versions of MacOS. The “rollback” must be done gradually. If there are no previous backups, download a new “image” and “roll back” to this version first, and then repeat the “roll back” to an even earlier version of MacOS.

Video on the topic

Reinstalling MacOS - “on top” or “from scratch” - is not difficult. It is only important to secure your data. This is a real way to extend the life of your beloved MacBook for another number of years. You will succeed!

Mac won't boot because macOS has stopped working? Now you don’t know how to “resurrect” the device? We tell you how to restore the system on a Mac even in the most hopeless situations!

Your Mac won't start because your hard drive has died or you've done an unsuccessful experiment and the operating system on your MacBook or iMac is gone? This is quite a big problem, since getting a macOS image or a bootable Apple USB flash drive if you don’t have a Mac is extremely difficult!

I was inspired to write this article by a comment on our YouTube channel, a user’s HDD drive on a Mac failed, he replaced it, but didn’t know how to get a bootable USB flash drive.

How to reinstall macOS
from "Recovery" mode

Absolutely all iMacs and Macbooks have a special “Recovery” mode. This mode allows you to:

• Restore data from backup
• Reinstall macOS
• Use Disk Utility

Actually, we need to reinstall macOS! I’ll tell you how to do this now!

In this simple way, you can reinstall the system on a Mac from Recovery mode.

How to reinstall macOS from Internet Recovery

How to reinstall the system on a Mac if the “Recovery” mode was damaged or you changed the HDD or disk? You should try installing the macOS operating system by switching your Macbook or iMac to Internet Recovery mode. From this mode you can download a system image and install the OS on a Mac.

If restoring mac os via
Internet does not work?

Then you need to try changing the DNS servers on the router to public ones from Google:

• 8.8.8.8
• 8.8.4.4

How to create a bootable macOS USB flash drive on Mac
or Windows and reinstall the system?

What to do if the previous options did not help you, but you have a regular Windows computer or another Mac? The correct answer is to create a bootable Apple USB flash drive on it! We described how to do this in previous articles; I will not repeat myself, but will provide links.

Yes yes MAC

You can find out how to make a bootable macOS USB flash drive on an iMAC or MacBook in our previous article -

Apple's policy, according to which the company installs its own operating system on computers produced under its brand, makes them extremely stable. By purchasing a MacBook and regularly updating the OS, you may never have to reinstall it. If you have Internet access, the system can be easily reinstalled over the network. If circumstances require you to install macOS from a flash drive, you need to do it correctly.

Since 2013, Apple has stopped selling the operating system to users. By purchasing any Mac, be it a laptop or a mini version, you receive macOS for rent and are provided with free updates for the entire life of the device.

1. Find the App Store icon in the Dock and open it.

1. On the main page on the right side, under the account settings, there is a link that can take you to the site with the current OS. Currently the latest version is 10.3 High Sierra.

1. Click on the “Download” button. The distribution weighs more than 5 GB, so the time it takes to receive it will depend on the speed of the connection used.

1. When the download is complete, the installer will automatically launch.

1. We don't need it at the moment. Since we are going to create an offline bootable media, we need to close it. Click on the program window so that the controls appear on the top panel. Select the marked item. A similar operation can be performed with the keyboard shortcut ⌘Q. In macOS, this is a standard shortcut that allows you to close any active window.

Old OS versions

If you want to install another, older version of the operating system, you can also find them in the App Store. El Capitan, Yosemite or Mountain Lion are placed in the purchase section, provided they have been used before. This is due to the company's licensing policy. The operating systems shown in the screenshot are considered purchased, and subsequent ones are rented by the user from Apple.

Creating a bootable USB flash drive

To create an installation disk on a MacBook, just use the terminal. macOS works perfectly with the Windows FS and does not require the installation of Transmac analogues. The NTFS format is supported out of the box in read mode, and FAT32 and exFAT are fully supported.

You will have to format the flash drive if it uses any Linux file system, for example, ext3. Before use, the removable disk must in any case be cleaned of the information on it.

Formatting

Formatting in macOS is done using Disk Utility. You can find it by opening Launchpad in the Others folder or using Finder. Let's choose the second option as it is more convenient. Traditionally, a flash drive for modern operating systems should be at least 8 GB.

1. Open Finder and select “Applications” in the navigation area. Open the folder marked in the screenshot.

1. Select the specified utility.

1. We are looking for external drives. Select the name of the flash drive specified by the manufacturer, highlighting it. In the top control menu, the “Erase” button is activated. Click on it to open the next dialogue.

1. The system will automatically offer us the format and layout of the sections. They should match those shown in the screenshot. To clean and format the flash drive with the selected parameters, press the marked button.

Now there is zero information left on the external media and you can write the distribution kit to it.

Recording a distribution

The file we downloaded from the App Store is not an ISO image. This is a full-fledged installation wizard with its own set of utilities. For this reason, the system places it in the programs folder and not in downloads. From there we will record it onto external media.

1. We return to the “Utilities” folder and launch “Terminal”.

1. Enter the following write command on behalf of the system administrator:

Quotes are not required, but instead of Kingstone we indicate the name of the flash drive used.

1. Enter the password. The symbols will not be displayed. We complete the set by pressing the Enter button.

1. The system will ask you for confirmation to clear the selected volume. Type “Y” and press the enter key.

1. Before copying data, the system erases the flash drive.

1. The recording ends with the appearance of information messages about the creation of bootable media and the transfer of the data required by the installer to it.

The write command syntax varies for each distribution. Therefore, if you are planning to make a flash drive to reinstall macOS other than High Sierra, please visit the Apple support page provided. The finished command from there can be immediately copied to the terminal.

Installing macOS

After connecting the media to the USB port, we reboot. Mac computers do not use the usual BIOS, so there is no additional configuration required.

1. Our task is to prevent the computer from booting from the SSD and launching the initial volume selection menu. Therefore, immediately upon reboot, hold down the “Option” key. Hold it until the dialogue shown in the screenshot appears. The Windows volume will be present if it is installed on the Boot Camp partition. Here you will need to translate the specified arrow symbol from Macintosh HD to the installer icon.

1. Select the language in which menus and dialogs will be displayed.

1. For a “clean” installation, we need to open Disk Utility.