Rachel is trying to sell her Mac, but…
To get the correct installer, download from a Mac that is using macOS Sierra 10.12.5 or later, or El Capitan 10.11.6. Enterprise administrators should download from Apple, not a locally hosted. Reinstalling an operating system can be a frustrating and time-consuming process. Mac OS X El Capitan. Yosemite just got bigger. In order to transmit multicast flows from Dante Virtual Soundcard on OS X 10.11 (El Capitan), the IP address of the Ethernet port must be set to static, and/or the Wi-Fi port must be turned on. Close the Terminal window and click to Reinstall macOS. If you still have the error message then reset PRMA/NVRAM: Power off your Mac. Press your Mac's power button and then hold these four keys at the same time: ⌘ + option + P + R. Continue holding the keys until your Mac. If you’re selling or giving away a Mac that is using OS X El Capitan or earlier, use Command-R to make sure that the installation isn’t associated with your Apple ID. Handy tip there, guys!
Some Mac users may like to perform what is known as a clean install with OS X El Capitan. Basically, a clean install involves erasing the Mac drive and starting fresh with a new installation of OS X 10.11, and users who opt for clean installs usually rely on their own personal backups to restore their personal file and data.
My friend was wiping my Mac so I could sell it and I’m pretty sure they’ve deleted the start up disk? It’s not letting me reinstall the OS on a recovery startup.
She wonders about a fix. There are a couple of options with an erased partition.
Because Recovery didn’t work, the fastest way to install fresh is to make or borrow a macOS installer on a USB flash drive or a disk drive. We have instructions for making a bootable installer with macOS Sierra (as well as archived versions for several previous releases). You need at least an 8GB flash drive. The article includes instructions on obtaining the installer, which might involve you having to use someone’s else Mac to download it, if you don’t have a replacement Mac on hand yet.
But if you can’t get access to another Mac or the necessary drive, it’s still possible to use a different Recovery mode on all recent Macs, dating back to 2010. Normally, you can start up a Mac while holding down Command-R to boot into what Apple now calls macOS Recovery. That allows you to run Disk Utility, reinstall or wipe and install the system, access Terminal for command-line functions, and so on. In that mode, when you choose to reinstall without erasing the drive, my recollection is that Recovery looks for the current OS system installer on your startup disk in the Applications folder, and uses that. (Apple doesn’t document that, and I haven’t had to test that for years.)
Failing finding it, Recovery downloads the currently installed version of macOS (or OS X), which is about 5GB. When complete, it installs it and reboots, and places the installer in the Applications folder.
However, there’s yet another option: macOS Recovery over the Internet, which requires either a Mac model released in 2012 or later, or most 2010 and 2011 models with a firmware upgrade applied. There, the Mac reaches out over a Wi-Fi or ethernet connection to download the relatively modest Recovery software, which then bootstraps the download of the full macOS installer.
Apple says Internet-based Recovery should happen automatically on supported models, and you should see a spinning globe when that mode is invoked while the download occurs. However, if you have normal Recovery installed and it refuses to install macOS for some reason, you can manually invoke Internet Recovery.
While Command-R at startup always installs whatever the most recent version you installed on your Mac, holding down Command-Option-R brings down the very latest compatible version that can be installed. Apple also offers Shift-Command-Option-R, which installs the version of OS X or macOS with which your computer shipped, or the next oldest compatible system still available for download.
(Apple just changed this behavior with 10.12.4, but if you’re using Internet Recovery for a clean install on an erased drive, the new behavior should be active as it will be pulled from the version of Recovery that’s bootstrapped from Apple’s servers. The pre-10.12.4 option is simply Command-Option-R, but it acts like the new Shift-Command-Option-R, installing the shipped OS or the oldest compatible version.)
Apple recommends the Command-Option-R option as the only safe way to reinstall a Mac with El Capitan or earlier versions of macOS if you want to be sure your Apple ID doesn’t persist even after erasure.
Ask Mac 911
We’ve compiled a list of the questions we get asked most frequently along with answers and links to columns: read our super FAQ to see if your question is covered. If not, we’re always looking for new problems to solve! Email yours to mac911@macworld.com including screen captures as appropriate. Mac 911 can’t reply to—nor publish an answer to—every question, and we don’t provide direct troubleshooting advice.
Dec 21, 2020 • Filed to: Solve Mac Problems • Proven solutions
- Bootable USB Stick - macOS X El Capitan 10.11 - Full OS Install, Reinstall, Recovery and Upgrade.
- 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 USB disk, click “Continue” to advance to the installer.
While there are many methods available to the users to recover or reinstall their Mac OS X, in this article, we shall keep our focus on the re-installation that is carried out through the Internet Recovery mode. Critical data can be lost if the OS isn’t recovered, and to overcome that issue, it is important to learn about the reinstallation process of Mac OS X through the Internet Recovery mode. While users are free to make their choice when it comes to opting for a method, the Internet Recovery mode certainly surpasses many others, and in the following article, we shall understand why.
Part 1 When to Go for Mac Internet Recovery for Mac OS X
4) Power on your Mac. Hold the Apple Key and R key until you hear the chime noise. Once heard, it will start the OS X in Recovery Mode. 5) The final step has you tapping the ‘Install Mac OS X’ and Continue in the OS X utility section of the screen to start the installation process.
We shall answer the above question by classifying it into a series of sub-questions. To start with, let us understand what Mac Internet Recovery is.
What is Mac Internet Recovery?
The recent models of Macs come with the functionality of starting up directly from an Internet-based version of the Mac OS X Recovery. This is particularly helpful in the case where the startup drive encounters an issue, or worse, is missing the OS altogether. The erase or wiping can happen accidentally or due to some software bug and can cause disruption to the user. Through Mac Internet Recovery, users have the option to start their Mac directly through the Apple Servers. When the users use this mode to start their systems, the system performs a quick storage space test along with checking the hard disk for any other hardware bugs.
Why should you use Internet Recovery to reinstall Mac?
Well, this one of the most frequently asked questions amongst the ones operating Mac Systems. Why take all the trouble and opt for Internet Recovery instead of going the conventional way? In the following points, we list the reasons that make reinstallation of Mac through Internet Recovery an intelligent option.
- One doesn’t need an Operating System disc to perform the reinstallation. This is helpful in cases when you are not carrying the OS disc and want to perform the Mac reinstallation immediately to carry on with your work.
- There is no need for the user to download separate Operating System files. The Internet Recovery mode will download the installer files, and as a user, you are saved from the trouble of downloading them yourself.
- The method is less complicated than the conventional method of downloading and installing the Mac OS X. This is helpful for users who aren’t very keen on the technical aspects of the installation process.
What should I do before opting for Internet Recovery?
Here are the points that must be kept in mind before going for the reinstallation of Mac through Internet Recovery mode:
- For obvious reasons, you must have an internet connection. Users must use their DHCP on the WiFi or any Ethernet Network to install the Mac OS X.
- For the ones who have purchased the OS X from any Apple Store, they might be prompted to enter an Apple ID or password that was used to purchase the OS X.
- Users must note that the time taken for the reinstallation of OS X directly depends on the speed of the internet connection being used. Please ensure that the Internet settings are compatible with the Mac OS X Recovery. In the case of incompatible settings, the installation process could be halted midway.
Part 2 How to Reinstall Mac OS X with Internet Recovery Mode
Here are the steps that are to be taken. We start with accessing the recovery mode on your Mac through the following steps:
1) Access recovery mode by holding down the Apple Key and R Key.
2) Users must ensure that they are connected to the internet. We recommend that you use a private network for the same, and avoid any public network due to its configuration. Also, the installation file happens to be large which may take quite a lot of time on any public network.
3) Now, power off your Mac; Apple Shut Down. If you experience the OS not responding, simply press and hold the power button until the Mac switches itself off, and then wait for 30 seconds.
4) Power on your Mac. Hold the Apple Key and R key until you hear the chime noise. Once heard, it will start the OS X in Recovery Mode.
5) The final step has you tapping the ‘Install Mac OS X’ and Continue in the OS X utility section of the screen to start the installation process. After that, there would be on-screen instructions to guide you through the entire process.
Video Tutorial on How to Boot Mac into Recovery Mode
Part 3 What to Do when Mac Internet Recovery Method Fails
It is possible that you might not be able to reinstall your Mac OS X successfully using the Internet Recovery Mode. While this can be a damper, it doesn’t mean you cannot diagnose the problem behind it.
Install El Capitan On Mac
Reinstall Mac Os X From Usb
Why could have the Internet Recovery method failed?
Install Mac Os El Capitan
- Check that your internet connection is working. The Ethernet users must check for proper cable connections while the WiFi users must check the modem.
- If you are on a public network, chances are that the internet settings might not be compatible with the installation process.
- If the internet is too slow, the process could have abandoned itself as the file to be downloaded is quite large.
- Please check that your Mac has a proper power connection. In the case of laptops, the battery should be enough. Losing your power midway can render your device useless.
Measures to be taken to ensure that the Internet Recovery Mode works:
- As discussed above, we recommend that you opt for a private internet network to carry out the above process. This is because of the large size of the installation file and the hindrances you wish to avoid due to incompatible internet settings and slow internet speed.
- Please ensure that it is sufficient in your system. Losing power in the process can render the device useless.
- If the problem persists even when the above two measures have been taken, chances are that your hard disk has been corrupted completely, and therefore, consult a technical consultant for the same.
What if I lose critical data in the process?
For the ones who have lost critical data in the process, you can get reliable data recovery to help you retrieve your lost data back. Recoverit data recovery for Mac support to recover data from any storage device caused by any data loss scenario. Mac os yosemite vs sierra.
Recoverit - The Best Mac Internet Recovery Software
- Recover data from all storage devices like MacBook hard drive.
- Recover 1000+ types and formats of files in different situations.
- Scan and preview the files before you recover them from MacBook hard drive.
Step 1. Download and install Recoverit data recovery for Mac. To recover lost data on Mac, please select a hard drive disk first where you want the lost data back. Click 'Start' to get started.
Step 2. A deep scan will immediately begin on your Mac hard drive. The lost or deleted files will be scanned in a while.
Installing Mac Os X El Capitan From Usb
Step 3. Once the scan is over, the lost contents would be displayed, and the users can select their lost content and tap on 'Recover' to restore them to their Mac. However, users must be careful not to save the recovered data in its original location due to the risk of being overwritten.
The above information is helpful for anyone who is looking to reinstall their Mac OS X through the Internet Recovery mode. Please note that the Recovery Mode in Apple offers numerous functions to the users and therefore is a great tool to learn more about.
Reinstall Mac Os X Lion From Usb
What's Wrong with Mac
Installing Mac Os X From Usb Drive
- Recover Your Mac
- Fix Your Mac
- Delete Your Mac
- Learn Mac Hacks