You may be prompted to enter your Apple ID and password.Ĭhoose a name to give the disk once it's been reset 'Macintosh HD' will do just fine again, unless you've got a good reason to change it. With that done, select Macintosh HD-your main startup disk-and click Erase, then follow the prompts. When the Disk Utility appears, delete any drive volumes with 'Data' labels-typically there'll be one Macintosh HD - Data entry that you need to select and delete.

Once you’ve made extra certain all the stuff you care about is safely backed up, you can blitz everything by choosing Disk Utility. You should try a basic reinstall first, but if it still doesn’t give you the performance and decluttering boost you need, you can move on to a more comprehensive reset of your laptop. Visit the Apple website for more info about how to set up Time Machine. People who back up their macOS with the Time Machine feature can also load previously saved data. When Windows reappears, if you've chosen the Remove everything option, you'll need to log in again from scratch using your Microsoft account credentials and put all your programs and files back in place. Otherwise you can leave it be.Ĭlick Reset to confirm, and the process will get underway it might take a while, so be patient. It’s off by default, but it’s a good idea to turn it on if you're selling your laptop or giving it away. Users who choose to keep their files will need to decide whether they want to erase the computer’s preinstalled apps.īefore the reset starts, click Change settings to choose whether the Data erasure feature is enabled this essentially overwrites data on disk and makes sure it can't be recovered. Pick Keep my files to reset Windows core settings and files without interfering with your personal stuff pick Remove everything for a more comprehensive wipe, which means you'll need to add your files again later from your backup.

In other words, make sure they're still backed up, just in case. Don't assume that Windows will know where all your personal files are kept. On the next screen, Windows gives you the option of removing everything or keeping your personal files-essentially what you've got saved on the desktop and in the designated user folders (Documents, Pictures, Music, and so on).

Wiping macbook air clean