Best way to clean out Mac

I am getting a new MacBook Pro this week and I wanted to give my old one to my son. Once I transfer all of my data to the new computer, I would like to clean everything but the programs out of the old Mac before I give it to him. The old one has been a bit buggy of late. What is the best way to do this so that he can start over with a clean slate?

Hi DKK,
John gives some great advice, however you'll lose the installed programs. There's a good chance, though that you'll resolve the sluggishness. You can always reinstall the programs afterwards.
If you do go the route of an Archive & Install (assuming you're reinstall Leopard and not Snow Leopard) while you won't lose the installed programs there's a good chance that they may not work properly and you'll need to reinstall them anyways.

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I have a A505 S605 Satelite laptop with a hard drive full of junk. I would like to start over by cleaning out the hard drive completely. After the hard drive is cleaned out, I will install everything using the recovery disks that I got from the Geek Squad when I bought the computer.
What is the best way to get the hard drive wiped out? Thank you for your help.

Just back up the data you need to keep onto a usb thumb drive or usb external hard drive then run the Recovery Disk to restore the system to it's factory out of box state. IT will wipe the drive as part of the process leaving your system exactly as it came to from the factory. You don't need to delete anything first.
If you don't post your COMPLETE model number it's very difficult to assist you. Please try to post in complete sentences with punctuation, capitals, and correct spelling. Toshiba does NOT provide any direct support in these forums. All support is User to User in their spare time.

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Hello,
https://www.klearscreen.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=58
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hello, can anyone please tell me whats d best way to clean out all data - phone numbers, photos, videos maps, apps all from d from my n8, i have backed up necessory info usin ovi sync, i just want a clean fresh start with d phone is too full
Solved!
Go to Solution.

Enter *#7370# followed by the security code which is 12345 by default. You must have a SIM inserted for this to work I believe (been a while).
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Click on the blue Star Icon below if my advice has helped you or press the 'Accept As Solution' link if I solved your problem..

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Thanks, I was hoping you wouldn't disapprove
Placed an order for this one today. Don't get the big paychecks some people do
http://www.amazon.com/Data-Vac-MDV-1BA-Computer-Vacuum-MetroVac/dp/B000UVN646/re f=pdcp_e_1?pf_rd_p=413863501&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00006HR5F&pf_rd_ m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rdr=1MZ1G6R5SRDKVFS9C1Z4

What is the best way to clean up your mac and make it faster and run to an optimum level?

Hi Everyone, Hope all is well
Iv been running my mac pro for a long time now, its a Mac pro, 2x 2.26 GHz Quad Core Intel Xeon. 12 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 Ram
Over time now it has become slower, at the moment its still running fine but im sure over time it has probabally collected unwanted data etc. i just dont want it to become a problem as its only going to be used more and more... i now notice that some of the regular programs which i open do take a little while longer to open and i sometimes see that little round Mac loading the sign (the round multicolor wheel).., is there a way to clean the mac up? so that it can run more smoothly and just a better over all feel.,,, the machine is still running beautifully but its time i give it more care and revive it a little more..
What are the best ways to do this, i dont trust any of these non apple based products which claim they can clean ur Mac etc.
Any solutaion and advice that u guys can give would be great and i would be very thankful
Thanks in advance

For immediate speed improvements, upgrade to a Solid State Drive and upgrade your conventional hard drives to new ones, because the newer ones are faster at reading and writing than the ones from 5 years ago.
By Re-installing your OS onto a solid state drive, the system will boot much faster, and your programs will launch much faster.
I use a small SSD (only 60GB) which contains only OS X and all my apps. All of my personal files are on the large mechanical hard drive. If you still use the drive that shipped with the Mac, then it might be a good idea to replace it.
Depending on what kind of work you do, then additional RAM will help. Swapping CPUs should only be done if you are really in need of the improvements they would bring.
You appear to have the 2009 dual-CPU Mac Pro, which is the most challenging model to swap CPUs into.

What is the best way to 'clean up" a Mac that has been going for about 2 years. I reset safari frequently but need to be sure stuff I don't want is gone.

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I'd gather by your "reset Safari" and "clean up" you mean by sites you rather not have your mom see.
Hidden Flash cookies are stored in "Macromedia" Folders on your computer, can delete using the free Easy Find first, but need to reinstall Flash again here
http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/11076/easyfind
http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
OnyX run All the cleaning and maintenance steps followed by a reboot, followed by a Disk Utility erase free space.
http://www.titanium.free.fr/
CCleaner is in beta for OS X, can combine the cleaning and secure erase in the same steps if properly configured.
http://www.piriform.com/mac/ccleaner
Every web site knows your apx location.
http://www.whatsmyip.org/more/
To be sure to have a clean machine, a
Restoring OS X - 10.6 "fresh install method"
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https://discussions.apple.com/message/16276201#16276201

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How to maintain a Mac
1. Make redundant backups, keeping at least one off site at all times. One backup is not enough. Don’t back up your backups; make them independent of each other. Don’t rely completely on any single backup method, such as Time Machine. If you get an indication that a backup has failed, don't ignore it.
2. Keep your software up to date. In the Software Update preference pane, you can configure automatic notifications of updates to OS X and other Mac App Store products. Some third-party applications from other sources have a similar feature, if you don’t mind letting them phone home. Otherwise you have to check yourself on a regular basis. This is especially important for complex software that modifies the operating system, such as device drivers. Before installing any Apple update, you must check that all such modifications that you use are compatible.
3. Don't install crapware, such as “themes,” "haxies," “add-ons,” “toolbars,” “enhancers," “optimizers,” “accelerators,” "boosters," “extenders,” “cleaners,” "doctors," "tune-ups," “defragmenters,” “firewalls,” "barriers," “guardians,” “defenders,” “protectors,” most “plugins,” commercial "virus scanners,” "disk tools," or "utilities." With very few exceptions, this stuff is useless, or worse than useless. Above all, avoid any software that purports to change the look and feel of the user interface.
The more actively promoted the product, the more likely it is to be garbage. The most extreme example is the “MacKeeper” scam.
As a rule, the only software you should install is that which directly enables you to do the things you use a computer for — such as creating, communicating, and playing — and does not modify the way other software works. Use your computer; don't fuss with it.
Safari extensions, and perhaps the equivalent for other web browsers, are a partial exception to the above rule. Most are safe, and they're easy to get rid of if they don't work. Some may cause the browser to crash or otherwise malfunction. Some are malicious. Use with caution, and install only well-known extensions from relatively trustworthy sources, such as the Safari Extensions Gallery.
Never install any third-party software unless you know how to uninstall it. Otherwise you may create problems that are very hard to solve.
4. Beware of trojans. A trojan is malicious software (“malware”) that the user is duped into installing voluntarily. Such attacks were rare on the Mac platform until sometime in 2011, but are now increasingly common, and increasingly dangerous.
There is some built-in protection against downloading malware, but you can’t rely on it — the attackers are always at least one day ahead of the defense. You can’t rely on third-party protection either. What you can rely on is common-sense awareness — not paranoia, which only makes you more vulnerable.
Never install software from an untrustworthy or unknown source. If in doubt, do some research. Any website that prompts you to install a “codec” or “plugin” that comes from the same site, or an unknown site, is untrustworthy. Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must be acquired directly from the developer. No intermediary is acceptable, and don’t trust links unless you know how to parse them. Any file that is automatically downloaded from a web page without your having requested it should go straight into the Trash. A website that claims you have a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with your computer, is rogue.
In OS X 10.7.5 or later, downloaded applications and Installer packages that have not been digitally signed by a developer registered with Apple are blocked from loading by default. The block can be overridden, but think carefully before you do so.
Because of recurring security issues in Java, it’s best to disable it in your web browsers, if it’s installed. Few websites have Java content nowadays, so you won’t be missing much. This action is mandatory if you’re running any version of OS X older than 10.6.8 with the latest Java update. Note: Java has nothing to do with JavaScript, despite the similar names. Don't install Java unless you're sure you need it. Most people don't.
5. Don't fill up your boot volume. A common mistake is adding more and more large files to your home folder until you start to get warnings that you're out of space, which may be followed in short order by a boot failure. This is more prone to happen on the newer Macs that come with an internal SSD instead of the traditional hard drive. The drive can be very nearly full before you become aware of the problem. While it's not true that you should or must keep any particular percentage of space free, you should monitor your storage consumption and make sure you're not in immediate danger of using it up. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of free space on the startup volume for normal operation.
If storage space is running low, use a tool such as the free application OmniDiskSweeper to explore your volume and find out what's taking up the most space. Move rarely-used large files to secondary storage.
6. Relax, don’t do it. Besides the above, no routine maintenance is necessary or beneficial for the vast majority of users; specifically not “cleaning caches,” “zapping the PRAM,” "resetting the SMC," “rebuilding the directory,” "defragmenting the drive," “running periodic scripts,” “dumping logs,” "deleting temp files," “scanning for viruses,” "purging memory," "checking for bad blocks," "testing the hardware," or “repairing permissions.” Such measures are either completely pointless or are useful only for solving problems, not for prevention.
The very height of futility is running an expensive third-party application called “Disk Warrior” when nothing is wrong, or even when something is wrong and you have backups, which you must have. Disk Warrior is a data-salvage tool, not a maintenance tool, and you will never need it if your backups are adequate. Don’t waste money on it or anything like it.

What is best way to clean up startup disc? What apps work?

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Here are some general tips to keep your Mac's hard drive trim and slim as possible
You should never, EVER let a computer hard drive get completely full, EVER!
With Macs and OS X, you shouldn't let the hard drive get below 15 GBs or less of free data space.
If it does, it's time for some hard drive housecleaning.
Follow some of my tips for cleaning out, deleting and archiving data from your Mac's internal hard drive.
Have you emptied your Mac's Trash icon in the Dock?
If you use iPhoto or Aperture, both have its own trash that needs to be emptied, also.
If you store images in other locations other than iPhoto, then you will have to weed through these to determine what to archive and what to delete.
If you are an iMovie/ Final Cut user, both apps have their own individual Trash location that needs to be emptied, too!
If you use Apple Mail app, Apple Mail also has its own trash area that needs to be emptied, too!
Delete any old or no longer needed emails and/or archive to disc, flash drives or external hard drive, older emails you want to save.
Look through your other Mailboxes and other Mail categories to see If there is other mail you can archive and/or delete.
STAY AWAY FROM DELETING ANY FILES FROM OS X SYSTEM FOLDER!
Look through your Documents folder and delete any type of old useless type files like "Read Me" type files.
Again, archive to disc, flash drives, ext. hard drives or delete any old documents you no longer use or immediately need.
Look in your Applications folder, if you have applications you haven't used in a long time, if the app doesn't have a dedicated uninstaller, then you can simply drag it into the OS X Trash icon. IF the application has an uninstaller app, then use it to completely delete the app from your Mac.
To find other large files, download an app called Omni Disk Sweeper.
http://www.omnigroup.com/more
Also, Find Any File
http://apps.tempel.org/FindAnyFile/
Typically, iTunes and iPhoto libraries are the biggest users of HD space.
move these files/data off of your internal drive to the external hard drive and deleted off of the internal hard drive.
If you have any other large folders of personal data or projects, these should be archived or moved, also, to the optical discs, flash drives or external hard drive and then either archived to disc and/or deleted off your internal hard drive.
Moving iTunes library
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1449
Moving iPhoto library
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH2506
Moving iMovie projects folder
http://support.apple.com/kb/ph2289
Things to consider before moving your iPhoto Library Folder to a new or external location like an external hard drive.
If you make movies on any iDevices using iMovie for iOS,, then transfer the video footage, the IOS version of iMovie saves the footage as a movie file in IPhoto for IOS and will automatically get transferred to iPhoto for the Mac when you upload the video from your iDevice.
Newer versions of iMovie will work and link those video files found in your iPhoto Library on your Mac, but those links can be lost if you move your iPhoto library and you will not be able to relink that video afterwards as the current versions of iMovie seem to not have a relink option for the video portion of the files (ironically, current versions of iMovie HAVE the ability to re-link the audio files from the video footage, though (The inability to re-link the video files could be a possible bug or oversight in current versions iMovie).
The lost video links show up as "blacked-out" video blocks with no content.
Before moving the iPhoto Library
If you make movies with iMovie using iPad or iPhone video then 'Consolidate' the files before you finish. This will gather (albeit by duplicating) all the relevant files in the project in one place. After consolidating/duplicating all of the audio and video footage to a seperate, independent location,it should be safe to move your iPhoto library.
The potential way to circumvent this issues maybe to try and import iPad and iPhoto video directly into iMovie which would be another solution.
Good Luck!

Best way to clean laptop files

What is the best way to "clean" my laptop. I have noticed it running slower lately. I do see pop ups for some sort of mac cleaner. Is this safe? I am a new mac user (had this laptop for just over a year). Any help is appreciated.

How large is you HD and how much space do you have left?
Check out the following & do the necessary: User Tip: Why is my computer slow?
What to do when your computer is too slow
Speeding up your Mac
================
I do see pop ups for some sort of mac cleaner. Is this safe?
Nope!

Best way to clean macbookpro? How often?

Best way to clean MacBookpro?
I verify/repair disk permissions.
Is that the best way??
What is a better alternative?

How to maintain a Mac
1. Make redundant backups, keeping at least one off site at all times. One backup is not enough. Don’t back up your backups; make them independent of each other. Don’t rely completely on any single backup method, such as Time Machine. If you get an indication that a backup has failed, don't ignore it.
2. Keep your software up to date. In the Software Update preference pane, you can configure automatic notifications of updates to OS X and other Mac App Store products. Some third-party applications from other sources have a similar feature, if you don’t mind letting them phone home. Otherwise you have to check yourself on a regular basis. This is especially important for complex software that modifies the operating system, such as device drivers. Before installing any Apple update, you must check that all such modifications that you use are compatible.
3. Don't install crapware, such as “themes,” "haxies," “add-ons,” “toolbars,” “enhancers," “optimizers,” “accelerators,” “extenders,” “cleaners,” "doctors," "tune-ups," “defragmenters,” “firewalls,” "barriers," “guardians,” “defenders,” “protectors,” most “plugins,” commercial "virus scanners,” "disk tools," or "utilities." With very few exceptions, this stuff is useless, or worse than useless.
The more actively promoted the product, the more likely it is to be garbage. The most extreme example is the “MacKeeper” scam.
As a rule, the only software you should install is that which directly enables you to do the things you use a computer for — such as creating, communicating, and playing — and does not modify the way other software works. Use your computer; don't fuss with it.
Never install any third-party software unless you know how to uninstall it. Otherwise you may create problems that are very hard to solve.
The free anti-malware application ClamXav is not crap, and although it’s not routinely needed, it may be useful in some environments, such as a mixed Mac-Windows enterprise network.
4. Beware of trojans. A trojan is malicious software (“malware”) that the user is duped into installing voluntarily. Such attacks were rare on the Mac platform until sometime in 2011, but are now increasingly common, and increasingly dangerous.
There is some built-in protection against downloading malware, but you can’t rely on it — the attackers are always at least one day ahead of the defense. You can’t rely on third-party protection either. What you can rely on is common-sense awareness — not paranoia, which only makes you more vulnerable.
Never install software from an untrustworthy or unknown source. If in doubt, do some research. Any website that prompts you to install a “codec” or “plugin” that comes from the same site, or an unknown site, is untrustworthy. Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must be acquired directly from the developer. No intermediary is acceptable, and don’t trust links unless you know how to parse them. Any file that is automatically downloaded from a web page without your having requested it should go straight into the Trash. A website that claims you have a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with your computer, is rogue.
In OS X 10.7.5 or later, downloaded applications and Installer packages that have not been digitally signed by a developer registered with Apple are blocked from loading by default. The block can be overridden, but think carefully before you do so.
Because of recurring security issues in Java, it’s best to disable it in your web browsers, if it’s installed. Few websites have Java content nowadays, so you won’t be missing much. This action is mandatory if you’re running any version of OS X older than 10.6.8 with the latest Java update. Note: Java has nothing to do with JavaScript, despite the similar names. Don't install Java unless you're sure you need it. Most users don't.
5. Don't fill up your boot volume. A common mistake is adding more and more large files to your home folder until you start to get warnings that you're out of space, which may be followed in short order by a boot failure. This is more prone to happen on the newer Macs that come with an internal SSD instead of the traditional hard drive. The drive can be very nearly full before you become aware of the problem. While it's not true that you should or must keep any particular percentage of space free, you should monitor your storage consumption and make sure you're not in immediate danger of using it up. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of free space on the startup volume for normal operation.
If storage space is running low, use a tool such as the free application OmniDiskSweeper to explore your volume and find out what's taking up the most space. Move rarely-used large files to secondary storage.
6. Relax, don’t do it. Besides the above, no routine maintenance is necessary or beneficial for the vast majority of users; specifically not “cleaning caches,” “zapping the PRAM,” "resetting the SMC," “rebuilding the directory,” "defragmenting the drive," “running periodic scripts,” “dumping logs,” "deleting temp files," “scanning for viruses,” "purging memory," "checking for bad blocks," or “repairing permissions.” Such measures are either completely pointless or are useful only for solving problems, not for prevention.
The very height of futility is running an expensive third-party application called “Disk Warrior” when nothing is wrong, or even when something is wrong and you have backups, which you must have. Disk Warrior is a data-salvage tool, not a maintenance tool, and you will never need it if your backups are adequate. Don’t waste money on it or anything like it.

I am giving away a computer, what is the best way to wipe out data prior to depature

i am giving away a computer, what is the best way to wipe out data prior to depature

Did the Mac come with two grey disks when new? If so, use disk one to erase the drive using Disk Utility and then re-install the OS from the same disk. Once installed, quit and when the new owner boots they can set it up as a new out-of-the-box Mac when they boot it up. The grey disks need to be passed on with the computer.
If you need detailed instructions on how to erase and re-install please post back.
If the Mac came with Lion or Mountain Lion installed the above process can be done using the Recovery HD as since Lion no restore disks are supplied with the Mac.
The terms of the licence state that a Mac should be sold/passed on with the OS installed that was on the machine when new (or words to that effect).

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Take the batteries out if applicable, and use a very slightly damped lint-free cloth. Be very careful not to get any actual liquid into it. A brush would also be useful for cleaning between the keys: if you want to get fancy you can buy mini-vacuum cleaners for this, such as this one.

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