Donating old eMac--need to clean it up

I'm donating an eMac running Tiger 10.4.11 to a school and wanted to clean off my cookies, passwords, prefs, etc for privacy purposes but don't want to remove and then re-install software. Is this a reasonable approach?
Any advice on what items to delete?

Do I make a new admin user in accounts?
Go to the accounts preferences pane and make a new account, making sure it has admin status.
[Adding a new user account to your computer|http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.4/en/mh168.html]
While there remove your old account which will then be put into an archive file in the users directory > deleted users. Restart. You'll only see the new account (unless you had other accounts on the computer too). Log in to the new account, then move the archived file into the trash and secure empty the trash.
How do I reset so that it boots to the new admin user?
See above
When I reboot will there be two users with the house icon?
If there is just one on the computer now there will only be one (the new one).
If you really want to give the computer the as-new look:
[Running Mac OS X Setup Assistant again|http://superpixel.ch/articles/running-setup-assistant-again>

Similar Messages

I have an old imac G3 desk top computer that I would like to donate. I need to clean up the hard drive. How do I do this?

I have an old imac G3 desk top computer that I would like to donate. I need to clean up the hard drive. HOw do I do this?

If you have a Mac OS 8.x or 9.x CD (depending on the iMac model), look for a Drive Setup utility somewhere on that disc. Boot from the CD while holding down the C key. Initialise the hard disk with a 'Zero all data' option chosen.
Jan

I have an 8 year old eMac G3. It will not start up. I need to erase it before putting it in recycling. Apple refuses to open the case and warns me that I will be shocked if I even try. They say no way to erase hard drive. They say use a hammer. Any ideas?

I have an 8 year old eMac G3. It will not start up. I need to erase it before putting it in recycling. Apple refuses to open the case and warns me that I will be shocked if I even try. They say no way to erase hard drive. They say use a hammer. Any ideas?

Hi, no eMacs had G3s, only G4s. Is it maybe an iMac G3?
If you don't know the model, find the Serial# & use it on one of these sites, but don't post the Serial# here...
http://www.chipmunk.nl/klantenservice/applemodel.html
http://www.appleserialnumberinfo.com/Desktop/index.php
How to find the serial number of your Apple hardware product...
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1349
http://www.ifixit.com/Device/eMac

I've ordered a new mac book pro 15" and i need to clean hard drive off my old PC...not really to move them to the mac, but just to save in case needed; mostly pics and office docs....any suggestions?

I've ordered a new mac book pro 15" and i need to clean hard drive off my old PC...not really to move them to the mac, but just to save in case needed; mostly pics and office docs....any suggestions?

Buy an external USB hard drive and copy your data to it. Either that or burn them all to single or double layer DVDs (depending on amount of data you have). Or if it's really a small amount, consider putting it all on a USB memory stick.

What do I need to migrate files from old eMac to new iMac?

I just purchased a new iMac and need to transfer information from my old eMac to the new one. I have not even taken the iMac out of the box, just read over the booklet.
What do I need to have to be prepared to migrate information from the start up application? USB cable? Firewire cable? I just want to be prepared so I can get it done at one setting. There isn't a lot of room on the desk for 2 Mac's for an extended period of time.

When you boot the new Mac, choose Migration Assistant to transfer all your data.

MY TC tell me it needs to clean up old back-ups.

Hi Everyone,
Since a couple of days my TC tell me it needs to clean up old backups to create space. Which is odd since I still have 1,4 TB left of the 2 TB to start with. There are 2 sparsebundles, 1 for my Pro (150GB) and one for my Mini (350GB).

I would erase and start over.. make sure the two computers have different network names. This problem can arise if you migrated settings from one computer to another when you got the Pro.
Take a screen shot.. Command+Shift+4 gives you a rubber band selection of area.
Click the little camera icon above.. select your picture which will land on the desktop with the current date and time.. so ..
I took a snap of the dialogue box to insert a picture. Shown above.. the picture is on the desktop so I select it.
Then insert the image.
So you now have an image of taking an image to post.. this is feeling like those halls of mirrors.

Do i need to clean install mavericks

macbook pro 10.8.5 want mavericks do i need to clean instal it.

Better asked on MacBook Pro forum, no you don't but yes there is some wisdom in making bootable backup or restore image if you do.
A clean install is easy to do and Setup Assistant will take the system image or clone as source for your old prefs and apps and add them back.
Make sure everything you use is current and supported, some are not. Less an issue with a notebook than a Mac tower.
How to make your own bootable OS X 10.9 Mavericks USB install drive
http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/10/how-to-make-your-own-bootable-os-x-10-9-mav ericks-usb-install-drive/
Apple has changed things in 10.9, but making a recovery drive is still possible.
by Andrew Cunningham - Oct 23 2013, 8:19am CDT
OS X
Flickr user Prime Number
When Apple released OS X 10.7 two years ago, it stopped selling operating system DVDs in its stores, stopped shipping recovery disks with new Macs, and switched to downloadable installers for OS X upgrades. These download-only installers have actually worked pretty well—I’ve never had an issue downloading the software from the Mac App Store or restoring a Mac using the Internet Recovery feature when something went south. That said, it’s still nice to have an install disk handy for those cases when you don’t have a connection, when your connection is slow, or when you just have a whole bunch of Macs and don’t want to have to download the installer on each and every one of them.
The good news is, as with Lion and Mountain Lion, it’s possible to create a local USB installer for Mavericks. The bad news is that it wasn’t as simple as it was before—Apple has changed the way the installer works, and making an install disk manually is more difficult than it used to be. Before we get started, here’s what you’ll need:
An 8GB or larger USB flash drive, or an 8GB or larger partition on some other kind of external drive
The OS X 10.9 Mavericks installer from the Mac App Store in your Applications folder. The installer will delete itself when you install the operating system, but it can be re-downloaded if necessary.
The latest beta of the Lion Diskmaker app, available here (as of this writing, version 3 beta 3 is the most recent). This app is free to download, but the creator accepts donations if you want to support his efforts.
How to clone your system:
http://macperformanceguide.com/Mac-HowToClone-backup.html
http://macperformanceguide.com/Mac-HowToClone.html
http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/7032/carbon-copy-cloner
You can also use Disk Utility Restore to image or clone the system to another disk volume.
MacBook Series Forums
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks?view=discussions
Mac OS X Forum
https://discussions.apple.com/community/mac_os?view=discussions

Problem using File Sharing to access files from my old emac.

I have a new imac and I'm trying to share files with my older emac. I can access my imac files from my old emac through File Sharing, but I can't seem to access the old emac files from my imac. On my imac I can get to the Drop Box folder through File Sharing, but when I try to open the Drop Box folder I get this error message "The folder “Drop Box” can’t be opened because you don’t have permission to see its contents." What do I need to do to be able to open the Drop Box folder? Where do I need to go to change the permissions so that I can open the Drop Box folder?
Thanks in advance,
George

The easiest way is when you connect, connect as the admin user and you'll be able to access the entire user folder (and more). So (depending on the version of OS) select "connect as..." then put in the username and password of the user you are connecting to (so the details of the eMac you are connecting to). This should allow you to access the entire user folder.
If you select any folder or file, then press command+i (or 'get info' from the file menu in finder), it will launch a window with more info about the file/folder. At the bottom of the window you have "sharing and permissions" - in here you can (after unlocking with admin username and password) add permissions for your user.
The dropbox is usually used to transfer to a machine - so you'd generally use it to drop something from anywhere on your eMac into the dropbox on the iMac, and then you can recover it from the dropbox on the iMac. The permissions are set so anyone from the outside can only write to this folder.

Do I need to clean my computer like I did with my Dell?

Hi I have a MacBook Air
I was wondering if I need to clean up records etc like I did on my old Dell computer. I know very little about computers.
Thanks Dennis

No. Any one or any thing that recommends you "clean" your Mac should elicit a visceral negative reaction.
If you're having trouble with your Mac explain what it is. Make no attempt to "clean" it, unless you want to create real problems. For more information read below.
There will always be threats to your information security associated with using any Internet - connected communications tool:
You can mitigate those threats by following commonsense practices
Delegating that responsibility to software is an ineffective defense
Assuming that any product will protect you from those threats is a hazardous attitude that is likely to result in neglecting point #1 above.
OS X already includes everything it needs to protect itself from viruses and malware. Keep it that way with software updates from Apple.
A much better question is "how should I protect my Mac":
Never install any product that claims to "clean up", "speed up", "optimize", "boost" or "accelerate" your Mac; to "wash" it, "tune" it, or to make it "shiny". Those claims are absurd.Such products are very aggressively marketed. They are all scams.
Never install pirated or "cracked" software, software obtained from dubious websites, or other questionable sources.
Illegally obtained software is almost certain to contain malware.
"Questionable sources" include but are not limited to spontaneously appearing web pages or popups, download hosting sites such as C net dot com, Softonic dot com, Soft pedia dot com, Download dot com, Mac Update dot com, or any other site whose revenue is primarily derived from junk product advertisements.
If you need to install software that isn't available from the Mac App Store, obtain it only from legitimate sources authorized by the software's developer.
Don’t supply your password in response to a popup window requesting it, unless you know what it is and the reason your credentials are required.
Don’t open email attachments from email addresses that you do not recognize, or click links contained in an email:
Most of these are scams that direct you to fraudulent sites that attempt to convince you to disclose personal information.
Such "phishing" attempts are the 21st century equivalent of a social exploit that has existed since the dawn of civilization. Don’t fall for it.
Apple will never ask you to reveal personal information in an email. If you receive an unexpected email from Apple saying your account will be closed unless you take immediate action, just ignore it. If your iCloud, iTunes, or App Store account becomes disabled for valid reasons, you will know when you try to buy something or log in to this support site, and are unable to.
Don’t install browser extensions unless you understand their purpose:Go to the Safari menu > Preferences > Extensions. If you see any extensions that you do not recognize or understand, simply click the Uninstall button and they will be gone.
Don’t install Java unless you are certain that you need it:
Java, a non-Apple product, is a potential vector for malware. If you are required to use Java, be mindful of that possibility.
Java can be disabled in System Preferences.
Despite its name JavaScript is unrelated to Java. No malware can infect your Mac through JavaScript. It’s OK to leave it enabled.
The same precaution applies to Adobe Flash Player. Newly discovered Flash vulnerabilities appear almost weekly.
Beware spontaneous popups: Safari menu > Preferences > Security > check "Block popup windows".
Popup windows are useful and required for some websites, but unsolicited popups are commonly used to deceive people into installing unwanted software they would never intentionally install.
Popups themselves cannot infect your Mac, but many contain resource-hungry code that will slow down Internet browsing.
If you ever receive a popup window indicating that your Mac is infected with some ick or that you won some prize, it is 100% fraudulent. Ignore it.
The same goes for a spontaneously appearing dialog insisting that you upgrade your video player right this instant. Such popups are frequently associated with sites that promise to deliver "free" movies or other copyrighted content that is not normally "free".
The more insistent it is that you upgrade or install something, the more likely it is to be a scam. Close the window or tab and forget it.
Ignore hyperventilating popular media outlets that thrive by promoting fear and discord with entertainment products arrogantly presented as "news". Learn what real threats actually exist and how to arm yourself against them:
The most serious threat to your data security is phishing. Most of these attempts are pathetic and are easily recognized, but that hasn't stopped prominent public figures from recently succumbing to this age-old scam.
OS X viruses do not exist, but intentionally malicious or poorly written code, created by either nefarious or inept individuals, is nothing new.
Never install something without first knowing what it is, what it does, how it works, and how to get rid of it when you don’t want it any more.
If you elect to use "anti-virus" software, familiarize yourself with its limitations and potential to cause adverse effects, and apply the principle immediately preceding this one.
Most such utilities will only slow down and destabilize your Mac while they look for viruses that do not exist, conveying no benefit whatsoever - other than to make you "feel good" about security, when you should actually be exercising sound judgment, derived from accurate knowledge, based on verifiable facts.
Do install updates from Apple as they become available. No one knows more about Macs and how to protect them than the company that builds them.
Summary: Use common sense and caution when you use your Mac, just like you would in any social context. There is no product, utility, or magic talisman that can protect you from all the evils of mankind.

How do I import emails from my old eMac to iMac G5

I have recently upgraded to an iMac G5. I need to copy all my old emails (3 years worth) from my old eMac to the new computer. What options do I have? I don't want to copy anything else (applications or documents). I use Apple's Mail on both computers. Thanks.
iMac G5 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

You're welcome.
If the eMac supports being connected to another Mac via Firewire Target Disk mode (which I believe it does), you can connect both Macs this way for the import and for manually transferring any and all data from the eMac.
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58583

Transfer from old eMac to new iMac

I just got a new iMac and want to transfer lots of stuff from my old eMac. I have a firewire but find that while it can be plugged into the eMac it is too large to plug into the iMac. Is there some kind of an adapter I can purchase to remedy this? Thanks.

To connect the eMac's FW 400 port to the Imac's FW 800 port, you will need a FW 6-pin to 9-pin cable.
Aside from that, you need to be very careful about transferring things from a PowerPC Mac to an Intel Mac. I suggest Kappy's Guide; A Basic Guide for Migrating to Intel-Macs
Dah•veed

How to set up internet connection between MacBook Pro and an old eMac?

I got an old eMac without wifi and a MacBook Pro. I'd like to share the network connection via ethernet cable to my eMac, but I can't get it work.
I'd like to use it with screenrecycler and it needs a network connection.
How to do it? How to set up the connection between the client and the host? Could somebedy give me a step by step guide?
Thank you very much

Hello,
First, are you using Wifi for Internet on the MBP?
System Preferences>Network, click on the little gear at the bottom next to the + & - icons, (unlock lock first if locked), choose Set Service Order.
The interface that connects to the Internet should be dragged to the top of the list, Wifi on the MBP.
In Shating on both, enable File Sharing, Screen Sharing, & Web Sharing on both.
Then with the Ethernet cable between the two, find the IPs of both, or use Finder>Go>Connect to Server>Browse... see what shows up.

Will Mac X 10.3 work on old Emac?

I have a an old emac with Mac OS X 10.2.8
However, i need to put 10.3 or higher on and just wondered whether it would work?
Emac
1Ghz PowerPC G4
Memory 512 MB Ram
Hard Drive currently have 60G left
Will it work?

Short answer: yes.
If you're upgrading, might as well do to 10.4 since that eill be supported longer than 10.3. You'll need the retail (black label) Tiger Install DVD (assuming you have at combo or superdrive, internal or external). Model-specific (grey label) OS X Install discs may not include to full set of drivers needed for a particular computer and can cause strange problems. 512MB RAM will run either 10.3 or 10.4 although you may want to upgrade to 640 MB or more (your model will take up to 1 GB) using Crucial as a reference and eMac - Do-It-Yourself for RAM installation instructions.
There's a handy upgrading checklist at Gulliver - OS X System maintenance. After upgrading, you'll likely need the OS X Update Combo 10.4.9 (PPC) and to use Software Update to gather various security and application updates.
One thing to be aware of: some of the 10.4 upgrades may boot the computer twice after installing. That is, you run the update, it finished the 'optimizing system' stage, restarts, you get to the grey screen / white Apple logo, and then the computer restarts again. This is normal. Also, the first startup after an OS update can take significantly longer than usual; don't interrupt the computer by trying to cycle the power or turn it off at this point! Subsequent updates will be faster than usual.
Don't forget to update any third-party utilities you have, especially anythin that adds on to the menubar or that's a disk utility program of any kind (see e.g. Only use Mac OS X 10.4-compatible disk utilities with Mac OS X 10.4 volumes).
The bump from 10.2.8 to 10.4.x will give you a pronouncedly more responsive feeling computer. It's well worth the effort!

Old computer was wiped clean before CS6 could be deactivated. New computer and CS6 require serial number/activation code that I don't have recorded.

Old computer was wiped clean before CS6 could be deactivated. New computer/ CS6 require serial number/activation code that I don't have recorded.
How do I proceed?

Sign in to your Adobe account online and see if your serial number is available via the My products section. If you regstered your software then it should be available there.
Your only other hope beyond that would be to contact Adobe Support thru chat and see if they can help you. Also ask them to reset your activations so that the lost installation is essentially deactivated.
For the link below click the Still Need Help? option in the blue area at the bottom and choose the chat option...
Serial number and activation chat support (non-CC)
http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/service1.html ( http://adobe.ly/1aYjbSC )

How can I wipe out all my info on an old emac

I have an old emac i want to wipe out the info on it so I can donate it

With an install CD, you boot from the CD by holding down the C key at startup. Then go to "drive setup" and format the drive, choosing the option to zero data once.
JI~m

Donating old eMac--need to clean it up

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for