Help! Why can't I erase my hard drive?

I'm trying to erase an 80GB internal hard drive that came with my MacBook. However, the erase button is completely greyed out. I have an external drive connected waiting with Leopard on it and it recognizes that so why can't I erase this thing? I don't think it's damaged because it works perfectly aside from this.

Hi,
I think your problem is that you are booting from the disk you are trying to erase. If you have an external disk with Leopard, go to the startup disk preferences (under System Preferences) and choose to boot from the external disk. After installing from the external disk you should have the option to erase your internal disk.
I'm sure you know that, but I thought it worth mentioning that erasing your disk will cause your system not to be able to boot from this disk (which in many cases is the default option).
Ziv

Similar Messages

  • Why can't I erase my hard disk or install Snow Leopard?

    I have a 2010 imac Intel Core i3 running OS X. The computer has been running really slow lately, presumably because the hard drive was nearly full. I backed up and deleted most of my data on an external hard drive.
    I would like to reformat, but I haven't been able to. When I use disk utility, the option to erase the hard drive is not available (it is in grey). When I try to install Snow Leopard from the desktop using the DVD, it says "Cannot install Snow Leopard on this computer." When I boot from the Snow Leopard disk holding C upon startup, it gives me the same message.
    This may not be related, but I lost the Install DVD that came with the computer. I downloaded an ISO for Snow Leopard and burned it on to a disk. There don't seem to be any problems with this disk, though.
    I appreciate any help that anyone can offer.
    -Tom

    I downloaded an ISO for Snow Leopard and burned it on to a disk.
    I would not trust this disk to work, even if your Mac seems to be able to read it.  There has never been an official, downloadable version of Snow Leopard.  I suspect the ISO image  lacks something necessary to OS X, causing it to fail when you run it.  Someone other than Apple created that download and it's a pirated copy of OS X. (sorry to have to say that, but it is.)
    My suggestion is to buy a legitimate copy of Snow Leopard on eBay or from Apple or an Apple reseller. Snow Leopard is still available from Apple ($19.99 USD).
    The 2010 i3 iMacs came with 10.6.3 pre-installed.  Generally speaking you cannot install a version of OS X that is earlier than what was factory pre-installed on the Mac.  The OS X installer checks for this.  The version of Snow Leopard delivered on the retail packages varied over time as updates were released, but at this time a new Snow Leopard package is most likely to be 10.6.8.
    One final thing you might try - install CarbonCopyCloner and clone your hard drive to an external hard drive.   Once the clone is complete, boot from the external hard drive.  If everything works fine from the external drive you can use it to erase/reformat the internal drive in the iMac and then reverse clone your system back from the external drive.  IMPORTANT NOTE:  As far as I know, using CCC to "self-clone" the drive you are booted from will work, but I have never done it this way myself.  I have always booted from an external drive that already had OS X installed on it so that the source drive I was cloning was NOT the same drive I was booted from at the time.  It may work or not, but there is no harm in trying.

  • How can I securely erase the hard drive for PowerBook G4 running 10.2.3?

    I'm about to sell a PowerBook G4 12-inch running 10.2.3 after I erased the hard drive via the the original software install and restore disk. There was no secure erase option like there is in subsquent versions of OSX. Is there a way I can do a 7 (or 35) time erase on this machine? Thanks!

    See this Apple note. Secure erase was added in 10.2.3, but in a different place than later releases.

  • How can I securely erase my hard drive and reinstall OS X Mountain Lion?

    Hi, I am selling my MacBook and I was wondering if there's a way I can securely erase my hard drive, (... 7 pass, 35 pass) using these steps: http://www.mactip.net/how-to-securely-wipe-your-mac-hard-drive-before-selling-it /
    and also reinstall OS X Mountain Lion afterwards.
    Thanks in advance. 

    Boot into recovery mode by holding the command and r keys down during boot. Bring up Disk Utility and do the security erase you want to do. When done, choose to download Mountain Lion.

  • Why can't I erase my hard disk?

    I want to reformat my iMac, but disk utility won't let me highlight the drive. I have a 2010 Intel Core i3 and I'm running Mountain Lion. I do not have the OS disk that came with the computer. Any ideas?

    OS X Mountain Lion includes OS X Recovery, that allows you to reinstall OS X without needing any DVD. Read > http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4718
    Start your computer holding Command and R keys. Then, open Disk Utility and you will be able to erase the hard disk. You have to choose your OS X partition in the sidebar, not the whole hard disk. That's caused because OS X Recovery is a partition stored in the hard disk, so you can't erase the hard disk if you are using a volume

  • Why can I see my external hard drive?

    For 2 years or more I've had an external hrad drive to back up my Imac. One day I got a message that there had not beeb a back up for for a really long time  ( I have it on automatic).
    Ever since, I have not been able to see the external hard drive on mi Imac and have not been able to do regular back ups.
    First I turned off, on, restart computer and tried to see if it showed up on another computer, which it did.
    What could the problem be?  It was working just fine.
    Please help
    Thanks

    EHD's can crash. First thing I'd recommend though is to do 2-3 SMC resets. Shut down the computer, then remove the power cord from both the wall plug and back of the computer, wait 15-20 seconds and restart normally and test.
    If that fails use another cable to connect the drive, if that fails open Disk Utility and see if the EHD can be seen. If that fails then replace the drive. I would STRONGLY recommend 2 backups, use Time Machine on disk 1 and then use a create a clone using either SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner on the other drive. When it comes to backing up, redundancy is smart. Would you trust your bank if  they only had one form of backup of all your money??

  • Why can't spotlight index my hard drive?

    Since Spotlight can't index my hard drive, time machine won't make any backups. The old time machine backups still work and I can see and restore old files, but I cannot create any new backups.
    The problems seem to have started when I upgraded to iPhoto 11 (which would not load until the latest iPhoto update).
    The drive is attempting to index for literally weeks at a time and the system becomes unresponsive.
    How do I fix this? I have already brought it into the store where they fromated the drive but the problem came back.

    Since Spotlight can't index my hard drive, time machine won't make any backups. The old time machine backups still work and I can see and restore old files, but I cannot create any new backups.
    The problems seem to have started when I upgraded to iPhoto 11 (which would not load until the latest iPhoto update).
    The drive is attempting to index for literally weeks at a time and the system becomes unresponsive.
    How do I fix this? I have already brought it into the store where they fromated the drive but the problem came back.

  • WHY CAN'T I GET EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE TO IMPORT IN iMOVIE?

    I have linked my computer to an external hard drive to import clips with a firewire cable(the same one I use when I import from my camcorder). iMovie detects the device is plugged in, but is not playing the pictures or sound.
    Is there a setting I need to pix for this to work?

    The hard drive I am using is a domestic hard drive recorder/player.
    I have recorded the contents of a dvd onto the hard drive and am playing out through firewire straight into computer. imovie won't play or import.
    It was working with my laptop which runs imovie 4. All formats are PAL.

  • Why can't i view my hard drive anymore?

    I used to be able to open and browse through my hard drive, after updating to mavericks many of my filed are gone, no idea where they all ended up, but i would really like to acutally see my hard drive, not just my user account!
    i had games in the library and applications folders, and now i have no access to the library folder (which held well over 100GB of games) and my application folder is my shared one, not my personal one.

    The User Library is hidden in Mavericks. Do a Google search about how to show the User library. There are 2 Applications folders. Open Finder, the Applications in the sidebar is the shared applications folder. Click on our User and the Applications folder within your user is your personal Applications folder.
    If you had stuff installed in the Library folder before the upgrade then there is a chance it was removed during the upgrade.

  • Hello, I just bought a Snow Leopard and I have tried ti install this on my macbook pro 2008 (10.5.8) and I can not do it. I have to erase the hard drive before in order to succeed. Please tell me step by step what to do. I appreciate very much your help.

    Hello, I just bought a Snow Leopard and I have tried to install this on my macbook pro 2008 (10.5.8) and I can not do it. I have to erase the hard drive before in order to succeed. Please tell me step by step what to do. I appreciate very much your help.
    Thanks

    Here are the directions:
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3910?viewlocale=en_US
    Ciao.

  • I had to erase my hard drive and now when I try to sync the I phone or Ipad it says I will loose my data on the iphone or ipad .  how can I sync the phone or I pad without loosing my music ?

    I had to erase my hard drive and reinstall ox snow leopard.  when i try to sync my Iphone or Ipad it says that my device was synced with another computer and I will loose my songs on the Iphone or ipad and it will be replaced by the library that is on my computer now.  The library is empty since I had to erase the hard drive.  Can anyone help?

    1) ensure iTunes is authorized for your iTunes store account(s)
    2) connect your device and right-click or control-click it in the iTunes Source list, then choose transfer purchases from the shortcut menu that appears.
    3) sync the device
    iTunes will wipe the iPhone/iPad but, since you transferred your purchases in the previous step, your content will be in your library and you can re-populate the iPhone/iPad with it.
    above works for purchases from the iTunes store. for everything else, check out this post by Zevoneer.
    also, there are PhoneView and iRip.

  • I had to erase my hard drive and then reinstall everything back from my passport external hard drive. Now my iPhoto edit is not working. I get a blank screen when I want to edit. The photos show up in the library but I cannot edit them. Help?

    I had to erase my hard drive and then reinstall everything back from my passport external hard drive. Now my iPhoto edit is not working. I get a blank screen when I want to edit. The photos show up in the library but I cannot edit them. Help?

    There are several possible causes for the Black Screen issue
    *1. Permissions in the Library* : Back Up and try rebuild the library: hold down the command and option (or alt) keys while launching iPhoto. Use the resulting dialogue to rebuild. Include the option to check and repair permissions.
    *2. Minor Database corruption*: Back Up and try rebuild the library: hold down the command and option (or alt) keys while launching iPhoto. Use the resulting dialogue to rebuild.
    *3. A Damaged Photo*: Select one of the affected photos in the iPhoto Window and right click on it. From the resulting menu select 'Show File (or 'Show Original File' if that's available). Will the file open in Preview? If not then the file is damaged. Time to restore from your back up.
    *4. A corrupted iPhoto Cache*: Trash the com.apple.iPhoto folder from HD/Users/Your Name/Library/ Caches...
    *5. A corrupted preference file*: Trash the com.apple.iPhoto.plist file from the HD/Users/ Your Name / library / preferences folder. (Remember you'll need to reset your User options afterwards. These include minor settings like the window colour and so on. Note: If you've moved your library you'll need to point iPhoto at it again.)
    If none of these help:
    As a Test:
    Hold down the option (or alt) key key and launch iPhoto. From the resulting menu select 'Create Library'
    Import a few pics into this new, blank library. Is the Problem repeated there?
    Regards
    TD

  • Trying to erase hard drive, but get "input/output error". What does this mean? What can I do to erase my hard drive so I can reinstall?

    Hi all,
    My computer a few days ago wouldn't start up, would just stay at the gray loading screen forever. So as a result I tried to reformat the hard drive and reinstall, but I can't reinstall, until I erase the hard drive, but when I try to erase the hard drive it says the erase failed due to an input/output error. What does this mean? What can I do to fix my computer?

    The startup drive is failing, or there is some other internal hardware fault.
    Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service provider.
    Back up all data on the internal drive(s) before you hand over your computer to anyone. There are ways to back up a computer that isn't fully functional — ask if you need guidance.
    If privacy is a concern, erase the data partition(s) with the option to write zeros* (do this only if you have at least two complete, independent backups, and you know how to restore to an empty drive from any of them.) Don’t erase the recovery partition, if present.
    Keeping your confidential data secure during hardware repair
    Apple also recommends that you deauthorize a device in the iTunes Store before having it serviced.
    *An SSD doesn't need to be zeroed.

  • Can apple erase a hard drive with filevault 2 turned on and then reinstall OSX?

    Can I take my MacBook Pro to an apple store and have them erase the hard drive and reinstall OSX? If so how much will that cost me?

    I believe that's pretty much your only recourse if you forget the password and didn't write down the recovery key or choose to store it with Apple.
    If you chose to store it with Apple, you can have them retrieve it for you if you answer the three security questions.
    Really, with FileVault, the recovery key is crucial. You MUST keep a safe copy of it.
    Matt

  • Can anyone help me with advice for a replacement hard drive

    Hi there,
    Can anyone help me with advice for a replacement hard drive and RAM upgrade for my Mac Book Pro 5,3
    Its 3 years old & running Snow Leopard 10.6.8
    I do a lot of audio & movie work so performance is important.
    The logic board was replaced last summer & I was advised to replace the hard drive then...oops
    Anyway it has limped on until now but is giving me cause for concern...
    I have found a couple of possibilities below...so if anyone does have a moment to take a look & help me out I would be most grateful
    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Western-Digital-Scorpio-7200rpm-Internal/dp/B004I9J5OG/r ef=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356787585&sr=8-1
    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kingston-Technology-Apple-8GB-Kit/dp/B001PS9UKW/ref=pd_s im_computers_5
    Kind regards
    Nick

    Thanks guys that is so helpful :-)
    I will follow your advice Ogelthorpe & see how I get on with the job!!! Virgin territory for me so I may well shout for help once my MBP is in bits!! Is there a guide for duffers for this job anywhere??
    & yes in an ideal world I would be replacing my old MBP but I'm just not in a position to do that at the moment....let's hope things pick up in 2013
    All the very best
    Nick

Maybe you are looking for