How to reformat a Macbook pro 2011 hard drive?

Hello,
How do you reformat a MacBook Pro (OS X 10.7.3) 2011s Hard drive? I already backed up all the files I wanted to save. But since I have the new Macbook pro 2011 (only a few months since I got it) it didn't come with an installation disc, but instead already came with all the applications. I'm wondering how to reformat the hard drive so it wipes out everything and I can start fresh and what would happen to all the applications?

Well Lion has a Lion Recovery Partition on the drive you can access by holding command r and booting, there you can erase the Lion OS X partition completely (all files and programs) and reinstall Lion or simply reinstall Lion if there is a issue with it (no programs or files are touched in this second procedure)
Lion is downloaded from apple's servers, you need AppleID and a fast reliable internet connection with no bandwidth caps limiting you.
https://support.apple.com/kb/HT4718
If you want to replace the drive, there is software called Carbon Copy Cloner than can clone both the Lion OS X Partition and the Lion Recovery Partition to a external drive intact (excpet what's in the Trash, no Filevualt, no bootcamp, use free Winclone for that)
Hold the option key and you can boot from the external drive and format and clone everything to the new internal drive. TimeMachine of 10.7.2 and later can be booted from it's Lion Recovery Parttion as well just to restore only, cloning is better process because it gives full access to everything like before on the internal drive.
http://www.bombich.com/index.html
Some newer Mac's have Lion Internet recovery built in where the firmware will install the Lion Recovery/OS back onto a completely blank/new hard drive.

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I have all my music on my external hard drive when I try to add it to iTunes it is automatically added to my MacBook Pro's hard drive. How do I stop this from happening? I just want the music to stay on the external hard drive. Thanks!

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This is true of course, but doesn't cover the situation where some files are in the iTunes Media folder and others are on an external drive. In my case I keep my music in the Media folder and all my films on an external drive (there are too many to have on the internal drive). In iTunes 11, and before, it was easy to add those external files by holding down the alt/opt key while dragging to the sidebar. In iTunes 12 this is no longer possible. There are several workarounds: use TuneSpan to move the file after it's been added; delete the file from the Media folder and empty the trash then use iTunes Get Info which will report the file is missing and allow you to locate it; constantly switch the Add to iTunes toggle on and off as required. All of these require a lot more work than just holding down the alt/opt key while adding.
It constantly gets harder.

On my macbook pro the hard drive icon is not on my desktop and I don't know how to find the hard drive or get the icon back on my desktop

on my macbook pro the hard drive icon is not on my desktop and I don't know how to find the hard drive or get the icon back on my desktop

Click on the Desktop. From the Finder menu select Preferences. Check the boxes for what you want on your Desktop. If they are already checked, then try unchecking and rechecking.

My MacBook Pro's hard drive is about full, can I move a lot of the data to my 3 TB Time Capsule?

I have a late 2011 MacBook Pro 17 Inch with 750 GB of space on its hard drive. About a month and half ago I bought a 3 TB Time Capsule and I know that Time Capsule, together with Time Machine, basically takes periodic snapshots of your hard drive and will rearrange/clean/delete files on your hard drive. What I want to know is that since I'm about to run out of space on the internal hard drive can I move a good chunk of the data into the Time Capsule and free up that data on internal hard drive. Videos take up about 75% of my MacBook Pro's hard drive so video's are my biggest problem. If I can't do this with the Time Capsule I guess that's a con of the Time Capsule/Time Machine.
Thank you to anyone that answers!

You should be able to do that by partitioning but then how would that data be backed up? If the Time Capsule drive fails, then all of that data is lost. I would suggest you consider an additional external HDD for redundancy unless the video files are of no importance.
Ciao.

I had problems with my MacBook pro's hard drive.

I had problems with my MacBook pro's hard drive. And I have this question how can I end up getting a replacement for it like get a new one.

The recycle program makes it easier for you to trade in your old Mac and buy a new one. Apple has a partner that will take the old one and give you a gift card for the value -- if your old Mac is in pretty good condition and doen't have problems (passes the diagnostics).

HT201250 I recently replaced my 2009 Macbook Pro's hard drive. I had the Apple store upgrade the OS to Mountain Lion while it was being repaired. I want to restore all of my old files and data, if I restore from Time Machine, will it revert to the old O

I recently had to replace my 2009 Macbook Pro's hard drive. I had the apple store upgrade the OS to Mountain Lion while it was in being repaired. I want to restore all of my old data and files. If I perform a restore from Time Machine, with a date prior to having the hard drive replaced, will it revert back to the old OS?

No, it won't revert to the prior OS X but you you may have third party apps installed that were compatible with Lion that may not be compatible with Mountain Lion.
App Compatibility Table - RoaringApps - App compatibility and feature support for OS X & iOS
After you restore from TM, check HD > Incompatible Software

Hey, can i clone my Macbook Pro internal hard drive and then paste it all onto a formated external hard drive, then make the Mac use the external as the primary hard drive?

hey, can i clone my Macbook Pro internal hard drive and then paste it all onto a formated external hard drive, then make the Mac use the external as the primary hard drive? please help for i only have around 618mb left out of 189GB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If what doesn't work?
If cloning your internal drive to the external drive is not successful, I expect CCC will tell you so. Assuming that doesn't happen, you will have a bootable replica of the internal drive on the external drive once CCC has finished.
You can then do any of several things:
1. Replace your internal drive with a much larger one (320GB or 500GB, or even larger), and clone the external drive's contents onto the new drive so you'll have all your data in one place. Note that if you do this, you'll also need to buy an external drive that's large enough to back the new internal drive up on.
2. Boot from the external drive as a temporary measure while you clear at least 30-40GB of data off the internal drive, allowing you to keep using it and saving small amounts of data to it. The external drive will then contain the only copies of the files you've deleted from the internal drive, so you'll need a seond external drive large enough to back both the other drives up on.
If you can't comfortably clear a minimum of 30GB off the internal drive, you really need a larger internal drive right now, and you shouldn't bother fooling around with the inadequate one you have — you'll just quickly overfill it again.
3. Replace the optical drive in your MBP with a large conventional hard drive, giving you two hard drives inside the machine. You will then need one or more external drives large enough to back up both of the internal drives.
If you sense a theme here — back up, back up, back up — you are correct. It's flat-out foolhardy to own or use a computer without maintaining complete, up-to-date backups of everything at all times.

How to reformat '06 Macbook Pro - cannot reach desktop

I have a 2006 Macbook Pro. I try and boot it but I cannot reach the desktop. My plan is to try and reformat it with 10.6.7 Snow Lep or 10.7 Lion (does Lion work with '06 Macbook Pro's, how about Mountain Lion?)
But here is the issue. I cannot access the desktop and the DVD Drive is non-functioning. The obvious solution is to do a bootable USB drive (I have another newer Macbook Pro to do the setup) BUT... since I cannot access the desktop, how do I actually do the reformatting with the bootable USB?

Sorry, I'm a PC guy (don't kill me)
Oh, I didn't realize you weren't part of the club. I'm afraid I've said too much... now you must die!
Okay, on a more serious note, Lion may work okay, but memory requirements in Lion are significantly higher than in Snow Leopard, and that machine only has 2 GB of RAM (assuming it hasn't had more added). I wasn't able to run Lion well on a 2010 machine with 4 GB of RAM (it ran great after upgrading the RAM), after upgrading from Snow Leopard... but I may have been doing more memory-demanding tasks than your brother, so that may not be relevant. You could certainly try Lion and see what happens.

How to: Reformat my Macbook Pro 10.7.4

hey guys
i know this question has been asked alot but i cant seem to find an exact answer to my question. i have a macbook pro late 2008 with OS Lion install and im currently copying everything i want to save on an external harddrive, but cant seem to find find a way to reformat my MBP. i got lion of the app store and know that i cant just wipe de HD with Disk Utilities because i wont be able to reinstall OS Lion, on the net they keep talking about LION RECOVERY DISK ASSISTANCE but they say you need to have a recovery saved or somthing of the sort... isnt their just a simple CLICK TO REFORMAT BACK TO SCRATCH WITH OSX LION RE-INSTALLED?
thanks for your help.
Sean

You can format your Lion partition because you don't need it to download Lion again. Boot in recovery mode pressing Command and R keys, format the partition using Disk Utility (it's called Macintosh HD if you didn't modify it) and reinstall. Note that your computer will download Lion, so the process could be long. When you have installed it, you can restore a Time Machine backup (if you did one) or restore your files of your external drive manually if you didn't activate Time Machine

How can i install mac os x snow leopard on a macbook pro new hard drive

I replaced the hard drive on my macbook pro and I'm having difficulty installing Mac Snow leopard on the new hard drive. I press "C" when rebooting with the disk inside and all I get is "you need to restart your computer. Hold down the power button until it turns off, then press the Power button again" any suggestion?

Booting From An OS X Installer Disc
1. Insert OS X Installer Disc into the optical drive.
2. Restart the computer.
3. Immediately after the chime press and hold down the "C" key.
4. Release the key when the spinning gear below the dark gray Apple
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5. Wait for installer to finish loading.
Clean Install of Snow Leopard
     1. Boot the computer using the Snow Leopard Installer Disc. Insert the disc into the
         optical drive and restart the computer. After the chime press and hold down the
         "C" key. Release the key when you see a small spinning gear appear below the
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     4. When the installation has completed your computer will Restart into the Setup
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         Assistant will complete the installation after which you will be running a fresh
         install of OS X. You can now begin the update process by opening Software
         Update and installing all recommended updates to bring your installation current.

Hello how to reformat a macbook pro

hi im geezar how to reformat a macbookpro .???? without using a disk.???

Boot into recovery mode by rebooting and holding the command and r keys down while you reboot. Then use Disk Utility to erase the hard drive. Depending on what you want to do, you may want to do a secure erase that writes zero's to the hard drive.

My mid-2009 MacBook Pro's hard drive is near death. I want to install a new SSD and work from scratch. Please help.

Recently, my mid-2009 MacBook Pro has been crashing when I close the screen ("it's having a problem recognizing when the screen is closed/open and deciding what to do, error overload etc."). It wasn't an SMC issue so I took it to an Apple Store, ran some tests, and decided my hard-drive is failing.
Not wanting to spend an insane amount of money on some "official apple hard-drive," I want to install a new 256GB SSD instead. Hoping to squeeze as much life out of this computer as possible (in January I upgraded from 4 GB RAM to 8 GB), I would like to try and start from scratch, i.e. back-up important folders, music, photos etc. and only take that to the new hard-drive. If someone could explain all the steps I need to take to safely complete this task (or point me in the direction of a guide) I'd appreciate it.
Potentially Important info:
     Model:                mid-2009 13'' MacBook Pro
     Processor:          2.53 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
     Memory:             4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
     Software:            OS X 10.8.4
Some additional questions I have...
     Should I be concerned with making a fully bootable back-up (not sure what that is called) as well? If so, what program should I use to create it?
     How much more life should I try and push out of this computer? I'm an engineering student and really only use it for web-surfing, music, and
          word-processing. The batter was replaced in March, the RAM was upgraded to 8 GB in January. When the battery was swapped, the trackpad went           nuts so that's new too. Only other issues are a slightly loose audio jack and the left side of the screen being slightly wobbly (hinge is worn I'm told).

cwgonzalez1192
     Should I be concerned with making a fully bootable back-up (not sure what that is called) as well? If so, what program should I use to create it?
     How much more life should I try and push out of this computer? I'm an engineering student and really only use it for web-surfing, music, and
          word-processing.
Well there is no "official Apple HD / SSD" in any regard, no worries there.
If as you say youre only using same for surfing and word processing, why the need for a SSD? You would not notice any speed diff. in use on either of those,....in boot times yes, but in word or surfing, not.
You can push it likely a few more years, for mere surfing and word processing,...many many years.   Up TO the point that any major fixes become unrealistic relative to getting a new(ER) machine.
Concerned with a boot clone? yes and no. Its an ideal immediate recovery, since you cannot boot from Time Machine, ....in case of HD crash, recovery takes seconds from boot, or 20 mins or so from removing old and installing a clone. All the prosumers and pros have at least one updated clone of their prime machines.
You can do a "fresh install" if you choose, however if your current drive is FINE, why not merely clone it and save yourself some headache?...., but that is your prerogative of course.    Ideally 2 drives, one to backup your data (you need that regardless of installing a new drive for sake of a backup/archive,...ideally 2 actually, not merely one).
You could clone internal to NEW SSD/HD , ...then offload unnecessary files to an external to free up space and clutter and run off the clone, and this would only take a couple hours......the clone itself takes approx. 40+ mins.
CLONE Apps :
Superduper does not clone the recovery partition, but that is NOT necessary if you keep the original HD as a “backup clone”. Most don’t bother with the recovery partition in a clone, however that is your prerogative.
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html
(Free superduper APP above)
CCC App
http://www.bombich.com/

MacBook Pro -- external hard drive corruption -- AND hanging computer?

Since purchasing a 17" MacBook Pro, I've had serious problems with directory corruption on three of my external firewire hard drives (80 and 100 G FireLite Pocket drives and a 400 G Lacie drive). About 2 weeks ago, the 80 G drive (with most of my critical files) disappeared from the desktop. Disk Utilities returned with a message that it was repairable. Tech Tools supposedly fixed it, but the drive icon shortly disappeared from the desktop. This time, Disk Utilities "repaired" it, but it was the kiss of death. After this, plugging in the drive caused the computer to hang indefinitely. I could no longer run any repair or data rescue software. Once this problem occurs, I can switch firewire cables and computers, and the computers still crash/hang. A techy at work managed to rescue the files and replace them on the disk (this required other hardware, a PC, and some software he downloaded(?)). Two weeks later, the problem happened again. However, this time, it was the 80 G and my 400 G backup drive. Now, all of my originals and backups (for the past 2 years, since I did my last CD/DVD backups) are (hopefully) temporarily unavailable. My 100 G drive started to do the same thing. However, I purchased and downloaded a copy of Disk Warrior, which seems to have rescued this disk.
I've had these drive for between 3 and 5 years, with little or absolutely no trouble. Then, after getting the MacBook Pro, I'm encountering really serious problems.
Is the MacBook Pro at fault? (I've returned to my PowerBook G4 until this issue is resolve).
What causes such severe disk directory damage that causes my computer to hang?
How can I recover my files (critically important to my work, some of which is on a tight deadline) without having to run to the vastly overworked/underpaid techy in my place of employment)?
My conversation with an Apple Tech was much less than satisfying. In fact, he seemed to portray a state of denial about the MacBook Pro having any problems, even though the web is full of complaints. What's up Apple? Are you beginning to backslide yet again?

Welcome To Discussions JeffBloom!
I'm sorry to hear that you are having problems with your MBP, but you have posted your inquiry, in the Discussions Forum, that is intended for discourse about the use of Apple Discussions.
You will get more focused attention to your issue, if you select a more appropriate location from this page Discussions Forum Home.
For example,
From the Forum Home Page, select the Category MacBook Pro.
Then choose an appropriate MBP Forum, such as Using your MacBook Pro.
On Forum pages, there is an option to Post New Topic.
Good Luck!
ali b

My MacBook Pro's hard drive data recovery

A short while ago, my macbook pro wouldn't boot. I took it to an apple store close by and they said they had to reformat the hard drive. They promised they'd try to retrieve some files. Sadly, only old files were recovered, I lost all my applications, photos, and music, and school work. Is it possible to recover the data that was on my previous hard drive? I'll appreciate any information. Thank you.

If they've formatted and reinstalled on top of what was already there, it's gone. If they had pulled the old drive and you still had it, there might be a chance. This is why backups are important.

Macbook Pro - 2 Hard Drives - Dual Boot OS OSX + Windows

Hello guys, I've been facing an issue here
I bought an SSD 2 years ago and changed the original MBP HD. I did a fresh install of OSX while still having my optical drive. Everything is fine with the OSX installation.
Recently I bought an enclosure and installed the original MBP HD drive into the optical drive slot. Now i have two HD's on my MBP (Early 2011 - Unibody Model)
The configuration for the Hard Drives is as follows:
SSD Drive - disk 0 - OS X Running fine
HD Drive - disk 1 - clean formatted to accommodate Windows 7 installation
I started the BootCamp Utility formated the second hard drive to install windows from bootable USB. Everything works fine until the point where the Windows installation actually expands the files. I always get the same error, that windows cannot be installed on that drive and any changes will be reverted back to original settings.
Several hours after researching the whole thing this is what I've got:
The error that I am getting is for the configuration of the drives, a fix to this problem is to take out my SSD, install the old HD in its original position, install windows normally, put my SSD back in its position and put the old HD in the optical drive and thus I will have the Dual Boot of two OS in two different HD's. That's really really awful as I have to take appart again the whole thing and swap between the drives till the process is finished. This is because The EFI boot + Windows to be installed require the disk that windows to be installed to be on main slot - disk 0.
My question here is, is there any fix to the BootCamp assistant to let me install windows on the hard drive that it is located on the disk 1 position?
Moreover is there any way to install windows through the environment of OSX with the use of a VM, but, the windows to be a bootable OS rather than a VM bootable image? (on disk 1 - optical drive SATA port). - What I mean by that is, while running OS X normally on disk 0 run a VM software that will mimic the environment of a bootloader so that I can install windows on disk 1, but after I shut down my computer, windows should be accessible on disk 1 as a normal installed OS.
Sorry for the long post and thank you very much for your time, any suggestions would be really helpful.

You can install Parallels or Fusion, either will work. When you setup either Parallels or fusion you can tell it to use your already installed Boot Camp installation of Windows as its target guest operating system.
You would then just boot into OSx, start your VM (Parallels or Fusion), then you'll have access to both OSx and Windows without having to reboot.
I have this setup and two monitors. I have my Windows running on my external monitor and OSx running on my Macbook Pro monitor at the same time.
Beware that you will need to re-register Windows to get a second key. This is free and easily done either online or by calling the Microsoft registration number. The reason for needing a second key is that Windows, although only installed once in your Boot Camp partition sees the virtual hardware created by your virtual machine and thinks it has been reinstalled on a new computer.

How to reformat a Macbook pro 2011 hard drive?

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