Selling My Mac Mini

Latest version of the mac mini running version 10.8.3.
I am selling it, how do I reset it to factory defaults to ensure all my personal information is gone.
Thanks.

Boot from either the Recovery DVD or the Recovery Partition and erase the disk.
Allan

Similar Messages

I am selling my Mac Mini. I recently purchased OS X Lion. When I restore to factory settings, how can I ensure that the operating system will still be Lion, and not the original operating system, which I believe was Snow Leopard?

I am selling my Mac Mini. I recently purchased OS X Lion. When I restore to factory settings, how can I ensure that the operating system will still be Lion, and not the original operating system, which I believe was Snow Leopard?

If you bought Lion from the App Store, you can't legally or practically transfer it, because it's tied to your Apple ID. Reinstall the original software from the discs that came with the machine.

Selling my mac mini and need help

I know this question has been asked over and over but im selling my mac mini and have a couple of questions
How do i remove my changes and default to startup settings for new onwer i do not have a DVD/CD drive
My mac was purchased in May of this year .
also will it default to mountain loin 10.8 i installed in July ?

If your mac mini came with lion, the installer should be in launchpad. There are many tutorials online on how to how make a bootable usb or dvd from this file.
1. Backup your important files.
2. Boot into the usb or dvd.
3. There will be a screen where it asks you to choose a disk, and there should be an option to open disk utility (maybe in the top taskbar)
4. Format the hard drive.
5. Install Lion.
6. When the buyer turns the mac on, they will get a screen where they get to set up their new mac
Hope this helps.

Selling my Mac Mini but will iLife be there after wipe and re-install

Hi there
I am wanting to sell my 2011 Mac Mini which originally came with Lion installed. In the time I've had it I've upgraded it through ML and it's now running Mavericks. Obviously I'm going to erase the hard drive and then re-install OSX before selling and I'm comfortable with how to do this but I'm now wondering about the iLife software that came with my Mac.
My questions are;
a) the recovery partition, will this still have a copy of Lion there or will that have been upgraded to Mavericks as well?
b) If the recovery partition is set now for Mavericks, I have read in other threads that if I re-install any version of the OS that is different to the one that originally shipped with my Mac (Lion) then the new owners will not have access to the iLife bundle that was pre-installed and will have to purchase it from the Mac App Store. Is this true?
c) If this is true is there anyway I can revert the Mac mini back to Lion so then the new owners will have access to the iLife software and then upgrade to Mavericks themselves?
Obviously I would prefer the iLife suite to be available as this makes my Mac more attractive when selling. Before it was so much easier when Apple actually gave out Install discs as you could just re-install from them without any issues. Now with the Mac App Store and this new way of obtaining apps preparing a Mac for sale is a bit more complicated.
Any advise regarding this is greatly appreciated.
John

Here is the link I lef tout of my first reply
OS X: About OS X Recovery
I think that if you do what
What to do before selling or giving away your Mac
says and then setup the Mac with your ID, your ID will have to remain on the computer in order to update the OS.
The same may apply for iWorks since you had to sign in to download iWorks

Can I install "just" windows XP on my mac mini? no bootcamp. no parallels

Hi,
The question is can I (and how can I) install only the windows xp home or professional OS on a mac mini 1.5 core solo (i.e., turning it into a windows only machine). I want to be cIear that I don't want to duel-boot (i.e., boot camp) or use a VM (ie., parallels), but just a regular x86 computer that is running (sigh with me) Windows.
I imagine that if I do a clean and proper format of the mac mini, start it up and insert the Windows disk, everything will work.
Another question I have is, after 2 years, will I be able to put OS X back on? (Let's assume I have backed up all my files on an external drive.)
Mac mini

Hi Matthew!
Boot Camp will be the closest you'll come to your goal. A Mac is afterall intended to run Mac OS software first and foremost and Windows is only a secondary OS. But it is possible to boot into Windows after using Boot Camp to get it installed and then delete the Mac partition. You can always reinstall the Mac OS later.
Or you can still use Boot Camp to get Windows installed and just never boot back into Mac OS X (leaving it on its own partition). But why have Apple hardware just to do that? You'd be better off selling your Mac Mini and purchasing an Intel machine that will run Windows natively.
Hope this helps! bill
1 GHz Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Intel Mac Mini Vs G4

ok, i have a G4 Mac mini (1.42 80gb 512mb combo)
i am looking at the new mac mini intel 1.5ghz with added superdrive and possibly HDD upgrade.
my main tasks are browsing the internet, word processing, listening to music, watching dvds, using msn & dvd backup copying.
is there any point in me selling my Mac mini i have now to get the new version?
and how much do you think i will get for the mini on ebay ?
thanx for ur help

At the moment, I think G4 minis are selling pretty well on eBay, so prices are holding up reasonably well, but as in all things, it's as much about how you describe the item and such things as how many other minis are being auctioned at the time and how their prices are going.
Personally I would say that given what you have in mind as very common uses for the system and the performance of G4 minis in general, I'd say I would keep the system you have for a while yet - partly because it's not all that much worth swapping to an Intel model unless you need the extra power, and partly because in six month or so time, there will be a far better feel for how well the Intel models perform in real-world tasks, and whether the performance benefit would be worth the extra outlay.
If you were seeking to use the mini for demanding tasks in which Universal applications were available at the present time, I'd say it was worthwhile to change, but on the basis of your outlined use, I'd say it really isn't.
I know as the owner of 2 G4 units, I'm happy to keep them both.

Can I get the tech spec for my mac mini online?

I am selling my mac mini and need the tech spec as the one's on the Ebay catalog are not correct for this model. There must be a way of entering my serial number but I can't find a suitable site and Apple Support will charge me for asking them!!!

Since you did not specify specify your model Mini try looking here:
Apple - Support - Technical Specifications

Mac Mini (Late 2009) firewire 800 failure

Good morning,
I have a Mac Mini (late 2009), with an external Lacie hardrive 1TB connected via firewire 800. Woke up one morning to see that my hard drive had dismounted. So I restarted my mac and external hardrive to see that it no longer appeared on my desktop, in finder nor in system profiler.
So I decided to connect the hard drive via FW800 on my mac laptop, it appeared as it should. I also managed to connect the External hardrive via USB on my Mac Mini which worked.
My question is this: Is there something i can do to reset my mac in hopes that the FW800 functions? Or do I need to schedule a repair?
Many thanks,
SPJ

You could do the standard troubleshooting steps.
Zap the PRAM by holding down Command-Shift-P-R
Reset the SMC see http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3964
Disconnect all cables (literally all) and then reconnect with as few as needed for an initial test, i.e. just power, keyboard/mouse, screen and of course the hard disk
In Apple System Profiler have a look at the FireWire entry and see what is listed, hopefully the interface itself is listed
Consider using USB instead of FireWire, this will save you the cost of a repair but will be slightly slower
Consider selling the Mac mini with this known fault and then buying yourself a new or refurbished one, the difference might not cost that much more than a new logic board and labour which is the part involved here

Can i install an entire Xp in my intel based mac mini?

can i install an entire Xp in my intel based mac mini?
no boot camp.
how to do that if impossible?

Hi Matthew!
Boot Camp will be the closest you'll come to your goal. A Mac is afterall intended to run Mac OS software first and foremost and Windows is only a secondary OS. But it is possible to boot into Windows after using Boot Camp to get it installed and then delete the Mac partition. You can always reinstall the Mac OS later.
Or you can still use Boot Camp to get Windows installed and just never boot back into Mac OS X (leaving it on its own partition). But why have Apple hardware just to do that? You'd be better off selling your Mac Mini and purchasing an Intel machine that will run Windows natively.
Hope this helps! bill
1 GHz Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Formatting hard drive on Mac Mini

Hi, I just bought a mac book and i'm selling my mac mini to a friend. now, i know i can format my hard drive though disk utilities, but when i erase my hard drive, what happens the next time i turn on my computer? i'm thinking it will be just like when i first got the mac, it will ask me for the OS X installation disk, and away i go. basically, i'm trying to hand this computer over in the same state it was when i pulled it out of the box. any help/clarification would be great.
cheers

Erasing your drive with Disk Utility will delete everything on your hard drive, but then it won't have any OS. I have never had an OS-less disk, but I doubt Open Firmware (or EFI, if it's an Intel Mini) will ask for your OS X Install disc(s). You will probably see an error message or something.
What you should do is follow Mario's suggestion and re-install Mac OS X, doing an Erase & Install. That will erase everything on your hard drive & install a fresh copy of Mac OS X. When your friend turns his new Mini on, he will see the "Welcome" screen and will be guided through the original setup process ...

Forgotten Mac Mini---Possible solutions

Hello my mac mini users. My mac mini has been sitting in a box by itself for about 2.5 years ever since I got my macbook for college.
My mac mini = g4 1.5 ghz 1 gig of ram running tiger. I opened the box today and wondered what I could do with the device.
As a college student selling my mac mini came to mind (I could get about 150 from an online quote I got today). However I know many people use their mac minis for various tasks for music, and productivity.
Now I was thinking what I could use the mac mini for and searched online however I am not getting clear results for my specific mac mini, and in a concise form.
I was hoping to get some ideas and direction from my fellow mac min users.
How are you using your older mac minis and where did you find the directions in order to make it occur.
Message was edited by: I C

IC - I am going through exactly the same conundrum as you. Just upgraded my iMac data etc to a new iMac and in turn transferred the Mac mini to my old iMac - everybody's happy except I can;t quite bring myself to throw out the mini (I even wiped the drive and loaded it into the car for the tip once - that's how bad it's got - sad I know). Mine is a 1.25Ghz model. Re-loaded Leopard and just tried hooking it up to my 40" LCD TV, but a combination (I suspect) of graphics card and s-video connection means the picture was there, but you wouldn't want to spend much time looking at it.
I was wondering about using it in the lounge as some form of iTunes server but not sure it really warrants that - I have an Airport Express which does much the same thing. I just can't think of anything else to do with it other than accept the fact that it's a 7+ year old computer and owes me nothing. The tip beckons unless some new thinking strikes soon.

Mac Mini Core Duo 1.83 vs. Dual 450 G4

So I know somebody selling a Mac Mini Core Duo 1.83 for $200. My current machine is a Dual 450 G4. Would the Mini be a faster machine? I know it seems like a stupid question, but the Mini has been maligned because of its Integrated Graphics (my g4 450 dualie has a Radeon 8500 with 64 megs dedicated). I mostly use my machine for Photoshop, Indesign, music production and light video work.
I'd have to bump up the Mini's ram (it's only got 512 mb); my g4 has 1.75gigs of ram. Other than hat, would the Mini seem like a faster machine?
Opinions?

VRAM≠more performance.
I didn't say it did.
Integrated graphics steal from the main system memory and resources, so they shouldn't be considered when doing amateur or professional editing software.
It's true that on-board graphics use main RAM, thus removing 64Mb of memory from availability to the system, but out of a total of 2Gb, or potentially 3.3Gb on a C2D model, that is hardly a factor. It must also be said that while dedicated VRAM is a better bet for absolute performance, sharing high speed main RAM is also rather better than much slower VRAM on dedicated video cards such as the 8500 mentioned previously.
As to whether the presence of shared RAM rather than dedicated RAM should exclude a system from consideration when doing 'amateur or professional editing', I'd say that depends on the user, and that user's genuine need. Nothing, in the world of purchasing decisions, should be excluded until it is known to be unsuited for any of the reasons an individual might have. Given there would appear to be many people using Mac minis for tasks including video and image editing (including myself), it would seem clear that at some level these systems are perfectly suited to the task.
His Dual G4 has 1.7GB of RAM, a lot more than what the mini has—512MB.
Current Mac minis don't come with 512Mb RAM, and can be expanded to 4Gb (of which 3.3 is usable to the system).
The only category in which the mini wins is in CPU.
Actually not. Just about everything in a Mac mini is faster, not least bus and RAM speed. The only aspect in which there is parity is in the 5400rpm internal drive that both systems come with as standard.
That is not to say the G4 doesn't have advantages, as I have mentioned before it. It is far more expandable, with additional internal drive bays and where it is almost child's play to fit a fast internal, a better burner, more RAM an Airport card (though 802.11b only of course, not 802.11g) and even replace the CPU. The G4 is a true (and venerable) workhorse. Mine is still in service after almost 10 years and remains a favorite 'go to' system. What it is not, however, is fast.
Isn't it kind of obvious that if the person is using the Dual G4 for editing, he has PPC versions that run fast on his machine? That brings up another thing: If he were to use the software on his Dual G4 on a Mac mini, there'd be no benefits because, as you know, it'll run on Rosetta, which means that it'll run a lot slower than an Intel Application because it's being emulated.
Actually, as long as there is sufficient RAM, PPC apps will run as well, or faster, on an Intel system of sufficient speed differential, and your argument pre-supposes that the user is based on dated versions of applications which are not Intel-native, or cannot be readily up/cross-graded. At some point, a serious user has to consider that, even if not planning on a new purchase, since systems fail and need to be replaced, even if not always planned. At least buying into the Intel platform ensures forward compatibility and the ability to plan for future needs. To me, that's a critical part of using any system for anything other than simple pleasure.
Anyway, I have no intention to debate you on this - merely counter the point of view you expressed, which I believe to be somewhat misleading, and which directly counters my practical experience of running these applications on systems based on the same architectures the OP was discussing as options. As such, I remain certain that in every practical respect, excepting hard drive data access speed where the DP 450 has at least the ready ability to use 7200rpm internals, an Intel mini will outperform the G4 system in these broad uses. In my experience, the difference is notable.
Since the OP has your view, and mine, he or she is able to make an informed choice.

How do i reformat my hard drive on mac mini late 2011 with yosemite before selling my mac

how do i reformat my hard drive on mac mini late 2011 with yosemite before selling my mac

You can't legally sell or give away that computer with Yosemite installed.
Before you sell or give away your computer, in addition to the steps listed in this support article, take these steps:
1. Run Apple Diagnostics or the Apple Hardware Test. The buyer will do this (or he should), and you don't want to be surprised by the results.
2. Reset the PRAM and the SMC, which might contain personal information.
3. If you set a firmware password, remove it by running Firmware Password Utility in Recovery mode.
4. If you activated FileVault in OS X 10.7 or later, turn it off.
5. If you use Boot Camp, the partition must be deleted.
6. If you created any other data partitions on the internal drive, remove them in Disk Utility.
7. If the machine has an internal hard drive, erase the one remaining data partition with the option to zero out data. An SSD doesn't need to be zeroed.
You can't legally or practically transfer any software downloaded from the Mac App Store to the new owner of the machine, even if it was free. That includes OS X, so if you upgraded to OS X 10.7 or later, you must reinstall an older OS, either from the installation media, if applicable, or by starting up in Internet Recovery mode (option-command-R at the startup chime.) If you installed from physical media, deliver those to the new owner.
If you're selling the machine, or donating it in working order, and it originally shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, then you have the option of installing either from the discs that came with it or from a retail Snow Leopard disc (which you must then transfer to the buyer.) The buyer should understand that if he doesn't get the original discs from you, he won't get the bundled iLife applications or the Apple Hardware Test. Replacements for the original discs can be ordered from Apple.
The new owner will have to redownload any software that came from the App Store, including OS X upgrades, under his or her Apple ID. If you ever updated the bundled iLife applications (Garage Band, iMovie, and iPhoto) through the App Store, you can't transfer those either. The buyer will have to purchase them.
Remove the machine from your list of registered products. If it's still covered by an AppleCare Protection Plan, transfer the coverage to the new owner by following the instructions in the AppleCare Terms and Conditions (under the heading "Transfer of Plan.")

How do I remove my personal info from my Mac Mini (selling)...

... I contacted AppleCare who advised me to erase the HDD (by starting-up holding Command-R), which I did.
The Mini then went to the internet to download a fresh copy of the OS - trouble is I'm on a REALLY slow connection (512kbps) and it estimated 70+ hours and it's apparently 3.5GB +, which is also way out of my allowance.
I contacted AppleCare again who pointed me to my local Apple Store, who couldn't get rid of me fast enough. They ended up giving me a USB drive with a Copy of OS/X Lion, which when I got home found out didn't work.... it turns out that the current Mac Minis won't allow an install this way. I called the store, and received no response.
Is there any way I can 'clean out' my personal details without going through a full re-install???
Thanks!

@ bootloader:
Worked! - nice one!
I had already manually deleted all my old data (and done an Erase Free Space), so this has done the trick - it's nice, easy ideas like this that sometimes work the best! When deleting the User Account, there's an option for Safe Erasure which I guess writes zeroes.

"Mode not supported" Mac mini connected to LCD TV via HDMI

Hello, new mac min owner here (2.5) (September 2011). I followed the instructions in the "hello" booklet, including attaching peripherals, such as mouse and keyboard. I also connected a Samsung LCD TV via HMDI cable - as I propose to use this as my monitor. I then switchedn on the macmini, as directed in pages 11-16 of the macmini 'hello' handbook. Unfortunately I cannot even progress to the setup assistant as my TV just tells me that the "mode is not supported" through the HDMI cable. I assume that some output settings need to be changed in the macmini to accommodate the LCD TV output range.
My question is, how do I change these settings if the only screen I have is the screen that the macmini will not output to? Isn't this a massive oversight by Apple, given that a major selling point is the macmini's versatility?

What you are seeing, where you can't see the edges of the image, is known as "overscan".
This is something TVs have done forever to avoid seeing weird stuff at the edges of the transmitted frames.
The display control in System Preferences lets you turn overscan on or off (it is a checkable item in the "Options" panel). You might need to have this checked to display video, but you sure don't want it checked to use the TV as a computer display.
Although I have overscan OFF on my older Mac Mini, I've had the problem where sometimes after a restart the display is in overscan mode. To fix this, I can "guess" where the apple menu is off the top left of the screen, get to system preferences, check overscan to be on and then uncheck it to turn it back off. If you can't guess where the apple menu is successfully, you might try accessing the Mini from another Mac by using screen sharing. The shared screen looks correct even if overscan is on.

Selling My Mac Mini

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for