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Accidentally erased mac hardrive

Help!!! I was trying factory reset my macbook air but accidentally erased my mac drive. I tried to reinstall Mac OS X Lion but it keeps saying it can’t download the additional components needed to install Mac OS X. This macbook is an older version but I just got it. Someone please help fix it!

MacBook Air 11″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Oct 31, 2020 1:07 PM

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2 replies

Oct 31, 2020 1:20 PM in response to jasminehay

What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your Mac

Factory reset of your Mac - Apple Support


Install El Capitan or Later from Scratch


If possible, back up your files.


  1. Restart the computer. Immediately, at or before the chime, hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo and progress bar appear. Wait until the Utility Menu appears.
  2. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on the Continue button.
  3. When Disk Utility loads select the target volume (indented entry, usually named "Macintosh HD") from the Device list.
  4. Click on the Erase button in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.
  5. Set the Format type to APFS (SSDs, only for Mojave and Catalina) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)
  6. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.
  7. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.
  8. Select Install OS X and click on the Continue button.


Which exact model do you have? To find the complete model information select About This Mac from the Apple menu. You can create a snapshot of the dialog as follows:


How to take a screenshot on your Mac

Capture, Save or Record Screenshots in Mac OS X - Help Desk Geek


OS X Screen Capture Shortcuts


(⌘⬆︎3) Command-Shift-3 Capture the screen to a file

(⌘⬆︎⌃3) Command-Shift-Control-3 Capture the screen to the Clipboard

(⌘⬆︎4) Command-Shift-4 Capture a selection to a file

(⌘⬆︎⌃4) Command-Shift-Control-4 Capture a selection to the Clipboard

(⌘⬆︎5) Command-Shift-5 Invoke new screen grabber


You can then post the image in the forum's message editor.


Accidentally erased mac hardrive

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