Trying to reset my old IMac to factory settings so it can be erased and recycled. I no longer have the os disc from 2010 which seems to be required for reset. is there a work around? I want to get rid of this old behemoth but can't until it's wiped!
The 2010's were a problem because they were right on the edge between the install media and switching over to download only.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202313
If yours was not updated, you can't do anything without the original install DVD; if your firmware was, recovery may or may not work. I did some extensive testing at the time and the efforts to erase/reset were only successful one out of 5 different tries.
If you can boot from an external clone, you could just use your Disk Utility and try to erase the drive - that might work.
The 2010's were a problem because they were right on the edge between the install media and switching over to download only.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202313
If yours was not updated, you can't do anything without the original install DVD; if your firmware was, recovery may or may not work. I did some extensive testing at the time and the efforts to erase/reset were only successful one out of 5 different tries.
If you can boot from an external clone, you could just use your Disk Utility and try to erase the drive - that might work.
If you don't have the Recovery HD volume on your startup drive, you can create a bootable copy of the macOS installer, which includes all the same recovery utilities as the Recovery HD volume.
Ref: How to Make a Bootable Flash Installer of OS X or macOS - Lifewire
how do i erase my mac to factory settings without a disc?
