I need to wipe clean my iMac I purchased back in 2006. It is a 17" iMac with DVD/CD player built into the side of it. I don't have the original OS X cd and am not sure what the baseline OS X I need in order to get the computer up and running normally that won't slow it down. How do I find out which OS X cd I need? How do I wipe clean the entire computer, and start over?
iMac, Mac OS X (10.4), Not sure if it was OS X 10.4 or not
You need either its original disks, or a 10.5 DVD if it’s a PowerPC Mac, or a 10.6 DVD for an Intel one. To check what CPU it has, choose About this Mac from the Apple menu.
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Where do I go about purchasing OS X 10.5? If it was made/purchased in 2006 wouldn't it be 10.4?
1. Buy it from a source such as Amazon or eBay.
2. You don’t need to use the computer’s original OS.
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Thanks. Will the OS X 10.5 be compatible with the current memory that is on my computer? Will it function as if it was originally installed with the OS X 10.4?
1. Yes.
2. Yes, except that the computer won’t have iLife, and for a PowerPC Mac, Classic.
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When you do "About this Mac" from your Apple menu (left end of menubar), what does that say about your processor? You computer is on the cusp between obsolete iMacs with PowerPC processors (1998 through 2005) and the modern iMacs with Intel processors (2006 to present).
If it is Intel, you can skip 10.5 entirely and go straight to OS 10.6 with a US$20 disk from Apple. As proper 10.5 retail install disks are often terribly expensive, that would save you a lot of money.
What OS X do I need and how to wipe iMac
