Clean Install of Mavericks on new SSD - Final Question

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Clean Install of Mavericks on new SSD - Final Question

I am looking for some help installing a new SSD into my mid-2010 Macbook Pro. I have the 15 inch with i5 and 4GB of RAM. last week I upgraded to 8GB of RAM, purchased from Crucial, and am about to install a MX100 512GB SSD also purchased from Crucial. I have read about the issues with third party drives in Yosemite and because of this I will keep Mavericks until I learn more.

My goal has been to get the new SSD into the computer and treat it like a brand new computer completely clean. This I learned was considered a "Clean InstalI". I am not very good with computers and sometimes the discussions I've read on the internet can generalize things and not define each step like a complete novice like me would need. So I have done a lot of research and below have a step by step guide on how I intend to do a clean install of the operating system onto my new SSD. I am looking for validation that this is correct or any steps I need to adjust.

I had asked a question about 2 months ago that lead me into the direction of doing the clean install. Drew helped out quite a bit and got me started on researching what I need to do for this clean install. There were some comments I had a question with. His notes are in italics and my questions are in bold.

During install use Setup Assistant (it's basically the same as Migration Assistant).

Connect the old HD (Can I connect to my external HD that backed up my old HD via Time Machine?) & choose the option to migrate the User account (leave the applications & other data disabled). (what happens if I opt to not do this step, not migrating User account information, what would be the Pros / Cons... another basic question I guess would be what exactly is in these User Accounts... anything that if I did not migrate over would give me issues?)

When completed you will have the same user on the new disk.

The Applications are left on the old disk, it's better to reinstall them in my opinion.

now on to by guide I compiled...

My Step by Step guide that if confirmed on here I will move forward with! Very excited and hope I got this correct.

Create bootable MAC OS X Mavericks USB Flash Drive

App Store - Download OS X Mavericks from Purchases
Done
Now found in the Applications folder (leave right there)
Plug in USB Flash drive (minimum 8gb)
Go to Utilities
Launch Disc Utility
Find USB Flash Drive on left hand side
Format this drive
- Click on Erase (tab towards top)
- Format: Mac OS Etended (Journaled)
Name: “installMavericks”
Click Erase button at bottom
Launch Terminal
- Copy and paste text below. replace the red “Untitled” with the name of the USB drive (installMavericks) - case sensitive and keep the space after installMavericks
- click enter - put in password
- will take approx 20-30 minutes
- If message says Done I now have a USB drive with Mac OS X Mavericks right on it
  what happens if there is an issue?

Text to put in terminal

sudo /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Mavericks.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/Untitled --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Mavericks.app --nointeraction

Upgrade HD to SSD

I have backed up my current HD on an external 1TB drive via Time Machine
I plan to do a Fresh/Clean install of the Mac OS Mavericks. I will individually bring over songs, pictures, movies, documents etc from the external HD that has the last x amount of my Time Machine Backups of current/soon to be old HD
Open Macbook Case
loosen two screws, pull the entire strip out. The screws do not come out, only loosen
Pull hard drive out with the clear strip of (paper?)
careful, still connected to SATA cable
once removed - use TORX screw driver to remove the 4 screws on the Hard drive and transfer them into the same spot on the SSD
connect SSD to the SATA connector
put the SSD back into its bay by lining up the 4 screws to the locations within the bay
add back the strip that had the two screws from earlier. tighten screws
put case back on.
Plug in USB into computer and turn on computer
Will boot to the Mac OS Utilities
go to “Disc Utility”
Find SSD on the left
go to Erase Tab to repartition
Format: Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
Name: example “new SSD”
click erase at the bottom
Exit out of Disc Utility
go to “Reinstall OS X”
Click continue
go through the screens and menus… (not sure what happens here) assuming this is loading the OS Mavericks from the USB to new SSD
after this step is the installation complete?
what will be on the new SSD?
- iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, Garage Band, QuickTime player etc
  will these need to be re-downloaded from the App store etc
- Logic Pro X, Toontracks, Fluenz etc.
  these I need to re-download from the sites using serial keys etc. (I have decided to just buy the new Logic Pro X so that I can do the clean install and leave my old Logic Express behind where I have lost the disc that came with it)
From here I can connect my external 1TB drive that had my previous HD backed up on it and pick and choose what songs, movies, pictures, documents etc that I want to drag onto my new SSD
DONE !! ??

Sorry for the long post. Wouldn't make sense not to reach out to this awesome community though. Thanks again for all the help. I realize I am responding to an old post so I may end up re-posting this as a new topic.

Daniel

MacBook Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9.5)

Posted on Mar 1, 2015 9:18 AM

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Answer 1

Mar 1, 2015 11:08 AM in response to DRH85

Rather than critique your plan, I'd suggest two things. As far as the removal of the HD and the installation of the SSD goes, I'd suggest checking out the detailed how-to video offered by OWC if you haven't already done so.

While there are advantages to starting with a clean install followed by some form of migration from your old boot drive, I've found that if you've configured your system to work just the way you want it, Setup/Migration Assistant may make changes or ignore some of your current settings, whereas a clone will carry them all over unmolested. Moreover, cloning gives a better chance that licensing issues won't arise with software you own.

I'd agree that not upgrading to Yosemite if you're using an SSD that benefits from TRIM is a good idea, at least until some non-destructive workaround for the kext-signing issue is offered.

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Answer 2

Mar 1, 2015 11:12 AM in response to DRH85

Mavericks is no longer available on the App Store since the release of Yosemite.

I concur with FatMac that the so called "clean" install is not worth it. I have found it to be a huge amount of work for very little if any gain.

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Answer 3

DRH85 Author

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Mar 1, 2015 1:23 PM in response to DRH85

Thank you for the follow ups.

FatMac>MacPro

Thank you for the link. I feel comfortable with the physical aspect of actually replacing the hard drive - it's all the steps after than I am back and forth on. There are many other great links at that site that I will be checking out. As far as custom configurations within my user profile I may want to keep... I really don't have any. What I'm looking forward to is getting more into this configuring and personalization of my computer. Because I haven't been the best over the last five years it feels like a clean install would give me the fresh start. However the simplicity of using Time Machine to migrate over to the new SSD is very alluring. I have found a link that talks about the Pros and Cons. Do you think they summarize things very well?

Allan,

The link below mentions some suggestions if you do indeed choose the clean install. It talks about some of the more important files you would want to manually bring over. Is this the huge amount of work you were referring to?

http://www.intego.com/mac-security-blog/setting-up-a-new-mac-should-you-migrate- or-do-a-clean-installation/

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Answer 4

Mar 1, 2015 2:12 PM in response to DRH85

DRH85 wrote:

...However the simplicity of using Time Machine to migrate over to the new SSD is very alluring. I have found a link that talks about the Pros and Cons. Do you think they summarize things very well?...

Your link makes very interesting reading. One thing that jumps out is how an old HD's installation and Time Machine are equated. Time Machine is a remarkable system, simple on the outside and complex under the hood (this is the fundamental resource on the subject, created by a Community member who is sorely missed). But it doesn't play well with certain types of files (virtual machine files for running Windows, etc., on a Mac for example) and has, in my experience at least, lost some files after briefly saving them. Your old HD, on the other hand, is both complete and current, making it a better source IMHO to migrate from.

The point about older software no longer being compatible is well taken, but I tend to keep older versions long after newer versions appear and I've been surprised at how well they continue to function after the publisher insists they're no longer supported by a newer OS (and are sometimes better than what replaces them). And in the case of commercial software, associated files are often sprinkled far and wide, perhaps to prevent easy pirating. Moreover, while keeping track of serial numbers is always a good idea, many publishers limit the number of installations and entering the S/N over again usually involves the program phoning home to check on the installation count so far. Cloning avoids that more effectively than migrating.

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