Erase my Mini not working According to the instructions?

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Erase my Mini not working According to the instructions?

I restarted my Mini and the instructions said to hit Command and R at the same time when the gray screen appears. My Mini started making this beeping noise and nothing happened? I then logged in and followed the instructions to go my startup disk to erase it. I selected the Macintosh HD option on the left of my window after hitting the erase tab. The format and name were then populated into their respective fields but grayed out. The only option is to "erase free space" as the 'security options" and "Erase" are also grayed out. How do I proceed to make sure my mac is erased and I can reinstall to it's original settings and sell it?

Mac mini, OS X Yosemite (10.10.3)

Posted on May 5, 2015 9:21 AM

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Answer 1

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lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

May 5, 2015 10:14 AM in response to dswrenn1

You can't erase the disk you booted from.

What model Mac?

Are you using a wired keyboard?

If you Mac did not come with install DVDs you may be able to force your Mac to boot into Internet Recovery by holding down Command+Option+R at startup.

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Answer 2

dswrenn1 Author

Level 1

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May 5, 2015 10:17 AM in response to lllaass

Hi IIIaass,

I have a mac mini:

Mac Mini

Processor 065-0316 2.3GHz Dual-Core Intel Core i5
Memory 065-0320 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM- 2x2GB
Hard Drive 065-0322 500GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400

It's Yosemite 10.10

I am using a Windows wired keybord. I don't have a disk.

What do you reccommend?

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Answer 3

lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

May 5, 2015 10:23 AM in response to dswrenn1

On a PC KB try

Control + R

also try Windows/Start +R

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Answer 4

Lanny

Level 6

13,183 points

May 5, 2015 10:33 AM in response to dswrenn1

I restarted my Mini and the instructions said to hit Command and R at the same time when the gray screen appears.

I think that your timing is off.

You should hold down the Command+R keys, then restart, keep holding the keys down until you see the grey screen.

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Answer 5

dswrenn1 Author

Level 1

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May 5, 2015 5:09 PM in response to Lanny

I tried this as well, but when I get to the disk utility and select the "erase" tab, the only option I have to erase is "Erase Free Space" is this what I want? The "Security Option" and "Erase" buttons are grayed out.

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