Formatting 2008 Macbook Pro

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Level 1

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Formatting 2008 Macbook Pro

Hi all,

I'm trying to get rid of my 2008 macbook pro, but want to factory reset it for privacy purposes. Unfortunately I have these problems:

My optical drive is broken, it spits out the DVD right away, never reads it, always. Sometimes it stays in longer, but still never reads it. I dropped it once, since then it stopped working.
I don't have the original Mac OS X installation CD that it came with, but I have one for my iMac. I don't know if this matters. It is OS version 10.5.6
I've tried rebooting pressing Command+R to get into disk utility and format the drive, but it will just go to the log-in screen every time

Any Advice on how I can still format the computer? I'm not necessarily looking to sell it, I figure the value will be so low since its also quite beaten up from years of use.

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.5.6)

Posted on Feb 27, 2016 8:11 PM

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Answer 1

Kappy

Level 10

361,741 points

Feb 27, 2016 8:27 PM in response to wetpebbles

You need some way of booting the computer from the original installer discs that came with it. If you don't have those, then you can either repurchase them from Apple Support or purchase and install the retail version of Snow Leopard:

You can purchase Snow Leopard through the Apple Store:Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard - Apple Store (U.S.). The price is $19.99 plus tax. You will be sent physical media by mail after placing your order.After you install Snow Leopard you will have to download and install the Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1 to update Snow Leopard to 10.6.8 and give you access to the App Store.

You cannot use the installer disc that came with your iMac. They are machine-dependent.

You have 10.5.6 installed so COMMAND-R does not work. That requires Lion or later.

Take the computer to your local Apple store where you can ask them for help. If you bring or buy an 8 GB USB flash drive, they can clone your installer DVD to it so you can boot from the USB port using OPTION booting:

Boot Using OPTION key:

1. Restart the computer.

2. Immediately after the chime press and hold down the

"OPTION" key.

3. Release the key when the boot manager appears.

4. Select the desired disk icon from which you want to boot.

5. Click on the arrow button below the icon.

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Answer 2

Kappy

Level 10

361,741 points

Feb 27, 2016 8:29 PM in response to wetpebbles

If you have another Mac to use, then you may be able to connect them together with Firewire and use Target Disk Mode to install OS X on it. You will need an installer disc that the other computer can boot from or this won't work. But you could use the other computer to clone your installer DVD to a USB flash drive.

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Answer 3

wetpebbles Author

Level 1

0 points

Feb 27, 2016 11:12 PM in response to Kappy

Thanks. I will try this out. I have the Snow Leopard installer disk already, I'll try cloning it from the iMac to the macbook pro. Didn't know that was possible.

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Answer 4

Kappy

Level 10

361,741 points

Feb 28, 2016 10:10 AM in response to wetpebbles

Cloning it won't help you any. You need to boot the MBP into Target Disk Mode after connecting the two computers together. Then boot the iMac with the Snow Leopard installer disc. You should then be able to find the MBP's disk listed in the installer as a possible target. Select it then install Snow Leopard. It will be installed on the MBP.

Alternatively, if you have an 8 GB flash drive available, then you could clone the Snow Leopard installer disc to the flash drive. Use it to boot the MBP using OPTION boot.

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