How to Wipe a MacBook in 4 Ways [MacBook Pro/Air]

Technology has greatly impacted the world by revolutionizing how we communicate and control the flow of information among the masses. Nearly every business today is performed on technology. It can either be an online transaction to remote work. This has resulted in increased efficiency and productivity. Advanced laptops like MacBook have also contributed to this technological boost by offering users powerful, portable computing devices.

However, to keep a MacBook running smoothly and maintain its data security, users need to know how to wipe a MacBook. This process involves erasing all data and restoring the device to its factory settings. It helps to clear out any unwanted files, programs, or malware that might slow down the laptop or pose a security risk. Wiping a MacBook is a simple process. Without delay, let us look into the details!

When You Need Wipe A MacBook Pro or MacBook Air

Are you confused about why you must wipe your MacBook pro or MacBook air? This section is for you! Several scenarios exist in which a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air may need to be wiped. Before proceeding on how to wipe a MacBook, let us look into some of the common reasons:

• Performance issues: a MacBook can become slow and unresponsive with time. Wiping the device can help to improve its performance.
• Selling or giving away the device: Before selling or giving away a MacBook, it is important to wipe it to protect personal and sensitive information. This will erase all data, including files, emails, and browsing history, and restore the device to its original factory settings.
• Upgrading to a new MacBook: If a user is upgrading to a new MacBook, wiping their old device can ensure that all personal and sensitive information is removed before it is passed on to someone else or disposed of.
• Malware or virus infections: If a MacBook has been infected with malware or a virus, wiping the device can help to remove the threat and restore the device to its original state.
• Troubleshooting: If a MacBook is experiencing technical issues that cannot be resolved through other means, wiping the device can be a helpful troubleshooting step. This can help to clear out any software or hardware problems that may be causing the issues.

Now that you have known the common reasons, it is time to learn about the solutions.

How to Force Wipe A MacBook

Are you looking for how to wipe out your MacBook Pro or MacBook Air? This section is for you! Wiping out your laptop will reset everything and set it to its default settings. However, It is important to note that wiping a MacBook Air will erase all data. So, it is important to back up any important files before proceeding with the fixes. With that said, let us look into four methods for wiping a MacBook Air:

1. Fix 1. How to Wipe with Disk Utility
2. Fix 2. How to Wipe with Reinstalling macOS
3. Fix 3. How to Wipe from the Terminal
4. Fix 4. How to Wipe a Macbook Air to Factory Settings

Fix 1. How to Wipe with Disk Utility

Coming at first, if you're looking for a straightforward method to wipe your MacBook Air, using Disk Utility is a great option. To do it, you have to follow the simple steps mentioned below:

Step 1. Restart your MacBook Air and hold down the "Command "+ "R" keys while it is booting up.

Step 2. Select "Disk Utility" from the Utilities menu.

Step 3. Select the startup disk (usually labeled as "Macintosh HD").

Step 4. Click the "Erase" button, choose the format and name for the disk, and then click "Erase" again. Finally, quit Disk Utility and follow the on-screen instructions to reinstall macOS.

Fix 2. How to Wipe with Reinstalling macOS

Another easy way to wipe a MacBook Air is by reinstalling macOS. It simply deletes the current operating system version from your MacBook and clones the factory version with the default settings. To wipe using this way, you have to follow these steps:

Step 1. Restart your MacBook Air and hold down the "Command" + "R" keys while it is turning on.

Step 2. Select "Reinstall macOS (Big Sur/ Monterey)" from the utility menu.

Step 3. Now, click the "Continue" button on the pop-up after selecting hard disk.

Step 4. Follow the on-screen instructions to reinstall macOS.

Fix 3. How to Wipe from the Terminal

Coming at number three, you can wipe out your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro's data with the help of the built-in Terminal. This is also an easy-to-flow method with just a few instructions on your Mac. You can have all your information wiped out, leading to the default settings. Now, lets us look into the steps mentioned below:

Step 1. Open the Terminal application by navigating to "Launchpad"- "Other folder"- "Terminal."

Step 2. In the Terminal, run the "diskutil list" command to list all connected drives on your Mac.

Step 3. Note down the device node of the drive you want to format.

Step 4. In the Terminal, run the command "sudo diskutil unmountDisk force (device node)" to unmount the drive. Enter your password if prompted.

Step 5. After the successful unmounting process, exit the Terminal and open Disk Utility. Select the drive you want to format and click "Erase."

After successfully following the above commands, you can have your data wiped out on your MacBook Air or MacBook pro.

Fix 4. How to Wipe a Macbook Air to Factory Settings

Last is wiping out your MacBook Air to the factory setting with just a few clicks. This method lets you wipe out the data without restarting your MacBook. It involves a couple of password entries for security reasons that you want to wipe out all the data from your device. It is important to note that this process cannot be reversed after this method is completed. Let us look at how to factory reset MacBook by the steps:

Step 1. Go to the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen and click "System Preferences."

Step 2. Click on "General" from the left bar and select "Reset."

Step 3. Choose the "Erase All Content and Settings" option and enter your password.

Step 4. You must follow easy-to-follow on-screen instructions, including signing out of your Apple ID and iCloud services and clicking on "Continue."

Step 5. Confirm that you want to erase all content & settings and start the process, which is irreversible.

How to Recover Lost Data While Mac Is Dead

Have you mistakenly deleted your important work files or trip pictures on your Mac? Let us help you! Losing your important data is a stressful experience. People have spent several hours on their work, and they get all of their data deleted due to unforeseen reasons. But, due to the advancements, there is software that helps you recover your important data, and it is called EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac is a must-have software for Mac users who want to keep their data safe. The software has been designed to recover deleted files on Mac caused by various scenarios. This includes system crashes or recovering important files deleted due to negligence. Mac users can easily recover trash on Mac, and the lost data includes photos, videos, documents, and other important files, without any technical skills

• Mac hard drive recovery: Recovery of data from the hard drives and other various storage devices such as memory cards and USB drives.
• Previewing files before recovery to ensure the correct data is being recovered.
• It supports various file formats, including photos, videos, documents, and more.
• Fast and secure data recovery process.

These are some of the factors that make this tool necessary for file recovery and restoration. Use EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac and its capabilities to help you recover your important files once your MacBook is dead. These are the procedures.

Step 1. Search for lost files

Select the disk location to search for lost files (it can be an internal HDD/SSD or an external hard drive) where you lost data and files. Click the "Search for lost files" button.

Step 2. Go through the scanning results

This software will immediately scan your selected disk volume and display pictures, documents, audio, videos, and emails on the left pane.

Step 3. Select the file(s) and recover

Click the data to preview, and click the "Recover" button to have them back.

Final Words

In conclusion, wiping a MacBook should always be the last solution because it permanently erases all data from the device. Mac users may be forced to wipe their MacBooks for system errors or hardware issues. It is also done to counter malware attacks. However, it can also result in critical data loss, causing significant inconvenience and stress to users. We hope this article helped you understand how to wipe a MacBook. Besides this, we recommend using EaseUS for data recovery.

How to wipe A MacBook FAQs

Do you still need clarification? You are at the right place! In this section, we will try to briefly answer some of the commonly asked questions to help you understand and clear out any ambiguity left. So, let us jump into that:

1. How do I restore my Mac to factory settings without a password?

If you are looking for a way to wipe out all the data from your Mac and that too without having to enter your password, then you simply have to follow the easy steps to force a factory reset on a Mac:

• Boot into Disk Utility in Recovery Mode. You can restart and hold the "Command" and "R" keys.
• Use Disk Utility to erase hard the rive.
• Reinstall the operating system using the Reinstall macOS option.

2. How do I completely wipe my Mac?

There are multiple ways to wipe out your MacBook and set it back to the default settings. One such way is using the built-in Terminal. This will require you to enter your password on Terminal. So, let us not waste any time and look into the easy-to-follow steps:

• Open Terminal from "Launchpad" - "Other folder" - "Terminal."
• List all connected drives by running "diskutil list" in the Terminal.
• Identify the device node of the drive you want to format.
• Unmount the drive with "sudo diskutil unmountDisk force (device node)" in the Terminal and enter the password if prompted.
• Exit Terminal, open Disk Utility, select the drive to format, and click "Erase."

3. How do I force a factory reset on my Mac?

You can wipe out your MacBook data using force factory reset. This will permanently delete all the contents and data from your device. You can perform a force factory reset on Mac using the easy and simple steps mentioned below:

• Go to System "Preferences" - "General" - "Reset."
• Select "Erase All Content and Settings" and enter the password.
• Confirm and follow on-screen instructions to erase all data.

4. How do you wipe a MacBook Air with the keyboard?

You can easily wipe out your data on your MacBook with the help of your keyboard and a few clicks. Let us see into to steps:

• Restart MacBook and hold down "Command" + "R."
• Use Disk Utility to erase the hard drive.
• Reinstall the operating system using the Reinstall macOS option.