How To Reset Macbook Air

Are you facing issues with your MacBook? Are you thinking of selling or trading in your MacBook Air? Regardless of the reasons, factory reset is a must. It helps remove all data and makes your laptop feel brand new, ready for a second home.

However, it is important to keep some things in check before resetting your MacBook Air. So, let’s dive into it and learn how to reset your MacBook.

Things to Know Before Resetting MacBook Air

Although performing a factory reset is fairly simple on a MacBook Air, a few things can go wrong if we’re not careful. So, here are a few things to consider before resetting your Mac.

Backup data on Time Machine
Sign out of your iCloud
Sign out of iMessage
Sign out of iTunes
Unpair your Bluetooth devices

How to Factory Reset MacBook

Performing a factory reset ensures that your MacBook is wiped out and its software is restored to its brand new state. Along with this, this process also erases all your personal data and files, like contacts, apps, photos, cache, and more.

Here’s how you can perform a successful Factory Reset on your MacBook:

Make sure that your MacBook Air is completely shut down.
Press down Command + R on the keyboard as you switch on the Mac.Do this until the Apple logo appears on the screen.
Once this is successful, your MacBook will ask for your preferred language. Select a language and continue.
Select Disk Utility and press on Continue.
Select your startup disk visible on the sidebar. Press on the Erase button.
Select the macOS Extended from the menu again and press on Erase.
Selecting the Journaled, Encrypted of the Mac OS Extended option requires you to create a password. After this, press on the GUID Partition Map.
Press on Erase before exiting the window.
Connect to Wi-Fi through the menu bar.
Now, select Reinstall macOS and press on Continue.
Apop up with your MacBook’s OS appears. Press on Continue.
Press on Agree when the software license agreement appears.
Select your boot disk and press on Install.
Your MacBook will restart and start installing.

How to Backup Important Data on Time Machine

Time Machine is a built-in backup feature on MacBook. With it, you can back up versions of your MacBook even on a daily basis. You can back up personal data, music, photos, apps, email, and important documents. This primary backup system for Mac ensures that you can recover your files even after deletion.

So, it’s ideal to perform this step before resetting your MacBook. Here’s how you can backup your important data on Time Machine:

Press on the Apple icon in the upper-left corner of the menu screen.
Press on System Preferences.
Press on Time Machine.
Press on Select Backup Disk.
Press on your selected external drive.
Press on Encrypt Backups and Use Disk.
Press the ON button located on the left side of the Time Machine window. Make sure you follow this process.

How to Sign Out of Your iCloud?

iCloud stores photos, applications, music, documents, bookmarks, notes, backups, reminders, contacts, and so on. Therefore, it is definitely an important step to sign out of your iCloud before resetting your MacBook.

While resetting your MacBook, previously backed up documents and files remain in your iCloud storage or iCloud Drive. However, the new documents from apps won’t be uploaded or backed up again until you log into an Apple ID or make a new one.

You can follow the given steps to sign out of your iCloud:

Click the Apple logo on the left- most corner the menu bar of your screen.
Then, Navigate to System Preferences.
Press on the iCloud icon > Overview.
Press on Sign Out.
You can see a tab asking if you would like to Keep a Copy. Make sure that you uncheck all of them.
Press on Continue.

How to Sign Out of iMessage?

While iMessage allows users to send texts, documents, photos, videos, and more, they also remain connected to your MacBook. Signing out of iMessage ensures that all your data and information on the app is wiped clean.

Follow the given steps to sign out of iMessage.

Press on the iMessage app located at the dock of your home screen.
Press on Messages on the Menu bar. Press on Preferences…
Press on the iMessages category. You will be able to see some options based on your iMessage account. Press on Sign Out.
A pop up appears trying to verify this command. Press on Sign Out.

How to Sign out of iTunes?

Every MacBook comes with a pre-installed iTunes accessing Apple music and managing the music library. Signing out of your iTunes and wiping off songs from your MacBook Air is an essential part of resetting. Follow these steps to sign out of iTunes:

Click on the Music app in macOS Catalina (10.15) and later or iTunes in macOS Mojave (10.14) and earlier.
Click on the Account option on the menu bar of your screen. Now, press on Authorizations.
Click on Deauthorize This Computer…
Enter your Apple ID and Password. Press on Deauthorize.

How to Unpair your Bluetooth Devices?

Bluetooth allows you to connect your MacBook to external wireless devices, such as keyboards, audio devices, game controllers, and so forth. While resetting your MacBook, it is best to unpair all Bluetooth devices.

Once you unpair a device from your MacBook, it will not be shown on the list of devices on Bluetooth.

You can unpair the Bluetooth devices by following the steps given below:

Click on the Bluetooth icon at the menu bar of your screen.
Select the device you would like to remove first.
Control clock on the device and press on Remove.
Keep repeating this process until every device is unpaired from your MacBook.

Is Resetting Your Nvram Important While Resetting Your Macbook?

While it is not an essential method, you can reset the NVRAM of your MacBook. Doing so restores the default settings for your MacBook’s hardware. It also sets the internal hard drive as the startup disk.

Simply, shut down your MacBook and turn it on immediately. Then, press and hold together: Option +CommanD + P+ R. Release the keys after 20 seconds as your MacBook appears to restart.

Is Deleting the Photos and Music Manually Safe?

No, it is not safe to just delete your data if you intend on selling/ giving away your MacBook. You may delete them manually. However, it is important that you log out of your iCloud account as well.

What Happens to the Passwords Saved in My Macbook? How Do I Remove It?

You can forget and remove all your saved and linked passwords by simply signing out of your iCloud again. Your passwords are synced through an application namely Keychain Access. Signing out of your iCloud ensures that Keychain Access is inaccessible as well.

For a good measure, you may access and erase the passwords from your browser histories as well.