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I need to reset my Mac to factory settings, can I do this without losing my data?

I need to reset my Mac to factory settings, can I do this without losing my data?

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 11.2

Posted on Mar 25, 2022 3:09 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Mar 25, 2022 3:16 AM

No, it will completely wipe your Mac. You need to:


use an external storage device to back up your files, or use Migration Assistant to move your files to your new Mac


as in the article.



4 replies

Mar 25, 2022 3:35 AM in response to picas

Won’t my data be backed up in the cloud? I’m not very computer savvy. During Covid we had to work remote, our group was using a Google Suite account, in order for me to be able to present and join discussions, changes were made to my computer. I had to go into settings and enable and disable things…my computer has not been the same since. Have tried on two different occasions to have this remedied by Apple! This computer is basically a paper weight, I feel a factory reset is my best option.

I need to reset my Mac to factory settings, can I do this without losing my data?

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