Restore MacBook Pro to factory settings without disc

Question

Is there a way of restoring a MacBook Pro to it's factory settings without a disc? I want all files deleted and it to basically be like I just received it from Apple.

I know you can do it with Dell machines - surely you can with Apple machines?

Answer 1

You won't be able to get it back to 100% pre-used state without the discs. The best you can do is delete user accounts & home folders and remove any Applications that didn't come with it by default, but chances are you're going to leave behind some traces in your system Library folder at least.

I would:

1. Backup your data (no-brainer).
2. Create a new temporary user account with Admin privs & delete all of your old ones including the home folders.
3. Use an app deleting utility such as TrashMe to catch as many of the app's preferences as you trash them. There won't be many because most are user specific.
4. Use a system cleaning utility such as OnyX to clean up as many system settings as you can.
5. Look through the Library folders in folders such as Application Support and Receipts. You might also see application specific folders in /Library. This is where it can get tricky because some depend on others for startup functionality, etc so if you don't delete them all the right way, you might have problems.
6. There may also be some driver specific kexts added by 3rd party utilities in your Systems folder. Up to you to figure out which ones these are.
7. When you're satisfied with what you've done, create another generic account with admin privileges, then delete the temporary account. Don't do anything in the generic account other than delete the temp account.

To someone not familiar with OS X, this can be very intimidating. I would suggest going by the Apple store and talking to a Genius to see what your options are. They may sympathize with you and either re-load it for you or give you replacement disks. Tell them yours were damaged.

Answer 2

If you live in or near a major US city, your best bet is to make a Genius Bar appointment, and ask them to help. They will very likely be willing to restore your computer.

Assuming you didn't have a newer OS than it shipped with, that'll be the easiest, unless you know someone with the same computer, in which case you could just borrow their disks.