How to Erase the Startup Disk on a Mac
The Mac OS X operating system is a secure, Unix-based platform. Unix is a system that is fairly secure from viruses and rarely succumbs to corruption. However, as with all computing software, corruption is possible. If you want to erase your hard drive or the startup disk of your Apple computer because of corruption, the need for a clean installation or to give away or sell the computer, Disk Utility makes it a simple task.
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Instructions
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Erase
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1
Plug your computer into a power outlet to keep it from shutting down during the back-up and erase procedure.
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Back up any important data from your computer to an external hard drive. Any information left on the computer during the erase process will be lost.
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3
Insert your Mac OS X install disk into your computer with the power turned on, then turn off the computer.
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Turn on your computer and hold down the Alt button, or C, to start from the install disk. The computer will load up into the install disk menu.
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Choose "Disk Utility" from the Installer menu at the top of the screen. The Disk Utility menu will appear.
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Choose from the left-hand menu the disk you want to erase and select the "Erase" tab from the Disk Utility controls.
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Choose Mac OS X Extended (Journaled) from the volume format-drop down box in the Erase tab and type in a name for the disk you are erasing underneath. By default the hard drive will be erased and named with its previous name. Leave the name section blank to rename it as Macintosh HD.
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Click the "Erase" button and wait for the disk to erase.
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Tips & Warnings
You can click security options in Disk Utility to determine the security level of the erase. A longer secure process, where Disk Utility makes several passes over the hard drive to thoroughly erase it, will make your information nearly impossible to recover.
Once the disk is erased, you can use your install CD to reinstall your operating system.
