Buying a Macbook without installation disks?

Question

Hi I am going to buy a second hand 2010 Macbook but the owner has lost the original installation disks. Is this a problem and is there anything I would need them for in any scenario.

Answer 1

The "Mac OS X Install DVD" (labeled "Disk 1" for older systems) is to reinstall the OS or to boot for repair with Disk Utility. One cannot repair the startup disk file system, so it is essential to have this DVD. Buy it at the link below. Just like a spare tyre or insurance, you don't need it... until you need it. Then you are extremely annoyed at not having it.



The "Applications Install DVD" is the iLife apps installer (iMovie, GarageBand, and iPhoto) and a hidden boot partition for "Apple Hardware Test". You could buy an iLife DVD second-hand from various sources, but the AHT is not available elsewhere.



Many sellers of second-hand Macs claim to have "lost" BOTH of these DVDs. In truth, half of them are selling the DVDs on eBay to the other half who actually did lose or damage their DVDs.:~) If they fessed up to having the DVDs at time of selling the second-hand computer, they would feel compelled to include the DVDs at no extra cost. Better to make a buck on eBay.



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Answer 2

If MacOS is already installed, (which it should be) the installation discs are no longer required. You can also enter the Mac AppStore and install the latest version of OSX Mountain Lion. It is likely the you might not have the Mac AppStore,so another option is to visit your local Apple Store and purchase an installation disc for you MacBook.

Answer 3

No, you don't. Unless you plan to format, the disks are useless. I have mine stored away since I bought my mac 5 years ago. Only used them once to format and reinstall. The disks contain Xcode and some other fancy developer words. If your'e not into that then no proble.