The exact list of the first compatible devices is as follows:
In addition, some equipment that came to the market with Snow Leopard became compatible later through a software update. If your device is from the year 2010 onwards, it is most likely compatible.
This function has been present in the Mac for quite some time now and all the Mac that came with macOS Lion as standard support access to this mode.
Choose the WiFi network you want to connect to and enter the password (if you have a network cable connected you can skip this step).Keep the keys pressed until a world ball appears on the computer screen with the message “Starting Internet Recovery” (as in the photo a little higher).
How to access Internet recovery modeĪccessing this mode is very easy, all you have to do is follow these steps with the Mac completely off:
On the other hand, the recovery through the Internet, allows reinstalling the version that the computer included of a factory, although later it was updated at some time. That is if you had Mojave, but when you bought the computer it came with Sierra, you can only reinstall Sierra and then you will have to update from System Preferences. That is, if you had Mojave installed on the Mac, you can reinstall exactly the same version. In the case of standard recovery, you can reinstall the latest version of macOS that the Mac had. But there is a big difference and it is the version of macOS that can be installed from each one. Differences between standard mode and over the InternetĪs you can see the options allowed by one mode and the others are practically the same. In addition, you can also access the Disk Utility to check the disks, create partitions, change the file system, etc, etc …įinally, this recovery system also allows you to open Safari and browse the Apple support website for solutions to the most common problems during restoration. If you have just changed the hard disk or SSD memory of your Mac and it is completely empty, you can access this mode to start the installation of the operating system or restore a Time Machine backup without using any flash drive, external hard drive or optical disk to make the relevant facilities. It basically offers the same possibilities as the standard recovery mode, with the difference that in this case, it is not necessary for the storage system to have any previous data. Throughout this guide you will learn everything you need about how to recover macOS through the Internet: how to access it, how to use it and also all its advantages and limitations. This system allows you to restore the installation of the operating system on any Mac through an Internet connection.
This is very good and in case of problems with the operating system or the data allows a quick restoration. But what happens if the storage system breaks down? In this case, the computer cannot be restored from this mode since that partition will be completely lost.įor these cases, Apple created an alternative system called Recovery of macOS over the Internet. Every Mac includes a recovery mode based on a partition on the hard drive itself or SSD. From this section, it is possible to reinstall the version of macOS that the computer has installed and performed some additional tasks such as checking discs.