[android6391]

Hi guys, I have an old 2006 MacBook Pro 17", 3GB RAM and Core 2 Duo.

I want to do a fresh factory reset but don't have the original install discs and the last time I tried to do this I had to login online and pay for the latest version Of OSX but my machine was too old and it wasn't supported so I was wondering what's the best way to go about doing a factory reset on an old machine without the install discs?...

Thanks

[anon(9602380)]

Hi guys, I have an old 2006 MacBook Pro 17", 3GB RAM and Core 2 Duo.

I want to do a fresh factory reset but don't have the original install discs and the last time I tried to do this I had to login online and pay for the latest version Of OSX but my machine was too old and it wasn't supported so I was wondering what's the best way to go about doing a factory reset on an old machine without the install discs?...

Thanks

Welcome to iMore!

The best way is to find a set of original install disk for sale for your machine. They are available and it will make it so much easier for you. That is what I did when I needed to reset one of my 2010 MacBooks. Just found a set of disk for sale, bought them and factory reset was simple. I now have the disk should I ever need to do it again.

[android6391]

Is there another type of reset I can do without wiping the OS altogether? Like a soft reset or something? Also it's in need of a new battery so I plan on picking one of them up cheap off eBay, is there any other cheap upgrades worth doing on this machine that you'd recommend? Afaik 3GB ram is the max, maybe an optical drive replacement with an SSD? Or would the processor bottle neck it? Thanks!