Hi

Anyone have any experience of restoring/reinstalling Lion using the Recovery/Internet Recovery? I have to send back the MBP I purchased but want to wipe it before I do. No files are stored, but I had to go through some of the set up to get in to see if it was all okay.

I've tried Internet Recovery, but the globe spins for a while and then I get an error with the 2002F number (repeatedly). I've tried the Recovery HD option, but the option to reinstall Lion there asks me for my Apple ID to proceed, which is defeating the object. Should I erase the disk first to get around this?

In the meantime I've deleted my User account and replaced with a generic 'Admin' - but I'd prefer to send back clean if possible. The returns conditions don't specify 'unused' but better to give it back as I had it?

Any help would be gratefully received!

Thanks

Ben

As far as I can tell you would need the original Install OS X Lion file that was downloaded from the App store to do a proper clean install as the stuff I've been reading suggests you need to create a bootable USB drive or DVD. As the machine came with Lion on it I'm going to assume you don't have that. If you do please post back.

As you've wiped your original user account and put in a blank Admin one you could always just do a Wipe of the free space on the system drive using the HD recovery partition. That should put anything of yours beyond reach to anyone without some pretty serious recovery hardware.

Thanks - no, as far as I know I don't have the file. I may have misunderstood then, as I though the internet recovery was a was of restoring without the need of a local file or disk?...

I've also tried just holding Opt when restarting too, but it wouldn't accept my Wifi password.... (the other modes it seems to pick it up from where I connected in OSX). I did read that it might be that something else was running on the same IP (my other Mac) so tried this morning without that on, but still got the 2002F error.

The 'Erase Free Space' thing might work though, thanks. I'm tempted to try erasing the drive to reinstall, but I don't want to get stuck not being able to download it, or for it to ask for my Apple ID again!

http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1433?view ... cale=en_US

Would I need to download this?!

When our iMacs at work had to go back to the leasing company, we did an Erase & Install - though we used the 10.7 Lion USB Drive to boot it - then used Disk Utility to erase the drive (didn't have time for a secure erase, just a quick format).

When I returned to the OS X installer, it then checked with Apple's servers to see it was eligible for 10.7 - it never asked for an Apple ID at all, I think when you first register a new Mac the serial number must go on an Apple database somewhere which is then checked against if there's no system on the Mac.

Once verified, it then downloaded the 10.7 installer - I had assumed the actual installer was located on the USB stick but it seems that's not the case (this was the full retail Apple USB drive), it must just use the USB drive to boot it and start the install process from Apple's servers. In theory, all the USB drive is is a duplicate of the Recovery Partition on each drive that has 10.7 installed on.

So, at no point did it ask for an Apple ID - hopefully it won't for you as long as you erase the drive first.

Thanks - might try the erase and install... I'll try downloading the installer too, to be sure. That might be enough to get it to work, and perhaps where I had been going wrong!

When you install the OS it deletes the install dmg files afterwards so it will still show as available to download on the App Store. If you download it again and then at the beginning set it to wipe the drive as securely as you want before it installs OSX.

Cool - well, I'll try again tonight when I get home and see how I get on. Thanks for the replies guys!

Okay - I've made the Recovery USB drive, and gone Option when restarting.... selected Recovery Drive - but it won't accept my Wifi password still.

Anyone know why this might be? (And yes, it's correct!)

Oh hang on.... I've clicked the drive now... it's doing something different..

Okay - go tto the bit where it verifies whether I am eligible to d/l it... and as I haven't purchased Lion (although I have bought ML), I can't.... so do I need to Erase then do it, or use Internet Recovery?

You could install ML and leave installing Lion later.

I can't now... erased drive, so only goes to option to install Lion.... thinking maybe this didn't ship with Lion, hence why it's asking me to download?!