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Anyone enjoy doing a fresh install now and then?

Woodcrest64

Woodcrest64

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Aug 14, 2006
1,315
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Does anyone else other than my self enjoy a fresh install from time to time? I just did a fresh install of Yosemite on my 2012 Macbook Pro. I have upgraded from Mountain Lion, to Mavericks to Yosemite each time but have never done a fresh install until now.

Its feels great and like a new machine. I actually enjoyed putting my applications back and doing some spring cleaning of my files.
 
After my Yosemite update and a Time Machine failed restore, I ran a fresh Mavericks install. Like you say, you're on a new machine.
It's probably worth it, but still... hard to say after how much time everything gets cluttered again.
 
I can't recall ever doing it on my rMBP (2012 model), I've done it on 2010 MBP because I upgraded the storage. Generally speaking I've really not noticed any issues that would require a fresh install.
 
haven't made one since 2004-2005 or something, switched from ppc to intel with the migration assistant... and has just upgraded existing installations with the upgrade-option since. Everything works and I keep my systems quite neat and well kept anyhow.
 
entropi said:
haven't made one since 2004-2005 or something, switched from ppc to intel with the migration assistant... and has just upgraded existing installations with the upgrade-option since. Everything works and I keep my systems quite neat and well kept anyhow.
Click to expand...

Same here, have never once felt the need to do a fresh install
 
In the past few months I've done that with both my Mini and my rMBP. It's pretty quick and easy because my data is in just a few places and most of my apps can be downloaded from the MAS. It is like having a new machine.

I did the same thing with my Windows desktop a few months ago, which eliminated some glitches that had crept in, but was not nearly as easy, since the applications are in a lot of different places and many require license keys to be entered.
 
I have never done it on a current machine but I know the feeling you mention. When I buy a new computer, I always start from scratch and only install the programs I still use and move over the files I need. I did that with my iPhone 6 this time (instead of restoring the new phone with my backup) and I got rid of a lot of apps and dead weight I never use--so it does have merit. :)
 
Yup. Every computer I have ever owned (from Win3.11 onwards and OS X 10.5) I have performed a fresh install. Sometimes with the same operating system and always with an upgrade to a newer version.
Same goes for Phones too - any new update means a complete cache clear and factory reset.
Do I enjoy it? Well I did in the past and now I don't look forward to it so much as it means pretty much a full day spent reconfiguring and installing/bug fixing.
However I don't think I'll ever just "trust" the major upgrades to just work - far too much to go wrong and I love tinkering so something will bound to have failed.
 
Woodcrest64 said:
Does anyone else other than my self enjoy a fresh install from time to time? I just did a fresh install of Yosemite on my 2012 Macbook Pro. I have upgraded from Mountain Lion, to Mavericks to Yosemite each time but have never done a fresh install until now.

Its feels great and like a new machine. I actually enjoyed putting my applications back and doing some spring cleaning of my files.
Click to expand...

Every major OS X release I always do a clean install. Gives me a chance to clean out old stuff from the previous OS X install. For me it is easy to do a clean install as I have all my user accounts on a separate hard drive. I also create new user accounts and copy over only what is needed from the old user account. Again allows me to clean out what is no longer needed.

Got to say, Yosmemite 10.10.2 has been great for me. No issues so far.
 
I still highly suggest everyone who "upgrades" Mavericks or Yosemite use the free application EtreCheck. It wil show the unreliable applications that are incompatible with your upgrade and slowing your Mac down. The program will point you to this and all you have to do is delete the incompatible files, then restart after all the deleteing to stop these kecks.
 
I think "fresh" installs are a waste of time.

I have used tons of Macs, each heavily tweaked, with tons of old applications and stuff, and never needed a "fresh" install and never saw any evidence they were of any benefit, all other things being equal.

On occasion, it does solve problems, in the same way that replacing your engine will improve your power, when all you really needed to do is reattach a spark plug wire.
 
2004 I switched back to Mac with an iBook G4. I kept doing upgrades and target disk mode transfers on every primary machine I had until October 2011! Over 7 years of upgrading and transferring.

In Oct. 2011 I got a mini Server, and I started fresh. I'm still on that as my primary machine, but I keep upgrading it.

Interestingly enough, the upgrade/transfer machine my 2007 iMac that goes back to that 2004 ibook G4 install, is still running in another room now up to Yosemite after staring on Panther in the iBook.

I don't think fresh installs especially with the latest version of OS X mean very much. If you do notice a boost, I think it has more to do with the hard drive starting out with the files more neatly arranged than they get after many years.
 
powerbook911 said:
2004 I switched back to Mac with an iBook G4. I kept doing upgrades and target disk mode transfers on every primary machine I had until October 2011! Over 7 years of upgrading and transferring.

In Oct. 2011 I got a mini Server, and I started fresh. I'm still on that as my primary machine, but I keep upgrading it.

Interestingly enough, the upgrade/transfer machine my 2007 iMac that goes back to that 2004 ibook G4 install, is still running in another room now up to Yosemite after staring on Panther in the iBook.

I don't think fresh installs especially with the latest version of OS X mean very much. If you do notice a boost, I think it has more to do with the hard drive starting out with the files more neatly arranged than they get after many years.
Click to expand...

Clean installs is not about speed boosts.
 
I've always done clean installs. Just the way I like to do things. Plus as other posters have mentioned, running with the OS and Users folders on separate drives makes it quite easy.

In my Windows heyday between 1996 and 2008 I was probably doing an average of 5 a year (and that was less than some other people I knew). Each time would pretty much eat up a full day after installing updates and then whatever software I wanted loaded on. With the Mac I could probably run 5 in a day...not that I would need to unless I was doing testing.
 
I did a fresh install with Yosemite because I had previously a lot of programs on Mavericks which I no longer use. It does feel nice to have an essentially clean machine. I like setting up everything fresh. The only thing I copied over was my iTunes library and I was good to go.
 
Fresh installs are completely unnecessary unless used to resolve a particular problem that can't be resolved by using other, more elegant methods.
 
I always do, whenever I upgrade my machine. All data are kept on different disk, so installing is just a matter of few minutes. Plus, iCloud and AppStore keep all my apps, so reinstalling them is fun.
 
No. I can't see the point. I've got better things to be doing with my free time than a pre-emptive reload.

I migrated the same user profile through various versions of OS X (10.4 -10.9) and machines, then started afresh with the rMBP to reduce the accumulated cruft.
 
I did a fresh install of Mavericks on my 2011 MBP before it died. I was having odd performance issues and figured it could be the constant upgrade path from SL -> Lion -> ML -> Mav.

It was a failing GPU. :eek:

I see no reason to fresh install depending on how you use your system. For example, I don't install several third party tweaks and only install necessary apps, thus junk doesn't accumulate.
 
I used to do it every time Mavericks got updated. I did a clean install of Yosemite when it was released, and haven't had any issues since.
 
i usually just update everything, and did that originally with yosemite. and all was (mostly) fine.

apple replaced my SSD a few months back, so i did a clean install then. and...everything seems about the same (in terms of my user experience).

just my observations...
 
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