Here erasing the startup disk means erasing the Macintosh HD volume. Erasing Macintosh HD creates a clean and stable environment for reinstalling macOS. It frees up enough storage space on Macintosh HD for the upcoming operating system. Installation error or failure may occur if you don’t erase it.
Does erasing Macintosh HD delete everything?
Before erasing your Mac Make a backup of any files that you want to keep. Erasing your Mac permanently deletes its files.
Is it safe to delete Macintosh HD?
Yes, it is safe to delete it if you no longer want the data stored in it.
What does it mean to erase Macintosh HD?
Generally on a Mac, ‘erase’ means to destroy all the bits on the storage medium, including the operating system, applications, programs, and user data. On a Mac erase does NOT mean factory reset. If you want to reset your Mac to factory conditions, then.
What is Macintosh HD data data?
Your files and data are stored in another volume named Macintosh HD – Data. In the Finder, both volumes appear as Macintosh HD. The Disk Utility app in macOS Catalina shows that Macintosh HD is the read-only system volume and Macintosh HD – Data contains the the rest of your files and data.