Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
If you had to replace your MacBook Air hard drive, the Recovery HD won't be available to you. In that case, you can
purchase an OS X Mountain Lion Install USB thumb drive from Apple for the rather steep price of $69.
Earlier version of OS X.
Insert the OS X Install DVD or USB flash drive, turn on or restart your MacBook
Air, and hold down C while your MacBook Air restarts. You can release C when you see the Apple logo. Your
MacBook Air boots to the OS X Install DVD or flash drive.
General Hardware Troubleshooting Techniques
If you're having trouble with a device attached to MacBook Air, the good news is that a fair chunk of hardware
problems have a relatively limited set of causes. You may be able to get the device back on its feet by attempt-
ing a few tried-and-true remedies that work quite often for many devices. The next few sections take you
through these generic troubleshooting techniques.
Basic hardware troubleshooting steps
If it's not immediately obvious what the problem is, your MacBook Air hardware troubleshooting routine
should always start with these very basic techniques:
Check connections, power switches, and so on.
Some of the most common (and most embarrassing)
causes of hardware problems are the simple physical things, such as devices being unplugged or disconnected.
So your first troubleshooting steps should concentrate on the obvious: making sure that a device is turned on,
checking that cable connections are secure, and ensuring that external devices (such as those using a Thunder-
bolt or USB cable) are properly connected. For example, if you can't access the Internet or your network, make
sure that your network's router or wireless access point is turned on. If you have a wired connection, make sure
that the network cable between MacBook Air and your router is properly connected.
Replace the batteries.
Wireless devices, such as keyboards and mice, really chew through batteries. If either
one is working intermittently or not at all, always try replacing the batteries to see if that solves the problem.
Turn the device off and then on.
You power cycle a device by turning it off, waiting a few seconds for its
innards to stop spinning, and then turning it back on. You'd be amazed how often this simple procedure can get
a device back up and running. Of course, not all devices have an on/off switch, but this technique works very
well for devices such as external displays, printers, scanners, routers, switches, modems, external hard drives,
and DVD drives; many Thunderbolt, USB, and FireWire devices; and some wireless devices, such as mice and
keyboards. Many wireless mice have a reset button on the bottom, whereas some keyboards — notably the
Apple Bluetooth keyboard — have an on/off switch. Thunderbolt, USB, and FireWire devices often get their
power directly from the corresponding port. Power cycle these devices by unplugging them and then plugging
them back in.
