Mac OS X can only be installed on a hard drive formatted in Mac OS Extended ( Journaled), filesystem. So if you wish to clean a hard drive for a fresh install of OS X you will need to format it under Mac OS Extended ( Journaled). If you want to create an encrypted drive for Mac, it should be formatted in Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
Ok, to do that you need to hold c and boot off the 10.6 installer disk and second screen in under the Utilities Menu is Disk Utility.
You can then select the hard drive makers name (your 'bare metal') and peform the wipe/format of the entire drive or a 'partition' on that drive.
In the picture below there is only one partition, the Mac HD. In the picture above there are two partitions which both would show up under the hard drive makers name and both or either partition can be wiped in Disk Utility.
Use the Security Option to Zero your hard drive of all lingering data.
When you Quit Disk utiltiy, your back in the installer and can quit or install OS X.
Format Hard Drive And Reinstall Mac Os X
Note: messing with Disk utility will erase all data on the drive, if there is something you need to recover better stop and ask!
If you don't see your internal boot drive in Disk Utility, the drive is dead. 😟
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Disk Utility User Guide
Disk Utility on Mac supports several file system formats:
- Apple File System (APFS): The file system used by macOS 10.13 or later.
- Mac OS Extended: The file system used by macOS 10.12 or earlier.
- MS-DOS (FAT) and ExFAT: Download mac os x theme for ubuntu 10. File systems that are compatible with Windows.
Apple File System (APFS)
Apple File System (APFS), the default file system for Mac computers using macOS 10.13 or later, features strong encryption, space sharing, snapshots, fast directory sizing, and improved file system fundamentals. While APFS is optimized for the Flash/SSD storage used in recent Mac computers, it can also be used with older systems with traditional hard disk drives (HDD) and external, direct-attached storage. macOS 10.13 or later supports APFS for both bootable and data volumes.
APFS allocates disk space within a container on demand. The disk’s free space is shared and can be allocated to any of the individual volumes in the container as needed. If desired, you can specify reserve and quota sizes for each volume. Each volume uses only part of the overall container, so the available space is the total size of the container, minus the size of all the volumes in the container.
Choose one of the following APFS formats for Mac computers using macOS 10.13 or later.
Format Hard Disk For Mac Os X 10 12
- APFS: Uses the APFS format.
- APFS (Encrypted): Uses the APFS format and encrypts the volume.
- APFS (Case-sensitive): Uses the APFS format and is case-sensitive to file and folder names. For example, folders named “Homework” and “HOMEWORK” are two different folders.
- APFS (Case-sensitive, Encrypted): Uses the APFS format, is case-sensitive to file and folder names, and encrypts the volume. For example, folders named “Homework” and “HOMEWORK” are two different folders.
You can easily add or delete volumes in APFS containers. Each volume within an APFS container can have its own APFS format—APFS, APFS (Encrypted), APFS (Case-sensitive), or APFS (Case-sensitive, Encrypted).
Mac OS Extended
Choose one of the following Mac OS Extended file system formats for compatibility with Mac computers using macOS 10.12 or earlier.
- Mac OS Extended (Journaled): Uses the Mac format (Journaled HFS Plus) to protect the integrity of the hierarchical file system.
- Mac OS Extended (Journaled, Encrypted): Uses the Mac format, requires a password, and encrypts the partition.
- Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled): Uses the Mac format and is case-sensitive to folder names. For example, folders named “Homework” and “HOMEWORK” are two different folders.
- Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled, Encrypted): Uses the Mac format, is case-sensitive to folder names, requires a password, and encrypts the partition.
Windows-compatible formats
Choose one of the following Windows-compatible file system formats if you are formatting a disk to use with Windows.
Mac Os Format Usb Disk
- MS-DOS (FAT): Use for Windows volumes that are 32 GB or less.
- ExFAT: Use for Windows volumes that are over 32 GB.
See alsoPartition schemes available in Disk Utility on MacAbout Disk Utility on Mac