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I replaced my internal drive in my macbook pro 2010 with a new SSD. I started the machine, then pressed alt/option to access Recovery Mode in order to use Disk Utility. So, I opened Disk Utility and tried to erase and partition the new SSD. This is the error I am getting: "Disk Erase failed with error: File system formatter failed". All the video that I have watched seemed to follow the same steps that I did. What am I doing wrong?

This is what i m getting

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  • What is the model/year of your Mac? The newer Macs (~2010+) can do an Internet Recovery boot by holding down the Option-Command-R keys at startup.
    – David Anderson
    Feb 9, 2016 at 20:44
  • The other option would be to put your old drive in a shell. You then plug the shell into the USB port. You should be able to boot by holding down the Option key at startup.
    – David Anderson
    Feb 9, 2016 at 20:48
  • I have the 2010 but when i press the Option-Command-R keys thats what i get on the screen
    – Ngoma Mbaku Davy
    Feb 9, 2016 at 20:56

2 Answers 2

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Your SSD as you said is empty, so this is why you do not have any recovery partition to reinstall the OS.

You need to boot to an external device (USB key or DVD depending on your Mac) in order to format and install Mac OS on your new SSD. You can use software like DiskMaker X to create a bootable OS X device.

You will need another Mac to create the bootable drive or you can reinstall your old disk, create the bootable drive and then reinstall your SSD.

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  • I see it .So after creating a bootable flash drive ,Once plunged in .is the computer going to recognize it directly ?
    – Ngoma Mbaku Davy
    Feb 9, 2016 at 20:42
  • @NgomaMbakuDavy You will need to hold the alt key I think and then select the bootable device. Remember to format the SSD before trying installing the OS. If you do not format first, the installer will not propose your disk as target for installation.
    – Ermiar
    Feb 9, 2016 at 20:44
  • @NgomaMbakuDavy You are welcome. Do not forget to accept the answer if the operation is successfull.
    – Ermiar
    Feb 9, 2016 at 20:52
  • So, I went to the Disk Utility to try to erase and partition the new SSD. This is the error I am getting: "Disk Erase failed with error: File system formatter failed". All the video that I have watched seemed to follow the same steps that I did. What i am I doing wrong?
    – Ngoma Mbaku Davy
    Feb 10, 2016 at 16:53
  • @NgomaMbakuDavy That is strange, from what I saw after a quick internet search, it seems to be related with partioning. Did you try to create partitions on your SSD ? Did you choose the right partitioning scheme ?
    – Ermiar
    Feb 10, 2016 at 16:57
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Apple documents the steps for you and covers the options pretty well:

Basically, if your hardware support Internet recovery you'll be able to reinstall an OS and get a recovery HD on the SSD. If not, you'll have to bring a bootable drive to that Mac or create a recovery HD from another Mac.

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  • So, I went to the Disk Utility to try to erase and partition the new SSD. This is the error I am getting: "Disk Erase failed with error: File system formatter failed". All the video that I have watched seemed to follow the same steps that I did. What i am I doing wrong?
    – Ngoma Mbaku Davy
    Feb 10, 2016 at 16:53
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    @NgomaMbakuDavy You might have an error based on what you selected. It would be best to ask a follow on question - link here and show an image of the window that makes the error. For instance, you could be erasing a volume, filesystem or partition. Apple has no video - so I'm not sure what instructions you are following if you aren't using Apple's steps.
    – bmike ♦
    Feb 10, 2016 at 17:17

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