A Fresh macOS Setup

These instructions are for setting up new Mac devices.

Backup your data

If you're migrating from an existing Mac, you should first make sure to backup all of your existing data. Go through the checklist below to make sure you didn't forget anything before you migrate.

  • Did you commit and push any changes/branches to your git repositories?
  • Did you remember to save all important documents from non-iCloud directories?
  • Did you save all of your work from apps which aren't synced through iCloud?
  • Did you remember to export important data from your local database?
  • Did you update mackup to the latest version and run mackup backup?

Setting up your Mac

After backing up your old Mac you may now follow these install instructions to setup a new one.

  1. Update macOS to the latest version through system preferences

  2. Generate a new public and private SSH key by running:

    curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/chrisbaswell/dotfiles/HEAD/ssh.sh | sh -s "<your-email-address>"
  3. Clone this repo to ~/.dotfiles with:

    git clone --recursive git@github.com:chrisbaswell/dotfiles.git ~/.dotfiles
  4. Grant full access to terminal -> Settings -> Privacy & Security -> Full Disk Access -> Terminal

  5. Run the installation with:

    cd ~/.dotfiles && ./fresh.sh
  6. Start Herd.app and run its install process

  7. If this is a new install, run mackup backup. If not, after mackup is synced with your cloud storage, restore preferences by running mackup restore.

  8. Restart your computer to finalize the process

Your Mac is now ready to use!

Cleaning your old Mac (optionally)

After you've set up your new Mac you may want to wipe and clean install your old Mac. Follow this article to do that. Remember to backup your data first!