Set up your new Mac
What does this screen mean? What happens if I skip it? Can I change it later? Every setup screen explained in Apple's own words — then what to do in the first hour, day and week.
New Mac setup — % complete of 16
Apple What the screen means, what happens if you skip it and anything else worth knowing — quoted, with a link to the page.
Change it later Where the setting lives after setup, from the verified Settings Pathfinder.
Osnivo tip Our own plain-language advice, kept separate from Apple's words.
Setup screens
The first 15 minutes — what each screen means
-
Apple: “To fully charge the battery, or if you plan to transfer data to your new Mac, connect it to a power outlet using a power adapter and the cable that came in the box.”
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “You need an internet connection to complete certain portions of Setup Assistant. You may also need to update your Mac as part of the initial setup.”
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “You can set up your Mac with an iPhone or iPad; transfer data from another Mac, a Time Machine backup, or a startup disk; transfer data from a Windows PC; or you can set up your Mac as new.”
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “Choose accessibility options for vision, hearing, mobility, speech, and cognition, or click Not Now to skip and set up later.”
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “Choose your Wi-Fi network and enter the password, if necessary.”
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “Set your username and password to unlock your Mac or approve other actions.”
Apple also says: “If you want your Mac to have multiple users, you can add more users and groups later.”
Osnivo tip Keep this password safe: Apple says it unlocks your Mac and approves other actions.
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “If you already have another Apple device, you likely have an Apple Account—simply sign in using the email address or phone number and password. If you don’t have an Apple Account, you can create one.”
MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
-
Apple: “When your accounts are set up, follow the onscreen instructions to customize settings like Location Services, Screen Time, Apple Intelligence, Siri, Touch ID, and more.”
Change it later: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services Change it later: System Settings → Screen Time → Manage Screen Time → Turn On App & Website Activity Change it later: System Settings → Siri Change it later: System Settings → Touch ID & Password → Add FingerprintMacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air ↗
First hour
Security, account and backup
-
Apple: “Turning on FileVault provides an extra layer of security by keeping someone from decrypting or getting access to your data without entering your login password.”
Apple also says: “If you turn on FileVault and then forget your login password and can’t reset it, and you also forget your recovery key, you won’t be able to log in, and your files and settings will be lost forever.”
-
Apple: “Before your Mac, devices, or items go missing, make sure you set up Find My Mac in iCloud settings.”
Apple also says: “Location Services must be on to use Find My Mac.”
Mac User Guide: Set up the Find My app to locate a missing Mac, device, or item ↗
-
Apple: “If you have a USB drive or other external storage device, you can use Time Machine to automatically back up your files, including apps, music, photos, email, and documents.”
Apple also says: “Use a storage device with at least twice the storage capacity of your Mac.”
-
Apple: “To ensure you have the latest features and security updates, Apple releases software updates for macOS.”
Day one
Recommended configuration
-
Apple: “Personalize your MacBook Air by changing your wallpaper, adjusting icon and widget styles, and tweaking font sizes.”
First week
Discover and optimise
-
Apple: “With AirDrop, you can wirelessly send photos, videos, documents, and more to a nearby iPhone, iPad, or Mac.”
Apple also says: “Transfers are encrypted for security, and the recipient can accept or decline each transfer as it arrives.”
Mac User Guide: Use AirDrop to send items to nearby Apple devices ↗
-
Apple: “With iCloud Drive, you can safely store all kinds of documents in iCloud, and access them from any of your devices and on the web at iCloud.com.”
Apple also says: “If you have devices with iCloud Drive turned off, documents and data on those devices aren’t kept up to date with documents and data on your devices with iCloud Drive turned on.”
-
Apple: “Continuity features are built directly into your devices’ operating systems and many of the apps you use every day. There’s no additional app you need to install—just sign in to the same Apple Account on each device to get started.”
Mac User Guide: Use Continuity to work across Apple devices ↗
Find any other setting
Settings Pathfinder: the exact path for your version.
Is it up to date?
Should I Update? checks the version it shipped with.
What can it run?
Compatibility Checker: releases and features by model.
Sources for this page
- 1 MacBook Air Getting Started Guide: Set up your MacBook Air support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 Mac User Guide: Protect data on your Mac with FileVault support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 Mac User Guide: Set up the Find My app to locate a missing Mac, device, or item support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 Back up your Mac with Time Machine support.apple.com
- 1 Mac User Guide: Keep your Mac up to date support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 MacBook Air Getting Started Guide support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 Mac User Guide: Use AirDrop to send items to nearby Apple devices support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 Mac User Guide: Store files in iCloud Drive on Mac support.apple.com · current guide
- 1 Mac User Guide: Use Continuity to work across Apple devices support.apple.com · current guide