User level: Level 1 (0 points)I replaced my 2011 iMac in 2020. The old iMac has sat unused since that time. Is it possible to bring it back to life for basic functions? and IF SO, how would I start? We can't seem to get past the password screen.
Posted on Nov 6, 2026 10:10 AM
User level: Level 10 (131,878 points)Nov 6, 2026 10:51 AM in response to llarkman
Emotions aside, I would have Apple recycle it (free) for you. The PRAM battery is likely long since dead too, and finding someone to open that Mac and replace it will likely not be Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Center.
All of the places on the Internet (web sites, mail servers, banks, etc.) have long since upgraded their security protocols far beyond what the last operating system (macOS 10.13.6, High Sierra) supports. Normal connectivity from this 2011 iMac will be challenging at best. The last supported browser for High Sierra is Firefox 115 ESR.
User level: Level 10 (162,806 points)Nov 6, 2026 2:20 PM in response to llarkman
That Mac would be an excellent candidate for Linux Mint, which runs the latest versions of just about everything.
I have it running on Macs even older than that.
As far as macOS goes, High Sierra is barely useful any more.
If necessary, replacing the NVRAM battery is easier on that iMac than most others.
User level: Level 10 (169,253 points)Nov 6, 2026 10:12 AM in response to llarkman
llarkman wrote:
how to get past forgotten password on old Mac
Start here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/102633
User level: Level 10 (169,253 points)Nov 6, 2026 10:22 AM in response to llarkman
llarkman wrote:
I replaced my 2011 iMac in 2020. The old iMac has sat unused since that time. Is it possible to bring it back to life for basic functions? and IF SO, how would I start? We can't seem to get past the password screen.
Ah, and a whole new question appears… Newest macOS for a 2011-era Mac is macOS 10.13, which isn’t going to be great for web or mail or other common functions.
User level: Level 10 (162,806 points)Nov 6, 2026 2:49 PM in response to John Galt
John Galt wrote:
That Mac would be an excellent candidate for Linux Mint, which runs the latest versions of just about everything.
https://www.linuxmint.com/
I have it running on Macs even older than that.
Posting now from an eighteen year old iMac. Runs like blazes. Original HDD, 6 GB RAM. Even its eighteen year old battery is ok (apparently).
In addition to Linux it also boots Snow Leopard and El Cap (triple boot).
Macs last a long time.
macOS... not so much.
User level: Level 8 (45,031 points)Nov 6, 2026 10:13 AM in response to llarkman
Exactly which version of the Mac OS does your old Mac run?
This is Apple’s current guidance for resetting your Mac’s login password:
User level: Level 7 (28,946 points)Nov 6, 2026 10:58 AM in response to llarkman
If you can’t remember your login password your life just got much harder. If you can't recover it using the tools provided to you by other users in this thread you are basically out of luck. If passwords were easy to bypass or reset they wouldn’t be of much use now would they.
User level: Level 1 (0 points)Nov 6, 2026 10:21 AM in response to D.I. Johnson
How can I tell? I can't open it up at this point...
Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256389893