My late-2018 or mid-2019 Intel MacBook Air was working normally last night, but today it gets stuck on the Apple logo while starting up. I can enter macOS Recovery, but the available options have not changed anything. Safe Mode also does not seem to work: holding S showed a screen of code before rebooting, while holding Shift did nothing. I also tried the usual startup key combinations and an NVRAM reset without success. Reinstalling macOS reports that there is not enough free storage, and I do not know how to remove files from Recovery because I cannot open Finder. I mainly use the laptop for GarageBand and would really like to recover it without paying for a repair or replacing it. What should I try next?
1 Answer
Since this is a late-2018 or 2019 Intel Air, first disconnect every accessory except the charger and start Recovery again. Open Disk Utility, choose View > Show All Devices, and run First Aid on the internal volume, then the container and physical drive if they appear. If the disk is healthy, use Recovery's Terminal to identify large folders and remove only files you are certain you no longer need. Do not delete system folders. If your files matter, use Terminal or another Mac to copy the important data off before erasing anything. The S key is not the normal Safe Mode shortcut on these Macs; Shift is the relevant key, and some startup-key behavior can be affected by the T2 security chip.
If Recovery cannot free enough space or First Aid reports errors, the safest next step is backing up the user folder from Recovery or taking it to a repair shop before choosing Erase. Reinstalling macOS over the existing installation normally does not require deleting personal files, so a storage warning may indicate a fuller or damaged drive.