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Clean Your Machine
Keeping your Mac clean inside and outside can go a long way towards maintaining its good looks and preventing problems.
Cleaning The Inside of Your Mac
- Backup your Mac. Now is a good time to update and test your Mac's backup. We have lots of information on choosing, setting up, and testing your backup in our Mac FAQ section called Get Ahead by Backing Up.
- Clean up your desktop. Did you know that having lots of files on your desktop can slow down your Mac starting up? You can save a few seconds by moving files into folders. You can tell your Mac to sort any remaining files into neat columns by clicking on the desktop and going to View > Clean Up and View > Arrange By.
- Remove extra files. To avoid slowing down your Mac, you should keep at least 10% of your hard drive empty for daily use. Read our FAQ on how to remove files, how to remove applications, and how to move your iTunes library onto an external hard drive. You can also bring your Mac into Tekserve and we'll upgrade your hard drive in one business day.
- Repair your hard drive. Once a month we recommend repairing your hard drive directories. You can also repair your disk permissions but there is no need to do this regulary. Read "What does Repair Disk Permissions do?" for instructions and more information.
Cleaning The Outside of Your Mac
- A word of caution. As you know, liquids and electronics don’t mix. We recommend turning off each device before you clean it. Don’t spray liquids directly on your electronic devices, use a dampened microfiber cloth instead.
- Clear that screen. We like Klear Screen and iKlear Apple polish to clean our Macs. You'll need a microfiber cloth to buff the screen clean (especially if its glossy).
- Clean that keyboard. The keyboard is your toughest target. Try rubbing the keys clean with your microfiber cloth moistened with screen cleaner. You can also try to blow out dust with compressed air. To make future cleanings easier and prevent spill damage, try using a notebook keyboard cover or desktop keyboard cover.
- Get your mouse back on the move. Wipe down the entire mouse with a damp microfiber cloth. If your mouse has a roller ball, check the manufacturer’s instructions to remove the ball and clean it. You can’t remove the miniature ball on Apple’s Mighty Mice but you can get it pretty clean by rubbing it with a dampened cloth for a few minutes. Watch Apple’s instructional video on cleaning the Mighty Mouse
- Evict the dust bunnies. All tower-shaped desktop computers should be blown out periodically to clean out the dust that can damage internal components. (Blowing stuck dust into the computer from the outside doesn’t really help.) On Power Mac G5 & Mac Pro desktop towers there is a latch on the back that lifts up to allow you to take off the side panel of the case. Be careful in there and try not to touch any circuit boards.
- Wipe it all down. We like to finish up by buffing the outside surfaces of the computer with a damp microfiber cloth. The areas that you touch often (like around the track pad) need the most attention.
Keeping It Clean
- Portable Mac owners can prevent cosmetic (and sometimes warranty voiding) damage with one or more of the following products. A laptop hard case will prevent scratches and small dents (select hard cases are 50% off while supplies last). You can keep your keyboard cleaner and prevent damage from spills with a keyboard cover. Palm guard protectors can protect your Mac's finish in the area around your trackpad (the oil from our hands resting there deteriorates the metal and plastic). A screen protector cuts down on glare and helps prevent screen damage. Finally, a protective case is an absolute must if you take your laptop with you frequently. Brenthaven bags are particularly well known for protecting laptops from drops.
- Desktop Mac owners can keep their keyboard cleaner (easier) with a keyboard cover.
 Computer Hard Cases |
 Mac Cleaning Supplies |
 Screen Protection |
| 15 products foundSort by: $ → $$$ | $$$ → $ | A → Z | Availability | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | Download Clean My Desktop from the Mac App Store for $1.99 | $1.99 | AvailableDigital Download |
 | Download Singlemizer from the Mac App Store for $9.99 | $9.99 | AvailableDigital Download |
 | Download DaisyDisk from the Mac App Store for $9.99 | $9.99 | AvailableDigital Download |
 | Moshi PalmGuard Protector for 11" MacBook Air | $5.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | Tekserve Microfiber Screen Protector for 15" Mac Notebook Keyboard | $7.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | Gust 12 oz EasyDuster Compressed Air Can | $9.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | Klear Screen 2oz. Notebook Screen Cleaner with 3 Klear Kloths | $10.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | appleJuce 2oz Screen Cleaner Kit | $10.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
| iKlear Polish Kit & Cleaner for iPod, iPhone, iBook, PowerBook MacBook & MacBook Pro | $19.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | Moshi PalmGuard Protector for 15" Unibody MacBook Pro | $19.95 | Out of StockCall for Availability |
 | Moshi PalmGuard Protector for 17" Unibody MacBook Pro | $24.95 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | SuperDuper Software | $28.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | Alsoft DiskWarrior 4 | $99.00 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | LaCie 500GB Rugged Portable Hard Drive - FW800, FW400, USB 2.0, 5400rpm | $149.99 | In StockShips in 1 business day |
 | LaCie 1TB Rugged Triple Portable Hard Drive - FW800 & USB 3.0 | $219.99 | Out of StockCall for Availability |
| 15 products foundSort by: $ → $$$ | $$$ → $ | A → Z | Availability | |||
Item availability and price are subject to change without notice.