MacBook Air Can't Boot Into Recovery Mode After Erasing Disk

I erased my disc in Recovery Mode and tried reinstall Mac OS from recovery mode but the Mac wasn't able to connect to the Internet. I restarted it to see if would connect to the Internet but it now boots into a mode where I have 3 options that say BootKicker.efi, OpenShell.efi and Reset NVRAM. Cannot proceed from there and cannot do a Command + R boot anymore, it keeps coming back to this same screen.

Posted on Mar 29, 2025 10:42 AM

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Mar 29, 2025 11:25 AM in response to anychare

Hello!

It seems that your MacBook Air has ended up in a situation where the UEFI firmware is showing advanced boot options, probably due to a problem with the recovery mode or the boot disk. Here are some steps you can try to solve the problem:


1. Reset NVRAM test

• Select the NVRAM reset option and confirm.

• Your Mac should reboot automatically after the reset.

• After rebooting, try to boot into recovery mode again with Command (⌘) + R.


2. Force boot into Internet Recovery mode

• Turn off your Mac completely.

• Restart it by holding down Option (⌥) + Command (⌘) + R until you see a globe spinning.

• This will attempt to start recovery mode directly from the Apple servers.


3. Use another Mac to create a macOS USB drive


If Internet Recovery doesn’t work, you can try creating a bootable USB drive with macOS using another Mac:

• Use another Mac to download macOS from the Mac App Store.

• Create a bootable USB drive using the terminal with the createinstallmedia command.

• Start your MacBook Air by holding down Option (⌥) and selecting the USB drive.


4. Check if your Mac has an Apple T2 or Apple Silicon chip


If your MacBook Air has a T2 or Apple Silicon chip, you may need to reset the firmware with another Mac using Apple Configurator 2.


If none of these solutions work, you may need to bring your Mac to an authorized Apple Store or service center. Let me know if you need help with any of these steps!

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Mar 30, 2025 11:38 AM in response to anychare

That is because someone hacked that laptop to run an unsupported version of macOS. You need to perform a PRAM Reset to remove the custom settings in the NVRAM in order to return it to default settings so that the regular special startup keys works as they should.


While booted to the macOS installer you will need to use Disk Utility to erase the whole physical drive, then Quit Disk Utility and select the "Reinstall macOS" option. Within Disk Utility you may need to click "View" and select "Show All Devices" before the physical drive appears on the left pane of Disk Utility. You need to erase it as GUID partition and either APFS (top option....for macOS 10.15+), or MacOS Extended (Journaled) (for macOS 10.14 & earlier).



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Mar 30, 2025 1:02 PM in response to HWTech

Thanks. I don't have access to Disk Utility anymore. I am stuck at the black screen with BoitKicker.efi/ OpenShell.efi/ Reset NVRAM. I guess the only option I have now is to make bootable USB on another Mac and try to boot from the USB on my ailing Mac. I will give an update when I have tried it.

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Mar 30, 2025 6:01 PM in response to anychare

Reset the NVRAM making sure to hold the keys for the PRAM Reset for at least three chimes if possible. Many times the NVRAM is not cleared with the first chime.


It is possible those items shown on the Option Boot screen (aka Apple boot picker menu) even after the PRAM Reset. Try pressing Command + Option + R while the Apple boot picker menu is displayed as it may initiate booting into Internet Recovery Mode (I know this works for some Macs, but cannot guarantee all Macs).



anychare wrote:

Thanks. I don't have access to Disk Utility anymore.

Disk Utility is only available while booted into the macOS installer (online Internet Recovery Mode, or USB).


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Mar 31, 2025 3:49 PM in response to HWTech

Update:


So what I did was that I created a Mac VM on my other Windows 11 PC. I downloaded the Monterey Installer package onto the Mac VM and created a bootable USB on the VM. I used the bootable USB to do a fresh install of macOS (Monterey) on my dead MacBook. It worked well, the installation was without any issues. I then upgraded the maOS. My MacBook is alive now!


Thank you all for your assistance and insights. I really appreciate it 🙏

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MacBook Air Can't Boot Into Recovery Mode After Erasing Disk

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