Need help restoring used Mac

Hey, so I recently just received the used Macbook Pro that I purchased off Ebay. It is a mid-2012 Macbook Pro. When I originally got it I messed around with it for a bit, but I realized I needed to restore it to factory settings when I started making changes to the computer and I realized it was still listed as "this guys Macbook" when it should say "My name Macbook". So, I looked online how to restore a Macbook. The steps I followed were to turn it off, then turn it on while holding the option key. Then, two drives were supposed to appear, one titled "Macintosh HD" and the other "Recovery". Well, when I did this two drives did appear however one was titled "Untitled" and the other "Recovery". Then, I clicked on Recovery and then clicked on Disk Utilities and clicked on the "Untitled" drive and then clicked on Erase to erase anything that was previously on the Macbook. Then, I went back to the main screen when you click on "Recovery" and I clicked on Reinstall OS X. After agreeing to Terms and Conditions, it prompted me to enter my Apple ID, so I did. Then, it told me that I had not purchased a copy of Lion and so it could not install the OS. Now when I turn on my Macbook it goes back to this OS X Utilities page. So, how do I install a fresh copy of OS X? I don't get why it's saying I have to buy it when this Macbook is a mid-2012 and came with OS X already installed...

Since the machine is a mid 2012 MBP, go ahead and buy Mountain Lion from the Mac App store using your own Apple ID. It's only $19.99. You bought a used machine so it's best to do it that way. Because you erased Lion and you were not the original owner, you are not authorized to re-download Lion with your Apple ID.

Ok how am I going to buy Mountain Lion though, since I already erased everything on the Mac I can't access an app store or anything. Can I buy it on like Apple.com with my laptop or does it need to be purchased on the Mac, because if so that could be a problem.

I am fortunate that I've never been in this situation, so I can't say for sure, but does the recovery partition not offer you ANY opportunity to *install* OS X rather than REinstall? I'd be surprised if it didn't ... perhaps an option called "Internet Recovery?"

If not, you'll need to take it to an authorized Apple Store or Mac dealer and let them sort it out for you.

Godrick said:

Ok how am I going to buy Mountain Lion though, since I already erased everything on the Mac I can't access an app store or anything. Can I buy it on like Apple.com with my laptop or does it need to be purchased on the Mac, because if so that could be a problem.

Click to expand...

First try what member chas_m suggested. If that doesn't work out, you'll have to take it on in to an Apple store as he stated and let them download it for you.

Another bit of advice: If the warranty has not expired on your machine (it's for one year) I strongly recommend you purchase Apple Care for an additional two years.

Well being a mid 2012 it came with Lion OS X.7. Mountain Lion was a free upgrade if purchased after about June 12 from memory. Otherwise it is a paid upgrade. If the free upgrade offer was not taken up, it would still have been running Lion. Have you actually purchased Mountain Lion through your App Store account? If so go into Recovery and into App Store, hold down the Option key and hit purchases. ML should then come up and download f.o.c.

Before running Installer burn to a USB thumb drive.