My 24" iMac will not boot using command + r buttons?

[john walters]

I have just bought a 2nd hand/preowned 24", core 2 duo, 4gb ram, 320gb hdd, early 2008 with mountain lion os and I'm having problems. I want to boot into recovery by pressing Command & R on start up but it will not go into recovery. I am using a usb wireless keyboard and combined mouse, a Logitech K400 Plus, to do this. The iMac did not come with a wired apple mouse and keyboard when i bought it. I want to a factory reset so it is all cleaned and fresh for me but can't seem to do this. The iMac came with no software discs either. All this was reflected in the lower price but it leaves me with problems. I also want garage band but yet again the iMac came with no iLife DVD. I went to the app store but it says that my iMac is not compatible with the latest version. I have seen ways online to install Sierra with a patch but at the moment i just want to factory reset it. Any help would be greatly appreciated. John.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

You iMac supports up to Mac OS X 10.11.6 El Capitan, which is compatible with the latest GarageBand.

-Do you have a standard USB keyboard and mouse you could try? Sometimes it can be tricky to use keyboard startup commands with third-party wireless devices, because they can rely on their software drivers.
-Do you have an Apple Store near you? They may be able to install Mountain Lion/El Capitan for you.

C