Can you use a USB ext hard drive to boot from clone image?

I am not concerned about speed as much as having some kind of external drive to copy clone image to from my MacBook Pro. I know with older Macs you used to have to use Firewire connections for the Macs to boot from the external drives. I thought I saw something that said you now could also use USB. I'm pretty sure my MacBook Pro 17 (June 2009) has USB 2.0 version ports, so should I be able to do this? I know firewire would be faster but this is only for emergencies and until I could get my internal drive replaced. Also, any suggestions on brands (WD, Seagate, OWC) would be useful.

Yes, hold option booting from USB cloned boot drives work.
Although FireWire 800 is faster as you already know.
As always check to make sure you can.
Another secret, Mac's can be option/c booted off burned ISO of PartedMagic cd's too.
What's nice about this little gem, the whole Linux operating system loads into RAM and you can copy files from the non-boooting Mac's internal hard drive to a external drive, of nearly ANY format.
You can also burn disks, as the PartedMagic cd spits out after loading.
And you can get on the internet, and do malware scans and a lot of other niffty things.

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Can I use a usb external hard drive larger than 2TB? I have tried to use a 3TB but it shows up as 800GB.

Can I use a usb external hard drive larger than 2TB? I have tried to use a 3TB but it shows up as 800GB. Even tred to reformat in disk utility but only shows as 800 gb as well. It is a Seagate 3TB harddrive and enclosure. Nothing on the Seagate site about it other than it says Mac os through 10.6 is supported for larger than 2TB (might be old).

You might have better luck in the Snow Leopard community. I'll ask the hosts to relocate your post.
10.6 Snow Leopard

Can a use a partitioned external hard drive to create a disk image? I tried, doesn't seem to work using disk manager.

Can a use a partitioned external hard drive to create a disk image? I tried, doesn't seem to work using disk manager.

OK, it's very bad computing to use a backup disk for anything but a backup. The reason being is if/when the HD crashes you will have lost not only all your backup but the data files. While I commend you for wanting redundant backup, you really need separate EHDs for doing so. Format each EHD using Disk Utility to Mac OS Extended (Journaled) using the GUID parttition. When you connect, OS X will ask if you want to use that drive as a Time Machine backup drive, select yes and then let it backup. On the second EHD format the same way however do not use TM as a backup, this time I'd suggest an app such as SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner to make a clone of the internal HD. Leave both EHDs connected and TM will backup new or changed files automatically on a hourly basis. The clone you will need to set to backup on the schedule you want. For example I have my SuperDuper EHD set to backup only changed or updated files at 2AM every day.
The advantage of a clone is that if the computers internal HD crashes you can boot from a clone and continue working, TM will not do that but it's great for keeping an archive of all files. So if you want a version of a file from many months ago, TM will help you locate and restore it.

Can I use a Usb external hard drive on my macbook pro?

I have a new macbook pro and have tried to connect my usb external hard drive , it shows up on the home screen and i can view and read only i cannot save anything into the external hard drive can anyone help.

Yes. You have to prep it for your Mac. Currently it's setup for Windows.
Drive Partition and Format
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Apply button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Security button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.

Can you use the same external hard drive for Time Machine backups and as an additional storage drive?

I have an external HD that I've been using exclusively for Time Machine backups. I need to clear space on my hard drive, so I was thinking to move music & photos to an external drive. Wondering if I can use the same one I have (which I'll aslo keep using for Time Machine) or if I need to get another drive.

Hi Jossydtaylor,
Time Machine can use either an entire external disk or a partition of that disk:
OS X Mountain Lion: Disks you can use with Time Machine
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11171
You can use Time Machine with a Time Capsule, and with USB, FireWire, and Thunderbolt disks. The backup disk can be directly connected to your computer or be on a network. If the backup disk has been divided into partitions, you can use one of the partitions.
If the disk is partitioned using the Master Boot Record (MBR) partition type, some partitions may not be available for use with Time Machine. The GUID Partition Table (GPT) partition type is recommended.
For more info on partitioning, see this article:
Disk Utility 12.x: Partition a disk
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH5845
Cheers!
- Ari

Can I use an old Windows hard drive with Boot Camp?

I have an old windows desktop that has FL Studio files I want to transfer to Logic Pro. I'm working on a Mac Pro with 4 hard drive bays and only 3 hard drives.
I understand that Boot Camp lets you boot Wndows, but can I install Boot Camp without erasing the hard drive? I just want to be able to plug my PC drive in, hold the option key, and choose to boot the Windows drive from time to time.
Alternately, could I make a disc image of my PC hard drive, reformat it to FAT and reattach the disc image?
Thanks,
Jon

You can, but it's illegal. A OEM version is designed to be installed on a new computer, not on a computer with an existing operating system, so you can install Windows from there but you should know that's illegal, so Apple doesn't support it. To do this legally, you have to get a full Windows 7 disc version and use it to install Windows.
If you need the steps to install Windows on the MacBook, read > http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/boot_camp_install-setup_10.8.pdf

Can i use my old mac hard drive to boot with my new mac?

just bought a new mac identical to my old one (13 inch) the last one got water damage and the logic board and screen were the only part that needed to be repaird. can i use my old hard drive in an external and boot it from my new mac ? so i can access stuff like book marks and other setting?
the old mac was the 2011 model on snow leapord and i just got my new one yesterday currently running the latest OS will there be any issues if i do, if i can?

you should be able to get and external enclosure, install the hadr drive from the old machine inside, then connect to your new computer.
You need something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-3-5-Inch-Aluminum-Enclosure-EC-3US35/dp/B003CJQ69A /ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1394736238&sr=8-7&keywords=hard+drive+enclosure
You can use migration assistant to move your data and programs:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5872

Can i use Iomega 1TB MiniMax Hard Drive FireWire 800/USB for ipad 2 to access videos without using mac or pc ?

can i use Iomega 1TB MiniMax Hard Drive FireWire 800/USB for ipad 2 to access videos without using mac or pc ?

No, you can't connect an external drive to the iPad - the iPad doesn't have a USB or firewire port and the camera connection kit only supports the transfer of photos and videos into the Photos app. There are some wifi-enabled drives that can be used to stream content to the iPad e.g. Seagate GoFlex Satellite

I am considering purchasing a new Mac desktop. I have, at present, a Liteon 851S ext CD/DVD write and a Maxtor 3200 USB ext hard drive. Will these work with a Mac desktop? My local Apple store could not answer my question.Happy New year to all.

I am considering purchasing a new Mac desktop. I have, at present, a Liteon 851S ext CD/DVD write and a Maxtor 3200 USB ext hard drive. Will these work with a Mac desktop? My local Apple store could not answer my question.Happy New year to all.

Yes the Mac can read that drive but you would need to Copy the data off of it to the Mac as apposed to Move, which implies Deleting them from the drive as they were transferred from the external to the Mac. Since the Mac can Not Write to NTFS drives it can't Delete anything as that is really a Write operation, IE Making changes to the NTFS formatted drive.
Once you have that Data on Both your New Mac and you Older Windows PC you can format that drive to work on both system.
If you want to and plan on doing that post back and I'll explane how, it is simple but should be done on a Windows PC.
If you only plan on using it on the Mac from now on that is fairly simple also and is done on the Mac, Once you have the files from it stored on the Mac.
Yes you could burn those photos to DVD but that is just a waste of DVDs, you don't need to.

Can I use my old internal hard drive and copy everything into the new one?

My internal hard drive is running out of space, and I want to buy a new one. But to do that, I'll have to buy a external hard drive to back up everything and then copy it back onto the new internal hard drive , right? I don't have that much budget. So can I use the old internal hard drive that I took out of my Macbook and copy everthing back into the new internal hard drive after the repalecment? so I don't need to buy a external hard drive to back up everything
Tks!

You will have to buy a new HDD and an enclosure to make the transfer. You can use Disk Utility to make the transfer.
INSTALLING A NEW HDD IN A MBP
1. Make certain that you have backed up all of your important data.
2. You will need a HDD enclosure. One with a USB connection will do. A 9 pin Firewire is better.
3. Install your new drive in the enclosure and connect it to your MBP.
4. Open DISK UTILITY>ERASE. From the left hand column drag the new drive into the 'Name' field. Make sure that the format is 'Mac OS Extended (Journaled)'. Click on the 'Erase' button.
5. Click on the 'Restore' button (on top). Drag the old drive into the 'Source' field and the new drive into the 'Destination' field. Click on the 'Restore' button on the bottom right hand corner.
Depending upon the amount of data you are transferring, this may take a couple hours or more. A Firewire will speed up the transfer. This will result in both drives having identical information on them. INSTALLING
6. After the data transfer has completed, you may swap the drives. Start the MBP and you have finished the installation. The initial boot may take a bit longer than you are accustomed to, but that is normal.
7. When you are satisfied that the new hard drive if functioning properly, you can erase the old drive and use it for any needs that you may have.

I keep my library on an external hard drive 4TB. It's full. Can I use more than one hard drive to keep my library on?

I keep my iTunes library on an external hard drive 4TB. It's full. Can I use more than one hard drive to keep my library on? Like two 4TB next to each other.

Create a concatenated disk set
Increase storage space with a concatenated RAID set (also called “Just a Bunch of Disks” or JBOD). If you need one large disk, but you have only several smaller disks, you can create a concatenated disk set to use several small disks as one large disk.
Open Disk Utility, in the Utilities folder in Launchpad.
Select one of the disks that you want in the set, and then click RAID.
Click Add (+), and type a name for the RAID set.
Choose a format from the Format pop-up menu. Usually you’ll choose the Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format.
Choose Concatenated Disk Set from the RAID Type pop-up menu.
Drag the disks you want to add to the set to the list on the right.
Click Create.
Exerpt from:
Disk Utility 12.x: Create a RAID set - Apple - Support
Note that the biggest CON to concatenated RAID configurations is vulnerability to volume failure. If either disk fails, the whole volume fails. If you choose this option, I would highly recommend backing up your music to a cloud service. There are very cheap per GB/storage, and some of the most reputable actually offer unlimited storage:
Five Best Cloud Storage Providers - Lifehacker

Time Machine: Can I use a smaller external hard drive with larger internal?

Can I use a 250G external hard drive with and 500G unfilled internal drive with time machine? Or will time machine require I a 500G? I don't plan on filling the internal drive for a long time and don't want to buy a new external drive right now.

Yes, but you are very likely to get in trouble very quickly.
The problem is that TimeMachine saves multiple versions of any file modified, and if that file happens to be large, you can quickly fill up your TimeMachine drive such that it is throwing away older versions faster than you would desire.
Also if your boot drive's storage usage gets even close to the 250GB external drive's capacity, TimeMachine is likely to stop working.
If possible, I would suggest an external drive that is twice as large as your boot drive, or at least 1.5 times larger.
I guess you could repartition your boot drive so it is smaller than your external disk so you would be less likely to use more space than could fit on the external.
Personally, my opinion about backups is that much of my data is impossible to replace (family pictures, etc...), and spending money on backup hardware is a small price to pay for securing those memories. I also try to have it backup in more than one location in more than one way.

Can I Use an Old External Hard Drive to Back Up my MacBook Pro?

I am currently using a 2010 MacBook Pro with Snow Leopard (Mac OS X 10.6.8) and I am thinking of upgrading to Mountain Lion when it comes out. So that means I should really back up my Mac. I have never backed up my Mac before nor have I ever backed up any of the PC's I owned in the past. With this being my first Mac and my first time backing it up I want to make sure I do this right.
So my question is can I use my old exteral hard drive (Got it back in 2004 for University. Used with a PC) to back up my MacBook Pro with out running into any issues if I have to restore my Mac??

tokine wrote:
So my question is can I use my old exteral hard drive (Got it back in 2004 for University. Used with a PC) to back up my MacBook Pro with out running into any issues if I have to restore my Mac??
yes. connect it to the usb port, open disk utility, erase the disk and format to Mac OS Extended (Journaled). That is the most common format. Then backup as necessary.

I have a power mac g4 with mac os 10.4. 11 , I want to change the hard-drive ,what program can I used to transfer one hard-drive to another hard- drive on this mac pc.

I have a power mac g4 with mac os 10.4. 11 , I want to change the hard-drive
,what program can I used to transfer one hard-drive data to another hard- drive on this mac pc.

The Disk Utility, Carbon Copy Cloner, SuperDuper, or similar software. For best results, place the second drive inside the computer or in a FireWire enclosure and boot the computer from it before removing the internal drive.
(66989)

Can no longer access USB external hard drive

Hi - I am running OS X 10.8.4 on my iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009), and have been using a La Cie USB external hard drive for several years for my Time Machine backups without issues. All of a sudden yesterday, the external hard drive disappeared from Finder and my Desktop, and as a result, no more Time Machine backups I rebooted both the external hard drive and iMac several times and changed the USB cable but with no success. Disk Utility and Time Machine cannot see the external hard drive but it does appear under System Information => USB (see below). I connected it to my Windows 8 laptop. The Windows laptop can see the external hard drive under Disk Management as an uninitialized disk. But I will not allow me to initialize it and therefore cannot acces it.
Product ID:          0x0951
Vendor ID:          0x059f (LaCie)
Version:           0.00
Serial Number:          152D203380B6
Speed:          Up to 480 Mb/sec
Manufacturer:          LaCie
Location ID:          0x24300000 / 4
Current Available (mA):          500
Current Required (mA):          2
Any help to restore the external hard drive would be appreciated.
Ron

Thank you for your quick response. Disk Utility does not see the hard drive. Windows 8 does see it under Device Manager and says that it is working propoerly but it will not allow me to initialize it.   As indicated to Lin Davis, I'll buy a new external hard drive.

Can you use a USB ext hard drive to boot from clone image?

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