How do I back up my macbook pro information to an external hard drive. I was told you just plug it in to the computer and because it is set up to work automatically, it should just do it automatically. However, the clock is just circling top right?

How do I back up informtion on my Macbook pro to an external hard drive? I was told all you need to do is plug in the hard drive to the computer, and it will back up automatically, which it is set to do. But all that is happening is the clock a the upper right of the page is revolving and the clock by my vault on the left is revolving, but there is no information as to mega or giga being copied.

See Here for using Time Machine to Backup
TM 101
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1427

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Trying to copy ANY file from my MacBook Pro to an external hard drive spins for 45 minutes then fails. I hate this computer and WISH I never would have wasted my money. Any ideas? WD My Passport 2TB Drive, had to buy a program to make the POS write

Trying to copy ANY file from my MacBook Pro to an external hard drive spins for 45 minutes then fails. I hate this computer and WISH I never would have wasted my money. Any ideas? WD My Passport 2TB Drive, had to buy a program to make the POS read files. Copies that would take seconds from a Windows based machine never complete. I have to close the transfer or shut off the machine half the time. Worst computer I have EVER owned, crashes non-stop, constantly freezes, and seems like EVERY operation is more complicated with this thing. Literally, my 1997 Compaq was FAR MORE reliable and user friendly.

This is one of the messages I keep getting; The Finder can’t complete the operation because some data in -- File Whatever -- can’t be read or written.(Error code -36)
I have copied things to the hard drive in the past, but it has always been incredibly slow, and now just seems to freeze and fail

I have backed my Mac Book pro up to my external hard drive using time machine. My iPhoto now does not show any images, even when I upload from my iPhone

I have backed my Mac Book pro up to my external hard drive using time machine. My iPhoto now does not show any images, even when I upload from my iPhone

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How can I back up my I Tunes library to an external hard drive? Also how do I add my new content to the back up?

How can I back up my I Tunes library to an external hard drive? Also how do I add my new content to the back up?

See this User Tip.
tt2

Macbook pro no longer recognizes external hard drive

Hi everyone,
My Macbook Pro (2013) running OS X 10.8.5 will no longer recognize my external hard drive.
The hard drive, a Maxtor OneTouch 4, is granted quite old (c. 5 years) but has been working fine with my Macbook pro since I bought it 2 years ago. It is too full to do time machine backups but I just need to get some files off of it. It doesn't appear in Finder or in Disk Utility when connected and turned on.
Since it's only stopped working recently I suspect some software update may have rendered it obsolete. I have also noticed some glitchiness with my USB ports, but some things work fine.
If anyone has any suggestions of what to try, I would really appreciate it! I really need to access those files.
Thanks very much in advance!

Ari343 wrote:
No, the external hard drive does not show up on Disk Utility. I don't have another computer to try it on.
Perform a PRAM reset:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1379
Have you tried all the ports?
Have you tried with a different cable?
Have you tested all the ports with other devices to see that they are functioning?
Ciao.

How do I back up my entire iphoto library to an external hard drive that I have dedicated for photos only? Can I simply drag the iphoto library onto my seagate (hard drive) icon?

How do I back up my entire iphoto library on to an external hard drive that will be my second back up plan. I already have one back up that is also synched with time machine. But now I want to back up my iphoto library to a new hard drive to have a second copy. Can I simply drag the whole library onto the icon on my desk top? THX

WHile you can do it that way, the next time you back up you'll end up copying the entire library again, and,as you'l see, once a library gets bigger that can take a considerable amount of time.
Try using an app that will do incremental back ups. This is a very good way to work. The first time you run the back up the app will make a complete copy of the Library. Thereafter it will update the back up with the changes you have made. That makes subsequent back ups much faster. Many of these apps also have scheduling capabilities: So set it up and it will do the back up automatically.
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New To MacBook Pro. Question re: External Hard Drive

I just purchased a Macbook Pro today. I used to have a Dell Inspiron on which I used a Western Digital 500GB My Book external hard drive to store my pictures and iTunes files.
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Wrt exFAT. The newest Macs ship with an exFAT driver included. This driver will probably also be part of the upcoming OS X 10.6.5 update.
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I can't figure out how to trasfer pictures and files from my MacBook Pro to my USB hard drive. Help please?

We could use a little more information, are you trying to move from a folder to an external drive? Or are you moving from IPhoto.
Either way should be able to select the pictures you want and drag them to your external.
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Triple-click anywhere in the line below on this page to select it:
{ diskutil list; echo; diskutil cs list; } | open -ef
Copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C.
Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.
Paste into the Terminal window by pressing the key combination command-V. I've tested these instructions only with the Safari web browser. If you use another browser, you may have to press the return key after pasting.
Wait for a new line ending in a dollar sign (“$”) to appear.
A TextEdit window will open with the output of the command. If the command produced no output, the window will be empty. Post the contents of the TextEdit window (not the Terminal window), if any — the text, please, not a screenshot. The title of the window doesn't matter, and you don't need to post that.
If any personal information appears in the output, anonymize before posting, but don’t remove the context.

How do i back up my macbook pro to an external hard drive?

how do i back up my macbook pro to an external hard drive?

schmunzelmonster, greetings; Your suggestion is a good one. CCC does create a boot drive which as you point out can be most useful at times. Time Machine does not have that capability but it retains a history of activities and transactions that CCC does not. CCC only retains information as of the last update.
Neither individually is the 'perfect' backup solution individually, but if both are utilized it becomes that. There is no harm in backup redundancy.
My only complaint about CCC is that is is very slow in performing updates compared with Time Machine. Just a nit on my part.
Ciao.

HT1229 How do I back up my entire iPhoto library to an additional hard drive. I have a WD 1TB hard drive which I would like to use as a backup drive to my MacBook Pro. What steps do I take to do this. Thank you

How do I back up myentire iPhoto library to an an additional hard drive, I have a WD My Book 1TB hooked up to my MacBook Pro via USB 2 port.

Make sure the drive is formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
Most Simple Back Up:
Drag the iPhoto Library from your Pictures Folder to another Disk. This will make a copy on that disk.
Slightly more complex: Use an app that will do incremental back ups. This is a very good way to work. The first time you run the back up the app will make a complete copy of the Library. Thereafter it will update the back up with the changes you have made. That makes subsequent back ups much faster. Many of these apps also have scheduling capabilities: So set it up and it will do the back up automatically.
Example of such apps: Chronosync - but there are many others. Search on MacUpdate or the App Store

How do I back up my MacBook Pro to icloud, and do I need a separate device

How do I back up my MacBook Pro to icloud, and do I need a separate device

Your Mac can't be backed up to iCloud.
If you have an external disk drive, you can set up Time Machine to backup your MBP to it.

I got a macbook pro 2008 and can not back up using time machine. it eject my external hard drive everytime. does someone has a fix???

i got a macbook pro 2008 and can not back up using time machine. it eject my external hard drive everytime. does anybody has a fix???

Does your external hard drive have it's own power supply? It should.
Is your external hard drive formatted with the NTFS file system? It won't work.
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I have a 500 gig time capsule. I have used with a Macbook. The Macbook has a 500 gig hard drive which is about 3/4 full. Now we just purchased a new MacBook pro with a 1 TB hard drive. Do I need to buy a larger Time Capsule?

I have a 500 gig time capsule. I have used with a Macbook. The Macbook has a 500 gig hard drive which is about 3/4 full. Now we just purchased a new MacBook pro with a 1 TB hard drive. Do I need to buy a larger Time Capsule?

Do I need to buy a larger Time Capsule?
Probably yes. You might be able to get the full backup of the new MacBook Pro on the Time Capsule, but it will not be long before the Time Capsule is out of space.
Better to add a new Time Capsule and backup the new MacBook Pro to the new Time Capsule, and keep the old MacBook backing up to the old Time Capsule.
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You did not remove your Windows partition correctly. You need to remove it using Boot Camp Assistant. If you cannot then you will need to repartition the entire drive back to a single partition/volume.

How do I back up my macbook pro information to an external hard drive. I was told you just plug it in to the computer and because it is set up to work automatically, it should just do it automatically. However, the clock is just circling top right?

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