How to use my external hard drive?

this is most likely a pretty simple question. I just want to be sure I still have my pictures.. i've loaded almost all my library onto my external hard drive, yet i'm still seeing the pictures in my library.. is it safe for me to just erase them?? i want to be absolutely sure of this.. any suggestions would be nice!!
meg

Hi Meg, It really doesn't matter the size or if its USB or Firwire. If you can plug it into your iBook and the Drive icon
appears on the desktop your half way there. To check and see if you transfered the data correctly you could double click on the External Drive icon and search the folders for the files you copied. Just remember to check for the "Alias" arrow in the bottom...Right? corner...well the little "Alias" arrow.
If they are there you did not transfer them correctly.
Now, the other post was correct...If you have a Firewire External Drive and its large enough Clone your whole system.
I use SuperDuper
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html
It's free.
If your external is not partitioned and there are other things that you do not want erased or you have a USB drive
you can make a copy of your system using Disk Utility and have it saved to you external...Again everything will be copied. Then delete Away....

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How to use an external hard drive for your music storage

How do I use my external hard drive as my storage for music? I have already saved my music on my external and I have my iTunes program on the computer just wondering what is the next step is? Also I want to make sure I do not use my computer's hard drive for any sizable storage.

sorry to butt in, but this appears to be the best thread to pose my question/problem.
i have successfully migrated my iTunes Library to my external hard drive. the last part of the instructions tell me to delete the iTunes music folder from my hard drive to free up space.
however, i've not done this because i would like to keep a reduced number of music files on my MacBook so that i can listen to music when i'm away from my external hard drive.
i've managed to delete the files i don't want stored on my hard drive, and when i open iTunes without the external hard drive, it defaults to the original location. i'm sure this is not good practise, because whilst i can now play music, the information in iTunes is not right.
what is the best way of storing and playing some of my iTunes library on my hard drive, whilst using the external drive as a 'master'? can it be done?
MacBook Mac OS X (10.4.7) 2GB RAM, 120GB HD, 2GHZ

How to use an external hard drive on a MacBook Air?

Hi there.
Recently I bought a portable USB external hard drive for my MacBook Air due to my full startup disk. I also bought multiple disks for the hard drive. I inserted the disk, hooked up the USB, and did everything properly. When I first hooked it up, I lost all internet files that I had saved. All images, videos and downloads (such as Minecraft and other gaming downloads) from the internet were gone and unable to find.
Now, I don't want to make the wrong move and lose all of my internet files again, so I am asking how to transfer files SAFELY to the USB without any files being deleted. I tranfered files before, but they were just short cuts to the original file, so I am also asking how to fix that as well. My Dad was a computer technician, although he didn't work for Apple, so he doesn't know how to use the USB.
I've tried everything to find my internet files, but nothing. If there is a way to get them back, I'd be glad if you shared that with me. My dock files aren't working due to this insanely full startup disk, so I'd appreciate it if you could tell me ASAP how to use the USB, how to SAFELY transfer files without them turning into shortcuts, and how to get my internet files back.
Thank you very much.
P.s My OS X version is 10.8.3 (Not with Mountain Lion)

You cannot format a drive so that files will be automatically put on that drive when you run out of room on another drive. Transferring the files must be done specifically by you. You will need to learn how to manage free space on the SSD because 64 GBs is a bit small for much more than OS X.
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 Partition 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.

How to use an external hard drive and copy files to the disk for mac and windows??

please tell me how to copy files to external hard disk and use it for both mac and windows. there is the fat32 formatting bt i dont wanna use formatting because i already have a lot of content on the exteral hard disk. thank you.

It is simplest to have the HDD formatted to noe common to both Mac an PC. ExFAT is one. But to do that will erase all data on the HDD.
If the HDD id formatted NTFS, Mac can read but not write to it. The solution then is to use a third party application such as Paragon or Tuxera which will overcome that obstacle. These applications do have mixed reviews.
Ciao.

How to use protable external Hard Drive to install software?

Hello,
I have 250 GB External Portable Hard Drive. When i install any software,in installation window it only show macintosh HD..Please tell me how to install software in External HDD.

Some developers write software installers that will only install the software on the running boot volume. You could try installing it on the running boot volume and then moving the installed app to the external drive with Finder. It may or it may not work.

How to use a external hard drive?

I'll be using programs such as Maya, Mudbox, After Effects, and Final Cut this year in school and I was told it would be smart to get a external HD. I have one but I dont know how to make it default for the programs to save to it or even if that is the best option. Please help

Hi,
I can foresee several reasons you'll want an external drive---scratch space, storage, backup and transfer. The "scratch" space is your working space, where your applications will store files while they're being worked on (such as rendering, or applying effects). It's often better to use external storage for this because: it reduces wear and tear on your internal drive; and it'll probably be faster than your internal drive (assuming it's a 7200RPM device---maybe even a RAID). Your "storage" is obviously where you'll keep your files once you're satisfied with them, and consider them complete. "Backup" storage is probably going to be necessary unless all your output will comfortably fit on DVDs (or multiple DVDs). "Transfer", because: you may want to use school computers to perform certain operations on your files that you can't using your MacBook Pro; or you may want to share certain data with other people, and if you're using a Mac and they're using Windows, you'll have to put the files on a drive or partition that they can read, such as FAT32 or ExFAT.
Most of your software will have an option to specify a location for the "scratch" disk, so just find this in the application's preferences and set it to your external disk (or a partition on the external disk).
I hope this helps.
S.

How do i use an external hard drive for all my itunes music?

how do i use an external hard drive for all my itunes music?

Hi valleydave,
Here are two good links for you to check out:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1751
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1449
The first one goes over, in-depth, what you're looking for in regards to "off site" iTunes.

Can some please provide instructions on how to import an iPhoto library from an old Mac to a new Mac without getting a bunch of duplicates? I tried transferring my pictures using an external hard drive and then copying it to the Pictures folder on my Mac

Can someone please provide instructions on how to import an iPhoto library from an old Mac to a new Mac without getting a bunch of duplicates? I tried transferring my pictures using an external hard drive and then copying it to the Pictures folder on my new Mac. I ended up getting a bunch of duplicates. My old Mac has an older version of iPhoto while the new Mac has iPhoto '11. Is that the cause of the problem? Please advise. Thanks.

Simply copy the iPhoto Library from the Pictures Folder on the old Machine to the Pictures Folder on the new Machine.
Then launch iPhoto. That's it.
This moves photos, events, albums, books, keywords, slideshows and everything else.
Regards
TD

How do I transfer my data to my new macbook pro using an external hard drive?

I've already set up my new MacBook Pro is my issue. It asked me if I'd like to "Migrate" my stuff or use an external hard drive etc but at the time I didn't transfer my data from my old MacBook yet. I was going to manually do it later as I had to wait for my External hard drive to back my old Mac up. Now it's that time and I have no idea how to do it. I believe I've researched best of my ability.
I feel like I'm asking a pretty dumb question. If I were to just drag all my programs out like my Adobe Suite on to my new macbook pro would that work? I feel like that's just too easy and incorrect. Please and thank you.

The Adobe suite can be downloaded free, you dont have to copy it at all, under standard CS6 Adobe rules, if you own the suite, you get 2 computers "activated at any one time" Make sure, if youre not using the older computer, you deactivate the software under the HELP menu in Adobe.
format the new drive in disk utility ......APPLICATIONS.....UTILITIES.....DISK UTILITIES.......select the external drive and format (if its new and empty!!!) under the ERASE button with Mac OSX extended journaled
copy all your important stuff from older computer , pics, files, documents, personal anything.
most of you apps, i ASSUME you bought in the (other than Adobe software, or Office suite, etc etc,..... obviously) in the MAC APP store, so you can reload them on the new computer without copying them , makes things very easy......just open APP STORE, and download what you already bought.
really the only important things , is copy all important work files, documents, pictures, personal ABC...XYZ...... obviously.
the migration is about emails, contacts, etc etc etc, also data, just because you passed it by at the time doesnt mean you still cant do it, go to the SEARCH at menu at top and type in MIGRATION ASSISTANT to do it again , since you passed it by at first .
the only thing you NEED / SHOULD copy is all your personal stuff........Applications need to be reinstall from either ONLINE download,.......or from the MAC APP STORE,........ you cant just copy the apps over (in most cases) and toss them onto the new computer
Nahh, there are no dumb questions, just dumb mistakes because you DIDNT ask any questions, and we all make those here and there.

How can I use my external hard drive for my iphoto instead of my mac book pro memory?

i don't know if this question has been asked before: how can I use my external hard drive for my iphoto instead of my mac book pro memory? just like itunes all my song are save on my external hard drive. make sense?

Moving the iPhoto library is safe and simple - quit iPhoto and drag the iPhoto library intact as a single entity to the external drive - depress the option key and launch iPhoto using the "select library" option to point to the new location on the external drive - fully test it and then trash the old library on the internal drive (test one more time prior to emptying the trash)
And be sure that the External drive is formatted Mac OS extended (journaled) (iPhoto does not work with drives with other formats) and that it is always available prior to launching iPhoto
And backup soon and often - having your iPhoto library on an external drive is not a backup and if you are using Time Machine you need to check and be sure that TM is backing up your external drive
LN

How do you remove back up data from the memory storage? my storage data states that i have over 80gb of data used for back ups and i dont know why as i use a external hard drive as a time machine .now my 250gb flash storage is nearly full

how do you remove back up data from the memory storage? my storage data states that i have over 80gb of data used for back ups and i dont know why as i use a external hard drive as a time machine .now my 250gb flash storage is nearly full.. HELP!

When Time Machine backs up a portable Mac, some of the free space will be used to make local snapshots, which are backup copies of recently deleted files. The space occupied by local snapshots is reported as available by the Finder, and should be considered as such. In the Storage display of System Information, local snapshots are shown as Backups. The snapshots are automatically deleted when they expire or when free space falls below a certain level. You ordinarily don't need to, and should not, delete local snapshots yourself. If you followed bad advice to disable local snapshots by running a shell command, you may have ended up with a lot of data in the Other category. Ask for instructions in that case.
See this support article for some simple ways to free up storage space.

I just got a new mac and use my external hard drive to save all my images to but whenever I go to save my photo to my hard drive it says I do not have write access....Whats wrong how do i fix this or do i need a new hard drive??

I just got a new mac and use my external hard drive to save all my images to but whenever I go to save my photo to my hard drive it says I do not have write access....Whats wrong how do i fix this or do i need a new hard drive??@

This is a Mac question not a Photoshop question, and I am a Windows users, but I can Google and this might be what you need to do:
http://www.makeuseof.com/answers/change-read-permision-external-hard-drive-mac/

I found information on how to transfer my library to a new computer. I am going to use an external hard drive for this and transfer my itunes folder to the new computer. I will then download and install a new version of itunes on my new computer. My q

I found information on how to transfer my itunes library to a new computer. I am going to use an external hard drive for this to transfer my itunes folder to the new computer.
I will then download and install a new version of itunes on my new computer.
My question is this. When I do this, will itunes have all my album artwork for all my library? My library has a lot of my own music and I have spent quite a bit of time copying album artwork that itunes did not add. I am really hoping I don't have to do this again!
Thanks for your help!

If you follow the directions in this Link...
Copy iTunes to an External Drive
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1751
Everything should be carried across...

Want to use an external hard drive for my photos, iMovie, music and documents for use on my MacBookPro and iMac, can I do it and how?

I want to use an external hard drive to store my photos, imovie, music and documents, how can i do....Thanks

There are very good external drives available...I bought one when I got this MBP in September from OWC, http://www.macsales.com they are Mac specialists. Bought their 2 TB Mercury Elite Pro since it was eSATA, Firewire 800/400, and USB interface...use the Firewire 800 now. Partitioned into a 1.5 TB partition for Time Machine backups and 500 GB for extra storage. Both show up on the desktop, you just set the destination for you application to be the external drive volume you want to use.
If you want to discuss further, just ask what you want to know.

HT1386 how do i authorise my apple id to use my external hard drive as well as my laptop to use the music library?

how do i authorise my apple id to use my external hard drive as well as my laptop to transfer my music from the library to my ipod?

Assuming that your library is presently on your laptop, you have to import the music from the external drive to the laptop. The location of of your iTunes Media folder is identified in iTunes>Preferences>Advanced.

How to use my external hard drive?

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