Time Machine Backups after using a clone?

I have had to revert to a clone of my MacBook Pro as a piece of software broke something.
I have all my data and everything works fine except TM thinks the last backup it did was two weeks ago, when the clone was made. So now Time Machine wants to do a full backup of my MBP, when the last backup was a day ago. Do I have to live with it doing a full backup rather than an incremental? Are there any workarounds for this?
Any help will be much appreciated.

Philip Tyler wrote:
TM thinks the last backup it did was two weeks ago, when the clone was made. So now Time Machine wants to do a full backup of my MBP, when the last backup was a day ago.
The problem is, you're now running from a different disk. So Time Machine is trying to back up the new disk in it's entirety.
As coolio88 says, you may be able to tell Time Machine to "associate" the new drive with the old backups.
That's a permanent change, but can probably be done again when you get the internal HD repaired/replaced. Depending on how you put your data back on it (e.g., if you do a full system restore from your backups per Time Machine - Frequently Asked Question #14,) Time Machine may do the association to the repaired/replaced disk automatically.

Similar Messages

HT201250 How can I revert to my internal drive for time machine backups after using an external drive?

Hi. I've been using an external drive for time machine back ups and decided to revert to my internal drive, but it isn't available in the time machine options. The only available option is to set up a time capsule, which I don't own.
Is it because not enough space is available on my internal drive (approx 50GB)?
Thanks!

50 Gb free on your internal drive is relly very low and of course not enought for a any kind of backup.
How big is your internal HD ? If you have left only 50 GB free it is probably 90% full. Let's imagine you have a 500 Gb. This means 450 Gb data and 50 Gb free. How can you backup 450 into 50 ?
Second point. The backup on your internal HD is a nonsense evenif it is big enough. If it stops working you will have no bakup.
Do you have an iMac or a portable ?
The portable automatic uses the internal HD if the external is not connected, but this is intended for a short time.
This could give you some more links to read about https://discussions.apple.com/message/20726927#20726927

How to access Time Machine backups after using migration assistant?

Can someone please help me with a TM issue.
My HD died so I fitted a new one. I figured that I would do a clean install rather than use TM to bring across a whole bunch of 5 year old junk and Aps that all broke after the Leopard -Snow Leopard -Lion -Mountain Lion upgrades.
Installed 10.8.2 Mountain Lion, no issues. Then used TM to drag and drop all the Applications I actually wanted, still good. Then used Migration assistant to bring in the remainder of the settings, documents, mail etc. For some reason you cannot migrate to the current default user so you have to create a new user profile which I did. New profile was great so I deleted the other profile created at install that was pretty much blank.
At this stage everything looks awesome but I noticed a video clip was missing in a Final Cut project so I went back into TM to retrieve it. Now, all the documents in my old user profile in TM have a little no entry symbol on them and I do not have permission to look at those files.
It looks as though I am now being treated as someone else on a different machine and no doubt TM will continue to work from this point on but how do I tell it that there is just one user on this machine and I want access to all the historic backups too?
Any advice will be gratefully received.

Many thanks for your response Mende,
I am trying to specifically NOT do a full TM restore because I have some issues with some programs that I cannot delete. I wanted a fresh start but from what I understand the TM will bring back everything as it was, including all the corrupt system files. Fixing the TM permissions would be the preferable option.
(I attempted to make a windows partition on my system once, thinking it would make some sort of clever fake-windows desktop supported by Mac coding. It actually wanted me to do a full windows 7 install on the partition with windows install disks so I cancelled the process. Because it was a partial install I have not been able to uninstall the modifications and my system was crashing regularly due to some sort of stray code).
Just out of interest, if your OSX install is perfectly good, will TM use that or will it still take your OSX from the TM backup?
Apart from that one stray file, my system is now super clean and faster than ever... but maybe there are still some things missing that I haven't noticed yet.

Time Machine Backups after recent upgrade to Mountain Lion

Basically to keep a long story short - i need to take my computer in for repair tomorrow. I recently did an upgrade to Mountain Lion a day or two ago. I haven't done a Time Machine backup until today (a couple days after i upgraded to Mountain Lion) because i wanted to make sure that my previous TM backup (Snow Leopard 10.6.8) was the most up to date and best update that i could revert back to if i had any issues with Mountain Lion, or any application compatibility, etc etc.
I don't have any broken applications and it seems like Mountain Lion is running better than Snow Leopard. However, as i said - i'm taking my computer in for repair tomorrow, i would like to know that i have the most up to date Time Machine backup with the new Mountain Lion so that when i restore it back from my Time Machine backup after i get it back from repair, i won't have any issues with the migration, which could potentially lead me into more technicalities.
I have a 500GB Harddrive, with about 70GB left of free space....I did the initial backup prior to upgrading to Mountain Lion, and it upgraded 400+GB of info, now, since Mountain Lion - the first backup with Mountain Lion initially said 46GB - then it went down to 14GB by the time it was all said and done....so what exactly did it back up?
Did it back up all the necessary files to keep Mountain Lion running smoothly when i restore it back to the way it was after i get it back? Did it not back everything up that it needs to? Is it safe to erase my internal drive and do a clean installation so i can take it in, and not worry about not being able to migrate things back over or applications not working correctly?
When i get it back, i presume it will come with Mountain Lion back on it and i can just boot up into the Recovery Disk and restore it from a Time Machine backup that way, correct?
Thanks for the help.
- Jason

I received the same error and experienced the same issue that you have described but after performing a Time Capsule soft reset and then toggling the TM Off and then back On I was able issue a backup now and see my previous backups.
Here is the link to where I posted my fix; https://discussions.apple.com/message/19069543#19069543. Someone else had success using a different method. The only comment / complaint that I have since the ML OS X upgrade is that TM now takes at least 20 to 30 seconds before I can click/select a backup.
I hope this helps.

Ow can I use my time capsule as a time machine backup without using it wirelessly and not as a wireless router?

How can I use my time capsule as a time machine backup without using it wirelessly and not as a wireless router?

bzb888 wrote:
I have a wireless transmitter already, would like to use the capsule just as a back up drive, I tried hooking up from the ethernet port on the imac to the one of the ports on the capsule but then my Wifi would not work. do I hook the cable to the port with the circle or the arrows?
It is better to have the TC as part of the main network in bridge. You do not need to run wireless.
If you want to use the TC plugged in by ethernet and still use wireless for internet, that is possible but the setup is rather more complicated.. the computer must not get confused about which device to use as a gateway or dns server.
See info in this thread on setting this up.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4817218?tstart=30
I need to add.. a USB drive would be cheaper, faster and more reliable. It is really poor use of a TC.

Is it possible to downgrade to mountain lion with the help of a time machine backup after having updated to Mavericks?

Is it possible to downgrade to mountain lion with the help of a time machine backup after having updated to Mavericks?

Just to be clear, if by downgrade you mean uninstall, then the answer is technically, no.
You can't uninstall an OS. You can erase and re-install the old OS, but if you don't have a prior backup of your data, you'll lose it during the erase procedure.

How to continue use Time Machine backup after migration?

Hi,
I just purchased a new mac and migrated using my Time Machine backup from my NAS.
This went smooth but now I would like to keep this backup as base for my new mac. Unfortunately, this does not seem to work as my mac tries now to create a new image.
As I have pretty important documents on my previous backup, it would be nice if there would still be a way to continue using this one. I saw somewhere that the migration assistant should ask if we want to continue based on this backup after migration but I did not receive this question.
Is there still a way to solve this?
Thanks in advance for your input!
Kind regards,
Fred

Hi Leonie,
Thanks for your link! I am migrating from Leopard to Mavericks. If I understand correctly, this is the reason why I cannot inherit from previous backup.
The procudure to tweak seems pretty complicated though... not sure I will risk it.
Thanks anyway!
KR,
Fred

Resume using Time Machine backup after reinstalling OS X?

My iMac has been backing up wirelessly for some time to a Time Capsule in another room. I recently erased the iMac's drive to reinstall OS X and start fresh, but I'm wondering if there's a way to resume or reconnect to that existing Time Machine backup.
The best I've found is an Apple support doc about moving a Time Machine backup from one disk to another, but it doesn't seem to fit my situation. Any ideas?

Hello Linc,
What do you mean with unsupported? I have been backing up using this config for years. I had a few hard drive issues before and have always been able to import time machine backups from the linux server. Of course at this moment I'm having issues with running a full (first) backup from my work macbook.
Last update : after running the permission repair tool the backup is still running so I still think it has not been a server issue.

How to keep using existing Time Machine backup after replacing main hard drive

The hard drive in my iMac (Lion) is failing. I cloned it to a new drive and installed it in the iMac. Now the system wants to start fresh with a whole new Time Machine backup.
It seems obvious that there must be a way to keep using the existing Time Machine backup set, but I can't figure out how to do it. Help, please.

If you had done a full system restore from Time Machine, it would have been done automatically. But 3rd-party cloning apps don't leave a "trail" so Time Machine can figure out that the new drive has all the old stuff on it.
Effective with Lion, there is a way to "associate" the new drive with the backups of the old one, but it requires the use of Terminal. See #B6 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting. As noted though, this only works on directly-connected backup drives, not backups made over a network.

Using old Time Machine backup after clean install of system

I had a system crash on my G4 iBook running Leopard. Based on advice given at the Apple store genius bar, I reinstalled Leopard from an install DVD, reformatting the drive. During the system installation process I used my Time Machine backup to reinstall the former users (but nothing else). I then installed my needed applications. So far so good.
Now I'm in the situation where I have an external drive with the Time Machine backup of the pre-crash iBook, and I'm not sure how to proceed. Do I start over and do a new backup (effectively erasing all my pre-restore data)? Or can the old backup still be used, and added to? While losing the pre-restore time machine data would not be a major loss, it would be kind of nice to have.
Any suggestions? Thanks!
Dan

DanK wrote:
I had a system crash on my G4 iBook running Leopard. Based on advice given at the Apple store genius bar, I reinstalled Leopard from an install DVD, reformatting the drive. During the system installation process I used my Time Machine backup to reinstall the former users (but nothing else). I then installed my needed applications. So far so good.
You didn't want any of your settings, preferences, data, etc.? The +MIgration Assistant+ app will let you do that, for one or more users. And of course, you can use the +Star Wars+ display to restore selected items.
Now I'm in the situation where I have an external drive with the Time Machine backup of the pre-crash iBook, and I'm not sure how to proceed. Do I start over and do a new backup (effectively erasing all my pre-restore data)? Or can the old backup still be used, and added to? While losing the pre-restore time machine data would not be a major loss, it would be kind of nice to have.
Your next backup will be a full one; everything on your internal HD is considered as changed, so will be backed-up again.
If there's room for that, it will just be a large incremental backup, added to the existing ones.
If not, Time Machine will begin deleting your oldest backups, one by one, trying to make enough room for the new backup (the amount on the internal HD plus 20% for workspace). But it won't delete the latest backup -- if that's the only one left, and there still isn't enough room, the backup will fail.
If there is room, the first backup may appear to be very slow; why is not clear, but as long as it's making progress, let it run. Subsequent ones should be normal.

Using Leopard Time Machine Backup after snow leopard install

So I want to install Snow Leopard (and set up bootcamp), and I wanted to wipe my hard drive and do a clean install - because in the past i've had some trouble creating a bootcamp partition.
would i be able to wipe and install snow leopard, and then easily restore my data and settings from a time machine backup?

You may get a better response if you posted your question
in the Snow Leopard forum...
http://discussions.apple.com/category.jspa?categoryID=263
Dave

First time machine backup after partial restore

I have found it necessary to revert back to Snow Leopard after upgrading to Lion. I decided that it would be a good opportunity to clean up my machine so rather than do a full restore I installed SL from disc and then selectively restored data and third party applications. I am now about to do my first backup after the restore and want to be sure that I understand what will happen.
My research suggests that when I do the backup it will be a full one and that if I want to go back to earlier backups then I will have to right click on Time Machine in the Dock, select "Browse other Time Machine Discs" and then select the earlier backup from the list. What I don't understand is how the earlier backup will appear in the list as all the backups will be of the one machine. Can anyone confirm my understanding and give me an example of what might be shown in the list?
Many Thanks

In my opinion you should have at least 2 backups on 2 different drive because hard drives do fail. It also avoids the "risky position of not having a backup". If you are using 10.6, one backup can be Time Machine and the other a clone.
Clone - Carbon Copy Cloner (Often recommended as it has more features than some others)
Clone – Data Backup
Clone – Deja Vu
Clone - SuperDuper
Clone - Synk
Clone Software – 6 Applications Tested
Commonly Used Backup Methods

I want to use two separate Lion Time Machine backups and use them to create two separate profiles on one new computer

This is something I need to do temporarily but I must do it.
I have an iMac 27 (end of year 2009) I5. It has 1 TB internal and I want to replace it with a 2 TB internal.
I have time machine backups on an external hard drive that has been connected via Firewire.
I have another iMac (my son's)Imac 24 Intel Core 2 Duo that has it's own separate Time machine backup to it's own separate firewire connected external drive. Both machines are completely up to date with the latest version of Lion and all other necessary software updates.
When the internal hardrive is replaced - I want to use my latest time machine backup to create one profile on the imac and then use my son's latest time machine back up for a second profile. The end goal being to have everything from my current set up ie: apps, documents, itunes, etc existing in one profile and everything in my son's current set up existing in the other profile. We can both be administrators for the time being as well. I should note even though we both have some of the same apps, we both also have other apps that the other does not.
My profile will be using about 900 gigs of total space.
My son's profile will be using about 250 gigs of total space.
This is temporary until the new iMac is released. Then I will want to transfer my profile to that leaving my son's intact on the iMac 27 I5.
I realize that during the temporary period that Time Machine will be making backups of this entire two profile setup, which I am now understanding as I write this will create a new issue for me when I want to transfer only my profile to the new computer as well. But one bridge to cross at a time, I guess.
I need to do this because we must bring his current computer to my father - as his iMac G5 is inoperable. We have been doing this round robin hand me down in our family since IMac DV special edition :-)
Any insight on this would be greatly appreciated. And any other suggestions as well.
Thanks very much.

Hey Shootist000, Thanks for the replies. First off, I am actually okay if we both have each other applications so I am not concerned about that. It is still unclear from what you have said as to whether I can in fact, use these two separte time machine backup to create two separate profiles on the new hard drive. If that in fact can be done, then - will it create two copies of the apps we both have in the ROOT of the drive as well as placing all the ones we each have separately?
And reading your second reply, makes me think that maybe the partition is the way to go to begin with and then down the road - after I am in the new iMac, I could reformat the iMac 27 with only one partion and restore my son's latest back prior to the reformat thus giving him full access to the 2 TB of the drive.
If this is still making sense, does this mean :
replace the 1TB with a 2TB - but have it partitione - 1.5 TB & 500 GB.
Install(Restore using Time Machine) my latest back up prior to the 1.5 partition
Install (Restore using Time Machine) my son's latest back up prior to the 500 gig partition
Lastly, in order for us both to be using the partioned computer - I am assuming Switch user can no longer be used - so would we need to restart and select our respective partions in order to use the computer? And if so, how would we each be able to be using time machine to back up - two separte external hard drives - with each one dedicated to only one partition? Or ?
Thanks so much.
Ironically, I am only trying to do this so that I don't need to manually install all his apps, setting, games, blah blah for this temporary period. :-)

Imac won't restore from time machine backup after HD (hard drive) recall replacement

I have an imac bought in 2011, running Snow Leopard. It required an HD replacement due to the 1 TB Seagate recall - the replacement was done by a certified Apple repair station yesterday. Before the guy left he started a backup/restore from my latest time machine backup set. It failed. I attempted it two times and got error messages that it failed and the computer needed to be restarted to try it again. No luck. I called the guy back and he told me to call Apple Care. Not thrilled about that response since the guy had just left my house I did what he told me to do. (A quick sideline here: I recognize that a time machine backup should be no big deal and SHOULD work everytime, but it doesn't. It irks me that Apple is replacing my HD through no fault of mine and yet they don't allow the restore of data to be a "covered" expense in this process - this isn't just because this was an authorized repair guy - the Apple store would have done the same).
Back to the issue. When I called apple care they pretty much had me try the same thing again with an earlier back up set. To my knowledge, it didn't work. I say this because it looked like it was working and when I came back to the imac later, it had restarted and once again booted to the OSX install. (The boot disc is still in the imac). When I tried to boot from another location, one did not show up to boot from so I assumed that the data didn't transfer and it forced another restart. So, I tried something else. I tried to re-install the snow leopard OSX without using the restore function. That appeared to work and then when the machine restarted it asked if I had another mac and I chose the option to get the files/apps/etc. from my time machine backup. The computer chose what I can only assume is the most recent backup set (It chose what I know to be a subfolder that appears under the dated backup folder - Macintosh HD--which btw is confusing seeing as that's always the name of the HD on the imac). I again stepped away from the computer so it could do its thing for two hours. When I returned, I was back to the MAC OSX screen that asks you to choose a language. There were no more options to choose DISK UTILITY or RESTORE FROM BACKUP, etc. When I clicked on English it took me right back into the screen where you say whether you have another Apple that you want to transfer data from. I realized that the imac must have restarted and I assumed maybe it was because the boot disk was still in - except how do you get the disc to eject? I also initially assumed that the backup had somehow failed again and triggered a restart. I tried to choose the option to just set up the machine without transferring data and when I got to the choose a name for your HOME folder message I tried to enter the same name I had it as before and it wouldn't allow me to do so, saying that that name was already in use. I also tried a different name and that didn't work either - got the same message (I assume if it is not the same name that it won't sync up with the time machine data from the backup set). So, I almost tried the "select time machine backup" option again until I looked at my HD space. Clearly, there is space that has been used. HD space was 997 at the start and now it's 636. My initial thought is to somehow get back into the setup area where I can use disc utility and erase the whole thing and then start over but 1) I don't think it's going to work even if I could get back there 2) I have no idea how to get this thing to reboot into that mode 3) I can't get the boot CD out to even try to restart to see if this thing did what it was supposed to, SO NOW I AM TOTALLY STUCK! I have not called Apple Care back because quite frankly they were useless the first time. I have a call into the repair guy but who knows how much help he will be. In the mean time, I have a million things to do and a computer that isn't working - Whoever said Apples never have issues needs to be seriously censored!
A few other notes: I use Time Machine Editor to run my backups weekly. It was set up that way from the get go by an Apple rep who came to my house to get us up and running. Editor should not effect the way that time machine does its work, so I doubt there is relevance but thought it worth mentioning.
One other note is that the Apple Care agent tried to have me do something called a "Source" something or other from the disk utility screen but when she realized that my backup file (shown by date) contained many other sub files (11-27-12/MacintoshHD/MyNamesIMAC/etc.), it was not possible to run this operation - thus we aborted. Sorry I don't remember the name of the process and unfortunately now can't access that option to go find it.
If you can help me, I would be eternally grateful! I am open to having a phone conversation if you are willing to give me your email to mail you my number. I have so much work to do this week and this was the last thing I needed. Did I mention this was supposed to be EASY?
I used to be quite the geek with my PC - still on the learning curve with the mac but not enjoying it. I am fairly tech savvy and I can follow instructions for a step by step solution if you've got one.

I got a recall and had the drive replaced. I have retored 3 timesa dn even had apple do the job and it is still not right. I still can't get a simple ghost of the data from time machineback tot he new drive.
This is Apple's explaination as taken from their web page.:
Restoring your entire system from a backup
If you are restoring a backup made by a Mac to the same Mac
With your backup drive connected, start up your Mac from the Recovery system (Command-R at startup) or Mac OS X v10.6 installation disc. Then use the "Restore From Time Machine Backup" utility.
Note: If "You can't restore this backup because it was created by a different model of Mac" appears when restoring a backup that was made on a different Mac, follow the onscreen instructions.
I even posted this information on the community and apple removed it... because they don't like the:
Off-topic or non-technical posts
Non-constructive rants or complaints
But here is my experieince:
Take in 27iMac running 10.6.8, 5-7 days, what a joke, my boss will be happy to pay for a week without working. Finally get, "if you have TM back up, 3 days." Get machine back with 10.6.3, hit the R recovery, click TM back up, runs for 2 hours, reboots, looks great. Box up take back to office... update to install - OH NO, still running 10.6.3. Updates crash with no specific error on install, BUG PROBELM, nothing runs.
Call Apple... after hours, tells me to boot using 10.6.2 disk, wipe, reinstall OS, udate to 10.6.8, THEN do the restore. GREAT! Only thing 10.6.2 DVD won't read... now back on phone... take back to the store, Genius says, he'll ix it just like it was. PROMISES it'll be fixed.
Pick up next day, supposedly, booted to disk, wiped drive, reinstalled, updated to 10.6.8 and THEN did the RIGHT restore... Looks GREAT... apps run and 10.6.8 OS. Back to the office... NOT RUNNING right!!!... fonts messed up, drop box app needs new install, cocktail needs upgrade, Fetch not working, memorized paths gone... back ups locked out of permissions... ***!!
4 hours on phone with apple and still no rsolution - to missing "settings". Seems there are THREE WAYS TO RESTORE (according to apply tech)... Running MIGRATE ASSISTANT and being able to choose your files, including settings, "R" RESTORE after they load a new OS... or NOW WAITING for them to send me a bootable 10.6.3 disk and then boot from disk, w/o installing OS and doing a restore from TM. I think this is done via the disk Utilties application.
So now can't back up without doing a full 400 GB back up since permissons are screwed and possibly destroying any good back ups... can't work, like having hands tied behind back. WAITING for solution! Very upset!!!
I did my first restore just like they said and now an 10 days without proper machine. Just FYI. I thnk I am going to make the store do the tech work so I have somthing to fall back on.

Time machine backup after HD crashed

Hi, my HD on my MacBook crashed and i had it replaced which is fine, the OS (10.5) was reloaded as well. My question is what is the best way to restore from Time Machine to my previous system.
Before the HD crashed certain programs (word, safari and handbrake mainly) were causing major spikes in Processes and causing the fans to spin at over 6000rpm. I was concerened that this may be caused by corrupt system files, preference files or caches. I ask because if corrupt files were the problem, will restoring from Time Machine re install these corrupt files and again cause problems?
What would be the best way to restore from Time Machine in this case?
Any help would be great!

Ok, however i cant access the thread link that you posted? it says i dont have rights to access the thread? no idea why. Is there another link to the page at all?
Sorry, I forgot you might not be able to access it.
Just to clarify do you mean to archive and install from the Time Machine drive? That is where i am confused because the OS was erased an installed the apple store so its all new now?
Ahhh, you never explained that clearly earlier. All this time I thought you hadn't done anything yet to the system. So you already have the Mac OS re-installed, you just don't have your user data yet?
Then in that case forget the Archive & Install. You need to now use Migration Assistant to move your User data over form the Time Machine backup. Have you already launch the Mac OS and created an new account, or have you NOT started the Mac yet? It makes a difference what you do below.
*Using Time Machine Before Initial Launch of New Mac*
Before starting the new Mac for the first time, attach the hard disk that contains the Time Machine backups from the old Mac. (For Time Capsule/AirDisk users: If you will be attempting this wirelessly, ensure that you are in range of your Airport wireless device. Alternatively, for faster migration of large quantities of data, connect your Mac via ethernet to your wireless device.)
Procedure:
Startup the new Mac and begin the setup process. You will initially see the video introduction.
At “Welcome” select your country and then preferred keyboard.
At “Do You Already Own a Mac?” you are asked “Would you like to transfer your information?”
+from another Mac+
+from another volume on this Mac+
+from a Time Machine backup+
+Do not transfer my information now+
Select “from a Time Machine backup” and click “Continue”.
At “Select a Backup Volume” choose your Time Machine backup disk and click “Continue”. (If you are attempting the migration wirelessly, then click “Join...” and select your network first.)
At “Transfer Your Information” check all the categories you wish to migrate over. If you wish your Mac to be in the same state as your last backup, then check everything. If, however, you are only interested in transferring one user account, then click the little disclosure triangle next to "Users". A list of all the previous users will appear. Just uncheck the user accounts you do NOT wish to migrate over. In other words, have only the desired account checked.
Give the installer time to calculate sizes.
Once that is complete, the “Transfer” button will become active and you can click it.
After the migration, verify the registration information, click “Connect” and you are done.
Once the migration is complete use Disk Utility to repair any permissions issues.
*Using Time Machine After Initial Launch of New Mac*
If you happened to initially set up the new Mac using a different username than the username on the account you wish to migrate, then skip to “Attach the hard disk containing...”.
If, on the other hand, it is the same username as the account you wish to migrate over, then do the following:
Go to System Preferences --> Accounts.
You may need to unlock the lock in the lower left to make changes.
Below the pane on the left click "+" and create a brand new Administrator User account on the Mac with a completely unique name - not the name of your own User account.
Now logout of the account you are currently in and log back in using the new Admin account you just created.
Attach the hard disk containing the previous Macs' Time Machine backups to the new computer. (For Time Capsule/AirDisk users migration will be much faster if you connect your Mac directly to the router via ethernet. [See “Wirelessly or Directly Connected” above])
Now go to Applications --> Utilities --> and launch Migration Assistant.
At the welcome dialogue click "Continue." You may be required to enter your Admin password.
For Migration Method chose "From a Time Machine backup or other disk". (Do not choose…
"Full System Restore" unless it is exactly the same Mac you are restoring to.)
At “Select the System to Transfer” choose the hard disk containing the previous Time Machine backups and click “Continue”. Give Migration Assistant some time as it connects to the drive and scans the disk for eligible data to migrate.
At “Select User Accounts to Transfer” put a check beside each account you would like migrate over to the new Mac.
At “Select the Items to Transfer” you can choose to migrate “Applications” over. If an application already resides on your new Mac, only the newest version will be transferred. Additionally, other “Files and Folders” that resided at the top level of your old Mac can be transferred at this point as well. Files from the “Library” folder of your old Mac will always be transferred over unless you uncheck the other two options.
Click “Continue”.
At “Select Computer Settings to Transfer” choose which settings you would prefer transferring to the new Mac. If you want a completely fresh system to start with, then do not check any of these options. This can be helpful if your previous system was experiencing issues.
Click “Transfer”.
If you have already created a User Account on the new Mac and it happens to be named the same as the User Account that is being migrated then Migration Assistant will report,
+"There is an existing user account with the same name as an account you are transferring."+
At that point, you will be able to choose one of the following:
+• Rename the user account you are transferring+
+• Replace the existing user account with the one you're transferring+
+• Do not transfer this user account+
If you wish the new Mac environment to be exactly the same as your old Mac, then avoid selecting “Rename the user account...”. Rather, select “Replace the existing user account...”. It will not be deleted but saved in a new folder labeled “Deleted Users” found in the main Users folder. Click “Next”.
At this point the transfer will begin with a bar displaying the progress. Once completed click “Quit”.
*Full Backup After Migration to New Mac*
Bear in mind that in all cases Time Machine will not continue to backup the previous Macs’ backup sets but will perform a new full backup. This is normal. Time Machine will resume incremental backups after the full backup has completed. To view previous backups, Control-click or right-click the Time Machine icon in your Dock or Option-click the Time Machine menu extra and Choose "Browse Other Time Machine Disks," then select the previous Mac’s backup set. You will enter Time Machine and be able to browse your previous back ups and restore files. (http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1338)
Let us know if this was helpful.
Cheers!
Message was edited by: Glenn Carter

Time Machine Backups after using a clone?

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