Airport Extreme AC (5th Gen) and USB Hard Drives

I just got a new iMac.
Previously I had three external hard drives chained together directly via firewire 800 on a Mac Mnin. In the old configuration, Time Machine backed up to one of HDs pretty quickly. Since the new iMac doesn't have firewire - I took those same hard drives - using their USB 2 connections and put them on a hub connected to Airport Extreme. I see them under shared drives and access is great - but the back up speed is not very fast. Is there a better way to connect these drives for the purposes of Time Machine backups? They are formated Mac OS exteneded, etc
Thanks.

The confusing part to me was that the new Extreme has a USB2.0 spec?
It is easier and cheaper.
USB3 spec causes 2.4ghz wireless issues.
See http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2423604,00.asp
In a wireless router.. that aint good.. and some manufacturers have had issues.. Asus for example. Their USB3 are useless in several of the routers because they did not shield well enough.
Internally the AC version AE is same chipset as the Asus.. they could have used USB3 which is built in.. but I think went conservative and decided not to as they were faced with early release of hardware they didn't understand. And so they are still having issues with the basic hardware.. imagine throwing in USB3 wireless issues.
All of the above is total and utter speculation on my part. Apple are the most secretive company in the world.. they don't even own up to mistakes.. they never tell you what they are doing or why. No apple rep will say I am right or wrong.. total PR blackout.
But IMHO that is why you should have bought a Time Capsule which has a SATA interface inside.. and is very much faster than USB2. The cost increase is only what the hard disk costs.
No doubt gen7 or gen8 will suddenly come out with USB3. It always pays to keep some features up your sleeve even if the chipset manufacturer has them built in.

Similar Messages

Airport Extreme (7.5.2 firmware) + USB Hard Drive

My new Airport Extreme N (running 7.5.1/7.5.2 firmware... both) randomly disconnects my usb external hard drive attached to it during file transfers or just looking through the file structure.
Any idea how to fix this?

What kind of hard drive is it? It is also imperative to know how this HD is formatted.... FAT32, NTFS, Mac OS X extended... etc....
One thing to consider also is wireless interference. If you have something like a cordless phone nearby and it happens to be running on the same channel as your Extreme, this may cause the devices to lose connection. You may want to consider distancing any devices that emit wireless signals from the Extreme or change the channel within Airport Utility. Power cycling the Extreme will force it to find a better channel if the channel is set to 'Automatic'. Or you can manually change it from the Airport Utility's 'Wireless' tab after selecting the 'Manual Setup' option.

Can airport extreme backup to non-Apple external hard drive?

Can airport extreme backup to non-Apple external hard drive?

Apple does not make external HDDs so you will most likely be using a non-Apple drive for backups.
However, I want to understand your question. Are you asking can you connect an external HDD to an AirPort Extreme for Time Machine backups? If so, Apple does NOT support this feature and I would recommend against it.

Read/Write speeds with Airport Extreme and USB Hard Drives

Anybody know how fast the read/write speeds are with a USB hard drive and the Airport Extreme Base Station?
My Setup
I have a 17 MBP (2010) and a 13 MBP (2011) - no SSD's
MBP generally connect via 802.11n 5Ghz with a very strong signal
Gigabit connection on a Windows Desktop
I have a variety of external drives (7200, 5400, Drobo) at varying capacity (320GB, 2TB, 5.6TB)
Goals
Backup: Time machine
Backup: File copies of pictures and home videos (greater than 1GB files)
Backup: Crashplan
File sharing: Aperture libraries--not sure if that is possible or practical. That is something that I need to research further...but on the off chance people have experience with it.
Thanks!

ishjen wrote:
Anybody know how fast the read/write speeds are with a USB hard drive and the Airport Extreme Base Station?
Welcome to Apple's discussion groups.
Apple's AirPort base stations aren't known for fast file serving, but for most purposed they're fast enough.
I can't comment specifically on your Aperture plan, but with some software it's important to avoid simultaneous access by more than one user.

Backup a dual boot iMac with OSX + Vista to Time capsule and USB hard drive

I have just bought a Time Capsule which is now working as my WiFi Network base station and backs up an iMac and a Macbook. The iMac has both OSX and Vista (using Boot Camp) and I was using a USB Hard Drive that has 2 partitions (HFS+ for the Mac; NTFS for Vista) to back up the iMac. Rather than leave this attached to the iMac just to back up the Vista partition I would like to move it to the Time Capsule's USB port and use it as NAS. The idea being that it becomes a NAS with one partition used to back up the Windows data when I run the iMac with Vista and the other partition to archive the Time Machine backups from both the iMac and Macbook. I tried to connect it as it was but got an error and reading the forum it seems that it won't work unless both partitions are HFS+ or FAT. If I reformat the NTFS partition to HFS+ will I be able to use the built in backup function of Vista to back up the Vista partition to the USB hard drive? I read somewhere else that Time Capsule takes care of the formatting for an external NAS drive and Windows will be able to read and write to it even though it's not NTFS. Any ideas comments appreciated.

This is crude but if you need a work around, just plug the USB drive directly into the iMac.. copy the files to it.. then plug it into the TC.
You also do not need to use the TC as an intermediary between your iMac and MBP.. just turn on sharing in the computer.. so you can directly copy files from one to the other.. Macs have public access directory preconfigured for each user account.
As far as mounting the TC..
In finder use Go, Connect to server.. and type.
AFP://TCname or TCipaddress
Where TCname is the actual name of the TC.. I strongly recommend you follow SMB network rules.. ie if your TC has a name like
Fred Blog's Time Capsule 2445566.
It is too long.. it has spaces and it has non-alphanumeric characters.
Shorten it to FredTC
No spaces no characters that are NOT alphanumeric.
TCIPaddress is simply the standard IP.
You can also use CIFS://TCname which according to the article forces the connection back to SMB1 rather than SMB2 which as usual is broken.
But I would definitely use AFP if possible. I cannot understand the decision to move to SMB as standard.

Printer and USB hard drive are not detected by TC

Two dys ago I got me TC, I added it to my existing WLAN and startet the initial time machine backup.
Worked fine. I was also able to connect a Windows-Notebook to the TC, using it as an network share.
But I can not see a USB printer (HP PSC 2110) or a USB hard drive, I plugged into the TC.
Even if the printer might not be supported the hard drive should be visible in the air port utility. But there is no furter hard drive listed...
(The hard drive is my former time machine hard drive, OS Extended.)
Message was edited by: oktolyt

Use an USB hub with its own power supply. The limitations on the base station's USB port, aside from the fact that it only has one, will still apply.
(101195)

My airport extreme (new-5th gen) connects to my iMac - and a PC laptop but will not connect to the internet, my ISP says that I have entered the correct modem ID and that I contact Apple supt as they do not support airport extreme...??

Any suggestions getting my modem (Speedstream 5200) talking to my new airport extreme? Airport Extreme says I do not have the correct user password for the modem but my IP provider says that I do and that they (Bell Sympatico) do not - in any case - support Airport Extreme and that I should talk to Apple Support...who do not come to the phone. So my computers see my new network and my Airport Extreme sees my computers but it cannot access the modem and therefore the internet. Any ideas?

The user manual for the Speedstream 5200 indicatest that it is a router....see link below.
http://www2.windstream.net/downloads/links/SpeedStream211.pdf
If the Speedstream is acting as a router, then the AirPort Extreme must be configured in Bridge Mode to avoid having two routers in series on your network....which would certainly cause IP address conflicts and connection issues.
To configure the AirPort Extreme in Bridge Mode.....
Open AirPort Utility - Click Manual Setup
Click the Internet icon
Connection Sharing = Off (Bridge Mode)
Update

Airport Extreme, Win XP and USB Hard Drive - Please Help!

I have a macbook pro and it connected everything in a minute or two, my Win XP laptop can use the network...but I cannot see the attached Hard drive...on the Mac, no problem, but the PC doesn't see it...i must be missing something. Any advice?

So i download the Airport software (4.2?) and it tells me to use the latest software, so I download the update and it tells me that it can't update this version...i gotta tell ya, I am ready to take this thing back if i can't use it, the mac works so simple, but winblows makes everything so **** difficult...what am i missing? Where is the correct software to download?

Extend my wired Airport Extreme (5th Gen) with a 2nd Wired Airport Extreme (also 5th Gen)

I have a 5th Generation Airport Extreme in my house hard wired directly from my fiber optic provider
Then I have that 5th Generation Airport Extreme hard wired directly to my Desktop Computer in a separate building in my back yard (using an Ethernet Cable run through an underground conduit).
Using that setup, I DO get Wi-Fi for my iPhone 4S & iPad 3 in that separate building in my back yard, but it is sometimes so weak, it really is not useable.
To improve the Wi-Fi signal for my iPhone 4S & iPad 3, I plan on adding a 2nd 5th Generation Airport Extreme in the separate building in my back yard.
I will disconnect the Ethernet Cable that is currently plugged directly into my Desktop computer & plug it into the 2nd Airport Extreme.
Then, I will use a short Ethernet Cable to directly connect my Desktop Computer to the 2nd Airport Extreme.
The desktop computer is an older Dell Dimension 9200 running Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 3
With this set-up, will the strong Wi-Fi signal I now get in my house from the 1st Airport Extreme NOT be reduced?
And since the separate building is only 300 square feet, I assume the Wi-Fi signal there will also be as strong with the 2nd Airport Extreme being so close to everything?
Could someone point me to SPECIFIC instructions on how to CORRECTLY set this up so that the 2nd Airport Extreme will EXTEND my home network?

So, I should unplug the 1st Airport Extreme from the outlet before doing anything?
Yes.
Since the 2 Airport Extremes will be in 2 separate locations, which do I plug into the outlet first?
I would suggest plugging the one in the house first, then the second one in the backyard building. Be sure to connect the Ethernet coming from the first into the second before power-on either base station.
Could I connect the Ethernet both to the 2nd Airport Extreme & then to the desktop, then plug in the current Airport Extreme in the house, then run out & plug in the 2nd Airport Extreme in the separate building?
The key is to leave everything powered-off; connect the Ethernet cables, and then, start by powering up the house unit, then the backyard unit, and then, the PC. Make sense?
P.S. I have the Version 5.5.3 of Airport Utility for Windows (using Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 3)
There does NOT seem to be a later version than that.
That worked great for the installation of the 1st Airport Extreme several months ago, so I shouldn't have any problems, should I?
There is a later version (5.6.1) for Windows, but required Windows 7 to run on. Since you can already administer the 1st 5th gen Extreme with the version you have now, you shouldn't have any issues continuing to use it for the second unit.

Airport extreme will not boot with USB hard disk plugged in.

Hi there,
I'm using the Airport Extreme Base Station, and I find that if I have a USB hard disk plugged into it, it will not boot up, it only hang-ups with an amber light, and stays there indefinitely. It's not a terrible issue because it can be overcome by unplugging the disk then rebooting, but it's irritating, especially when I'm not home and there is a power temporary outage and my wife can no longer access the internet or I can no longer access my disks over the internet.
Is there a solution to this problem?
Thanks,
Marc

I'm going to have to replace the unit, as I'm unable to turn off DHCP services, which is wreaking havoc on my server based environment.
Considering THIS issue *AND* the major DHCP show stopper, frankly, I'm debating etiher the fire pit or tossing the damned thing into the intersection and watching it be reduced to the trash that it is.
Either way, there'll be 7 feet of pack ice in **** before I buy another Apple networking product.
I'll decide later, with a jaundiced eye, regarding our XServe unit. Might reformat it to Linux...

Airport extreme base station cant access external hard drive

Just bought the new Airport extreme base station and I cant access the external hard drive. Any suggestions would be great. Everything worked great on the 5th generation airport extreme. But wanted to have the new speeds. But seems not to be worth it if I cant access my external hard drive. Please Help
Thank you in advance for any help.

I saw it in the finder menu but when I clicked on it nothing would happen. Then I went to my airport utility to see if that the extreme saw it. It was in the disk section. But I can't access it. Today it completely disappeared from the utility but my laptop is still online. This thing is crazy.

Using Airport Time Capsule with an external usb hard drive - how to connect

I have 2TB Airport Time capsule which is connected to my iMac by an ethernet cable and which I use for T.Machine backups - No problems here.
I have an old MacBook Pro running 10.6.8 and which is also connected to my T/C via wi-fi - again no problems.
But I understand I can use an external hard drive via usb cable connected via a powered hub, to the T/Capsule and which I wish to do certain backups from my MBP (I have no wish to update the MBP as it runs certain apps no longer available on the iMac (10.9.2)
Now the problem I have is trying to set it up, the MBP has Airport Utility 5.6.1 and I can’t continue as it says I need a newer version. As I see it, the newer version doesn’t work on the MBP only the iMac.
A catch 22 situation. If I continue and and go to “manual setup” then try update, all I get is “correct the problem before updating” (Allow setup over the internet using Bonjour).
Anyone have any ideas or images that I can view to try and get things going?
I should add that I wish to use my external hard drive not as a time machine backup but only for certain items using say, Super Duper, but am unable to get the disk to mount on the MBP
Alan

I still can't use it the way I was hoping because it then becomes a T/M back-up disk and not a normal usb/firewire disc.
You are first mounting the drive on the desktop, correct?
Not sure what you mean here.
You can drag/drop files normally or copy/paste files to the drive icon on the desktop, just as you would a normal drive that is displayed on the desktop.
Or, double click the drive icon on the desktop and drag/drop files into the open window there.
Tell us the steps that you are using to mount the drive on the desktop. What happens after each step?

Using AirPort Extreme Base Station to Connect a Hard Drive

I have a wireless network set up using a wireless device provided by my network provider. What I would like to do is to use my Airport Extreme Base station only to connect a hard drive to it. However when doing so, Airport Utility does not recognize or see the Extreme. The Extreme can only been seen if connected to the router provided by my network provider. How can I set up a wireless hard drive or printer with the Extreme without connecting to the network?

Samir, why you wanna use service provider wireless instrument when you have world class wireless device
you don't need 2 wireless ???
I am not expert but I used common sense, I had linksys N series router but recently I bought TC 1TB
so what I dumped my N router in store and went ahead with TC installation, Trust me it took me 10 minutes to configure my 4 HDD 5 computer printer etc with TC
I am sure you have a ethernet modem too separate from your wireless instrument
try to do a clean installation ( thats where all these people who has problem, trying to connect to their existing network
try setting up your AEBS as fresh wireless device connect to your modem and run Airport Utility
I am sure you will be a happy apple customer
good luck

Use WRT350N and USB hard drive for backup

I intend to use a Western Digtal MY BOOK Essential Edition (500 GB USB external hard drive) with my WRT350N router for backing up my data every night. Has anyone used this combination? Can you tell me if there are any obstacles I should be aware of? The backup software I will use is Genie Backup Manager. I think I am going to need help in configuring the router to use the external hard drive.
Thanks,
poorolepaul

There were rumors floating around that the USB port in the 350N can not handle anything over 250Gb. Since the drive I used with the 350N was not that large I have no personal knowledge of whether that is true or not.
In any event, using the current firmware for the 350n (1.3.02) you can be assured that the USB will totally lock up about every day or two and the router and hard drive will have to be reset. Using the beta firmware that you can either request from Linksys or find available from someone on the Internet, that problem APPEARS to be fixed. The only problem is that a gigabit network connection will now lock up every day or two. That was my personal experience and what I have read by others.
My recommendation would be not to buy the 350N until they release firmware that fixes these problems otherwise you'll be as frustrated with the product as I am and others are.

Apple TV and USB Hard Drive

Looking at Apple TV (ATV), and noting that it has a USB 2.0 port: Can you increase storage of ATV by adding a USB external hard drive and if so is the external hard drive the equivalent of a larger internal hard drive? The price difference in the 40GB and 160GB ATV is greater than the price of a quality 500GB external USB 2.0 drive.
I also wish ATV would allow you to use ATV as a PC internet browser and your TV as a monitor to display more than just youtube video. ATV could make inroads into cable TV suitable sub for browser video--at least for those of us who do not want 200 channels of junk from cable/dish.--Ah, there are things yet to be developed.

forrests wrote:
Does Applecore LLC's product, aTV Flash v.3.2 allow you to both add external USB functionality such as an external hard drive and allow web surfing via internet browser within Apple TV--that is install a browser on ATV and browse on AppleTV using your high def TV as the monitor?
If so it is just what I am looking for.
as that product is essentially "hacking" the appletv, you would probably be best discussing that elsewhere (like whoever it is that makes this hack). as this is an official apple support forum it is against the Ts&Cs to discuss hacking or modifying.

Airport Extreme AC (5th Gen) and USB Hard Drives

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