Best time machine back up drive for imac?

I'm sure this question has been asked and answered many times, but new gear hits the market all the time, so maybe it's a good repeat. What is the best or are some of the best, external hard drives to use in conjunction with an iMac? I have looked at the OWC Mercury and like the specs (and the 3 year warranty), but it's a tad pricey compared to other brands. Should I bite the bullet and buy it? Is 7200 vs. 5400 worth the extra using firewire 800?  I also want to add a gig of ram, which OWC has as well, in several price ranges. Any words of wisdom would be appreciated!

I also like OWC & buy all of my bare hard drives & enclosures from them. But right now I'm using a 3 TB Seagate USB 3 drive I got at Costco.
I would not buy a Western Digital drive in a WD enclosure. The drives are fine, but I've had terrible luck with the enclosures failing & have read of others with the same issues.

Similar Messages

  • Just got Prosoft drive genius 3 software, and it's telling me that the external hard drive that i am using for my time machine back up drive needs to be defragmented.  is it wise to do this or should i not??

    just got Prosoft drive genius 3 software, and it's telling me that the external hard drive that i am using for my time machine back up drive needs to be defragmented.  is it wise to do this or should i not??

    Let's hope a couple things: that you have bootable clones of your drives also; that the backup drive for TimeMachine has over 3x capacity of the data you plan and are storing. I would also switch TM backup drives so you have a 2nd.
    Fragmented free space affecting performance happens when the drive is too full which may mean there isn't enough free space for a full backup set.
    1.5TB for backing up 500GB, while WD Green 3TB is $140 and WD Black 1.5TB is, about the same price.
    I'd be worried about the integrity and directory, and whether you can afford to lose that drive. Defragging is also a very slow operation. the ideal: to just clone a drive, or start over with another drive and wait. cloning TM volumes has not been done or has it? SuperDuper hoped to but I don't think they or Bombich's CCC made it there.
    Trouble with highly fragged is when free space gets to 20% normally, 1/3 or so though for TM volumes, and finding where and a chunk of space for the file being written. Does TM use large spare image files of like 2GB?
    Best would be to ask in the TimeMachine section Snow Leopard
    https://discussions.apple.com/community/mac_os/mac_os_x_v10.6_snow_leopard?view= discussions#/?tagSet=1009
    where there are some good FAQ and tutorials, and people that know the ins-and-outs and shortcomings.

  • The disk drive in my iMac 8,1 has stopped working, so I now use an LG 8x Slim Portable that works.  However, every time I use the LG drive, I lose contact with my Time Machine back-up drive that has to be deleted and reinstalled.  Help!

    The disk drive in my iMac 8,1 has stopped working, so I now use an LG 8x Slim Portable that works.  However, every time I use the LG drive, I lose contact with my Time Machine back-up drive that has to be deleted and reinstalled.  Help!

    It's not Logic that can't find them, it's your Komplete apps, though if you did exaclty as you say I can see no reason why they can't.
    Do you know where the apps installed them in the first place? I chose a non-standard locarion for mine, but I'm sure it installs sounds to your documents folder/native instruments/name of app.
    Go into the prefs of each app and choose the library location button on the library tab and point it to the relevant folder in documents/native instruments and see if that works
    jake

  • Has anyone successfully used a "WD My Book for Mac" via NAS (plugged into USB port on router) as a Time Machine back-up drive?

    Has anyone successfully used a "WD My Book for Mac" via NAS (plugged into USB port on router) as a Time Machine back-up drive? Apple support tech tried to tell me it wasn't possible and that the only NAS Time Machine could back up to is the Time Capsule, but I'm not buying it. I know it's doable, but I'm having a hard time figuring out which External HDDs will work and which ones won't.  If not My Book for Mac, is there an External HDD that will work? (Running OS X 10.9.1 - Mavericks, btw...)

    Given the nature of backups, my recommendation has always been to use a strategy that is unequivocally supported by Apple. As you already determined Apple Support unequivocally informed you that your proposal will not work, unless your router is an Apple AirPort Extreme or Time Capsule.
    The exhaustive list of devices supported by Time Machine amounts to the following:
    AirPort Time Capsule's built-in hard disk (any model)
    External USB hard disk drive connected to a Time Capsule (any model)
    External USB hard disk drive connected to an AirPort Extreme (current model only)
    A hard disk drive directly connected to your Mac
    That is all.
    Use whatever backup device you want, but you should be aware that this site is full of reports of misery from hapless individuals who had been using NAS devices for Time Machine backups, only to find that they were incomplete, corrupted, or useless when they were required. Apple won't care if you lose your data while using a Time Machine configuration specifically excluded from their technical support documents.

  • HT201250 How do I partition my Time Machine back up drive (G-Drive) to back up both my IMac and my MacBook Air?

    How do I partition my Time Machine back up drive (G-Drive) to back up both my IMac and my MacBook Air?

    That's not needed, but if you want to do it, use the Disk Utility in the /Applications/Utilities/ folder to create a new partition.
    (70423)

  • How can I restore files from a time machine back-up of my iMac to an EXTERNAL hard drive connected to MacBook Pro. Using Migrat

    I would like to restore files from a time machine back-up of my iMac to an EXTERNAL hard drive connected to MacBook Pro. When I tried using Migration Assistant it only gives me my internal hard drive as an option to restore to. The internal hard drive on my macbook isnt large enough to store the files.

    Welcome to Apple Support Communities
    OS X can only restore data to the drive where Time Machine backed up files from.
    If you want to restore files from the Time Machine backup onto an external drive, your only option is to access to the Time Machine drive manually (open a Finder window and choose your Time Machine drive in the Finder sidebar), navigate through its folders and copy the files you want to the external drive

  • Defrag Time Machine Back Up Drive??

    getwellroad 
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 6, 2011 9:50 AM 
    i previously posted this question, but I mistakenly clicked my own comment as the correct answer. i think this makes the thread appear to be finished; so, because i'm still not completely sure what to do, i have attempted to copy and paste the discussion here:Sorry.
    Just got Prosoft drive genius 3 software, and it's telling me that the external hard drive that i am using for my time machine back up drive needs to be defragmented.  is it wise to do this or should i not??
    Grant Bennet-AlderWest of Boston, USALevel 7 (27,805 points)
    If your backups take a few seconds longer, so what. I say leave it alone.Beige G3, G4/867, G4/dual 1.25 MDD, MacPro'09 w cheap SSD, Mac OS 8.6 or Earlier, and 9.2, 10.5 and Server - LW IIg, LW 4/600, ATalk ImageWriter L
    The hatterLevel 8 (42,475 points)
    Let's hope a couple things: that you have bootable clones of your drives also; that the backup drive for TimeMachine has over 3x capacity of the data you plan and are storing. I would also switch TM backup drives so you have a 2nd. Fragmented free space affecting performance happens when the drive is too full which may mean there isn't enough free space for a full backup set. 1.5TB for backing up 500GB, while WD Green 3TB is $140 and WD Black 1.5TB is, about the same price. I'd be worried about the integrity and directory, and whether you can afford to lose that drive. Defragging is also a very slow operation. the ideal: to just clone a drive, or start over with another drive and wait. cloning TM volumes has not been done or has it? SuperDuper hoped to but I don't think they or Bombich's CCC made it there. Trouble with highly fragged is when free space gets to 20% normally, 1/3 or so though for TM volumes, and finding where and a chunk of space for the file being written. Does TM use large spare image files of like 2GB? Best would be to ask in the TimeMachine section Snow Leopardhttps://discussions.apple.com/community/mac_os/mac_os_x_v10.6_snow_leopard?view= discussions#/?tagSet=1009where there are some good FAQ and tutorials, and people that know the ins-and-outs and shortcomings.
    getwellroad
    my boot drive is my internal hardrive which is a 250 GB drive.  The drive i am using for TM is 500GB, but you are saying that is really too small.  TM, as i understand it, creates a copy of everything, and then subsequent backups record any changes that were made since the last backup.    and what do you mean "bootable clones"  and do you mean for my internal hard drive AND each of the 3 external hard drives that i have?  i'm using one of the three for backup using TM, and i am storing movie files on the other 2.  i work at a church, and we use many short films that we purchase online.  i then import that file into iMovie to give my volunteers a consistent second and a half of black before the clip and 4 seconds of black at the end of the clip. This provides smoother transitions, i've found, than trying to use most of the clips in their original form.  i then have been filing these away in folders on the other 2 hard drives.   Regarding the TM drive. Drive Genius is telling me that "the used space on the volume 02 [that's the name of the drive] is 25% fragmented (59.14% of total space).
    btw, Time Machine keeps:hourly backups for the past 24 hoursdaily backups for the past monthweekly backups for all previous monthsand the oldest backups are deleted when your disk becomes full.
    Mac Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.8), LaCie d2 Quadra 500GB external driv 

    1st)  A fragmented drive is not evil.  It will not hurt anything.  At worse it might slow down reading a file.  However, as has been pointed out by others in this thread, who cares as this is a backup device, not a device you are going to be reading a lot.
    2nd)  The time you spend defragmenting the drive will far exceed the time you will save when writing new data to the drive.
    3rd)  Defragmentation will just increase your energy consumption, as all the reading/writing needed to move the files around in order to defragment it, will cause the drive to consume more energy than if it was just sitting idle waiting for the next hourly Time Machine backup.
    4th)  Defragmentation (if done frequently) may shorten the life of your drive.  Not mentioned in "3rd" above is that the extra energy used translates into heat, plus you are moving the read/write heads back and forth all of which affect the drives mechanical and electrical components.
    NOTE:  There are situations where having a defragmented drive is useful, but mostly it has to do with needing to stream media at a high rate of speed, and fragmented files can affect that.  However, a backup drive being used for incremental Time Machine backups is not in that category, and most home Mac usage does not need a defragmented file system either.

  • I tried to manually clear my Time Machine back up drive (a La Cie). But now the Trash is filled with files (over 130,000) and it doesn't seem to want to trash them - how do I get rid of them now in a quicker way?

    I tried to manually clear my Time Machine back up drive (a La Cie) of some of the older backups. But now the Trash is filled with files (over 130,000) and it doesn't seem to want to trash them - it's taking forever!! how do I get rid of them now in a quicker way?

    dear Sue
    i've tried the alt solution to empty trash but it does not work
    I still got the -8003 error
    for emptying time machine backups that i foolishly put in the trash
    i've also tried this solution using terminal and it did not work either
    http://www.imore.com/how-force-empty-trash-your-mac-using-terminal
    any help you might offer would be greatly appreciated
    i am using a 24 inch iMac
    OSX 10.6.8
    Message was edited by: summer_laughter

  • Running more than one time machine back up drive

    I have a back up drive assigned as my offices time machine back up drive.
    I need to set up an off site back up drive too. I know that time machine will only allow a connection to one back up destination at once.
    What problems could i encounter if i set up a off site drive as another time machine drive, disconnect on site drive and connect the off site drive to back up.
    Thanks

    That will work just fine, other than the hassle of having to tell Time Machine every time you swap.
    Give the drives at least slightly different names (that's for you; Time Machine knows they're different).
    Each set of backups will be complete and independent. When you do a backup to either one, it will contain all the changes you've made since the last backup +*to that drive.+*
    The first backup after a swap may take a bit longer than usual, as there may be more changes to "catch up" with, but otherwise there should be no troubles.

  • Time Machine Back-Up Drive Question

    Is it possible to use the Time Machine External Drive for storing information aside from back-up files, while using it for Time Machine at the same time? For example, I collect live shows of a certain band. Would it be possible to store the music files on the Time Machine Back-Up drive and still be able to use the drive for Time Machine? Thanks in advance.

    Ben Goodkind wrote:
    Is it possible to use the Time Machine External Drive for storing information aside from back-up files, while using it for Time Machine at the same time? For example, I collect live shows of a certain band. Would it be possible to store the music files on the Time Machine Back-Up drive and still be able to use the drive for Time Machine? Thanks in advance.
    No problem but I suggest this:
    Create a folder for you personal backups and put everything in them.
    TM will create a unique folder for itself and it will be happy with that.
    I have, on my G5, a TM drive that also has several old backup folders, (Not TM) which live perfectly with TM.
    Just don't put anything into the TM folder.!

  • How to stop my Time Machine external hard drive preventing iMac from sleeping?

    I have a late 2012 iMac, and have discovered that sometimes (I haven't noticed a pattern of when it doesn/doesn't happen) the computer will immediately wake up after I set it to Sleep (Apple Menu>Sleep). Through elimination I have found that it is the the USB 3.0 external hard drive I use as a Time Machine back-up that is the culprit; unplugging it then allows the computer to sleep. If I unplug it, then plug it back in later on, this normally solves the problem for a while, but not forever. This same Hard Drive didn't cause the wake problem on my previous '08 iMac.
    A big issue is that when the machine immediately wakes from sleep, the display stays off (until I move the mouse) - this is good from a power saving point of view, but means I don't know if/when the machine is immediately waking from sleep (I have to listen to the fan when setting it to Sleep mode to hear if it has actually woken back up).
    I've searched the forums, but can't find another poster with the same problem as myself. Can anyone advise a course for me to pursue to prevent this from happening?
    Thanks. Jamie

    Hi Frank. Nope, I'm still having the same symptoms; the plugged in external drive (TIme Machine) will wake the machine up a couple of seconds after it winding down when put to into sleep mode. Ejecting the drive and then sleeping the machine works. After plugging it in again to do a Time machine backup, it will allow the computer to sleep soundly for the first few sessions (eg a few days of sleeping, waking, sleeping, waking, etc), but then it will then suddenly start preventing it from sleeping again after a while.
    It seems I'm fortunate in my case that the display stays dark (or off?) when the machine has been woken from sleep, but this was actually preventing me from knowing the machine wasn't in fact asleep for quite some time; I only eventually cottoned on because there wasn't any delay when 'waking' my machine (which there normally is). I would then have to carefully listen to the spinning fans to know if in fact it had gone to sleep or not.
    So, to summarise, unfortunately no, I haven't solved this yet. If anyone else has a solution, please let us know?
    Also, I've noticed occasionally after waking that there is a relatively quiet 'crackle' sound (kind of electrical sounding) from the bottom-right area of the machine. This goes on every so often for about 30mins. I see this is also an issue with other people's late 2012 iMacs, but I've not seen if anyone has a solution to it?

  • How do I retrieve my iphoto library from the Time Machine back-up drive, when the original iphoto library was on a separate external hard drive that has crashed?

    I recently backed up my iMAC and Simpletech external hard-drive to a 1 TB WD Passport  external hard drive, using Time Machine's back-up utility.  Today, I tried to access my iphoto library from the back-up drive, but received a message saying "the iPhoto library is a Time Machine back up, and so cannot be used as the main library.  Relaunch iPHoto with options key held down to choose another library."  Since my Simpletech died on me, what other iPhoto library is it expecting me to access?  I know approximately 169 GB were backed up, and my iPhoto library is roughly 54 GB. 
    Angie in Charlotte

    Thanks.  I will try going through TM.  Since my Simpletech is on the way out, I'll be plugging in a new external hard drive (other than the back-up drive) and trying to restore the library to the new drive.  Any advice or warning if this is NOT the right thing to do?
    Meanwhile, that is a great tip to do an alternate back-up using a different means.  It's been tough to figure out how to "preserve access" to digital images and files for posterity, knowing the hardware will always fail/obsolesce sooner or later, and that "clouds" are only as good as their consistent and reliable accessibility.  Upping the odds with redundancy will help dull the edge of my "access anxiety", though logically, it can never relieve it.  Will look into
    Carbon Copy Cloner.

  • How do i restore all my data from a time machine back up from an iMac to a Macbook Pro?

    How do i restore all my data from a time machine back up on an external hard dirve???
    From an iMac to a Macbook Pro.

    I tried this but my external drive is not appearing for some reason. Although it is accessible through finder.
    Is ther perhaps another way of doing this??
    Your help is massively appreciated!!

  • Time Machine back-up drive

    Hi there! I have to change my Time Machine back-up unit with another one.
    Can anyone help? I have a partition on the first external hard drive, and I cannot change it.
    Is there a way to transfer the content of my "old" hard drive used for Time Machine on a new back-up unit?

    Check out Pondini's FAQ;
    http://pondini.org/TM/18.html

  • Mountain lion will not install because time machine uses hard drive for back up.  What should I do?

    I have downloaded Mountain Lion but it will not allow me to install because the time machine uses the hard drive to back up.  How do I solve this problem?

    Unless you are trying to install on an external hard drive that actually has been used for Time Machine backups, this is usually caused by having a folder named "Backups.backupd" on your hard drive somewhere. It may be at the root level of the hard drive, but may also be elsewhere. Try searching for it, and then delete it. (You shouldn't need it.)

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