Can't Connect to Laptop in Target Disk Mode

I start my MacBook Pro (OSX 10.8.5) in Target Disk Mode, and connect to my iMac (OSX 10.9.4) with an ethernet cable, I am NOT able to see the MacBook Pro on my iMac desktop. I need mount the hard disk onto the desktop in order to do a SuperDuper backup.
I know the ethernet cable is connecting, because I can start the MacBook Pro normally, turn on file sharing, and then I can see files and folders from the iMac.
Why can't I mount the MacBook Pro in Target Disk Mode?

OK thanks.
My iMac has Thunderbolt, my MacBook Pro (17" vintage 2010) has Firewire. I assume then that there is no way to directly connect one to the other using Target Disk Mode, correct? Any other solution?

Similar Messages

Installing OS X on older laptop via Target Disk Mode.

I've got a PowerBook G4 15" with a broken optical drive. It only has OS X 10.2 and OS 9, so we wish it could have tiger. I was wondering if I could use my macbook and a firewire cable with the powerbook to install from target disk mode.

Ah, so you mean use the MacBook as, essentially, an external DVD drive? Good idea; I was getting dismayed as the only PPC macs I have around are
-an iBook G3 with the entire top half ripped off (works though, great media center through VNC)
-the aforementioned Titatium powerbook 15"
-a smaller Aluminum powerbook 12" with a working DVD drive, but there's a DVD that refuses to eject inside it. It reads fine, but the case survived a mighty fall (before it was ours) so it can't eject.

My account, my files, but can't see them in Target Disk mode?

I have a desktop machine and a laptop (PowerMac G5, Intel MacBook) both running 10.4.11. When the laptop is connected to the desktop in Target Disk mode, I can't see my laptop user account's desktop files, or files in the Document and other folders. I make clone backups of the laptop onto an external drive using SuperDuper, and have this problem in that environment as well. I understand that this is about account permissions etc. but how can I get access to an (admin) account that I myself manage?
SuperDuper tells me that it is because the short names for the accounts are different. Should I take the drastic step of using the utility ChangeShortName to change one of the names? Or is there a more ordinary fix?
Thank you--
Hester

Thank you Niel, for your suggestion.
However, it does not seem to do the trick. I did allow "All others" full read/write access to the account's Desktop, Documents, and other folders, but when I restarted the laptop in Target Disk Mode, the red minus signs are still there and I still get the message telling me I do not have sufficient access privileges. I am able to see the files in the account on the laptop that has the same short name as the account I'm using on the desktop, which is why I asked about changing the short name.
I am the administrator of both computers but have different account names for the primary accounts I use on each. This is a problem to me in Tiger. I used to be able to transfer files easily from the laptop when it was in Target Disk Mode.

Can I boot an iMac from my PB in Target Disk Mode?

I'm housesitting at my parents this weekend, and would like to know if I can bootup my Powerbook G4 in Target Disk mode and then use it as the Startup volume on my parents Intel iMac. In System Preferences it doesn't give my Hard Drive as an option for a startup volume.
I think I just answered my question... OS X on my Powerbook is the PPC version... and probably can't use the PPC version as a Startup on the Intel....

Hi Joel Jenkins;
I would say NO.
First of all since they have an Intel and you have PowerPC The code will not be compatible. Secondly there the problem that the Intel machine has to have the disk formatted differently. So I don't think this idea will work for you.
Why pray tell were you thinking of doing this any way? Exactly what did you hope to accomplish?
Allan

How-To: Install Bundled Apps to another MacBook Pro using Target Disk Mode

Recently, I replaced the dead hard drive on my wife's computer. All the data was previously backed-up so all I needed to do was reinstall the original OS. Oops! Those disks disappeared over two years ago...perfect, right? No poblem, I already had the boxed install DVD for Snow Leopard and installed the core OS. But what about those bundled applications? Aha! That is the marketing coup Apple doesn't really talk much about. You see, you get the entire suite of Apple branded apps with the original install disks but not with a boxed OS install disk. It's just something that you have to find out for yourself...the hard way.
My requirement: restore all the iPhoto data to the reimaged machine running Snow Leopard. But that data has no application that can read it. Solution - Reinstall iPhoto from another source.
So I developed this workaround I hope the rest of you find amusingly simple, wildly helpful
Here's how I restored iPhoto on my wife's computer:
1) Get two Laptops side by side. In our case we both have macbook pro 2008 computers (Wife's and Mine)
2) Power both down and direct connect a firewire 400 cable (or 800 if you have it) between the two
3) Start the Wife's laptop in Target Disk Mode: Press "T" immediately after engagin the power button, hold it down until you see the "fanned" firewire symbol floating across a grey screen - it's quite large, about the size of your hand making a "stop" gesture
4) No start the Mine laptop by pressing the "option" key (two keys to the left of the space bar)
5) You will presented with a pair of hard disks to boot from, choose the Wife's laptop hard drive
5a) you'll notice now that the Mine laptop is booting the OS system files of the Wife's laptop (Her desktop, her preferences, etc...)
6) On the Mine laptop, insert the original Mac OS Install Disk (#1) that came with the Mine laptop (usually any OEM install disk will work, though)
7) Double-click on the DVD icon on the desktop when it mounts and look for a shortcut that reads, "Install Bundled Applications Only"...launch it
8) Now choose install bundled applications but make sure to press the "Customize" button in order to specifically choose which OEM software you want. In our case, just iPhoto
9) Follow the installer prompts all the through to completion and exit (you will be prompted to insert disk #2 along the way).
10) Remove the install disks, power down
11) Power down the Wife's laptop too
12) Disconnect the Firewire cables from both laptops
13) Power up the Wife's laptop normally
14) Launch the FInder and drill down to Applications. Look for iPhoto and launch it
15) iPhoto will either pickup the "iPhoto Library" that was previously restored after reimaging with Snow Leopard or you may be prompted to manually associate a library with iPhoto.
16) Once complete, you'll se all the restored pictures and data from when before the original hard drive crashed. Wife will be pleased and you'll look like a Genius
This is a really handy trick for troubleshooting a lot of install and restore related issues.
Hopefully you'll find other uses for it too.
Good Luck,
TheHighSierras

I think the problem is that you can't install an older OS X version onto a system running a newer OS X version. So I would try the following:
     1. have an external disk or create another partition on an internal drive to use for the Mountain Lion install (you might have to shrink an existing partition to make room for another)
     2. Create an external bootable USB thumb drive with the Mountain Lion OS on it (do a search on the web for this - for example see http://www.macworld.com/article/1167857/how_to_make_a_bootable_mountain_lion_ins tall_drive.html
     3. Reboot Yosemite and then boot from the USB thumb drive by holding down the option key
     4. run the mountain lion installer and install on the new disk/partition you created in step 1 - it will also create another recovery partition from this same part of the disk
Now your Mac system will have both a Mountain Lion install as well as the Yosemite install. You won't be able to use Migration Assistant to move things from Yosemite to Mountain Lion because it will see that you're "going backwards" and won't allow you to.
Have a good backup of everything before starting in case there are problems.
Good luck...

Is it possible to store a back up on external HD by transfering files using Target Disk Mode?

Dear Apple community,
There's absolutely no way that I'm going to be able to fix my MBP without a clean install. I simply cannot log in and get to my desktop screen after upgrading to Mavericks. So I will have to erase everything and perform a clean install. However, before proceeding with this plan, I'll have to back up my files from my MPB since I cannot use my mac normally, I'll have to back up my files using the Target Disk Mode. I've connected my MPB to another MPB in the past, so I know how the process work. But this time around I won't be able to use another MBP but a MB. I have a few doubts regarding the process especially in what concernd adding an external HD to this equation. So please bear with me and see if you can answer my doubts.
So this is the equipment I'll be working with: my MPB, my friends MacBook (2008) and my 1TB external hard drive.
My basic question is: once I connect my MPB in Target Disk Mode to the MB, I'm sure I'd be able to transfer my files to this MB. But let's say that I don't want to leave my files in this MB (after all it's not my computer) and want to send my files straight to an external HD connected to this MB. Is it possible? If positive, I know that the only FireWire port in the MB is a 400 port. That means my MBP will be connect to the MB using the only FireWire port available in the MB. So I believe that my external HD would have to be connected to the MB with the help of an USB cable. I assume that this will make the transferring process a little slower than if I could count solely on FireWire ports. Slowing the process down is not a problem but could this corrupt any of my files during the transferring process or even damage anything? I assume that would never happen after all it's just digital data, but better safe than sorry, right? What do you think?
Another thought that occurred to me is: let's say I connect my MBP to the MB using the FireWire 400. I'd still have an FireWire 800 port available on my MBP. If I connect my external HD to my MBP (yeah, the one that will be in Target Disk Mode) using that FW 800 port, would my MBP allow this external HD to mount as if it was just another folder/drive in my computer? If positive, theoretically I'd be able to transfer files from my MBP to my external HD manually (by dragging files from folder to folders), right?
I really don't want to transfer my files from the MBP to the MB and then from MB to external HD. That would just take time and I really don't know how much available space I'll find on my friend's MB.
Oh, one last question: when transferring files using Target Disk Mode, do all computers involved in this process gotta have the same OS X version installed or it doesn't matter if e.g one is running Snow Leopard and the other Mavericks?
Looking forward to hear back from you, experts.

Grant Bennet-Alder West of Boston, USA
A new 1TB External drive (suitable to replace your current Internal drive if you choose to) and enclosure can be had for under US$160
Ehh, you meant $60 , not $160
CassHeger
I do need to buy an external HD to be used solely for that purpose.
Yes, quality HD are cheap as dirt.
however a likewise Toshiba Internal HD 1TB is $70   (same as used by Apple)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TOSHIBA-MQ01ABD100-1TB-5400-RPM-8MB-Cache-2-5-SATA-3-0Gb -s-Internal-Notebook-/121107538930?pt=US_Internal_Hard_Disk_Drives&hash=item1c3 2 9263f2
best options for the price, and high quality HD:
Quality 1TB drives are $50 per TB on 3.5" or $65 per TB on 2.5"
Perfect 1TB for $68
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-Hard-Drive/dp/B005J7YA3W/ref=sr_1_ 1?ie=UTF8&qid=1379452568&sr=8-1&keywords=1tb+toshiba
Nice 500gig for $50. ultraslim and perfect
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-External-Drive/dp/B009F1CXI2/ref=s r_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1377642728&sr=1-1&keywords=toshiba+slim+500gb
2.5" USB portable High quality BEST FOR THE COST, Toshiba "tiny giant" 2TB drive (have several of them, LOT of storage in a SMALL package)    $117
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Connect-Portable-HDTC720XK3C1/dp/B00CGUMS48 /ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1379182740&sr=1-4&keywords=2tb+toshiba
*This one is the BEST portable external HD available that money can buy:
HGST Touro Mobile 1TB USB 3.0 External Hard Drive
$88
http://www.amazon.com/HGST-Mobile-Portable-External-0S03559/dp/B009GE6JI8/ref=sr _1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383238934&sr=8-1&keywords=HGST+Touro+Mobile+Pro+1TB+USB+3.0+72 00+RPM
Most storage experts agree on the Hitachi 2.5"

Spotlight will not fully index PowerBook used in target disk mode

I connected my PowerBook in target disk mode to my desktop to transfer files. Quickly added the PowerBook drive to the desktop's privacy list. After restarting the PowerBook, it started indexing, but said it was finished in less than 5 minutes (about 50 GB on drive). Spotlight will get a few hits, but misses many that I know are there for key words that are in both file names and contents.
I've tried erasing the index, I've tried using Spotless, I've tried running mdimport on the whole drive (it began using too much memory and bogged down). Nothing I can think of will get the drive to index properly. Any ideas?

< Any ideas? >
Yes, use Easyfind. Easy find doesn't have all those limitations that Spotlight has.

FYI: Corrupt hard drive will cause target disk mode to fail

I have just finished restoring my nephew's iBook which had had a major disk corruption issue - keys out of order, invalid key lengths, etc. in the catalog. While the iBook would boot, it had a lot of problems running due to the corrupt file system.
As part of the restoration process, I tried to connect the iBook in target disk mode, but had a lot of trouble. Apparently, bad file system data structures will cause the target disk mode to hang; I needed to disconnect the iBook from my main system to get out of the SPOD. In the end, I booted the iBook from the installation DVD and ran Disk Utility from there to reformat the hard drive. Surprisingly, it was impossible to reformat the drive in target disk mode due to the corruption.
Once the disk was reformatted, target disk mode worked fine, and I was able to restore the entire system (less files lost due to the corruption) in that mode.

It is impossible to say what can be recovered without knowing the cause of the installation failure. The possibilities range from some interfering third party addition to the previously installed OS to a substandard or degraded hardware component (especially RAM) that can't meet the more stringent demands of the new OS version.
All I can suggest is to try Target Disc Mode & see what you can recover to another drive -- one that your bother should have had for backups to begin with & should now see the value of having if he did not before.
If that doesn't work, the alternatives are investing in special data recovery software (moderately expensive) or a data recovery service (very, very expensive).

PowerBook in Target Disk Mode - cloned MacMini - created much confusion!

I'm hoping someone can tell me how to undo the mess I've made :-((
I've been using SuperDuper to clone the hard drive of my MacMini to my 12inch Powerbook so that the Powerbook is an exact copy of everything on my MacMini - BIG MISTAKE (I now realise). I wanted to check some details of the PB's bluetooth capability today and discovered that everything shown in 'About this Mac' actually refers to the MacMini and not to the PB.
Can anyone please tell me how I can get back my PB information?
I should add that I do have a separate hard drive in a firewire enclosure that I also use to backup my MacMini hard drive - I just thought I would be very 'belt and braces' by having a clone on my PB, but instead I seem to have created a big mess for my PB.
Cheers
Tricia

> I must admit to not understanding what 'cloning to a disk image is.
That basically means backing up to a 'virtual' software-based disk, rather than an actual physical disk.
Your only real option with the PowerBook is to erase and install. There is no need to download the 10.4.7 combo update separately as you can do that from the PowerBook once it has been installed with Tiger.
As for Entourage and the MS Office applications. You need to install the applications on to your PB first. Afterwards, with regard to Entourage emails (and I am not the best person to answer this as I do not use Entourage), I think there is an import function/wizard that allows you to locate the 'old' data and import it into the new installation. The remaining PowerPoint, Excel and Word data files can simply be copied over.
For both the data transfer tasks you may want to have your Mac mini connected via (ironically) FireWire Target Disk Mode so that the PB can access the mini's drive.
15" 1.25GHz/12" 1GHz PBs, 2xPPC Mac minis, 12" iBook G4, Mac OS X (10.4.6) Cube, 2xTAMs, iPods 2G/4G, iPs, AEBS, AX

Migrating in Target Disk Mode

I'm trying to migrate from an old iBook G4 running OS 10.4.11 to my new MacBook Pro running Lion. I understand you cannot do this using Migration Assistant, and I've already missed my opportunity to use Startup Assistant. But I'm told that if I connect the computers in Target Disk Mode (both my computers have FireWire ports), that all my data will migrate automatically (files, applications, bookmarks, Internet settings, e-mail address book, etc.), just as if Migration Assistant had done it. I was under the impression that, in Target Disk Mode, you could only transfer files manually, so this comes as good news. I'd just like someone to verify this, if possible. I'm not a newb, but I do this stuff so infrequently that I'd like some confirmation. Thanks very much.
-Bob

John Holt4 wrote:
Could I just clone my older MacBook directly to the new IMac using something like Carbon Copier Cloner
Probably not; an iMac likely won't work well (if at all) with the version of OSX that was on a MacBook.
I will be using a 800 9pin firewire cable in either case.
Great! That's the fastest.
One thing I have discovered is that I will probably have to name my new computer with a new shortname as I go a message showing both my source and target could not have the same short name?
It's a good idea, but not required, to have different Computer names (per System Prefs > Sharing).
But no, you can't have two user accounts with the same short user name.
Since you've missed the chance to use Setup Assistant, use one of the workarounds in the green box of Problems after using Migration Assistant.

Startup problem after use in target disk mode with a PC. Ideas?

I used my Mac 10.4 in traget disk mode. Data transfers between Mac and PC worked fine (via Macdrive 6). After disconnecting and trying to boot normally, Mac doesn't recognize internal volume. It flashes the question mark.
Tried to repair disk via install DVD - disk utility found no problems.
Reapired permissons.
Reset PRAM and NVRAM.
Tried Startup utility - found the internal volume and even after selecting it for startup, I still get the flashing question mark.
Apple hardware test found no problems.
Archive and reinstall is not allowed.
Data can still be accessed fine via target disk mode.
Any ideas how to reinitialize or reset the startup volume?
Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Hello,
You need to put the Tiger Install Disc in the 2011 iMac, boot the 2011 uMac into Target mode...
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1661
Boot the G4 holding the Option or alt key, hopefully the Install Disc in the 2011 iMac will show as a boot choice.
We just want to use the 2011 iMac as a big expensive FW Optical drive, it cannot be installed osing the 2011 iMac itself.

Can I Erase/Install In Target Disk Mode?

I need to reinstall my Mac OS on my 13" MacBook Pro (Early 2011) but I'm having some issues. This began after a restart and I got the grey Apple Hardware Test Screen. The tests ran, and my hardware "appears to be OK". I haven't been able to start successfully in any of the ways that I normally would.
When I try to start from my hard drive, I get the Apple Logo and a progress bar. The progress bar goes about a third of the way and then my machine turns itself off. Doesn't matter if I hold down the shift key to start in safe mode.
When I try to start from my Mac OS X Snow Leopard CD I get the Apple Logo screen then a black box stating "You need to restart your computer" etc.
When I boot the hard drive in Target Disk Mode, I'm told Disk Utilities can't repair my disk, and I'll have to format my Hard Drive. (Hardly a surprise given the above)
I have the original disks that came with my computer and Mac OS Snow Leopard. I was going to install the OS using the original disks then update to Mac OS Snow Leopard. This leads me to three questions:
Can I erase/install the OS while in Target Disk Mode by inserting the Mac OS CDs into my desktop then selecting my laptop as the disk to install on.
Because I can still access all of the contents of my hard drive in Target Disk Mode, should I just drag and drop everything into the external hard drive I just bought or is there some sort of disk image-y something or other I should be creating. If so, how do I create the Disk Image?
In all likely hood is my internal hard drive just dead?

Easy solution is this: Computers that can be upgraded to use OS X Internet Recovery. Update your firmware if needed. Then:
Install OS X Using Internet Recovery
Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.
Boot to the Internet Recovery HD:
Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND-OPTION- R keys until a globe appears on the screen. Wait patiently - 15-20 minutes - until the Recovery main menu appears.
Partition and Format the hard drive:
Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.
After DU loads select your newly installed 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.
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. Quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall OS X: Select Reinstall OS X and click on the Install button. Be sure to select the correct drive to use if you have more than one.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.
To answer the question about Target Disk Mode, the answer is if you can connect two Macs that both have Firewire ports, then you can treat your MBP to TDM so its drive will mount on the other Mac's Desktop. If you can boot the other drive from your Leopard disc, then you can do a clean install of Leopard on your MBP from the other computer.

Why can't Disk Utility wipe my old iMac in Target Disk Mode?

I want to donate my old iMac G3 with all my personal data removed.
As all my old start up disks are long gone I went online and followed advice to wipe it remotely. I connected the G3 via FireWire to my 15" MacBook Pro (late 2008, running OSX Lion 10.7.5) and restarted the G3 in Target Disk Mode. I opened Disk Utility, selected the drive (not the iMac partition), selected Erase, renamed the drive and chosen the 7 pass option. And waited...
After leaving it overnight, I awoke to find it was still preparing. I then Skipped that stage (it gave me the option) and left it for 24 hours. It was still skipping, so I had to Force Quit Disk Utility. The G3 is perfectly fine, and Disk Utility works as I just erased a memory stick as a test.
What's going on?

You need to do the following:
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.
Only use a single-pass to zero the data. Any more is overkill and will take many hours to complete.

Can I install FROM a working iMac TO an iMac in Target Disk Mode?

Hi.
I have a distressed iMac - it's in Target Disk Mode (the Firewire logo is on its screen), and it's hooked up to another iMac. I can see and navigate to the distressed Mac's hard drive via the good one. Can I insert the SL install disk on the good mac and install it on the bad one? I've tried the other way...but the distressed iMac stalls out when booting the install disk visa-versa.
The distressed iMac's internal optical drive is dead, and for some reason it WILL NOT recognized an external firewire/usb optical drive.
Thanks.

Sure, the working mac should see the other one as a firewire connected hard drive, nothing more - so long as the working one is an intel, and the target drive is partitioned suitably; 10.6 ought to install no problem.

HT1661 Problems mounting Imac in target disk mode on retina laptop with a solid state drive as host

I'm trying to use an Imac in target disk mode to copy files from it to a new retina display laptop with a solid state drive, but the target drive will not mount even tho it does start in target disk mode. I have all the proper firewire connection. The Imac will not respond for more than a few minutes before crashing when started from its own system. I would like to salvage a few files from it before I perform a clean install of the system.
Anyone has any idea why it wont mount in Target mode onto the retina laptop? Help!
Thanks in advance. :-)

Mac OS X doesn't offer a "clean install" option.
I'm assuming your target Mac is running 10.6?
And you setup the target Mac without adding a Firewire cable until after the Firewire logo appears on the screen?

Can't Connect to Laptop in Target Disk Mode

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