Can time capsule be used as an external hard drive for storing media

Can you use it in such a way that you put movies and music and home vidoes on there to be accessed on when on the network along with using it for backing up data.  Could it be used in such a way that you  can access your files when on wifi from anywhere?

TC is not designed to be a NAS.. principally it is lacking any means to back itself up. And TM cannot backup a network drive.
If you put data on it like your movies and music in raw format that is fine.. if you put your itunes or iphoto etc library on it.. you will find it is slow to start, quick to stop, stutters and has issues. Also wireless frankly is just not that good.
I am not sure how far away is anywhere?? Do you mean remote access? That is possible via btmm using icloud.
The problem is, TC is not a media player.. it is a dumb as a board hard disk in a router.
How are you going to play your videos or music unless you move itunes library onto the TC??

Similar Messages

  • Can the time capsule be used as an external hard drive

    Can the time capsule be used as an external hard drive

    If you mean by usb to a computer no.. it is a network device only and has to be used via ethernet or wireless.
    It can be used standalone,, ie not plugged into an existing network.. but there are some steps required to make it work if you want internet connection at the same time. It is generally much easier to have the TC bridged into the network.

  • Can an Apple Time capsule be used as a external hard drive?

    Hello I have a 4th Generation time capsule and I've had it for some time now and never used it and I was wondering if it could be used as a external hard drive instead of just a back up disk. Also I am planning to install a copy of Windows 7 on my Mid 2011 21.5" iMac and I was wondering if Windows would recognize the TC as a external hard drive and would alow me to use it as such.

    It is not an external hard disk.. you cannot use it via USB if that is what you mean.
    It is now and forever more a Network drive. You can store files on it as a network drive.. with the following provisos.
    Store files on the TC.
    https://discussions.apple.com/message/24380694#24380694
    This is asked several times a day.. obviously people are struggling with their latest SSD being too small.
    The TC is not suitable for network file server.. but many people having no choice press it into service as such.
    It cannot be partitioned. It was and is and ever shall be a backup device for Time Machine.
    Major issues.
    1. No backup.. no way Time Machine can backup a network drive. No place to backup to.. So all your files will be at risk. And you will need to buy a third party like CCC to do backup.
    2. The TC cannot be partitioned and mixing TM backups and data is not great.
    3. The drive is slow to spin up and quick to spin down.. there is no controls.
    4. iPhoto in particular can easily corrupt its entire library with wireless networking causing a disconnection to one photo. Even if you do this;;; do not move your photo library... you have been warned!!
    5. iTunes will constantly lose connection to the library. The disk is too slow to respond.. itunes on the computer will constantly spit out errors. Even in the midst of streaming the TC can spin down the disk due to caching.
    6. Do not use any live files on the TC no matter what else you do.. if you edit files in whatever program the file must be on the local hard disk.
    7. The only suitable location for most libraries is a computer. You can plug in an external hard disk.
    Read pondini for some work arounds.
    Q3 here. http://pondini.org/TM/Time_Capsule.html
    Windows can also use the TC for files. Much the same warnings apply.

  • Can the 2013 airport time capsule be used as an external hard drive

    or do you have to purchase a separate external hard drive and connect it to the time capsule??

    Under the same network, I do use it as a music server (iTunes library) and files to share.
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  • Can Time Capsule Be Used Only as a Hard Drive, Not as a Router?

    I have been using a Time Capsule as a router and as a wireless backup system for a year, but had endless trouble with the dual use, since my personal Macbook is on the second floor of my house and the router must reside in the basement, where we have other computers. Wireless backups are much too slow. So I replaced the Time Capsule with an Airport Extreme Base Station, which works fine. I'd like to continue using the Time Capsule, but solely for backups and not as a router, and connect the TC by ethernet or usb directly to the MacBook. Can this be done, and if so, how? Thanks!

    Hello JohnFrancis. Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
    I'd like to continue using the Time Capsule, but solely for backups and not as a router, and connect the TC by ethernet or usb directly to the MacBook. Can this be done, and if so, how?
    Yes it can. You would just need to disable its wireless radio. You will also need to connect it by Ethernet as the TC's USB port is only for connecting it to USB hard drives, printers, and/or hubs.
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  • Can  time machine be use like an external hard drive

    like to  put a windows partition on time machine  use it for more  espace

    305Sebas wrote:
    like to  put a windows partition on time machine ..
    Do not do this... TM works best on its Own Dedicated Hard Drive.
    Would suggest another EHD for your windows usage.

  • Can Time Machine back up a second external hard drive that is attached via usb to a Time Capsule?

    Can Time Machine back up a second external hard drive that is attached via usb to a Time Capsule?
    I have a iMac with 10.7.4

    I want to back up the data on the external Hard Drive that is attached to the Time Capsule to the Tim Capsule using Time Machine.
    Thanks for the clarification.  Unfortunately, that will not work.  You will need to connect the drive directly to your Mac if you want Time Machine to backup the drive to the Time Capsule.

  • I have just upgraded from a Macbook to a Macbook Air. I have been using a iomega external hard drive for Time Machine, which use a Firewire. However, Macbook Air's do not have a Firewire port and i cannot find an adaptor anywhere. Can anyone help?? Thanks

    I have just upgraded from a Macbook to a Macbook Air. I have been using a iomega external hard drive for Time Machine, which use a Firewire. However, Macbook Air's do not have a Firewire port and i cannot find an adaptor anywhere. Can anyone help?? Thanks

    There has never been a reliable firewire ---> USB adapter suitable for external high speed storage.  This was a major issue when the MacBooks lost the firewire port a number of years ago (Apple subsequently brought it back).
    The only high speed port on the Air is the ThunderBolt port.  There are external ThunderBolt drive options out there, but they're somewhat more expensive than traditional USB/FireWire options.

  • Can this device be used as an external hard drive with a macbook pro laptop to use files on the airport?

    can this device be used as an external hard drive with a macbook pro laptop and use files on the airport time capsule?

    If you mean an AirPort base station other than the Time Capsule, it doesn't have internal storage.
    If you mean a Time Capsule, its internal drive can be used for regular file storage but shouldn't be; as with all drives, it'll eventually fail. You're better off using a standalone drive and setting Time Machine to back it up as well.
    (112309)

  • Can I use the same external hard drive for time machine and storing other files

    I have a 640GB external hard drive that I have been using for over a year for time machine backups.  My mac hard drive is now starting to fill up and I am looking to move audio, video and picture files to my external hard drive.  How do I do this without messing up my time machine backups?  Can I do both on the same external hard drive?  Do I just make new folders on the external hard drive to move the files I want?  Thanks for the help.

    If you move the files you will need to get another disk to back the files up to. You don't want to have only one copy of certain files (personal, professional etc.).

  • How do I get Time Capsule to back up an external hard drive?

    I need Time Capsule/Time Machine to back up my external hard drive. How do I do this?

    The external drive is plugged into the Mac??
    Just open the Time Machine preferences, Options, and include the external drive.. done!! (The menu is exclude.. so just ensure it is not excluded.. don't use no double negatives.. is grammar rule apple could learn).
    You cannot backup the external drive if plugged into the TC directly.

  • How can Time Machine backup automatically when your external hard drive isn't connected?

    Everywhere I search, it says that Time Machine will automatically backup every 24 hours and so on.
    However, I was wondering - how can these automatic backups take place if you are backing up to an external hard drive which is not always connected?
    Is this to say that if you do not connect your external hard drive for a day, no backups will be done that day?
    Thank you

    If the drive is not connected then TM pauses until the drive becomes available. Yes, if the drive isn't connected then there are no backups.
    A  whole  lot  about  Time  Machine for help with TM problems.  Also you can select Mac Help from the Finder's Help menu and search for "time machine" to locate articles on how to use TM.  See also Mac 101- Time Machine.

  • Using an external hard drive for some media while leaving the rest on the desktop

    How can I access ripped DVDs on an external hard drive through iTunes while leaving our music and downloaded media on the desktop hard drive?
    I'm in the process of ripping all of our DVDs so we can watch them using our Apple TV. I can't figure out how to access the DVDs on an external hard drive while leaving all of our downloaded media on the desktop. We have way too much media to store it all on the desktop so that isn't an option.
    Thanks for any help,
    Natalie

    Hi,
    How about creating two libraries - one on your main computer and the other on your external hard drive.
    http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1589
    Once you've done this you can use the library on your computer but when you want to access stuff on your ext HD, you hold down option key whilst launching itunes > select library on ext drive.
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  • Should I partition my external hard drive for FCPX media management?

    Is there any benefit to creating partitions on a single external hard drive for media management purposes?
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    In my view there is no point in partition the drive. You are wasting space and speed. Events are segregated in the FCP folder structure. There is no need to to it with partitions.

  • Can Time Capsule be used as an external drive but not a router

    Greetings,  I have a spare 1TB older Time Capsule that I would like to give to a friend who would like to use it as an external hard drive w/time machine.  They currently have a current iMac with Comcast internet and router which they would prefer to continue using for internet access.  My question is: can a time capsule be set up to be used as an external backup drive without using the router capability.Thanks for any advise.
    Scotgt Lorigan

    My question is: can a time capsule be set up to be used as an external backup drive without using the router capability
    Yes
    Connect the Time Capsule to the Comcast router using a wired Ethernet connection from a LAN port on the Comcast router to the WAN port on the Time Capsule and set it up to create a network.
    Then, go back in using AirPort Utility and turn off the wireless function on the Time Capsule. The Time Capsule will operate as  "bridge" in this type of setup, so it will not perform as a router.

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