Easy way to install bootable OSX (or Win XP) on external drive in iMac?

HD in wife's 17" white iMac Core 2 went belly up. She exclusively uses Windows XP on the machine via Bootcamp.
Any want to do an install on 250G Western Digital USB HD so that she can run from that and just ignore the screwed up drive inside the iMac? If OSX than I'd want to install Bootcamp and Win XP on the external, too.
Or, if feasable, just install XP on the external HD and boot from there & again ignore the broken drive inside the iMac?
Thanks.

You should have no issues booting from a Mac OS X install DVD and installing Mac OS X on an external HDD, USB or FireWire. The issue is going to be getting Windows on that drive. Boot Camp will only install a Windows partition on a Mac's internal drive, but not an ext drive.
However, if anyone has figured out how to do this it would be the folks in the Boot Camp forums. The Forums are at the bottom of the main Apple Discussions page under Windows Compatible Technology. Here is a link;
Boot Camp: Installation and Storage
Dah•veed

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UNIX cp Easier way than automator to back up folders to an external drive

I created an automator workflow to backup one of the folders on my desktop.
The problem is, if I add a file to one of the subfolders automator does not backup the folder contents. The workflow works only if I add an item to the folder in the top of the heirarchy. What should I do?
the applescript generated by automator is
on adding folder items to this_folder after receiving added_items
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I had this message posted some time ago on this forum. Was looking for a solution to back up files from my USB flash disk to my Firewire hardisk.
Just as I was learning unix from this great book at oreilly.com called "Learning UNIX for Mac OS X tiger", stumbled upon the unix command 'cp'.
cp -R /Volumes/USBDisk/SourceFolder /Volumes/FirewireDisk/destinationFolder
All I need Now is to learn the UNIX commands to compare two folder contents before the copy command.
Thanks for all the earlier suggestions on this topic @ http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=1878408#1878408
Mac OS X (10.4.1)
Mac OS X (10.4.1)

Hi there,
either of these additions may help you to do this via Automator...
The underlying commands in these Actions are UNIX.
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/automator/backupfolder.html
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/automator/comparefolders.html
These two movies may help...
http://www.mac-help.com/images/backup.mov
http://www.mac-help.com/images/backuptodrive.mov
regards
Ric

Is their another way like to use my time capsule as an external drive not using time machine?thanks

is their another way like to use my time capsule as an external drive not using time machine?thanks

You do not have to use Time Machine.. but the TC is hardly suitable for a NAS.. it has no means to back itself up and is relatively slow. Still that is up to you..
CCC or Superduper are good backup softwares .. and there are a number of others.

Is there an easy way to install Windows 7

I'm using Bootcamp and already have Windows XP install as a second OS. I've pre-ordered Windows 7 several months ago and now I have it in hand and would like to replace Windows XP on my iMac.
Though I may not use Windows 7 very much (I'm very pleased with my Apple OS), I would still like to install it.
Is there an easy way to erase the partition that has Windows XP and install Windows 7 instead? How can I do this without touching the Apple OS in fear that I might currupt it in some way?
Thanking you all in advance,
Chippathingy

You should considering using VMware Fusion, Parallels Desktop, or Sun's VirtualBox (which is free). Then, you won't have to dedicate a whole partition to Windows. And Windows will be running alongside Mac OS X, so on those less frequent occasions when you need to use a Windows program, you will not need to restart. Plus you can import your existing Windows XP installation as a virtual machine (I don't know if VirtualBox has an import feature), and have a separate virtual machine for running Windows 7, again with no separate partition; you can even have a virtual machine with one of the Linux'es.

Problem installing Mac OSX on my new MacBook hard drive...

Hi,
i am beside myself again...(i just visited my local Genius bar this afternoon). Any help would be most appreciated! :o)
i purchased a 2.5 inch SATA Fujitsu 120GB laptop hard drive for my new MacBook. Followed the awesome* instructions on "how to replace/upgrade hard drive", and took out the original Toshiba HD. What the instructions* failed to mention was that i would eventually need to use a Torx screwdriver (star-shaped) to remove the caddy/carriage from the Toshiba HD. Got that the next day and replaced the Toshiba 80GB with my new 120GB Fujitsu drive..., it slipped into place nicely but i did notice that the Toshiba had four short wires protruding out to the right of the contacts, which my new Fujitsu didn't have... hmmmm...?!
anyways, tried to install Mac OSX on the new drive, booted up with the install disc... went thru' chosing the language (English), agreed to the second step... but when it came time to install, there was NO icon at all in the box where i am asked where i want to install it!!!
so i go to disk utilities, and see that my Fujitsu HD is indeed recognized, but none of the buttons in first aid are active... so i can't check it.
i figured that had to do with the four little wires, so i replaced the original Toshiba and made a reservation with Genius Bar to ask for assistance.
this afternoon, i explained my problem and was told the four wires have NOTHING to do with it... Lawrence (the genius) told me to (actually, first he said Apple does not recommend my doing this... and that i should go to a 3rd party computer store such as Dino to get help!) go back to disk utilities and partition, then erase this drive and then i will see the icon for this drive in the install box.
Well i did everything i was told to do and... still, there is no icon for my Fujitsu HD! :o(
I was able to partition, after which there was a disc0 under the Fujitsu drive on the left side of the disk utilities. When i go to system profiler, and click on ATA... it too shows the Fujitsu drive... but i cannot install because there is NOTHING to click on at the installation step! the "continue" button is not active and only the "back" button is actively mocking me!!!
i know many of you have successfully upgraded your hard drive... what am i doing wrong? Would a different brand work better? I know Seagate is quite popular, and OWC sells a Western Digital version as well as a Hitachi... do those four little wires make a difference? Would the Seagate come with those wires???
i am going crazy... thanks, and sorry for the long post, just wanted to let you know what i've done!
blue skies,
ps. please feel free to email me at [email protected] if you think that would be better! :o)

Hi,
...after getting back from school, my MacBook was STILL in the process of verifying and "supposedly" repairing... since i was gone for over 10 hours, i finally assumed the drive was either defective or just incompatible, and quit disk utility.
...this morning i went out and bought a new Seagate 120GB SATA (they didn't have 160GB SATA drives, only 160GB ultra-ATA drives) 2.5 inch HD. This one DID have those four wires to the right of the contacts... (i don't know how important they are), and after changing and exchanging the Toshiba/Fujitsu HDs, it was a breeze putting in the new Seagate drive.
Erased > patritioned > and sure enough, the icon showed up and the biggest smile showed up on my face as i finished installing! :o)
I contacted the original seller of my fujitsu hd (it was a 2.5 inch, 120GB, serial ATA notebook drive) and he was kind enough to say "just pack it up and send it back for a refund!" (minus shipping and re-stocking fees of course! :o)
Just wanted to mention that, the fujitsu hd WAS recognized by disk-utility and at the bottom left of the window it said that the fujitsu was "GUID partitioned"..., so i am still scratching my head as to why it didn't work?!
I want to thank everyone that offered advice, it was helpful and i feel more comfortable with my MacBook after this trying and very frustrating episode! :o)
blue skies,

Is there an easy way to convert and import MTS files from a external hardrive so that I can edit them in FCP?

I am trying to convert game footage that is in MTS format to something that I can edit into a quick highlights video. I have final cut express and the standard IMovie '09. looking for easiest solution, everything seems to involve using one application to convert to Quicktime and then dropping file into Iphoto etc. is there an easy way?

I'm not completely sure that MPEG Streamclip can convert AVCHD footage (.mts files). If MPEG Streamclip doesn't do the job, then get a copy of Clipwrap, which was designed for transcoding .mts files to QuickTime/Apple Intermediate Codec (that's the format/codec you need to convert the .mts files to for use in FCE).

Bootable backups - disk utility and which external drives

hi all
(maybe) a simple question
i have been using time machine for my back ups but i am now planning to have a second backup program. i'm looking at using a bootable clone in this regard.
i started looking at super duper and ccc however a few stumbling blokes have just popped up (well at least warning signs that may be of no issue at all - hence this question)
* can ALL external drives be used for bootable backup purposes?
I have a couple of western digital ones - my book essential and my passport.
On the western digital website, it does not have my model numbers listed - does it matter?
Is it a case of any usb connected external drive can be used for intel macs? - i am getting conflicting views on various postings i have seen re this question
second part/question is:
i also understand disk utility can be used for cloning (no updates, just full clones) and as a bootable back up.
if, just for the purposes for having a back up bootable drive, can i set up a clone without too much regard for recloning it (say every 2 months) and if i need to use it, then boot the mac back up with it and then do a full restore using my up to date time machine backups? am i missing something with that method? is that too simple?
feedback much appreciated on these 2 areas
cheers
peter t

Crows2012 wrote:
1) there is no way to make a BOOTABLE clone using disk utility or time machine whatsoever, right? DU will only allow me to make clones and Recovery HD essentially allows me to restore the system (ie software) AFTER booting up?
Correct with respect to TM; all you get is a copy of the Recovery HD.
Disk Utility will make a bootable clone, but there are downsides. First, it can only do a whole copy; unlike a specialized cloning app, it won't copy just what's new or changed, so takes a long time. Second, as I understand it, it won't copy to a smaller volume, even if there's plenty of free space on the internal. For example, if you have a 1 TB internal with only 400 GB on it, DU won't copy it to a 500 GB drive. I may be wrong, but I've seen that posted here by folks who seem to know.
does file b here mean aliases of file b in each backup?
It acts sorta like that, but no.
There's one copy of the actual file, but two hard links to it, one in each folder. The file actually "belongs" to both folders at the same time! The good part of that is, if you delete either backup folder, the other one remains intact. The downside is, how the heck do you count the size of each folder accurately?
that was a great read to understand TM workings and attain some level of piece of mind re my question of incremental v differential backups
It is a bit hard to get your head around! I've been revising and editing that for several years trying to make it clear.
And remember, this only applies to TM as far as I know, at least for consumer-level backup apps.
While it may be possible to boot your computer to an external hard drive, Western Digital does not provide technical support for booting your computer using an external hard drive. If you intend to make a copy of your boot drive, or install your operating system, please use a second internal drive (EIDE or Serial ATA), rather than an external drive.
Yup. WD doesn't exactly have a good reputation for support.
i guess i'll trial CCC or SD and see what happens with the drives that i have re BOOTABILITY
I use CCC myself -- it's a great product with great support.
I downloaded SD a couple of times, but never got around to experimenting with it. Lots of folks swear by it, and say it also has excellent support. To a large degree, it just seems to be a matter of which approach and GUI you prefer, but CCC does allow "archiving" of changed and deleted stuff (differently from TM), and can copy Recovery HDs. I don't think SD does either, but it may have other advantages.
4) and, i think one final question, and a simple/naive one at that.....if my internal hard drive physically collapses then what are the benefits of that bootable clone v not having one?
You can start up from the clone and run normally (but likely a bit more slowly), although you probably won't be as up-to-date as you would after restoring to a new or repaired internal, or an external, from TM. The reason is, running a clone backup, even an incremental one, takes much longer and far more CPU than one of TM's quick incrementals, which it will do hourly if you let it. Few folks using a clone for an OSX drive do it more than once per day, many only once a week.
The downside is, if you run from the clone, you no longer have a backup -- the clone has the only copy of your stuff. That's one reason many folks who use only a cloning app have two (or more) externals with them.
Apart from (obviously) being able to start up immediately to do whatever i wanted to do at the time, after i replace the hard drive (if that was to be the case) are there further expenses or much inconvenience suffered due to not having a bootable drive in getting things all sorted internally on the mac? what is the process in that regard, generally speaking
Just clone the external to the new internal, and you're back in business.
thanks heaps for your time to answer these and previous questions and to build up my understanding of these topics
You're quite welcome.

What is the best way to consolidate Aperture and iPhoto libraries onto an external drive? I am just starting out and not used to Aperture filing system.

I would like to use the drive as storage/aperture backup rather than use it to back up my whole Macbook. Would like to keep the majority of the photo files on the ext. drive and be able to add files there directly. BUT, when workng in aperture would like to be able to select some from the ext. drive and work them on the laptop directly without having to have the ext drive attached.
So do i, have the aperture library path mapped to the ext drive, and then import the iphoto library? and then how do i add additional from the camera? Or, do i move everything together (imported iphotos and new from camera) in Aperture on the Macbook first, and then transfer that library to the ext drive?
For the life of me I can't figure out how to do this in a way that seems logical. Vaults? Masters on ext drive, versions on the macbook? Consolidating libraries? The endless possible answers are baffling me.
Thanks for any help!

Kirby Krieger wrote:
Hi Shane. Not much in the way of thoughts - - but fwiw:
How is the drive attached?
Can you open large files on the drive with other programs?
Are you running any drive compression or acceleration programs (some drives arrive with these installed)?
Can you reformat the drive and try again?
Hi Kirby,
I attached the UltraMax Plus with a USB cable. The UltraMax powers the cable so power is not an issue. I can open other files. Also, there is 500GB of files on the drive so I cannot re-format it. Although, I noted I could import the entire Aperture Library. However, I do not want to create a duplicate on my machine because that would be defeating the purpose of the external drive.
Thanks,
Shane

Install Leopard from a .DMG on an external drive?

Hey guys, last night I got my copy of Leopard, and then the SuperDrive on my 17" 1.33 GHz PowerBook decided to take a dump. It doesn't read anything anymore - not a brand new Leopard disc, a Tiger disc, the System Restore discs, or the Transformers DVD. I used it about two weeks ago to run the Apple Hardware Test from the System Restore discs and it hasn't moved off my desk since, so I have no idea how it died (unless it simply died).
My brother has a MacBook and I'm planning on getting a triple-interface 1TB drive from LaCie. My question is: can I create a .DMG of the Leopard install disc with my bro's MacBook, move it on to that external drive and install it on my PowerBook from there?

The guys at MacFixIt have a guide for doing this. It looks like the biggest things are (a) making sure you pick the right partition map for the external (Apple Partition Map for PowerPC, GUID for Intel) to start up from, and making a "CD/DVD Master" image.
Obviously, installing Leopard isn't going to fix my SuperDrive, but at the moment I only need my SuperDrive to install Leopard (the last time I used it was about two weeks ago to run the Apple Hardware Test and everything checked out, before that I can't remember). I was going to purchase the LaCie Big Disk anyway for Time Machine and storage and to have a bootable Tiger install, so if I can use that to install I can hold off on replacing my SuperDrive. If I can't install it from the external, I can throw my PowerBook into Target Disk Mode and install from my brother's MacBook.

HT1364 How to install iTunes, but access music library from external drive?

I tried to install iTunes (11) on a new computer with Windows 8. I keep the iTunes library on an external drive. I tried to move the media files over to the newly installed iTunes within the hard drive program files, but it doesn't seem to work. The relevant threads in the forum are a bit over my head (I am brand new to Windows 8, having leaped over from XP). Is there some simple way to straighten out the paths on iTunes so that it will properly play songs from the external drive, show my old songlists, etc?
I've now uninstalled iTunes from computer. Would like to reinstall without too much headache ...

Hello there FunkyMuzak,
iTunes can be set to use the library on the external drive, and save new content.
To have iTunes open the alternate library on the drive use this option:
Steps to create or choose a different iTunes Library file
If iTunes is running, quit iTunes.
If you are using Windows, hold down the Shift key and from the Start menu and choose All Programs > iTunes > iTunes.
If you are using the Mac, open iTunes and immediately hold down the Option key.
You should see one of the following screens:
From: iTunes: How to open an alternate iTunes Library file or create a new one
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1589
And to tell iTunes to save your new media when you buy songs or movies, etc., use this part of our article named Where are my iTunes files located? found here http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1391
Discovering and changing the iTunes Media folder location
Note: You would usually only change the iTunes Media folder location to share music between accounts on the same computer. See this article for specific steps on how to accomplish this. Also, see this article if you want to know how to move your music to a new computer.
Mac OS X: Click the iTunes menu and choose Preferences.
Windows: Click the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
Click the Advanced pane. iTunes displays the location of your iTunes Media folder.
You can then:
Note where your media folder is, such as for backing up your media.
Use the Reset button to reset it's location to the default (which is the iTunes folder).
Click the Change button to select a folder for a new location. Once you change this location:
If you make a new or alternate iTunes library, the new location will be used by that library.
Existing files will not be moved unless you choose File > Library > Organize library and choose the option to "Consolidate files."
Cheers,
Sterling

Can I install Tiger as a boot disk on external drive

I upgraded to Leopard 2 months ago and everything works well except a program called Avid Express Pro. Avid suggests I go back to Tiger, but I like many of the features in Leopard. I'm using a Macbook pro with an intel processor. Is it possible to install Tiger on an external drive and boot from that drive when I want to use Avid, then restart on the internal drive for normal operation? I've tried installing Tiger on an external drive I have, but the installer won't let me select the external. Any help would be appreciated.

Your Intel MacBookPro can install Tiger or Leopard to any external drive that has been formatted with a GUID partition. It can be USB or Firewire. I'm using a miniStack v3 500gb FW800 drive for my MBP. When it arrived from OWC it was APM and Leopard or Tiger would refuse to Install to it. Disk Utility fixed this by repartioning the drive and choosing the GUID option and HFS+.
The GUID partition scheme is probably the problem. Most external drives come formated for DOS (Fat32) or the APM (Apple Partition Map). The Intel macs require GUID for Installing and Updating, but work fine with the APM drives for files.
You Intel Mac can boot from an APM drive, but not install to it. You can use SuperDuper to clone a bootable copy of your OS from your internal GUID drive to an external APM drive and the machine will boot from it, it just can't be updated.
Use Disk Utility to check the Partition Map Scheme on your external drives before you try to use one to install to.

Can I physically install my 0.5 TB USB 2 external drive in my Mac Pro?

Hi guys.
I bought a .5 TB external USB hard drive a while back when I used to produce/sequence my music on a PC. Since switching I've re-formatted the drive to HFS, re-installed my samples etc, and now use it with my Mac Pro. My question is:
Could I remove the drive from it's external housing and install it to a bay inside my Pro? Would the data transfer be quicker if I were to do this? Although the drive works fine, there are times when I experience a tiny dropout in audio when a sample is launched - as a result of the file being streamed from USB - and would installing the drive internally improve this?
The specs of the drive are:
USB2.0 Storage Device:
Capacity: 465.76 GB
Removable Media: Yes
Detachable Drive: Yes
BSD Name: disk1
Version: 0.01
Bus Power (mA): 500
Speed: Up to 480 Mb/sec
Manufacturer: Cypress Semiconductor
OS9 Drivers: No
Product ID: 0x6830
Serial Number: DEF10D4838C4
S.M.A.R.T. status: Not Supported
Vendor ID: 0x04b4
Volumes:
External Drive:
Capacity: 465.64 GB
Available: 383.83 GB
Writable: Yes
File System: Journaled HFS+
BSD Name: disk1s3
Mount Point: /Volumes/External Drive 1
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Dan

if it is SATA (unlikely) it would have an SATA port on the case along with USB2.
As you say, it is unlikely that a commercial USB drive will utilize a SATA hard drive inside. This will probably be true in most cases until PATA hard drives are more difficult to find.
However, there are several empty enclosures on the market that support SATA hard drives and only have a USB port. I prefer external SATA combo enclosures that provide both SATA and USB so that they can be used with wide range of enclosures and with a SATA data port when speed is required.
One SATA hard drive enclosure with this feature is the ICY DOCK Hot Swap eSATA/USB 2.0 Mobile Enclosure (MB559US-1S)
http://www.amug.org/amug-web/html/amug/reviews/articles/cremax/mb559/
I imagine this user will find when he opens the USB case that it is a PATA hard drive and he will be limited to placing it in a 3.5" to 5.25" bracket and installing it in the second bay of the Mac Pro DVD housing. This should double the performance of the hard drive compared to the USB connection.
If it is SATA the mounting task is simpler. Either way the hard drive should be able to be utilized internally.

After SN install can't launch Disk Utility from external drive

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Thanks for response. Ah, that's it. I was trying to launch it from the applications folder I had dragged to the dock, which was done while running Snow Leopard. That's why (duh!) all the application icons were slashed out. : |

Best way to transfer time machine back up files between external drives

I have to move my time machine backup files from one external drive to another. I was planning to simply move it through finder, but it has been "preparing files" for 2 days straight. The number of items sowing in the status bar with the status of "preparing to copy XYZ items" has continued to stadily grow. Is there a better route or should I let it run till it is complete?

Welcome to Apple Support Communities
That's exactly the way to transfer Time Machine backups to an external drive, so let the Finder do its job. See > http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5096
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Possible to boot Win from an external drive?

I've recently replaced my original drive with both Mac OS X and a small partition for windows installed.
My windows partition is now on an external drive: the only difference is, i'ts now connected via USB instead of the internal SATA connector.
(I can still boot off of my old Mac OS X partition)
Is it possible to Boot from a bootcamp partition on an external drive?
if yes? Can I clone it to other drives?

ok thanks man.
I'm now cloning that old partition to an external drive... guess I have to buy some old crappy pc system to acces some old programs.
I'm not doing the bootcamp partition anymore because someone advised me partitioning startup disks makes them slower. And I maybe use windows once every 6 months to find an old file.

Easy way to install bootable OSX (or Win XP) on external drive in iMac?

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