External Hard drive help: use with mac and pc? how to backup everything etc

Hello! I need some help regarding a new external hard drive I got from OWC. It is a 500 gb firewire 400 + usb 2.0 7200 rpm hard drive. I am running it from firewire. The software suggests the first thing you do is make a clone of your macbooks internal hard drive, that way if it fails later you can use the external to back everything up. If I do this ...
1. do I have to make the drive "Bootable" ? I have software called Data Backup 3 by Pro soft I think. It came with my external.
2. Can I still back up other stuff like my audio recordings and record onto that drive to a seperate folder?
3. If I make a bootable copy will it try and boot from the drive everytime I turn it on or something?
My other question is... how can I use this drive with a pc? I have a pc as well and I heard that the only way it will work is to format it in ms-dos mode (fat32?)
If I write it to fat32 will it slow down my drive or make it worse? I heard that you should format external drives specifically for mac if you have a mac; so it will only work with macs...
(sorry this is going on and on; it's like a chain reaction of questions)
so If its formatted to mac drive format then can I do this with my current situation:
1. I have wireless internet, the router is on a pc downstairs
2. Can I send files over a network somehow from the pc to my mac
3. then store it on my external?
If so can someone point me in that direction with a link?
Thank you for reading, sorry for making this so long.

1. No, you don't have to make a bootable clone.
2. If you use the drive for a bootable backup, then you cannot use the drive for other types of storage unless you partition the drive and make more than one volume.
3. No, it will not try to boot the computer. You must designate the startup volume using Startup Disk preferences.
If you wish to use the drive on both a Mac and a PC, then either you make two partitions - one for Mac and the other for the PC or you must format the entire drive using FAT32 so the drive can be used for read//write by both operating systems. If you do this then you cannot use the drive for a bootable backup nor can you use it with Time Machine.
FAT32 is slower for read/write on the Mac than using Mac formatting.
Optimally, I would suggest you partition the drive into two volumes. One volume formatted for the Mac and the other formatted FAT32.
You can send files from a PC to a Mac and vice-versa using File Sharing. Select Mac Help from the Finder's Help menu and search for "file sharing" or "sharing" to find help articles. Also see,
Mac OS X 10.5 Help- Setting up a Mac computer to share files with Windows users
Mac OS X 10.5 Help- Setting up a Windows computer to share files with Mac users
Mac OS X 10.5 Help- Sharing with Windows computers

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I recently purchase macbook air with OS 10.10.2. I want to use my Seagate external backup plus hard drive for time machine back up. How to partition my 1TB Seagate back up plus hard drive for use with mac and windows pc?

Hi All,
I recently purchased 13" Macbook Air with OS 10.10.2. I want to use my 1TB Seagate backup plus external hard drive as time machine and my windows 7 pc. Please suggest a method. Thanks in advance for your reply.

I strongly recommend having an external drive dedicated solely for TimeMachine. You could partition the drive but if something goes wrong you risk losing the data on both partitions. Should you decide to go ahead with splitting the drive for two different uses you’ll need to partition the drive either using the Mac’s built in Disk Utility program or Windows utility. I believe the built in Windows disk utility program will destroy the current partition and erase the data that’s on it - I use a third party Windows disk utility program for partitioning and it allows for non-destructive partitioning but warns to back up data first just in case. Apple’s Disk Utility can do non-destructive partitions but I don’t recall every trying to do a non-destructive partition on a disk originally formatted for Windows using it. Again - back up that data just in case.
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So, having recently moved across to Apple, I am now trying to move my data, documents, movie and music files.
I have two external hard drives that I used to use with my PC and now I would like to be able to move things around, and edit the names of folders etc.
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I googled for help and discovered that using utilities, I could erase the disks and set them up to be used by both Mac and PC (Still have a desk top at home)...however, when I tried to follow the instructions that I had found. There was an error message stating that the drive could not be unmounted.
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Simpletech redrive 500GB
or Maxtor 500GB
I don't which one to pick as there are negative reviews on all of them with crashing after only one year. If not any of these what other one to pick, would like it to be from circuit city, not matter what your opinion might be of them.
I know about the Lacie drives and the G-drive but those seems expensive and only from apple store. I have airport extreme so only need usb connection so i don't care what other ports it has.
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Hi,\ not sure how this translates to the USA market (brand names) Im UK;
But I've been using a Lacie external hard drive for ages without problems.
Not so sure about Western Digital, - I've heard some bad reports.
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Hi,
My current setup is I have a 1TB Hard Drive linked to my intel Mac Mini via FireWire 400, the Mini shares my music and films through iTunes so that my AppleTV can pick them up.
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Hello,
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OWC is a Mac specialist and a very trustworthy vendor. I have dealt with them and their technical stall on many occasions. Hence you may look at what they offer and be assured that they will stand behind what they sell:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/Thunderbolt/
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Hey all
I'm looking at getting a new USB 2.0 external hard drive to use with FCPX, I was wondering what everyones thoughts were on minimum speeds and what everyone else uses.
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Most of my projects are short though I have done a number of 2 hour projects with comparatively simple editing and a few effects etc. One ongoing project has some 12 hours of DV which I dip into occasionally.
I have a couple of LaCie FW HDs which I stopped using a couple of years ago in favour of the much cheaper USB 2.0s and didn't notice any difference, though as I said I don't have pro time constraints.
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Look at the price now!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Western-Digital-Elements-External-Desktop/dp/B003IPC21Y/ ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1330504588&sr=8-11

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Have a look here for the sizes and prices.
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Viewing External Hard Drives on both PC Mac and in Parallels.

If someone could give me a clear answer on how to use an external hard drive b/w my Mac, Parallels and my work computer (PC) that would be most helpful.
I bought a external hard drive overseas and was having no problems with it on a PC but when i bought this Mac Book Pro i could only view and retrieve data and not write to it. I then partitioned it in the disk utility (master boot record) and am now unable to see the drive on a PC where all my files are, but it works perfect with the Mac.
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Mac Book Pro Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Hi and welcome to Discussions,
the reason why your MBP could not write to the HD was, because it was most likely formated using NTFS as file system, which OSX can read from, but not write to.
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1. single files can not be bigger in size as 4GB
2. Windows can not format partitions with FAT32, that are bigger than 32GB.
The first limitation can not be overcome with FAT32.
The second can be overcome, when using Disc Utility from OSX with MBR as partititon scheme and MS-DOS (OSX name for FAT) as file system.
Or you can use command-line program to do this with your PC: http://www.heise.de/software/download/h2format/40825
(Sorry, link is in german).
That way all three should be able to see and use the external HD.
Although it is a fact that Parallels can be picky sometimes with USB-connected drives, but with the newer versions of it, this problem has become less evident.
And since up to now Parallels does not support FireWire, you must USB with it.
Regards
Stefan

What's a good External Hard Drive to use with Time Capsule

I have a MacBook and a 1GB Time Capsule, and until recently used my TC to store and access the music and video files I've purchased from the iTunes store as well as my Time Machine backups. The HD in the TC crashed a few months ago, and necessitated a long, drawn out and somewhat expensive restore to get everything off the crashed drive before restoring it. So now, I simply want to use the TC as a backup using Time Machine, but I also want a good external hard drive that is either wireless and can either be connected through the TC's WiFi base station capabilities or can plug in to the TC's USB port.
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Hi, and welcome to the forums.
Most USB drives should work fine. But there isn't much power on the USB port, so bus-powered drives must be connected via a powered hub.
And several folks have reported that larger drives, over about 750 GB, even if they have their own power, need a powered hub, too.
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External hard drive to use with Time Machine? Thoughts? Mac newbie.

Hello. Switched to an imac and have loved the experience. Was just about to buy an external hard drive when apple announced the time capsule. I've been holding off thinking I would purchase one but now I'm re-thinking it.
Between music, videos and pictures, I currently have about 400gb of stuff (and it will grow). My main concern is backing up (archiving) a copy of these files. Backing up other system files is a second concern after that.
I'm thinking of buying a 1TB external hard drive, firewire capable, partitioning part of it to be an archive drive, and the other part to use with time machine. Skip the time capsule.
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If so, any recommendations on a quiet, reasonably sized (i.e. doesn't take up the entire corner of the desk), 1tb external hard drive?
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Clayton, if you're only backing up one Mac, then you can purchase any good, reputable 750 GB or 1 TB external drive.
Considerations:
1) Reliability is key here. You want a drive that works. Various people have complained about Western Digital (me included), so take that into consideration.
2) Quiet is important. You have a quiet computer -- why louse up the working environment with a noisy drive?
3) FW (Firewire) 800 is faster than FW400, which is faster than USB. But once you get the initial backup done, it really doesn't matter how fast the drive is, because it works in the background and doesn't hamper your work. And if you DO need to restore your entire computer via Time Machine (I've done it), speed is less important than reliability. Even if it takes 3 hours, you'll be grateful. So while some may counsel you to get a 'fast' drive, reliability is more important.
4) On FW versus USB, you'll hear many claims. Again the key is reliability versus speed. A good USB drive is fine for what you are doing; FW is faster. Some folks have had problems with one or the other, so hear what they have to say.
5) Every drive dies. That's true for any electromechanical device. Don't think you've solved your backup problems by plugging in a drive and walking away. Your most critical files need a second backup, be it to a DVD, CD, thumb drive, network drive -- something. The more critical it is, the more backups you need. If you're writing your Ph.D. thesis, by definition you can't have too many backups
6) Convenience matters. You can 'roll your own' drive if you have experience -- buy a case, buy a drive, assemble, etc. But it's many times easier, particularly for a Time Machine backup drive, to just buy a reliable (there's that word again) external HD off the shelf.
7) Finally, follow directions. Apple tells you how to set up a TM drive. Do it their way. That means, format the brand new drive and make it a 'GUID' partition. Use the Apple Disk Utility. Follow directions.
Good luck,
Steve

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I have a brand new Imac on which I am also running WIndows Vista through Boot Camp (sweet, by the way). I have a large external hard drive on which I set up Time Machine easily enough. I would like to partition the drive somehow so that I could use half the drive to separately back up files on the WIndows side, but I can't seem to do this. Any suggestions? Is this even possible with Time Machine?

You can use Disk Utility create two partitions. Choose FAT for the Windows partition and Mac Extended (Journaled) for the Mac. One limitation of FAT32 is that you can't write files bigger than 4GB. You can reformat this partition as NTFS within Vista which will allow bigger file sizes but you won't be able to write to this partition from within OS X without other utilities. Also you can't write to the OS X partition from Vista without other software.
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Hi there.
I have a Lacie 1000GB external hard drive conected to Power Book Pro. I don't know much about it but was wondering if I could partition some of it off for my PC back up. As my Powerbook is for buisness (editing) I try and keep it away from emails and things, which I use me PC for. When I first purchased the Lacie HD, after setting it up with the mac I then tried to connect it to the PC to do a general back up of documents, etc. but it wouldn't allow it. Can anyone help with this? Sorry the info is a little vague...
Adam

You need to have a partition for OS X and one for your PC. Partitioning will erase your drive.
Open disk utility in the utilities folder in finder. Choose your external drive.
Choose partition and then under volume scheme choose 2 partitions. Pick the size of the partitions by either dragging the center bar with the dot on it or type in the size. Pick the partition you want to be your mac partition then choose option and pick guid partition table. For format choose mac os extended journaled. Pick a name for this partition
Now pick the other partition and under option choose master boot record. Under format choose MS-DOS file system. Choose a name for this partition.
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FORMAT HARD DRIVE FOR USE ON MAC AND WINDOWS

I'm going to start working on scanning a lot of old family photos and getting them put on an external hard drive for my parents. I'd also like to eventually put old VHS family home movies on the hard drive as well. However, I'm not sure what to do about the hard drive. I know if I format it to be compatible with my Mac it probably won't be compatible with their PC. I read about the FAT32 option but I saw something about a file not working if it's over 4 GB in size. I'm thinking maybe some of those home movies will be larger than 4GB. I also saw an exFAT option. If I go with that will I be able to scan the photos on my Mac, get the home videos converted and put it all on the hard drive will all of it be visible and usable on their Windows PC?
Thanks for your help!

matahari_1946,
if you’re not yet backing up your Mac’s internal hard disk, I’d recommend first that you purchase an external hard drive for yourself for exclusive use as a Time Machine backup destination; that way, in case of a disk problem, you won’t permanently lose all of your scanned photos and imported movies.
A 4 GB file limit does apply to FAT32 filesystems. If their version of Windows allows, the external disk which will hold those photos and videos should be formatted as NTFS from their PC, so that they can watch video files over 4 GB. (It’s unlikely that an individual photo file would be over 4 GB.) However, OS X doesn’t come out of the box with NTFS support. The exFAT filesystem is able to hold files over 4 GB, and it is supported by Mac OS X 10.6.5 and newer, but it’s optimized for flash drives; it’s more “fragile” on hard disks than other filesystems are. As a workaround, you could format a flash drive to have exFAT, copy videos over 4 GB onto the flash drive, and then use your parents’ PC to copy the videos from the flash drive to their NTFS external disk. Other alternatives would be to look for third-party software for OS X which supports reading from and writing to NTFS disks, or third-party software for Windows which supports reading from and writing to journaled HFS+ (the default OS X filesystem) disks.

External Hard drive help: use with mac and pc? how to backup everything etc

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