How do I back up an external HDD AND my macbook to another external HDD using Time Machine?

Hi,
My little old Macbook is pretty slow and clunky at the moment and I have decided to transfer my iphoto library to an external HDD named 'photos'.
I've check, it's all there - present and correct.
I've removed 'iphoto' from my 'pictures' folder on my macbook to trash.
I've tried to back both macbook and photos HDD to time machine but I'm unable to recover the photos HDD.
I have opened TM preferences, selected options and excluded the 'photos' HDD from backups as I was under the impression that the drive shown in the window is the drive used by TM.
Can somebody help me please. I've tried to recover a photo, just to test the backup but unable to find anything.
Kind regards
T

If I understand you correctly you want to back up two drives simultaneously. If that is correct, you will find a guide here: http://pondini.org/TM/32.html

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I am trying to back up an external hard drive with Time Machine, but in Options, the drive is greyed out and cannot be removed from exclusions.
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I have my media libraries (iphoto, imovie, itunes) on a separate external drive connected to my mac. They are being backed up to another HD through my time machine backups. However, should my media external drive fail, is it even possible to restore the files to a replacement external HD using time machine? Would it be better to partition my time machine external drive and use half for time machine and the other half to manually copy/backup my external medial HD?

Cumby
Would it be better to partition my time machine external drive and use half for time machine and the other half to manually copy/backup my external medial HD?
Bad idea, thats putting everything in once place. Worst premise for data protection
Methodology to protect your data. Backups vs. Archives. Long-term data protection
Everything is about 1. redundancy, 2. redundancy and 3. multiple storage platforms (DVD, multiple HD, online server archives ala a personal website etc.)
The first realization is that your data on your computer is highly vulnerable
The second realization is that you need a HD backup of your OS and data
The third realization is that you need at the very least a secondary HD backup
The fourth and final realization is understanding the fragility of any and all HD & ferromagnetic storage, and that vital data needs to be “frozen” on unassailable redundancies across multiple storage platforms including multiple HD, online backup, archival DVD burns comprising at the very minimum triple platform redundancy of data you have been working on for years or decades that cannot be replaced.
The B.A.R. “rule” (backup-archive-redundancy)
Backup: Active data emergency restore. Backups are moved from backups to archives; or from backups to the computer for restore or data retrieval.
Archive: Active and static data protection with the highest level of redundancy. Archives are only moved from itself to itself (archived copies). Generally a “long-term retention” nexus.
Redundancy: A fail-safe off-site or protected and “frozen” copy of your vital data and foolproof protection against magnetic degradation and HD mechanical failure. A likewise failsafe from theft, house fire, etc.
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A: redundancy (copies) of data archives.
B: redundancy of data on different platforms (optical, online, magneto-optical, HD).
Send your backups to your archives (as often as possible), and your archives to self-same redundancies.
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Here we are referring to data backups and archives, not system-backups for restoring your OS-system.
If your data on your hard drive is the cash in your wallet, a backup is your bank account/debit card, and an archive is a locked safety deposit box.
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Hello Apple users,
First let me explain my time machine set up so that you guys will be able to help me out. I've 2 external USB hard drives: one is 1TB and the other is 500GB. In the 500 GB USB HDD I store my main Aperture 3 library and other things like music, movies etc., and I use the other external hard drive to backup my files using Time Machine.
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Hi all -
Sorry if this question has been posted, I've look extensively and haven't seen it in this exact form, and I'm paranoid about this stuff. I also can't get a straight answer from Apple store employees.
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How to back up an external hd with time machine

I just bought a 1Tb WD WD for MAC which i willuse as my Time Machine backup and I want to use my 500GB Maxtor as an external HD to store media, I am not sure how tom make sure Time Maching backs up my internal HD and me external HD or is that automatic?

beatsc wrote:
Ok so it just asked me which I wanted to exclude to I didn't select any
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If you don't have other data on it that you need, just erase it with Disk Utility.
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My external drive quit working and it held my iTunes library and other important documents. Everything is backed up to Time Machine. Time Machine is another external drive. The external drives are Seagate Go Flex that sit on the removable bases.
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How much risk is there?
I have an iMac 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7
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I can't see backups for a disk/partition that's no longer connected

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If i include the external drive in the time machine set up, what happens when it backs up and the USB drive is not connected?
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How do I back up an external HDD AND my macbook to another external HDD using Time Machine?

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