HT203177 My Time Machine is displaying a solid amber light.

My Time Machine is displaying a solid amber light. Tried to unplug everything, including the power source. Left unplugged for 15 minutes. Re-connected back, first the cable to the WAN port and then the power supply. Still SOLID AMBER HELP PLEASE

Hello,
That is generally a sign of failing Hard Drive or Power Supply, but have you tried a Reset?
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3728

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Menu Bar Time Machine icon displays a Question mark - Problem and Fix

My MacBook over the weekend upon awakening from sleep showed that the Menu Bar Time Machine icon displays a Question mark. The external drive showed as mounted in the finder but repeated tries to Back up Now ended in Latest Backup Failed. Hmmm. Never saw that before. Did a restart and ran Disk Utility Verify Disk on the start up disk and it came out OK. So I then ran Disk Utility on the external FW backup drive and as soon as it reported that the FW disk was fine, Time Machine started up on it's own and did a back up and all is back to normal after leaving the TM drive attached the remainder of the weekend. All backups are back to working fine with no repeat of the problem.

If for some reason the computer has trouble communicating with the drive it will report a failure when TM tries to back up, and will display that question mark. It's good you were able to fix it and get TM running again.

My Time Machine BU (Passport) has a flashing light. Is this normal?

My Time Machine BU (Passport) has a flashing light. Is this normal? I get a message that the Mac cannot find tghe BU disk.

I found a user with similar problem: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2058839?threadID=2058839&tstart=0 and the issue is still unsolved!
Apple, are you reading this? If this continues, I'm going to down to Apple soon and give the serving officer a good f*cking right there and then. I'm not a fool who willingly pay premium to get lemons.

Time Machine's WAN port doesn't light up, but Ethernet port does

Hi there,
We have a guest sleeping in the spare room where our Time Machine is also located and because of they are a light sleeper we've had to turn off the power at night. I've then noticed that it has become more and more difficult to setup my internet again.
Firstly, when I powered it back up, it began to flash amber and wouldn't recognise the modem plugged into the WAN. My first approach was to turn everything off and then turn them on again. This had worked the first few mornings after having the issue. But this method doesnt seem to fix the problem anymore.
Regardless, I now continue to receive the flashing amber light. For troubleshooting, I tested the internet connection direct to my Laptop and it worked fine, so I know the internet modem isnt the problem. I then plugged the internet into the Time Machine ethernet port and the green light began to work. I can also access the internet by airport through the TC with this connection.
My question is, why is the Time Machine able to detect the internet through the Ethernet Port, but not through the WAP port?
Also, by using this setup going forward, am I be putting myself at risk of any damage to my TC device, or exposing my personal data to the internet?
thanks for any and all suggestions.
Regards,
Elise

Is the TIme Capsule in Router mode or Bridge mode.. ??
It makes all the difference in the world.
How old is this TC?
It might be worth just doing a reset and set it up again.. make sure you use bridge not router if the modem already is running router function, otherwise TC will pop up an error due to the double NAT.

HT4600 i Get a solid amber light sometimes, bUT all works fine. I have to unplug the airport extreme to reset it and then it turns green and starys that way for a week or so and then turns back to amber. why is this and how do i fix it ?

I gat a solid amber light once a week on my airport extreme, but all works fine. I have to unplug it to reset it and then the light turns back to green and it is good for another week and then it happens again. why is this and what can i do to fix it ?

Solid amber on an AirPort Extreme is an indication that the internal power supply is starting to act up.
If the AirPort Extreme is in warranty, it shouid be exchanged for another AirPort Extreme.
If the AirPort Extreme is several years old, keep any eye on things. When/if you find that you are having to reset the device several times a week, it's time to start thinking about a replacement device, as the end is near.

TC solid AMBER LIGHT then dies. Apple won't help.

Over the weekend my time capsule powered off. When I tried to restart it, it went to a solid amber light for 15-30 seconds, and then died.
I unplugged it for half an hour, same problem, unplugged it overnight, same problem.
Soft reset won't work, hard reset won't work. Can't access it with ethernet.
Tried factory reset many times, solid amber light starts to blink, then when I release reset button (having held it for various amount of time) it goes solid amber, for a split second it sounds like it might start, then dies. No light. D E A D.
So, I've researched it online, and it seems a little different to the heat / power issue. I call Apple support, and the first tech just tries to order me a new one. My serial number 819 however prevents this. So a senior advisor comes on to tell me it can't be replaced. He get's cut off....
So I call back, and the tech reads the notes and basically tells me there is nothing that can be done, and is quite blasé about the whole thing. He offers me no advice and makes no attempt to diagnose the problem, just tells me it's done and I need to buy a new one as I don't have applecare.
I point out (nicely) it's only two years old, I expected more, it's supposed to be server grade, etc.
He replies "It's only a hard drive" which I found very interesting. ONLY A HARD DRIVE? So why did I pay $340 for it? He also tells me I should have backed up my back ups. So how many "server grade" back ups do I need to make? I need to buy 5 time capsules to back up my macbook incase 4 of them just give up suddenly? He also says that it's an electronic device and electronic devices fail. Just like that. May as well have just said "Tough luck, buddy!"
Later he tries to retract that statement and puts me through to another senior advisor. Predictably she tells me the same thing. No offer of repair or attempts to diagnose problem, just it's finished. She was as nice as she could be about it, but that's the conclusion. Eventually after I explained I was disappointed with this attitude, she said maybe I could take it to the genius bar to have the information taken off and moved to a new TC.
So basically, my new drive will be costing me in the region of $700 (given that my original $340 TC is only good for the trash).
My current thinking is I shall try and retrieve the data myself, use one of my other much, much cheaper external HD's that have been running flawlessly for years as a back up, and wait to see if Apple start to issue replacements for my serial number.
Ultimately I don't want a free replacement TC, I'd rather mine worked. I was expecting a better service, at least an attempt to make me feel like this was out of the ordinary, or they were concerned about me buying more Apple products in the future.... I was also expecting a server grade HD to last more than two years.....
Anyway, stepping off my soap box..... If anyone has any suggestions how I can get this going, or what the cause might be please before I try and retrieve the data myself.
Thanks!

I had the same problem while doing a backup. My Capsule is a 2008 model, but an "818" in the serial number so it's not part of the recall.
THIS IS HOW I RETREIVED MY DATA FROM MY DEAD TIME CAPSULE:
Put time capsule in Zip-lock freezer bag and suck all the air out of the bag using a straw.
Put time capsule into deep freezer for a few hours. (the zip lock is to stop/reduce humidity on the electronics inside the capsule)
Remove from freezer, cross your fingers and plug it in.
On mine, after the solid yellow light went out, there was loud fans and lots of noise. Let it boot for a couple minutes and either connect to it wireless/ethernet and start transferring your data. Depending on how cold your freezer is (deep freeze is usually -18C/0F and house freezer is -9C/15F) will probably depend on how long the TC is up and running. Mine ran for 45min straight, then i was done transferring and left it to see if it was fully operational again. Checked back on it an hour later and the drive had stopped and the light was off...
You could even try to run it from inside the freezer as well...
GOOD LUCK!!

Explanation of solid amber light?

Hi,
i am having trouble to get Apple TV (First edition from 2007) to display a picture on my beamer. its a ASK Proxima M3 wih DVI input, resolution is XGA. My MacBookPro interfaces perfectly with the beamer. Cable is HDMI-DVI from Oehlbach.de.
When power is connected, everything seems to be fine: the white light turns on (and stays solid).
I have tried to get Apple TV switch through resolutions using menu and "+" (plus) keys.
After a couple of seconds the white light turns off - and the amber light goes on and stays solid.
What does the solid amber light mean? Documentation doesn't mention solid amber, just blinking...
Any help is appreciated. Thanks.
Matt

Hi Winston,
thanks for reply.
I haven't been able to connect the Apple TV device to any other display - I don't have any other
My beamer supports even higher resolutions and scales them down correctly. From my understanding, connecting it using a HDMI-DVI cable is the correct way.
Besides the connection and the beamer... the solid amber light is there!
I have tried it again and again, also with no display attached: just inserted the power cord, waited until the blinking amber turns solid white. Then: press and hold menu and plus. White light blinks, then turns off after a second. Release. Solid amber turns on. And stays on...
Any ideas?

Solid Amber light ????

I have my wireless network setup with a Linksys router and I have an airport express setup so that I can stream audio to my home stereo. I have hooked it up correctly (as far as I can tell) with the airport assistant and it works great - for about 2 or 3 days. Then the light goes from green to solid amber and it won't work again until I unplug the airport express and plug it back in. Any thoguhts? It's not a huge deal, but it ***** to have to reach behind the stereo and do this everytime I want to stream from iTunes. Thanks!!!!
-AV

Hi Armando,
The solid amber light means that it is completing its "startup sequence". It is not set up in WDS right? Anyways if it is solid and not working I would reset it. The link below will bring you to the Apple Tutorial on how to reset your Airport Express:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=108044
I hope that helps,
Jon

Solid Amber Light (LED) - out of nowhere.

I had a network running very well for a while, then all of a sudden, the main airport express gave a solid amber light, and now it won't reset (hard or soft).
I had:
- TW cable modem hooked up to
- main airport express
- second airport express picking up signal and sending out via ethernet to
- router, splitting to
- 2 desktops
all was running fine, now I can't get that main airport to stop with the amber light. I have tried unplugging and hard reset. I have not messed with firmware yet only because it took me a while to get that whole network together in the first place.
suggestions/help?
thanks,
-A

If plugging an ethernet cable won't help, hard/factory reset won't too, then you need to:
1- Submit a feedback to Apple at http://www.apple.com/feedback/airportexpress.html with explanation.
2- Call/Visit Apple to explain the problem hopefully they know the common issue that everyone's having these days and get you another one for free or even fix it.
References:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2031252&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2022396&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1979687&tstart=60
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2035806&tstart=0
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1932053&start=15&tstart=75
Have a good day.

Airport Extreme stuck on solid amber light - no response at all

I got my Airport Extreme this morning, set it up easily and was online for a few hours. I decided to set up my printer to the Airport, and when doing so - I unplugged the Airport Extreme and plugged it into a new outlet.
Now the base will only show a solid amber light, and Airport Utility says that it is unable to find any base stations.
I've tried unplugging the base, unplugging my modem, resetting the base, and nothing is working.
Can anyone help, please?
Message was edited by: tvchicklet
Message was edited by: tvchicklet

Have you tried connecting your MacBook directly, using an Ethernet cable, to one of the AEBSn's LAN port, and then, tried using the AirPort Utility to access it?
If so, and have already done multiple "hard" resets on the AEBSn, something might have gone wrong when moving the unit, possibly a voltage surge. Have you tried plugging it back into the original outlet to see if that would resolve the problem. Otherwise, if practical, you might want to take it to your nearest Apple Store to have them take a look at it.

My airport express is stuck with a solid amber light.

I have reset via hard reset instructions and also factory default by holding in the reset button while plugging in the device. My internet connection works fine when I hard wire connect it to my mac but airport utility will not recognize the airport express

My AirPort Express is stuck with a solid amber light.
If that is the case, and several tries at a Factory Default Reset have not been able to free up the lockup, then it is unfortunately likely that the AirPort Express has experienced an internal electronic component failure and will need to be replaced.

Airport extreme doesn't restart, solid amber light

Hi!
I tried to update my airport extreme's firmware and now it doesn't restart. The LED shows a solid amber light, and airport utility doesn't find it.
What can I do?
Thank you very much

alzheimer78 wrote:
Hi!
I tried to update my airport extreme's firmware and now it doesn't restart. The LED shows a solid amber light, and airport utility doesn't find it.
What can I do?
Thank you very much
hola alzheimer78 !
try a +factory restore+ by pulling the unit from power and inserting a paperclip or pointy object into the reset button at the back of the extreme. keep the button pressed while you put the plug back into the outlet. wait until the extreme starts flashing amber rapidly (5-10 seconds) then release the button.
does that work ?

Time Machine not displaying backups of mounted /Users

Bottom Line: Time Machine 'Warp' GUI does not display available backups when using Finder to browser user directories stored on HDD, mounted on /Users in /etc/fstab, even though the backups exist and I can navigate to them from the Finder to the backup disk
Machine Config:
1. OS X Lion 10.8.5 on MBP 2.53 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo running on a SSD as the OS X boot drive, and the OEM HDD in a drive tray in what used to be the superdrive bay.
2. The HDD is a single partition dedicated to Users and mounted to /Users. When unmounted, the SSD has a /Users dir with a single admin-enabled user still present to ensure I can still boot and log in as that user in the event the HDD does not mount.
3. The /Users dir mounts successfully using /etc/fstab
4. The HDD still displays in the Finder window and the desktop, which is not a problem for me
I've posted a work-around at http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/mlanham/currEvents.shtml that explains I can, inside the TM restore GUI (what I've heard called 'warp' and 'space') select the machine label under the Devices list in Finder (on the left side). I can then expand folders without double clicking them, and get TM to restore the file(s)...TM sees the backups as present and available and functions as I would expect.
However, when I select a labeled location (e.g. Google Drive, Downloads) under the Favorites label, still inside the TM restore GUI, all the backups are black and do not otherwise indicate they are present for restore actions.
I thought I read a blurd somewhere warning me of this situation, but I cannot find the blurb anymore--surely I'm not the only one to have experienced this. Has anyone else experienced it? Overcome it?
More importantly, I am interested in knowning if this is 'as designed' behavior or a bug in TM's GUI presentation. Why should TM care if a dir is a mounted partition or not...if it was present during backup, and present during a restore request, it should render the available backups as available to select. Not make me do a work around.

Earlier, I posted that the OP in https://discussions.apple.com/message/8182305#8182305 resolved this situation by making a softlink from SSD /Users to HDD's /Users and removing the entry from /etc/fstab. Initially, I thought this was a bad idea, as if the HDD fails to spin up and mount to /Volumes, that the system would fail to boot as it would not find a /Users directory available.
Then I read a different post that implied that if that happens, simply boot to single user mode and fix the trouble with the HDD.
Is this soft-link + boot to single user mode a better choice than /etc/fstab to mount the HDD to /Users (where the SDD has a non-empty /Users with a single admin-enabled user in it)?

Time machine only displays my desktop folder

When I enter Time Machine, I want to be able to move back in time and browse my ENTIRE COMPUTER in the past - - - including the top level of my internal hard disk and see all files and folders on it.
However TM only displays list views of my desktop folde and will show me this desktop folder back in time as if that was the ONLY folder it had backed up. Even though an icon for my internal HD appears on my real time desktop, the desktop folder displayed by Time Machine does NOT include the hard drive so I have no way of browsing back anywhere but in my desktop folder. How do I change views in Time Machine so I can get to the top level of the hard drive and see all files and folders on it.
It's next to useless to ONLY be able to see an incomplete snapshot of my desktop folder.

Steve Holton wrote:
If the sidebar is hidden when you enter TM, you can still navigate. The "see the location of the current folder" icon (the one just to the left of the 'i' info icon will show you the folder hierarchy up to you machine name.
You mean the "Path" icon? (which is not one of the defaults).
As with the sidebar, that works IF you have a toolbar in the Finder window, and IF it has the proper icons. As with the sidebar, once you're in TM without it, you can't make it (or new icons) appear.

HT203177 My time machine wont back up - it comes up with 'the back up disk is unavailable' - can you please tell me how to resolve this?

I have just bought mac OSX 10.8.4 macbook air -
My time machine is saying 'the back up disk is not available' - I do not have a disk... how can I sort this problem so I am backed up..??

You cannot back up unless you have an external hard drive to back up to!

HT203177 My Time Machine is displaying a solid amber light.

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