I am unable to back up to external drive since loading lion

Since installing Lion my Western Digital external drive refuses to cooperate with Time Machine - any thoughts?

Attempting an update without a backup is not a very smart idea.
When was the last time the device was backed up?
What is the exact message when the backup fails?
Personally, I have found that simply ejecting the device, disconnecting then reconnecting resolves random "unable to backup" issues.

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Can time machine be used to back up one external drive to another external drive?

I use the photography program Lightroom to organize and develop digital photos. All my photos are stored on my iMac internal drive. The internal drive is almost full so I want to move my photos to a new external drive. At present, I have an external drive devoted to backing up my iMac using time machine. I have no need to change this arrangement. I would like to use a new external drive to serve as the primary location for my pictures, which I will move from the internal drive. Then I would like to backup that drive to a third external back up drive. Can time machine be used to automatically back up the second drive to the third drive as well as for continuing to provide ongoing backups to my internal drive as it is currently doing?
Thank you in advance for your assistance.

Jeffery t wrote:
Thanks for the links, but I don't see in the pondini links, the scenario I am asking about.
Time Machine can easily back up multiple internal and/or directly-connected external drives and partitions simultaneously (but Time Machine cannotback up data that's on a network).
From the first link.
Jeffery t wrote:
... Please note that my iMac internal drive is backing up to external drive number 1 using time machine. I want my pictures on external drive two and those backed up to external drive three. So are you saying that if I have 500 GB of pictures on drive number 2, I will need a third drive that is at least 1 TB?
the confusion starts in your above statement...
There should be Only One Time Machine Drive.

Can I back up an external drive and an airbook with a third drive

I would like to back up an external drive and an airbook with a third drive. This was the setup I used with my Imac. The third drive was linked to the external drive which was linked to the imac. I used time machine. Both the third drive and the external drive were visible on the desktop of the imac. Now I want to use this system to back up the airbook and the external drive, but the third drive doesn't appear on the airbook's desk top, in fact it is invisible and doesn't seem to be recognized in finder or anywhere else from the airbook. Is there some distinction that prevents the airbook from allowing this back up configuration, but that allowed the imac to work in this configuration.
Thanks,
Daviiiiiiid

Of course, always that the external drive is formatted in “Mac OS Extended (Journaled)”. Apart from that, you shouldn't have any issue,
Then, open System Preferences > Time Machine > Options, and remove the external drive from excluded items. The next backup will include your external drive.
Note that you may not be able to back up the external drive if it's connected to your Time Capsule. If it doesn't work, connect the external drive to your computer

I have lost my Safari app and all the bookmarks that go with it. I have tried to download my back-up on external drive but cannot access it. Tried a start with C key held down but still no access to the back-up app.

I have lost my Safari app and all the bookmarks that go with it. I have tried to download my back-up on external drive but cannot access it. Tried a start with C key held down but still no access to the back up app.
Have used Superduper app. to back up and checked back-up occasionally to see if all files present and appeared OK.
I had previously started machine using original CD #1 to try and replace Eudora which was acting up. Did not knowingly touch Safari.
Running iMAC System 10.4.11
How can I successfully download from the Maxtor back-up?
Ivan

Further info.
I checked the content of my other back-up and found the bookmark Bookmarks.plist in the library under Safari
Dumped the existing copy in the computer and drag-dropped the back up. All bookmarks restored.
Solved the Stickies problem by using Spotlight to find file "stickiesdatabase" and did a drag- drop to replace file. All data restored.
Re Ical data loss. Used Spotlight to find iCal document in Library - Preferences where I found com.apple.iCal.plist in folder.
Got ready to make change but did not immediately remove file. When I returned to Preferences folder to grab above document,
the readable descriptors had been changed to code consisting of some upper case letters and/or single symbols!
So now I cannot tell which is the symbol iCal.plist
Thanks for leading me so far, but how do I find that plist for my calendar?

How do I configure my timecapsule to back up an external drive connected to macbook?

How do I configure my timecapsule to back up an external drive connected to macbook?

First, insure that the external drive has been formatted in Mac OS Extended Journaled
If it's not, and you already have data on the drive, you will need to move that data to another temporary storage location....as the format to Mac OS Extended (Journaled) will erase everything on the drive. Once the drive has been formatted, move the data from the temporary storage location back to the external drive
Click the Time Machine clock icon at the top of the screen
Click Time Machine Preferences
Click Options
Click the name of the external drive to highlight it, and then click the - (minus) button at the bottom of the list to remove the drive from the list of "excluded" items for backup
The drive will now be backed up by Time Machine on the next and all subsequent backups

Cannot reinstate catalog after returning PC (Windows 7) to factory settings (because of worm infection). Catalog was backed up on external drive but not using PSE backup facility. Cannot find and *.tly file. Is this hopeless?

Cannot reinstate catalog after returning PC (Windows 7) to factory settings (because of worm infection). Catalog was backed up on external drive but not using PSE backup facility. Cannot find and *.tly file. Is this hopeless?

If you made backups of all of your photos and your catalog file using some third-party method (i.e. not using the PSE catalog backup command), then you should be able to restore everything.
Step 1. Put the photos in the EXACT SAME LOCATION as before. For example, if they were in subfolders of C:\Users\<username>\Documents, then they must go into the exact same subfolders of C:\Users\<username>\Documents.
Step 2. Move the catalog file to wherever you want it to be, and then double-click on it.

I have the 5.5 Lightroom software on my I-Mac with OS-X, 10.9.3. It seems I have lost 850 pictures I was developing. It all started when was adding a folder. A new screen came up with no photos. I went back to my external drive, trying to open the folder

I have the 5.5 Lightroom software on my I-Mac with OS-X, 10.9.3. It seems I have lost 850 pictures I was developing. It all started when was adding a folder. A new screen came up with no photos. I went back to my external drive, trying to open the folder (containing the pictures I was working on), an icon "Thumbs" came up. When I click on it, a message "can't find the application" came up, there is no picture to be found. Please help. Frustrated-George

Have you tried resetting the SMC ? > Resetting the System Management Controller (SMC)

Time Machine won't back up OWC external drive

Mac Mini running 10.8.5. Time Machine will not back up brand new OWC MiniStack external HD. I've trashed TM prefs, reformatted the TM drive, verified that there are no exclusions, but it won't back up the external HD which contains only data files -- no system, no applications. TM does back up the internal HD.

PROBLEM SOLVED.
Recap: Time Machine would not back up an external data drive despite being correctly formatted and settings correctly applied.
Problem was either: a) the Mac, b) the external data drive, c) the Time Machine drive, or d) the data.
I replaced both the external data drive (cloned) and the Time Machine drive, but Time Machine would back up that external drive either.
Finally, instead of CLONING (SuperDuper) the external data drive, I COPIED the data to a new HD -- root folder-by-folder. Now Time Machine again backs up my external hard drive.
SOLUTION: Problem was not hard drives or Mac, but within the data itself. Cloning the data simply passed on the problem to the new hard drive. For this problem, the solution was copying the data rather than cloning.
Thanks all.

Backing up 1 external drive on to 2

Hi -- I have a 400 gb external hard drive that stores my Itunes library, with about 260 gb of music on it. I want to back it up on to a 250 gb drive and an 80 gb drive. Can anyone recommend software that handles this requirement well? (e.g., like pausing when the target disk is full) Do the Mac backup utilities do it?
Ideally, it would allow for an easy restore, if that is ever necessary. Thanks. -- David

You can't back up an external drive that is connected to a TC to the TC itself using Time Machine.

TM won't back up other external drive

I have a LaCie external drive which contains all my photos and music. I have TM backing up to Time Capsule--it works fine with my iMac, but if I add the LaCie it starts backing up but never finishes. I have watched the progress bar get as far as maybe 70 out of 150 GB and then start over from 0. It will cycle like this indefinitely--I've let it run for as much as a couple of days and it never gets anywhere, no evidence of even a partial backup of the LaCie. TM basically will work only when the LaCie is excluded (I've switched back and forth a few times to prove this). Very grateful for any ideas!

PROBLEM SOLVED.
Recap: Time Machine would not back up an external data drive despite being correctly formatted and settings correctly applied.
Problem was either: a) the Mac, b) the external data drive, c) the Time Machine drive, or d) the data.
I replaced both the external data drive (cloned) and the Time Machine drive, but Time Machine would back up that external drive either.
Finally, instead of CLONING (SuperDuper) the external data drive, I COPIED the data to a new HD -- root folder-by-folder. Now Time Machine again backs up my external hard drive.
SOLUTION: Problem was not hard drives or Mac, but within the data itself. Cloning the data simply passed on the problem to the new hard drive. For this problem, the solution was copying the data rather than cloning.
Thanks all.

When using Time Machine to back up to external drive, does Time Machine back up content in your Trash folder?

When using Time Machine to back up to external drive, does Time Machine back up content in your Trash folder?

Go to System Preferences (under the Apple menu) > Time Machine and click the Options button. Click the "+" button in the lower left. In the resulting dialog, check the Show invisible items checkbox. Go to your home folder and look for Trash. Click the Exclude button in the lower right.

If I replace my old iMac with a new one can I burn DVDs on an external drive using Mountain Lion or Toast?

My 2006 iMac is getting a bit long in the tooth and I was thinking of replacing it with a new one. However, Mac have not included an optical drive and I back up my photographs on DVD as well as external hard drives. I also supply DVDs of my work to friends etc.
Will I be able to burn to an external drive using Mountain Lion or other software such as Toast? Does the burn option still exist on the new machines?

Hello,
You shouldn't have any problem, if you do just try Burn...
http://burn-osx.sourceforge.net/Pages/English/home.html

How do I format an external drive with mountain lion?

How do I format an external drive with mountain lion?

Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility
select the external drive in the left pane
partition and format in the right pane

I have an old MACBook and want to use it as an external drive to load disks on to my new mac. How do I?

I have an old MACBook and want to use it as an external drive to load disks on to my new mac. How do I?

Apple makes a Thunderbolt to Firewire adaptor if your new computer does not have a Firewire port.

Time Machine can't find external drive after installing Lion

Time Machine can't find external drive after installing Lion. I have a Laice 1 terabyte external drive that worked fine with Snow Leopard and now no show ... tried connecting it to front port and Mac Pro can't see it. Also lost Office,Quicken, and Final Cut Pro says: " You can't open application because Power PC apps are no longer supported" this is Not a good surprise!

Does the drive work when just directly connected? If so, have you prepped the drive?
Extended Hard Drive Preparation
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder. If you need to reformat your startup volume, then you must boot from your OS X Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger or Leopard.)
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the number of partitions from the dropdown menu (use 1 partition unless you wish to make more.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID (only required for Intel Macs) then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the volume(s) mount on the Desktop.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.

I am unable to back up to external drive since loading lion

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