Migration Assistant Won't Recognize "old" MBP via Fire Wire

I purchased a new MacBook: 2.16 GHz, Intel Core 2 Duo, 1 GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM, 160 gig drive
As usual when I get a new Mac, I erased the drive installed OS X.4.11-Tiger and personalized the mac.
Along the way, something odd happened. I cannot double click on any application and open it—unless—I place its alias into the dock. Then it opens.
I have run disk repair as well as permissions repair to no avail.
Want to use Migration Assistant to transfer files from my MBP to the MB. However, when I connect the Fire Wire, restart the "old" MBP with the "T" key depressed, the firewire wheel shows—but—the MB will not recognize the MBP. So, I can't transfer any data.
MBP has OS 10.4.10 while the MB has OS 10.4.11. Could this be the issue?
Anyone have any ideas as to how I can get past this?
Thanks,
Tek

I have the exact same problem. When setting up the new MacBook, I attached the firewire cable and restarted the PowerBook into target disk mode. The Firewire symbol appears on the screen but the MacBook gives the error message "There are no versions of MacOS X available on your old Mac". I wanted to test if it is a problem with the MacBook, and found that the MacBook will recognize and mount a portable firewire hard drive. Furthermore, when I tried attaching it to an intel iMac, it recognized it and was ready to import files from it. Therefore it seems that the problem is that the OS X 10.4.11 on the PowerBook is somehow 'invisible' to the MacBook migration assistant. I tried repairing permissions on the old PowerBook, but that didn't help. In the meantime I also ran software update on the MacBook, which brought it up to the very latest version of Leopard.
Could it be that the version of OS X needs to be the same on both machines? Next I am going to backup the PowerBook, then upgrade it to Leopard, then try again. I am surprised more people haven't had this problem, at least I have seen few postings about it.

Similar Messages

Migration Assistant won't recognize old computer

Hi everyone!
I recently purchased a new MBP 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7, running 10.8.3 now. I'm trying to use migration assistant do transfer my files from a MBP 2.8 GHz Interl Core 2 Duo (running 10.8.3 as well) via firewire. I've puchased a thunderbolt to firewire adapter since the new MBP is not support firewire port anymore. However, the two computer was recognized when I was using wireless transfer but not the firewire connection. The wireless transfer was estimated over 80 hrs to transfer the files. After talking with Apple Support, I was informed that the firewire will be must faster. But the two computer won't recognize each other! What did I do wrong here? Please help!

I have the exact same problem. When setting up the new MacBook, I attached the firewire cable and restarted the PowerBook into target disk mode. The Firewire symbol appears on the screen but the MacBook gives the error message "There are no versions of MacOS X available on your old Mac". I wanted to test if it is a problem with the MacBook, and found that the MacBook will recognize and mount a portable firewire hard drive. Furthermore, when I tried attaching it to an intel iMac, it recognized it and was ready to import files from it. Therefore it seems that the problem is that the OS X 10.4.11 on the PowerBook is somehow 'invisible' to the MacBook migration assistant. I tried repairing permissions on the old PowerBook, but that didn't help. In the meantime I also ran software update on the MacBook, which brought it up to the very latest version of Leopard.
Could it be that the version of OS X needs to be the same on both machines? Next I am going to backup the PowerBook, then upgrade it to Leopard, then try again. I am surprised more people haven't had this problem, at least I have seen few postings about it.

Migration Assistant Won't Recognize External Hard Drive

I have a PowerPC G5 and made a bootable backup of the computer's content to an external firewire hard drive. I tested the backup to make sure that it booted and everything was fine. So, I then did a clean install of Leopard to the machine. After the computer restarted, I reconnected my external drive and it mounted fine. However, when I went to use Migration Assistant to bring over all of my applications, it would not recognize the hard drive as an option to migrate files from.
The hard drive is formatted as Apple Partition Map, and works fine as a bootable copy. Does anyone know why Migration Assistant will not recognize it?
I recently did a clean install of Leopard on my Macbook this weekend using a different external drive with a bootable backup of the drive (GUID formatted) and then used the migration assistant to move all of my files and everything worked just fine.
I can't find any reason that I shouldn't be able to get my applications through migration assistant from the external hard drive but maybe someone knows how to fix this or of a workaround.

Very curious, indeed.
Welcome to the Apple forums where we do try to sort things out
Your delineation of the problem and comparison to your MBP is perfect.
I migrated my G5 from a second internal disk, but actually used the setup assistant when Leopard came alive.
You might see what happens if you eject your external HD and then do what you need to to connect it back (turn off/on - unplug/plug, etc.)
Are there any errors when Migration assistant runs?
It is perhaps that Spotlight is doing its thing and the drive is not available until it is indexed?
I would remove the external HD temporarily from the SpotLight indexing list and then see what happens.
I recall that there were some odd issues with external drives taking up to 1/2 hour to be recognized by Leopard, but I don't recall why.
I am not sure these things will help, but they will eliminate some of the possibilities, and when we have eliminated the probable, what is left is where the answer lies
I wonder if Leopard is confused by the external drive not being GUID?
Try this - - connect the GUID external drive to your G5 and see if Migration assistant sees it. Obviously do not migrate anything, but if you can see that one, we may have a solution.
Keep us posted.

Migration Assistant Won't Recognize My Old iBook

Well ... my brand new MacBook ... all set to move an account from my old iBook ... over ... and it won't go ...
I have followed the instructions exactly ... restarted my iBook in Target Disk Mode .... firewire attached ... and Migration Assistant says ...
"There are no versions of MacOS X available on your old Mac .....
Any suggestions .... it's not my firewire cable ... I use it all the time ... everythings hooked up right ..

I have the exact same problem. When setting up the new MacBook, I attached the firewire cable and restarted the PowerBook into target disk mode. The Firewire symbol appears on the screen but the MacBook gives the error message "There are no versions of MacOS X available on your old Mac". I wanted to test if it is a problem with the MacBook, and found that the MacBook will recognize and mount a portable firewire hard drive. Furthermore, when I tried attaching it to an intel iMac, it recognized it and was ready to import files from it. Therefore it seems that the problem is that the OS X 10.4.11 on the PowerBook is somehow 'invisible' to the MacBook migration assistant. I tried repairing permissions on the old PowerBook, but that didn't help. In the meantime I also ran software update on the MacBook, which brought it up to the very latest version of Leopard.
Could it be that the version of OS X needs to be the same on both machines? Next I am going to backup the PowerBook, then upgrade it to Leopard, then try again. I am surprised more people haven't had this problem, at least I have seen few postings about it.

Migration Assistant Won't Recognize My Backup Drive

Before swapping out my MacBook Core 2 duo Intel 2.0 GHz HDD for a spankin' new Crucial M4 SSD, I backed up everything to my external LaCie drive. After doing a clean install of Snow Leopard and updating it to 10.6.8 to my SSD I tried Migration Assistant (MA) to integrate my backups. I had my LaCie conected via firewire to the MacBook and the partitions on the drive appeared on the desktop. But when I asked MA to open the external drive, which is the middle of the 3 options offered, nothing happens except for the spinning wheel - not the beach ball but the progress wheel. And it never stops. Why can't I access the drive that shows up on the desktop?

I ran Disk Utility and "repaired" the volume that has my backup on it.There was nothing to be repaired. DU set it as a bootable volume. Migration Assistant still doesn't recognize it. Guess I'll just reinstall my old apps and drag and drop files to them.

Migration Assistant won't recognize Time Machine Backup

I recenly got my old thunderbolt-less macbook pro back from a repair and I can't seem to resotre my data. My external drive it reconized in finder, but not in Migration Assistant. I have updated to the newest OS and still nothing. I was tunning mavrics before the repair so this should be working right? Thanks for any help you can offer.

A possible reason for backups not to be available in Migration Assistant is that the computer doesn't have a name, or the name is corrupt. Open the Sharing preference pane and check the name. If you can't do that, reset the PRAM. Credit to ASC member Csnote for this observation.
Most likely, some folders were excluded from your backups as the result of a failed or aborted software installation.
Starting from a clean installation of OS X, set up a new administrator account and log in. Enter Time Machine and press the key combination shift-command-C. The front window will show all mounted volumes. All snapshots should now be accessible.* Select the one you want and navigate to your home folder (in the Users folder at the top level of the old startup volume.)
You should now be able to restore your user data. I suggest you do this in two stages. Quit all applications except the Finder before you begin.
Restore all the visible items at the top level of your home folder.
Hold down the option key and select Go ▹ Library from the Finder menu bar. Enter Time Machine and restore all items in the Library folder. Log out and log back in as soon as the restore is complete.
Any other invisible folders or files at the top level of your home folder that you want to preserve will have to be restored separately. For most users, that isn't necessary.
You'll have to reinstall all third-party applications from scratch, or restore them from another kind of backup, if you have one.
You'll have another problem if this is a new computer, or if you erased the startup volume: The next time you back up, Time Machine won't recognize any files as being the same as they were before, and will make a full copy of all files. There might not be enough space on one or more of your backup volumes for that. There are different ways of dealing with that situation, depending on your needs. The easiest way is to set your backup drives aside, if possible, until you're sure you'll no longer need the data on them, then erase them and start over. Meanwhile start a new backup on one or more empty storage devices. If that solution isn't workable for you, ask for instructions.
*If you don't see any snapshots in Time Machine, exit the time-travel view and then hold down the option key while selecting
Browse Other Backup Disks...
from the Time Machine menu, which has an icon that looks like a clock running backwards. Select the backups of your computer by its previous name. If you don't have the Time Machine menu, open the Time Machine preference pane in System Preferences and check the box marked
Show Time Machine in menu bar

Migration Assistant Won't Recognize Time Machine Back Up

My old white macbook just died. I bought a new macbook air to replace it. I am trying to use the time machine back up in migration assistant but it won't work. Since the Air doesn't have firewire I am connecting the external drive to my AirPort Extreme. It recognizes the drive but when I click to use it I get a connection error message. I tried hooking up the drive by USB but it won't mount at all. What am I doing wrong? I don't really want to do a full Time Machine restore because the Air has iLife '11 and the macbook only had iLife '10 and I don't want to have to pay for it again.

First of all, Migration Assistant is smart enough to keep the newer version of iLife.
Second, your MacBook Air came with a restore drive (a little flash drive) that has iLife on it. You don't have to purchase it again.

Migration Assistant won't recognize computers-Snow Leopard to Lion

Hello everyone-
I just bought a new Quad Core MacBook Pro that came with Lion installed. I am trying to use Migration Assistant to transfer data from my older Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro that has Snow Leopard installed. When I run Migration Assistant with the computers connected, it doesn't recognize either computer... It just sits there indefinitely acting as if it is searching but never sees either of the machines. I have tried with both computers connected via Firewire (using several different cables just to be sure the cables were good) and also with an Ethernet cable. I experience the same problem, regardless. Also, I have downloaded the Migration Assistant update for Snow Leopard, and it hasn't helped. Am I missing something obvious? Thanks in advance-

make sure that both computers are up to date
http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1420
and for your lion, it should be at least 10.7.1

Migration Assistant won't recognize my Time Capsule's sparse-bundle so I can migrate to my new iMac

Background.......
iMac (intel core duo) hard drive crashed while backing up to time capsule. Had Snow Leopard OS 10.6 (100% up-to-date)
2. Purchased new iMac with Lion. 100% updated.
3. Want to migrate from Time Capsule to new iMac
Problem.......
4. Migration Assistant does not see (recognize) my sparsebundle, message says it's "possible that it is in use." But it's not of course.
5. If I mount the Time Capsule from the Finder, I can see the sparsebundle I want to migrate. So, it present but the Migration Assistant doesn't see it!
6. Time Capsule recognizes the sparsebundle of my other Mac (#2) that backs up to the same Time Capsule
Question.......
What do I have to do to get Migration Assistant to recognize my sparsebundle so I can migrate to my new iMac?
Thanks

I finally solved the problem by disconnecting the Time Capsule ethernet cable from the internet. Then the sparsebundle suddenly appeared.

Migration Assistant doesn't recognize old iMac OSX

I just bought a new iMac 20 inch running Tiger. In the migration assistant (first initial setup), it asks if I would like to transfer files and settings from an old iMac using a FireWire cable (I do). After it prompts me, I boot my "old" iMac (PowerPC G4 running OS 10.2.8) in FireWire Target Disk Mode (pressing "T" while restarting). Then connect the FireWire cable from my old iMac to the new iMac. The migration assistant says that OSX is not installed on my "old" computer (which it is).
I've done some research on this forum about this topic. I've checked if my old Mac needs a firmware update (it doesn't). How can I fix this problem - I would really like to run the migration assistant from the get-go. Any assistance would be very appreciated. Thanks.
iMac Mac OS X (10.4.4)

One thing I don't know if it is relevant, but I found having the same username already created on my new machine when I ran the migration assistant caused it to fail.
If you haven't created anything essential on your new Mac, run the restore disks over again, and create an alternative user name:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61802
Once that is done, then try to run the Migration Assistant from the Applications -> Utilities folder, and then login the old username and delete the new one.

Migration assistant won't recognize maxtor one touch

I have a Maxtor One Touch 4, 250 GB external hard drive, used for PC backups with about 230 GB of data. I have connected it to my iMac, using the USB 2.0 interface cable, and I can see all the folders and files on the drive through Finder. I can even open them up with Office for Mac, etc. However, I want to migrate these files onto my iMac using Migration Assistant, but Migration Assistant cannot find the drive it seems. It just sits there spinning forever, and never finds the drive...dumbfounded.

Yes, that is the case. I have since run Migration Assistant from the original source PC, and they came over to my Mac successfully. But I am disappointed with a number of issues I now face: e.g. importing music files into ITunes account has resulted in duplicate songs, no playlists preserved, etc. I guess I expected more from the Migration Assistant, now I've got lots of work ahead to make sense of where all the files ended up...

Migration Assistant Won't Recognize Time Machine Disk

Hi,
I'm trying to restore a Time Machine backup using migration assistant. The backup is on a USB disk connected directly to the computer. I can open the volume and browse the files. I used Disk Utility to check the volume and it found no errors.
When I run Migration Assistant, it sees no backup disks and instead tries to search the network for other computers, even though I said I had a disk.
This is very frustrating. What am I doing wrong?
Frank

You may have been bitten by a bug we've just identified.
See #D10 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting.
If so, home folders are not affected, and there may be a way to recover them.
Post back with your results and we'll work on a recovery plan.

Migration Assistant won't see external hard drive

I have just done a clean install of Leopard onto my MacBook Pro, previously running Tiger. Now, I want to migrate my old user and programs from a backed up volume on an external firewire hard drive. The problem is that Migration Assistant won't recognize my external hard drive.
I have no other problem mounting or reading the external hard drive from leopard.
Could the problem be that the external drive has the Apple partition map instead of GUID as reported here? http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1329665
Any suggestion, solutions or work arounds are gratefully appreciated.

That isn't a valid link to your picture (it's a link to the file on your computer). You would need to post it to a serve (and remove the spaces in the name) and post that link here.
However it would appear that your short name is 'dalechristiansen' so presumably you originally created a user with that short name and your full name as.. the full name (unless it was just 'Dale'. Whatever you did before when you created your account is what you should do now. Then you can copy the equivalent folder's contents. (You might have problems replacing some of the root level folders, in which case you shuld copy their contents into the equivalent folders).

Migration Assistant won't connect to TM backup disk

Replaced 'drowned' MacBook Pro with a new one. The old one was using Time Machine to back up onto a partition of a LaCie hard drive plugged into the USB port of an Airport Extreme. Backups appeared to be fine (both on the partition involved here and the other partition on the La Cie which backed up another MacBook Pro), although no prior attempt to restore.
New MBPro arrives (this morning), is connected to the local network (ethernet) and during initial setup I try to transfer from the TM backup of the drowned predecessor. The partition appears as a TM backup disk, I click on Connect, am prompted for and give the partition password (set up through Airport Utility on a network Mac Pro), and the display screen indicates "Connecting". After 40 minutes w/o visible progress (LaCie hard drive display light shows no R/W activity), I switch selection to have no initial transfer. Register machine using same user name, AppleID and password as on 'drowned' MBP, run software update, and then Disk Utiility (repair permissions).
I then open Migration Assistant and attempt to transfer from TM backup disk (partition) again. Again the partition is recognized as a TM disk, again I am prompted for partition password, again the password is given and apparent accepted, again the display indicates "Connecting", and again after 45 minutes there is no status change.
I disconnect the MBP from the network (ethernet), disconnect the LaCie hard drive from the Airport Extreme and plug the LaCie directly into the USB port on the new MBP, open Migration Assistant, and while the Finder shows (both) partitions as hard drives, Migration Assistant does not recognize (either of) them as TM backup disks.
If it makes any difference TM on the new MBP is prompting me to select a backup disk and I have been clicking on Decide Later for fear I would overwrite the backup I need to restore from.
HELP! (and thanks in advance)

It sounds like the backups are corrupted. Try reparing the, per #A5 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting.
If that fixes them, and they're recognized by your Mac, your best bet is to start over, and use Setup Assistant. See How do I set up a new Mac from my old Mac or its backups?, and note the green "Second Chance" box there.

Migration Assistant fails to recognize a Time Machine disk (itself migrated using Disk Utility)

So I outgrow my Time Machine disk. I listen to the advice (repeated in multiple places) that one can simply use Disk Utility's Restore tab, select the old time machine disk as source and the new one as destination, and click restore to copy block-by-block, then rename the disk.
This works very well. I have indeed been able to use Time Machine on the new disk without losing any of the history.
But now I am in trouble. I am also outgrowing my MacBook disk. I put a larger disk in and install Snow Leopard from scratch. Now Migration Assistant does not recognize the new Time Machine disk (perpetually spinning wheel). Renaming the disk to the old name does not help. M.A. does recognize the old Time Machine disk, but that means manually managing the changes (and giving up on the larger TM disk). I reinstall Snow Leopard and do not miss that time the option to restore from Time Machine, but it still does not see the new Time Machine disk.
How does one convince Migration Assistant to use a Time Machine disk that duly has Backups.backupdb as a root folder and where "ignore ownership on this volume" is not set?

Thanks, Pondini, but the Time Machine disk passes the Disk Utility repairs and only the spinning wheel was visible under both the Setup Assistant and the Migration Assistant.
I now have some good news, and some bad.
First the good news: Lion's Migration Assistant offers the option to copy user (and other) files from the previous OSX disk, not just the Time Machine disk. If this option was already in Snow Leopard, then I missed it.
Now the bad news..
I spent several hours reading (Pondini's and others') suggestions to ensure that my Time Machine is as seamless as possible, namely, for the next backup to be incremental. No luck: all user data are copied. Until the interface of Time Machine stops trying so hard to shield us naive users from making decisions on our own, one idea is to keep the iPod and pictures/video collection backed-up by the straight-forward rsync. Then whether Time Machine is really incremental will not matter, and in any case a spare copy of the documents you wrote by hand is nice in case the some blocks of the disk fail.
But I may have been the one who messed it. In Preferrences \ Time Machine \ Options... I excluded all users except the user "Admin" who restored the user accounts. The idea was to test first whether the mildest user will get a full backup. It may be that Time Machine does not look in the history to see if a given file or set of files already have some copy in the past. If a file does not exist in the very last backup, it is saved to the Time Machine disk.
If you're reading this and are keen on an incremental backup, try this: restore your user accounts using a user Admin, but do not start to backup until after the accounts are restored. Will the backup afterwards be incremental?

Migration Assistant Won't Recognize "old" MBP via Fire Wire

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for