Time capsule as a repeater in a mixed PC/Mac environment

Hello all,
I have a mixed environment network that has a Sonicwall TZ 200w as their main router. I would like to enhance the wifi signal either with an Access Point or some type of Repeater. Furthermore, I am looking for a NAS device for all the PCs and Macs. I figure since this is a mixed Win/Mac environment, that Time Capsule might be best since their preference is Apple.Has anyone ever 1) configured Time Capsule in a mixed Win/Mac environment as a Repeater? 2) Do Windows PCs get flustered with Wifi/Nas backups? Is there an alternative option?
The main thing here is that the Sonicwall must stay as the primary router for the network and that any device must support PC and Mac.

TC cannot repeat from non-apple router. Although that is not quite true WDS is so bad and so insecure you would never in a million years do it. if you have a security router like Sonicwall.
It would be like building a castle with a moat and the drawbridge can never be pulled up or the gate shut.
If you setup the TC in bridge and as an AP plugged into the sonic wall by ethernet.. that will work fine. You can setup a roaming wireless network.. which works well on Macs but generally PC fail totally. That is only relevant to laptops and portable devices though.
PC will be able to use the TC as a backup target.. it is not ideal and you will generally need to play around a bit but it does work.
You should note.. a TC is not a NAS.. it is primarily designed as a backup target for Mac Laptops with Time Machine. That is why the combo of wireless plus hard disk.
It is a dumb box.. really a hard drive hanging off a wireless router.. (only it is inside it.. well sealed inside).
It is slow.. fast enough for wireless clients.. but it is a single green drive.. no raid to mirror.. no esata or way to extend the drive.. no JBOD .. when it runs out of space.. it is out of space.
But principally there is no internal backup.. as a place to store files.. it stinks.. you will have to setup a manual backup.
If you want a NAS buy a NAS and plug it into the fastest router point you have.
To extend wireless use a proper repeater if you have to.. repeaters are never a great idea.. it is much better to use multiple AP's tied back by ethernet.
Cost wise the TC is very hard to beat if it suits your function.. but it has a short lifespan.. do not trust it after 3 years. It is sealed.. if it dies in warranty it is replaced.. no data will be recovered.. after all .. it is a backup device.. there are no parts available to fix it.. power supply being the chief thing that goes wrong.
Read in google a bit.. dead time capsule
You will see what I mean.

Similar Messages

Can time capsule be configured to back up mixed pc mac networks?

Can time capsule be configured to back up mixed mac/pc networks?

That may work, but there are complications to putting Time Machine backups and other data on the TC's internal HD. See #Q3 in Using Time Machine with a Time Capsule for details and some workarounds.

I have a Time Capsule with 2tb of storage, and an I-Mac with 500Gb. (which is at capacity) Can I use the Time Capsule to store data in addition to backing up the hard drive?

I have a Time Capsule with 2tb of storage, and an I-Mac with 500Gb. (which is at capacity) Can I use the Time Capsule to store data from my hard drive that I want to access later in addition to backing up the hard drive?

Can I use the Time Capsule to store data from my hard drive that I want to access later in addition to backing up the hard drive?
Yes, but if you move the "original" data on your iMac to the Time Capsule....then the "original" data is now on the Time Capsule disk.
When...not if...the Time Capsule disk has a problem, you have no backups for this data.
Perhaps a much safer plan might be to add an external hard drive attached directly to your iMac. Then, move the data to that drive from the iMac.
Now, Time Machine will back up both your iMac and the external hard drive so you have "originals" on one drive and backups on another. Would that plan work for you?

Time Capsule. Can I back up 2 different macs? What do I have to do.

Time Capsule. Can I back up 2 different macs? What do I have to do.
I want to be able to back up 2 mac. Both have about 70gs of stuff and I have a 1 tb drive. So that should be no problem. I have the time capsule already set-up wireless.
Do I have to make 2 folders? One for each computer? If so how do I do this.
Any help would be great.
I just do want to have to do a restore and get all of my daughters stuff on my mac.
Thanks

Just set them both up, via #Q1 in the Using TIME MACHINE with a TIME CAPSULE *User Tip,* also at the top of this forum.
Time Machine will make a separate +sparse bundle disk image+ for each Mac's backups.
As noted, it will be much faster to do the initial setup and first backup while connected via Ethernet, if at all possible. So your best bet will be to set up one, and let it's first backup complete, before setting-up the second.

Airport express as network extension for a time capsule lose connection repeatedly

Hello,
I boght recently two airport express in order to extent my timecapsule wifi. Installation as a network extension was no problem thanks airport software.
But both AP express repeatedly lose connection, sometimes after hours, sometimes after some minutes, even if they are just a few meters away from the time capsule.
What is the reason and what can I do to avoid this annoyingly behaviour?
Thanks for helping!

Hi - it can be used as an wired or wireless extender of your time capsule network or it can just join the network wirelessly and provide a remote ethernet connection - in all cases the USB port can be used for a printer only.

Time Capsule as a NAS in a mixed (Mac/PC) network

Hi, I'm looking for a good NAS solution for a network of 3 PCs (WinXP Pro and Home) and 4 Macs (all 10.4.11) and thought that the Time Capsule might offer a good opportunity. I want to make it easy for everyone to back up often, and a decent NAS is much cheaper than buying a bunch of external drives for 5 people.
I have a router (not gigabit, with 802.11g), and am thinking that I should just connect the TC to the router via Cat5e to simplify things.
Has anyone been through this experience? How does the TC work in a PC system? Can I just assign a drive to it and off I go? Has it been reliable?
Thanks!
Keith.

I have a TC in a mixed Mac/PC network and it's working wonderfully. Just a few things to keep in mind:
Make sure to set the Workgroup in your File Sharing section of AirPort Utility. Be sure to type the same workgroup that your PCs are members of and you should be able to see the Time Capsule's disk drive as a networked drive. You might have to add your Time Capsule's network to the list of trusted zones/networks in your PC's software firewall settings. If that doesn't work, you could always install AirPort Utility for Windows from the TC install disc which will have AirPort Base Station Agent. This is a program that loads into the taskbar and allows you to connect to your Time Capsule's disk drive.
The other thing to remember, if you are connecting one router to another, set the second router to run in bridge mode and give them both a unique SSID. This allows the first router to do all the DHCP and NAT, and will just add a secondary wireless access point to your current network. I have my TC acting as my main router with a Linksys running in bridge mode. My TC is wireless-n only 5 GHz, and the Linksys is b/g 2.4 GHz, giving me a full speed N network while still allowing b/g devices to connect.
Edit: You could also disable wireless routing on the Time Capsule entirely and just have it act as a networked drive. Set the Time Capsule's Connection Sharing to Off (Bridge Mode) in AirPort Utility and disable Wireless Mode. AFAIK this should still allow the Time Capsule's HDD to be accessed from whichever network it is connected.
Try reading this pdf from Apple. It explains networking in a lot greater detail.
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/DesigningAirPort_Networks10.5-Windows.pdf

Time Capsule for iPad/iPhone storage instead of PC/Mac

Can you use your time capsule to back up Ipad, Iphone, Mini, etc. if you have two separate Apple ID's (husband/wife) without backing up to PC/Mac first? In other words, I would like to download all my photos, movies, etc. to the Capsule and be able to bring it up whenever I need (home or away) on my device and will it store separate Apple ID's so the wife can do the same? I know this sounds very cloudish, but it is different.

TC cannot repeat from non-apple router. Although that is not quite true WDS is so bad and so insecure you would never in a million years do it. if you have a security router like Sonicwall.
It would be like building a castle with a moat and the drawbridge can never be pulled up or the gate shut.
If you setup the TC in bridge and as an AP plugged into the sonic wall by ethernet.. that will work fine. You can setup a roaming wireless network.. which works well on Macs but generally PC fail totally. That is only relevant to laptops and portable devices though.
PC will be able to use the TC as a backup target.. it is not ideal and you will generally need to play around a bit but it does work.
You should note.. a TC is not a NAS.. it is primarily designed as a backup target for Mac Laptops with Time Machine. That is why the combo of wireless plus hard disk.
It is a dumb box.. really a hard drive hanging off a wireless router.. (only it is inside it.. well sealed inside).
It is slow.. fast enough for wireless clients.. but it is a single green drive.. no raid to mirror.. no esata or way to extend the drive.. no JBOD .. when it runs out of space.. it is out of space.
But principally there is no internal backup.. as a place to store files.. it stinks.. you will have to setup a manual backup.
If you want a NAS buy a NAS and plug it into the fastest router point you have.
To extend wireless use a proper repeater if you have to.. repeaters are never a great idea.. it is much better to use multiple AP's tied back by ethernet.
Cost wise the TC is very hard to beat if it suits your function.. but it has a short lifespan.. do not trust it after 3 years. It is sealed.. if it dies in warranty it is replaced.. no data will be recovered.. after all .. it is a backup device.. there are no parts available to fix it.. power supply being the chief thing that goes wrong.
Read in google a bit.. dead time capsule
You will see what I mean.

Time Capsule Installation on VMware Fusion Windows xp and Mac 10.5.2 sides

I've got the Time Capsule w/ time machine working on the Mac side of my laptop, and yet am avoiding a second attempt to load / install the same on my XP side due to the first time I tried, it didn't work and I had to go back and re-install it on the Mac side.
I'm assuming that the currently working 'Time Machine' is only able to see and back-up, via the Time Capsule, the Mac side of the hard drive? Although, if it sees the whole drive, both XP and OSX sides, then all is good, and my windows based data is being backed-up.
Maybe the Time Capsule can only work with windows as an external drive,
and yet hoping it can also work as a semi automatic back-up disk.
Appreciate any insight, advise and/or references to material that would help.
Thanks

I asked this very question on another forum, as I had received differing answers previously. Here is the link to my question and to the answers I received, which seem pretty dispositive. http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=5305380#post5305380
As you will see, the short answer is that the Win side is not being backed up, but how you should configure your TM backups of your Mac side depend on whether or not you first partitioned with Boot Camp and then installed VM Fusion, or whether you installed Fusion without Boot Camp. (I now use Windows Live OneCare to back up the Win side to the TC, although configuring it to work with TC was a nightmare I care not to have ever to repeat.)

Hello, how would I go about using my time capsule as an external hard drive for my Mac book pro?

Anybody know if I can use my time capsule as an external hard drive for Mac book pro?

Just recognise the following.
Store files on the TC.
https://discussions.apple.com/message/24380694#24380694
This is asked several times a day.. obviously people are struggling with their latest SSD being too small.
The TC is not suitable for network file server.. but many people having no choice press it into service as such.
It cannot be partitioned. It was and is and ever shall be a backup device for Time Machine.
Major issues.
1. No backup.. no way Time Machine can backup a network drive. No place to backup to.. So all your files will be at risk. And you will need to buy a third party like CCC to do backup.
2. The TC cannot be partitioned and mixing TM backups and data is not great.
3. The drive is slow to spin up and quick to spin down.. there is no controls.
4. iPhoto in particular can easily corrupt its entire library with wireless networking causing a disconnection to one photo. Even if you do this;;; do not move your photo library... you have been warned!!
5. iTunes will constantly lose connection to the library. The disk is too slow to respond.. itunes on the computer will constantly spit out errors. Even in the midst of streaming the TC can spin down the disk due to caching.
6. Do not use any live files on the TC no matter what else you do.. if you edit files in whatever program the file must be on the local hard disk.
7. The only suitable location for most libraries is a computer. You can plug in an external hard disk.
Read pondini for some work arounds.
Q3 here. http://pondini.org/TM/Time_Capsule.html

How do I setup my time capsule to be a hard drive for two macs?

I basically want to be able to use my time capsule as a hard drive for both my imac and macbook pro to save storage on both but obviously to have access to everything on both machines. How do I set this up?
Thanks.

I would recommend you use an excellent backup App that is capable of doing what you want, such as "Carbon Copy Cloner" or "Superduper".
http://www.bombich.com/download.html
http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/13803/superduper!
Hope this helps

Can I use the Airport Time Capsule Wirelessly without being connected to my router/mac by ethernet?

Hey
I've recently bought a 3TB Airport Time Capsule, with the sole intention of being able to perform wireless backups.
Is it possible to perform these wireless backups without being connected by ethernet to my modem/existing router? I don't want to use the time capsule as a replacement for my existing router (at this stage) - just for wireless backups of my Macs.
If this is not possible, or practicable, are there other alternatives that I should explore? (non-cloud)
Thanks in advance
Steven
PS
Boring background:
I'm in a rental property with a woefully inadequate number of plugs in practical places. In addition there is only one phone socket. The result being insufficient safe space to have the existing router, and the Airport TC along with the existing electrical items.

Unfortunately, Apple designed the Time Capsule to connect to a modem or modem/router using an Ethernet connection.
If you do this, you do have the option of turning off the wireless on the Time Capsule and using your existing wireless for backups. Backups will be automatic this way, in the background. The Time Capsule could be located anywhere an Ethernet cable will reach.....up to 300+ feet or about 100 meters.
The other option.....not recommended and not convenient at all.....is to set up the Time Capsule......without an Ethernet connection and then have the Time Capsule provide a wireless network that would not have Internet access.
So, when you wanted to back up, you would have to manually "switch" to the Time Capsule network for that process, then once the backup was done, manually "switch" back again to your normal wireless network for normal operations. A real mess, not to mention the possibility of wireless interference between the networks that may create other issues.

Time Capsule no longer backing up either of my Macs

I have two Macs. A MacBook Pro and and iMac. The MacBook Pro is a replacement of an older MacBook Pro. Both were backing up fine for two years prior to my replacing the MacBook Pro. The new MBP has not backed up since I incorrectly chose "Create a new backup" when I first brought it home. Now it thinks that it is a third Mac to backup, and there is not enough space on the TC. iMac had been continuing to backup fine on TC. Yesterday though, on the iMac I moved around a ton of files (while organizing) including emptying a folder that was on my iMac desktop that contained hundreds of files, videos, etc... and moving those files to my Documents, Photos, Movies folders in my Home folder. Since I did that the TC will not back up the iMac either. So now I have two Macs and TC will not back up either. In both cases I get the message that TC does not have enough space to backup the computer. I have no idea what to do next. Is there a way to start over and erase the entire TC? Is that the best course of action now? If so, is there a place where that process is explained step by step in non-technical terms? I have no idea what bundled files means, sparse this or that, etc... Thanks.

Between having a whole extra sparse bundle, and moving lots of things around so Time Machine backed-them up again, yes, you've no doubt filled-up your TC.
First, turn Time Machine OFF on both Macs.
The simple solution is to just erase the TC and start over. See To erase everything on the Time Capsule’s internal disk in #Q5 of Using Time Machine with a Time Capsule. Connect one Mac at a time to the TC via Ethernet (1-3 times faster than WIFI) for the first backup.
For something a bit less drastic, but more tedious, connect the iMac via Ethernet (same reason), and do the following;
Delete the sparse bundle for the old MacBookPro, via the Finder. See To delete all the backups for one Mac in the above article.
For the data you rearranged on the iMac, delete all backups made of it in the old location, per #12 in Time Machine - Frequently Asked Questions.
In addition, consider the size of your TC vs. the size of the data on your Macs. If the TC isn't well over twice the size of the total used on both Macs, your best bet might be to connect a USB drive to the TC's USB port. Continue backing-up one Mac to the TC's internal HD, but back the other one up to the USB drive.

Using Time Capsule as a common hard drive for 8 macs.

Can anyone help? We are currently using Dropbox's expensive 1,000 GB annual service at our English school, in order to maintain common materials, development, etc folders that remain in sync.
Too expen but not bad. We really just need to maintain one key folder(with multiple sub-folders) that is available to all macs that access our wi-fi network.
Our existing set up is the old airport extreme, no central physical HD. Folder kept in syn via Dropbox. Works well apart from when a full folder gets shifted, then all macs can be set a spinning.
We don't need a backup facility. Will do nightly file backups to portable HD from one of the synced machines.
Were thinking of using a mac mini as a server, but set up looks beyond our capabilities. OTT for a simple shared folder. No shared applications.
Thanks

The Time Capsule (TC) has the option to "join an existing wireless network." Configured this way, the TC will perform as a wireless client that you will be able to access for backups when connected to your wireless network.
To set up the TC as a "Wireless Client," using the AirPort Utility, either connect to the TC's wireless network or temporarily connect your computer directly (using an Ethernet cable) to an available LAN port of the TC, and then, try these settings:
o AirPort Utility > Manual Setup > AirPort > Wireless tab
o Wireless Mode: Join a wireless network
o Network Name: <type in the network name/SSID of the wireless network that you want to join or select it from the pop-up menu>
o Wireless Security: <Select the appropriate level of security for the existing wireless network>
o Password: <enter your wireless network security password>
o Verify Password: <re-enter the same security password>
o Click Update to write the new settings to the TC.

Time Capsule disk not visible in Back to My Mac

Hi,
I've seen this problem couple of times already in questions of other people, but there might be sort of a difference in my situation, and therefore I'm starting this new thread. My situation is following:
- I set up a new Time Capsule at my home, both as a shared disk and as an WiFi access point for my home network
- I can see the shared disk from all my computers at my home (in the sidebar of Finder, i.e. using Bonjour)
- I want to see the shared disk also from my work (using Back to My Mac), and therefore I set my MobileMe login in the Time Capsule (using AirPort Utility -> Advanced -> MobileMe)
- ... but I don't see the Time Capsule shared disk from my home :-( (i.e. it doesn't appear in the Finder sidebar of my work computer)
- now I guess I could get plenty of hints about bad NAT, firewalls, etc., but this is an important think:
- I don't see the Time Capsule from my work computer, but at the same time I DO see my home computer which is connected by this Time Capsule
- ... so I'd say all the NAT stuff is OK, is it not?
- so to summarise it: I've got Back to My Mac turned on on both my computers - at home and at work; I've got MobileMe login filled in in the Time Capsule at home (plus disk sharing is enabled, protected by a password); the home computer is connected to the Internet through that home Time Capsule; and from my work I CAN see the shared disk of my home computer, but I CANNOT se the shared disk of the home Time Capsule (which is in the very same network as the home computer)
- the technicalities are: TC firmware 7.5.2, AirPort Utility 5.5.2, Mac OS 10.6.7 on both computers; TC Airport is in the Bridge mode, it has got a fixed IP 10.x.x.x (at home I'm connected using a metropolitan network with this internat IP range; there are no private NATs allowed, all connected devices must have a unique IP inside the whole network), and its default router is manually set to 10.y.y.y
Please can anyone tell me what can be wrong? Do I do something wrong? Is there a setting I missed? Because this http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3486 doesn't mention anything special, it's just a very intuitive setup. And if I've set everything properly, why is there the difference between the home computer and the Time Capsule?
Thanks a lot for any advice
JR

rompi,
So get this, out of the blue, I started seeing the unseen TC without doing a thing. I went through the settings after I posted on the 1st. I "cycled" the TC disc file sharing off and on and re did the back to my mac function, i.e., I deleted and added my mobile-me user names and passwords. Nothing happened at first, I could still see the TC in network, but not from the web. Two weeks past and poof, there it was and it's been there ever since. Screen sharing always worked and I could always see the mac associated with that TC, that never changed.
Go figure.
G

Configuration de la Time Capsule : comment libérer le disque de mon Mac?

Bonjour,
Ayant un Mac book de 2008 avec un disque full de photos et de musique, j’aurai voulu libérer de l’espace sur le mac en déplaçant mes bibliothèques sur une Time Capsule 2 To, et en accédant depuis mon Mac au contenu sauvegardé sur la TC.
Mes questions sont donc les suivantes :
-est-il possible de partitionner le disque de la TC pour en faire une partie disque dur et l’autre en Time machine (je sais que ce n’est pas forcément conseillé d’un point de vue « éthique de la sauvegarde », mais vu l’âge de mon Mac, je pense que le disque de la TC tiendra plus longtemps que le disque du Mac…)
- Sinon, je dispose de deux disques durs externes (200go au total), est-il préférable de les brancher sur la TC pour y placer les sauvegardes de mes bibliothèques et garder la TC en mode Time machine ? Pourrais-je ainsi accéder à mes données stockées sur les DD externes via la time capsule reliée au Mac ? Serais-je en mesure depuis mon apple TV de faire le lien jusqu’à mes données stockées dans les DD ?
Ma problématique est bien de vider le plus possible mon Mac de son contenu car je crains qu’il me lâche très bientôt…
Par avance, merci pour vos lumières !

Si le lecteur n'est même pas montrer dans l'Utilitaire de disque, il va être difficile, voire impossible, de reformater le disque. Moi aussi, je ne possédez qu'un disque Time Machine encore je fais des sauvegardes de tous mes documents - tous d'entre eux - sur DVD. Vous aurez juste besoin de remplacer le disque dur (et je ne serais pas un Western Digital - ils ne semblent pas jouer gentil avec les Macs parfois) et de commencer vos sauvegardes à nouveau.
Je ne pense pas qu'il y va y avoir de toute façon de sauver vos données. Vous pouvez continuer à essayer, mais ça sonne comme si le disque a tout simplement échoué.
Désolé,
Clinton

Time capsule as a repeater in a mixed PC/Mac environment

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