Time Machine (Snow Leopard) not appearing in Migration Assistant (Lion)

Hi there,
I have an iMac that was running Snow Leopard with a Time Machine backup on a 1TB Iomega USB2 Ext HDD.
I just Erased and Installed Lion onto the iMac, expecting to use Migration Assistant to restore my files. However, Migration Assistant does not recognise my Time Machine Ext HDD, only the iMac's HDD, and it keeps searching for other computers.
The Ext HDD is there in Finder, and I can copy files to and from it... it just won't appear in Migration Assistant. I've patched Lion to 10.7.1, but that doesn't help.
I've read elsewhere about a Snow Leopard patch, but that doesn't seem to apply for Ext HDDs, only for backups from other computers.
I can copy things over manually, but was hoping to avoid it. Besdies taking a while, I'm not entirely sure how to restore all my iPhone data to iTunes and the like.
Any one got any advice?
Thanks.

It seems that
in order for Mac OS X to realize that it's a Time Machine drive, there should be an invisible "flag file" (0 bytes in size) at the root of the drive, called com.apple.timemachine.supported - if this file is missing for some reason, Migration Assistant won't pick it up.
not sure that it's true but worth trying.

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Time Machine external drive not displayed in Migration Assistant

I have been suffering repeated lockups with my iMac, so I decided to bite the bullet and reformat the drive and restore from a Time Machine backup. I have been backing up to an external USB drive, not a Time Capsule. It seemed to be working fine and I have successfully restored the occasional file. However, having reinstalled Lion, the external drive was not offered as a possible source for restoration. Similarly, having chosen not to restore during reinstallation, I attempted to use the Migration Assistant: once again the external drive was not offered as a source. Luckily, I also had an up-to-date cloned drive that was offered and I managed a successful restore.
Can anyone explain why the external drive was not available as a legitimate source? Must I always use a Time Capsule for a full recovery?

It seems that
in order for Mac OS X to realize that it's a Time Machine drive, there should be an invisible "flag file" (0 bytes in size) at the root of the drive, called com.apple.timemachine.supported - if this file is missing for some reason, Migration Assistant won't pick it up.
not sure that it's true but worth trying.

I replaced the original hdd in my early 2008 iMac. I can't move my files that were backed up with Time Machine to my new hdd using Migration Assistant. When prompted to select the "from drive", the ext. hhd does not appears as a selection. Please help!!

I replaced the original hdd in my early 2008 iMac. I can't move my files that were backed up with Time Machine to my new hdd using Migration Assistant. When prompted to select the "from drive", the ext. hhd does not appears as a selection. Please help!!

I'd recommend staring over, Pondini has created an excellent guide on how to use Setup Assistant. I'd recommend begin reading Pondini Setup Assistant tips where he talks about "Second Chance." Assuming your Time Machine backup is sound the restore should be very smooth.
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Hi all,
I have a new NAS server (Netgear ReadyNAS) and have configured my Snow Leopard MBP to use it for its Time Machine backups.
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This happens as normal for about a week or so, until the following error appears:
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Let me know if is all ok.
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Just the last addition to my question.
The modifications of the access rights took very, very long. In the end I cancelled the process.
Nevertheless, time machine now works correctly. As far as I can see it.
If annybody runs into similar problems. The solution is I think just to modify the access rights on the back-up volume to read and write access for everyone.
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Hello,
I used Time Machine towards the end of 2007 on an external SATA HD through USB 2.0. I would frequently turn it on and let it do its thing and shut it off. One day I attempted to use Time Machine and it did not mount on my desktop. I've been searching around trying to discover a solution to this problem without any success. The HD does not show up in Disk Utility nor does it show up in XP when it is connected to my mobo with SATA. I did manage to see it under "Disk Management" in XP but was unable to assign it a drive letter. It showed the amount of space used but other than that I haven't been able to get it to work. I have since purchased a larger HD for time machine and all I really want to do is transfer over the contents of the currently non-working HD to the new HD and then format the old one. I'm asking around to see if any of my friends have an external SATA enclosure so I can find out if it is the enclosure or the HD but in the mean time is there anything I can do in Leopard (or Windows XP) to find out if the information is on the HD or if the HD is damaged?

I am sorry - I simply do not understand your instructions!
I have 2 Time Capsules and have been using both. However a few days ago they quit working. I have had to turn off Time Machine because I am getting hourly alerts that back-up failed because there is not enough space. It does not delete old backups to provide additional space. I am willing to erase both to try to get them working again but I cannot figure out how to erase and setup the drives. Hence I turned Time Machine off.
There is nothing wrong with the MBP internal hard drive. "Sparse bundle" is total Greek to me! My wifi network appears to be working properly. The internal HD is mounted in Disk Utilities and verified as working properly. I am a long time user of Apple but I am still a novice (Level 1)!
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Would suggest a Bootable Clone Backup of your current Snow Leopard Drive...
On another External Hard Drive...
By far the easiest way to make such a Backup, is to use something like
SuperDuper http://www.shirt-pocket.com/
or CCC http://www.bombich.com/
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you will NOT LOSE ANYTHING.
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Also, Check here for compatibility of 3rd party Software you may be using...
http://roaringapps.com/apps:table

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When you start up your MBP you will be in Setup Assistant. After several screens of information about yourself, you will be prompted to "Migrate". Choose "from a Time Machine Backup".

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Hello all,
I'm in need of some help.
Long story short, I just wiped out my Macbook Pro running 10.6.2...everything is fine.
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Leifericson wrote:
Hello all,
I'm in need of some help.
Long story short, I just wiped out my Macbook Pro running 10.6.2...everything is fine.
I want to restore my computer using a time machine backup I did just prior to deleting the drive. The problem is, I can;t find my snow leopard disk. All I could find were the original disks that came with the computer. My question is, when I use that DVD to do the time machine restore, will my computer be restored back to Leopard, or will it remain in Snow Leopard like before. (The restore disks are from Leopard)
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Gbird

Thank you so much. This helped!

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Sam.

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Ok, this looks liuke the place.
iMac Intel 10.6.8
time machine back up on ext Hard drive
Clean install Snow Leopard 10.6 from disc.
Software upgrades run (to get from 10.6 to 10.6.8).
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Date of restore selected.
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2 1/2 hours later...NOTHING!!!
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I followed the instructions to the tee.
Really I'm open to suggestions

I don't know what instructions you're following, but the definitive version is here: http://pondini.org/TM/14.html
Wipe the drive again using DU from the installer, then from the same Utilities menu click the "Restore System From Backup" item.

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Hi,
I made a clean install of lion on my mac, and have an external hd with time machine from my old snow leopard.
Can I use that same hard drive for lion, and keep the old snow leopard backups ?
Many thanks!

Let me know if is all ok.
Regards,
Giuseppe Pignataro

Time Machine (Snow Leopard) not appearing in Migration Assistant (Lion)

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