USB on 3rd generation Time Capsule-Add external HD?

Hello,
I have a Time Capsule 1TB 3rd generation that's near capacity. Can i add an external HD to the USB interface to increase it's capacity? If so, is it using RAID 0?

You can add a USB hard drive to the port on the Time Capsule and you will have another network hard drive for storage.
But, this drive will be separate from the Time Capsule drive.
The drive that you add will NOT act like it is part of the Time Capsule in any way. It is just another hard drive connected to your network.

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How to set up 6th Generation AirPort Extreme to cable modem as a wireless router and then connect my 3rd Generation Time Capsule to AirPort Extreme as a wireless extender?

What is the best way to set up my 6th Generation AirPort Extreme (A1521) to my cable modem as a wireless router and then connect my 3rd Generation Time Capsule (A1355) to my AirPort Extreme as a wireless extender? I live in a small 1 story house and I currently have the Airport Extreme connected to my cable modem in the living room and the Time Capsule plugged into the wall in my bedroom. I am able to wirelessly connect to the internet using the AirPort Extreme as my router and I can also do wireless back ups to my Time Capsule. My problem is that my connection seems to be really slow! My 1TB Time Capsule back up is only half way complete and it has been 3 days! My computer has been backing up all day and night for almost 72 hours and its still not even 75% complete. I have backed up to this Time Capsule in the past and it never took this long. I am thinking that when I set up my AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule using AirPort Utility I must have set it up incorrectly or something.
How do I set up my Airport Extreme and Time Capsule for the fastest possible internet speed and back up speed?
Thank you,

AirPort Utility 5.6 works with AirPort Extreme 802.11g base stations.
It works with N version airports.
It will also show details of the AC model but cannot be used for the setup.. mostly.
I purposely got the new 6th Gen Airport Extreme so my internet connection would be a lot faster!
Your network will be much faster when you have AC client directly connected to the AE. Older client will go no faster.. but what is worse.. extend wireless is mixing new and old wireless standards.. guess what one wins.. OLD.. So when you extend wireless.. you have no improvement whatsoever. This whole post is about extending wireless.. so you cannot extend to older equipment and do any better.. maybe slightly better signal although from your comments that isn't happening either.
I would rather not have to use an ethernet at all with the TC and I don't know EOP adapters are!
If you do not use ethernet then you are going to be forced to accept slow speed.
EOP (ethernet over power). Also called homeplug in the US.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HomePlug
Provides a method of networking over power cabling that already exists in your house.
So what your saying is for the fastest internet speed and back up speed possible I should keep my Airport Extreme plugged into my Modem and keep my TC set up as a wireless extender? Then when I want to do back ups I should plug an ethernet cable from my TC to my MacBook Pro?
To spell this out.
A wireless link to an extended device will go very slowly.. if it is not direct.
So lets say you have a laptop sitting in the lounge.. Your connection goes.. Laptop- - - - - AE- - - - -TC.
That means two wireless links.. wireless has this nasty half duplex and single channel nature.. it can send or receive (Tx or Rx) but not at the same time.
Ethernet by contrast does both at once. It is full duplex.
Wireless can talk to one client at a time.. so if there are multiple items using wireless lets say 4 devices.. then your computer gets a 25% time slice. Since wireless cannot handle multiple simultaneous connections.
Ethernet by contrast can connect multiple computers to multiple destinations at the same time.. all transmitting and receiving at full speed.
When you put all this together.. there are a couple of rules for fast connection.
1. Use ethernet at all times. Where you cannot use ethernet use anything but wireless.. eg EOP (homeplug) at least to try and get rid of wireless.
2. Where you must use wireless use it sparingly and make sure it is never more than one hop.. ie never have an extend wireless (repeater is more usual term). Repeater will cause instant slowdown of 50% and maybe up to 75% just because it is so inefficient.
3. Fastest wireless is 5ghz but it has very short range.. you need to be up close and personal to get it working.
Apple routers however unless you do manual setup I suggest are set to connect to best signal strength not best speed. It will therefore use 2.4ghz at 25% less speed than 5ghz because it is 1db better signal.. this madness means you need to setup manually for the best setup.

Can I plug a power line adapter into my 3rd generation Time Capsule?

I want to extend my network in our two-story house and want to use a power line adapter. Can I plug this Time Capsule into my router THEN plug the power line adapter into the Time Capsule? As a follow-up question, can I just use the Time Capsule as an external hard drive and connect it directly to my iMac to use Time Machine?

Yes to both questions.
Normally you would plug the EOP adapter into the router and plug the other end of the EOP adapter into a power point on the other floor and into the TC running in bridge. You would then test that it works.. we can never guarantee 100% that EOP will connect.. it depends on the power circuit wiring in the house.. type of fuse box used.. loads of stuff that can effect it.. but if it works you should have no issues with it.
To plug the TC directly into the computer is possible albeit a bit messy.
See instructions in this thread.
Using Time Capsule hardwired to Mac for back-up only.
BUT.. let me also add.. on an iMac.. I would strongly recommend you plug in an external drive.. fastest you can afford depending on model iMac you have.. if it is 2012 with USB3 the answer is made for you.. USB3 drives are cheap, fast, reliable. On 2011 you have thunderbolt which is super expensive.. but fast.. FW800 which is dead (don't tend to buy dead ducks) or USB2. USB2 is much the slowest interface. HOWEVER.. it is still faster than a TC connected by Gigabit due to Network overheads and slow disk speed in the TC. TM is more reliable backing up to local drives.
Thunderbolt hubs are getting cheaper.. and if you have thunderbolt to USB3 in a hub.. plus a USB3 drive it is about the same price as thunderbolt drive.. the advantage is all the other ports you get into the bargain.

Internal Disk Error - 3rd Generation Time Capsule

HI all,
I have read many of the discussion points relating to the "Internal Disk Error" on a Time Capsule and the need to take it to pieces, extract the drive and use DiskWarrior or similar to restore the data.
I use my TC as a backup drive, so although the data was important I didn't need to recover it. I have connected it via a caddy and erased it. The drive is perfectly viewable on my Mac via USB in the caddy.
When I have reconnected it all (correctly) in the TC and connected to it the "Internal Disk Error" remains. The TC therefore still doesnt work as a backup drive just an expensive wireless Access Point.
Any ideas, as I could really do with the drive backing up my Mac again....

The Gen3 finished production June 2011 but most are older than that. It does suggest all of them are over 2.5 years.
Do you have a computer still running 5.6 utility.. that will give you a lot more info??
Gen 3 has a bunch of faults caused by the failing ceramic caps.
See https://sites.google.com/site/lapastenague/a-deconstruction-of-routers-and-modem s/apple-time-capsule-repair/new-issue-with-a1355-gen-3-tc
The ones with Flextronics power supplies are probably more fragile than the Delta.. did yours have a black plastic coated power supply or was it translucent plastic??
That is why I suggest using it via USB as it will not load the power supply as badly.

3rd generation time capsule and an airport express.

I have the above and trying to use the airport express I removed it from the wired network to extend the wireless network. I have now managed to lose both express and time capsule. Airport utility is unable to discover either device. Please help!!!

Yes, the signal strength will be extended by the AirPort Express. The ideal location for the Express would be a point that is about half way between the Time Capsule and area that needs more wireless coverage.
The reason for this is that the Express can only "extend" the signal bandwidth that it receives. If you locate it too far from the Time Capsule, then it will not receive a strong signal to extend.

Will the USB port from the Time Capsule power an external hard drive?

I am interested in purchasing an external hard drive (Iomega 1TB Helium Portable or G-Technology 750GB G-DRIVE mobile)
to connect to my time capsule, expanding my wireless storage, but I want to know if the Time Capsule has a powered USB port or does the drive I purchase need to have its own power source? Also, Is there any compromise to using a drive that is USB powered, vs one that requires a power source?
Thanks!

Even if the hard drive that you choose has its own power supply, you usually need to use a powered USB hub with the Time Capsule.
Reason....the USB port on the Time Capsule is under powered. You should not really rely on this port to power anything except a single printer.

1st Gen Time Capsule and External Hard Drive Issues

I have a 1st generation Time Capsule and have never had any luck connecting an external hard drive (both Western Digital MyBook and Seagate FreeAgent Pro) via an USB hub for an extended period. They will connect for a few hours or up to a day or two before they lose the connection and look up the wi-fi connection (although the internet and connected printer don't seem affected). Thought it might be an issue with the powered hub, but have same issue with both (Belkin and APC). I have read that others have had similar issues.
For laughs, I connected a dinky personal drive (WD My Passpoert 750gb) to the USB hub and it came up instantly and had no issues for the 12+ hours it was connected. Question #1: can I run a portable drive for an extended period of time (weeks, months, years) via USB hub without killing it?
Also, I would like to house my large iTunes and iPhoto libraries to be accessed by 3 different MacBooks. Question #2: is a NAS drive connected directly via ethernet to the TC is the best answer?
I am spoiled by the simplicity of the plug-and-play connectivity of Apple products. Is there a mysterious sequence of procedures that I need to follow to get the Time Capsule to play well with the USB connected HDs?
Thanks in advance for your help.

To answer the general question, a drive that is constantly spinning is both more likely to be damaged and less likely to give issues of access to the USB.. the one fights the other. Feel the small passport drive and see if it is continually spinning.. if so that could account for it maintaining connection.. although according to your testing 12hrs is not long enough to know for sure. Feel the other drives. If they spin down and then when you try to access them, do they spin up? Or is it the spin down time that dictates the time they are available on the network. It may simply be a case of usb connected to a router is not getting the correct spin up info.
IMHO a NAS is the right way to do this.. especially if you have multiple computers accessing it. USB is not a fast connection. Especially hanging off the TC series 1, were not renowned for speed. A NAS is not that expensive now and using a mirrored raid you at least have some protection. Remember to always have the source files in mulitple locations. A NAS can also work as an itunes server, which the TC cannot. And the connection from gigabit ethernet to sata is not made via usb.
As a secondary option.. open your series 1 TC and put in a 2TB hdd.. this is well documented.. larger sizes give trouble but the series one can easily be updated to 2TB.. remember also the power supply in a series one can go at any moment. Get ready for it, plan for it.. one day it will happen.

How do I get a 1st generation time capsule to join a wifi network?

OK, I've searched the groups but no luck. Here's my situation;
I'd like to configure a 1st generation time capsule to join a wifi network ideally with a printer attached to the USB. My set up is an iMac running 10.9.3, Airport Utility 6.3.2 and a 1st Generation TC with the latest firmware (7.6.4). I'm trying to connect it to an ADSL Wifi Modem/Router. I know a cabled connection would give better performance but want a wifi only connection as the printer is in a different room.
I've disabled the network functions (bridge mode) but I can only see wireless options to Create a Wireless Network, Extend a Wireless Network or Off, not to Join. If I try to extend I get the option to add an SSID, security & passwords but it doesn't seem like parameters to join -the drop-down doesn't list available networks to join & manually entering the main wifi network and password doesn't work.
Is my desired config even possible?
Dave

Something.....a Mac or PC will need to have a 5.x version of AirPort Utility installed on the computer.
Perform a factory default reset on the Time Capsule by powering it off for a few minutes. Then, hold in the reset button first and keep holding for an additional 10-12 seconds while you simultaneously plug the power back into the Time Capsule. Release the reset button after the hold period and allow a full minute for the Time Capsule to restart to a slow, blinking amber light.
Open up AirPort Utility on the computer, select the Time Capsule and click Manual Setup
Click the Base Station tab below the row of icons to type in a device name and password that you want to use for the Time Capsule, set Time Zone, etc.
Click the Wireless tab next to the Base Station tab
Hold down the option or Alt key while you click on the Wireless Mode setting box
Select the Join a wireless network setting
Select the name of the wireless network
Enter the password for the wireless network
Verify the password
Click Update to save the settings
Note....everything here assumes that the router that provides the wireless network is using WPA2 Personal security, which is the default setting for the Time Capsule.

Please Help - Time Capsule and External hard drive Issues

Recently, I switched from Comcast to AT&T uverse as my internet provider and I started experiencing problems.
(1) I have a 4th generation Apple Time Capsule which I am using as my router.
(2) Connected to the Apple Time Capsule - USB - is an external hard drive (not for backup with Time Machine.)
(3) I have a 2011 Macbook pro which I use to access my file on my time capsule and external hard drive.
(4) I had been using my AT&T portable Hotspot from my cell phone to get internet access on my MacBook pro from remote locations to gain access to my external hard drive which is attached to the time capsule.
(5) On August 2, 2014, I switched from Comcast to AT&T and had the AT&T turn off the router function. (I have been using the router from my apple time capsule)
(6) Under Network I switched to bridge mode.
(7) And since August 2, 2014 my time capsule has not been backup.
THE PROBLEM - I need to be able to use the hotspot function from my cell phone to gain access on the external hard drive using my MacBook Pro which I was able to do before. Now it is showing time capsule under finder but unable to connect.
Do I need to reset my Time Capsule since I have a new service provider. Everything else works fine - meaning able to get internet signal but unable to access my external hard drive and backup my time capsule. Please HELP.

(5) On August 2, 2014, I switched from Comcast to AT&T and had the AT&T turn off the router function. (I have been using the router from my apple time capsule)
(6) Under Network I switched to bridge mode.
(7) And since August 2, 2014 my time capsule has not been backup.
If you got ATT to turn off router function in their modem..
Then 6. is wrong.. You cannot have the Network switched to bridge mode..
You must have it set to dhcp and nat.
That is also why you cannot backup.. the TC is off the network.
Please change back to router mode in the TC.
Ensure the internet tab shows dhcp and you create a wireless network.
Then power down the TC... power down the ATT modem.. wait about 20min (you can try 5min.. but it might not be long enough).
Power up the ATT modem.. wait 2min for things to flash lights in de right blinkin order.. then start the TC.
Open the airport utility and make sure your TC captured the public IP and is now working as the router.
That should fix that end of it.. the hotspot end??
Tell us what happens.

Using Time Capsule as external hard drive

Hi. I have a Mac Book Pro, and external hard drive, and now, a Time Capsule. Since I don't have a Mac, all photos and music (occasional backups, etc.) have been stored on the one external hard drive. I got the Time Capsule to replace the external hard drive as primary (keeping it as secondary)–in addition to using the Time Machine.
If I'm understanding correctly, I open finder, open Shared>AirPort>Data–and then drag and drop all the files currently on the external hard drive onto this window? Is this correct? Will it COPY, and be accessibe, and not cause problems?
Will it mean, as I hope it means, that my MacBook and iPad will be able to open and use iTunes and iPhoto through this AirPort? (Instead of having to plug-in the external drive.)
I'd love to use the Time Machine as well. But can hold off, continuing to back up only occassionally, since this dual purposing may not to be advised?
Thank you for your guidance.

Will there be a problem running Time Machine in the back ground while using the Time Capsule's internal hard drive manually?
No.
Thus far, instead of using Time Machine in an automated mode, I've turned it on when I want to make a new back-up. Will it be necessary to run Time Machine in manual mode only or can I use its automated feature?
Or–I may be seeing the light–will running the two in tandem allow me to save each new back-up on both devices simultaneously, keeping both drives up to date?
I would suggest that you consider changing your backup strategy. Time Machine was designed to be an automatic "run and forget" operation that performs incremental backups of your Mac's internal hard drive. It will also backup an external hard drive attached directly to your Mac. Running it manually is not very effecient and you stand the chance of not getting a very recent (they run once an hour) backup when you need it.
For Time Machine I would suggest that you continue to use your external hard drive as is and dedicate your new Time Capsule for Time Machine backups. If you still need more external storage, you can always add additional external USB hard drives to the USB port on the Time Capsule.
Even better you will also want to include a second "full-clone" method to your backup strategy. This method will make a full copy of your Mac's internal disk drive that is bootable. Why do this? In case your Mac has a fatal hard disk crash, you can use the clone backup to boot your Mac back up and continue to use it within seconds. Without the clone backup, you would first need to install a new drive, then load a fresh copy of OS X, and then, perform a restore from Time Machine. This can take a while.
To perform these clone backups, I would recommend that you get another external USB hard drive with a capacity at least twice that of your current internal drive. I use Western Digital My Passport drives for this purpose, but any similar drive should do. To create the clone backup I would suggest using either SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner.
I would suggest that you create a new clone backup at least once a month or more often if your data is critical to you. Just connect a dedicated clone drive to any available USB port on your Mac and run the clone software to make the clone backup.

How do I print from my iPad to a USB printer on my time capsule?

I have a Mac mini, iPad 2, iPad 3rd gen, 2 iPhone 5's, and a 2TB time capsule. All running the latest versions of their respective OS's. The hp printer I got at apple is plugged into the USB port on the time capsule because I couldn't figure out how to connect it wirelessly to the time capsule. Used to have it hooked up wirelessly to my uverse router but we moved and couldn't take uverse with us. The Mac mini prints to it fine but all other devices do not see the printer. Help!

Unless it's AirPrint compatible printer - you can't I'm afraid.
Time capsule doesn't contain drivers for printer - it only passes data between client and printer, which is why you require drivers on your mac. iOS doesn't have printing drivers for each individual printers pass AirPrint (which is in a way driverless printing)
There are 3rd party tools you can use to share that printer (after it is installed on your Mac) to share out as AirPrint.
for instance:
http://netputing.com/handyprint/

My 1st Generation time capsule won't connect to the internet thru a new motorola sb6121 - get continuously flashing yellow light. Using a router in between the modem and capsule yields good but slower connection to internet. Any thoughts?

My 1st Generation time capsule won't connect to the internet thru a new motorola sb6121 - get continuously flashing yellow light. Using a router in between the modem and capsule yields good but slower connection to internet. Any thoughts?

Thanks for your response
Let me give the history - I started with an Apple Express being fed thru a D-Link EBTR 2310 cable Router from an RCA DCM315 Modem (Pure). Comcast service all the way.
Got the 1st generation TC in 2008 and merely replaced the Airport Express with the TC. Worked ok
A year or two ago I did try removing the modem and feeding the TC directly from the modem. Resulted in the same condition I have now - Continuous flashing amber on the TC. So I put the router back in the chain.
Some time later, at the recommendation of a Comcast rep, I replaced the router with (a Belkin F5D 5231) to see if speed and dropout problems would be improved. I thought it helped some at the time but now I am not so sure.
Last week I decided to see if a new modem would help with download speeds. So I got another pure cable modem (Motorola SB 6121- high on the Comcast recommended list).
Got up and running easily with Comcast help and with the modem connected directly to a computer.
Next I put the TC in the link and again could not get past the TC continuing to flash amber. Although I did get connected to the internet with this configuration I lost connection two both of my printers - one connected by USB and the other wirelessly to the TC. Again everything works fine when I put the Belkin router back in the system.
However with the router in there, the modem shows the downstream connection to be 10/100 ethernet speed. (Modem light changes color for indicating speeds.}
I have gone thru all of the combinations of powering down/ up, but all stays the same.
I can live with what I have but something still doesn’t seem right.
Thanks again

How to backup from Time Capsule to external HD?

How to set up files backup from Time Capsule to external HD?
Here is configuration: MacBook + MacAir + Time Capsule (which I use as a storage) + 2Tb WD MyPassport (USB connected to TimeCapsule)
I keep files like photos on TimeCapsule to be available by WiFi and I want to set up my Time Machine to backup picture folder from TimeCapsule to MyPassport HD.

Time Machine can't back up a network volume. You'll have to use third-party software. I don't have a specific recommendation. There is no efficient way at all to back up a Time Capsule, which is why it should only be used as a backup destination, not as a general-purpose file server.

How to backup MacBook Pro without AirPort Time Capsule or External hard drive

How to backup MacBook Pro without AirPort Time Capsule or External hard drive

This is crude but if you need a work around, just plug the USB drive directly into the iMac.. copy the files to it.. then plug it into the TC.
You also do not need to use the TC as an intermediary between your iMac and MBP.. just turn on sharing in the computer.. so you can directly copy files from one to the other.. Macs have public access directory preconfigured for each user account.
As far as mounting the TC..
In finder use Go, Connect to server.. and type.
AFP://TCname or TCipaddress
Where TCname is the actual name of the TC.. I strongly recommend you follow SMB network rules.. ie if your TC has a name like
Fred Blog's Time Capsule 2445566.
It is too long.. it has spaces and it has non-alphanumeric characters.
Shorten it to FredTC
No spaces no characters that are NOT alphanumeric.
TCIPaddress is simply the standard IP.
You can also use CIFS://TCname which according to the article forces the connection back to SMB1 rather than SMB2 which as usual is broken.
But I would definitely use AFP if possible. I cannot understand the decision to move to SMB as standard.

My Windows Laptop does not connect to my apple 4th generation time capsule can not connect to internet.

I have a HP laptop running Windows 7. I a habe a 4th generation time capsule for wireless internet. everytime my laptop restarts it will not pick up and run the internet. i have to run the trouble shooter program to get it to reconnect. Sometimes this works sometime it does not the laptop and time capsule are both up todate on all the softwhere.

Is the TC working in router or bridge mode??
Have you set SMB compatible names.. short, no spaces pure alphanumeric.. not apple names.
Have you set wireless with different name for 5ghz.. and set channels manually and tested them.
11, 6, 1 for 2.4ghz in that order. Low.. say 36 or 40 and around 150 for 5ghz.
Test with no wireless security.. is it then working.. if so, then set wpa2 personal security with a password of 10-20 characters pure alphanumeric.
On a computer /device that does work find out the following.
DNS and Gateway.
When the PC connects to the wireless does it get the right values for DNS and Gateway.. if not then the TC is either incompatible or wireless driver is not compatible.
The fact that your windows is up to date does not mean the wireless drivers are.. Intel make the worst drivers.. if the laptop has intel wireless card. Expect trouble.
Download direct from Intel the most current driver and the last 3 or 4 available.. not even the latest is a guarantee it will work.
Even if everything is right.. dns gateway.. connection.. security.. wireless channel.. it is wireless.. it can still refuse to move packets.. it is simply the nature of the beastie. Wireless is 80% voodoo still.
Buy a different wireless chipset USB stick.. or get a wireless router like a TP-Link.. very cheap, $30-50 and use it as a WAP plugged into the TC.

USB on 3rd generation Time Capsule-Add external HD?

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