Use Mac Mini as external drive

Hi. I'm considering a setup whereby I combine my Mac Mini with the new MacBook Air. I would use the MacBook Air "most" of the time, but I need a computer that works as both (a) a computing backup in case the MBA gets lost/stolen, and (b) can perform as an external drive when I am at home. Is this possible?

That is true, so you'd be limited to using a USB to Ethernet adapter and connecting as previously discussed or transferring your data via a Wireless network connection. Frankly both are not optimal. You'd be better off getting a decent USB 2.0 external hard drive. With an external you could also use time machine (or your preferred backup method) from the Mini to back it up as well.

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Using Mac mini as External Hard Drive for time machine

I know this can be done but I am not sure how. How can I set up a mac mini as an external hard drive. Can this be used as a drive for time machine?? Any help is appreciated, Thank you.

Personal file sharing (which may require Leopard on the Mini) or by connecting the Mini to your other Mac via Target Disk Mode. I wouldn't recommend that latter, though; too much chance of inadvertently erasing files critical to the operation of the Mini.

How to use mac mini as external hard drive

trying to wipe an old mac mini and use as external hard drive for my iMac. Help!

Connect them with a FireWire or Thunderbolt cable and start up the Mac mini with the T key held down. If desired, use the Disk Utility in the /Applications/Utilities/ folder to erase it.
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Can i use mac mini as external dvd burner for my ibook?

i was wondering if i could hook up my dad's mac mini to my ibook in target disk mode to my ibook and if that would allow me to use his mac mini as an external dvd burner. if anyone knows if this would work or how to do it, let me know, thanks

Yes and no. You cannot connect the mini to your notebook and use its drive as if it were an external drive. But you can transfer data from your notebook to the mini and then burn the DVD. And, if you can set up a VNC (that's what Leopard screen sharing is) you could even control the mini from your notebook. Not as transparent a process as having an external burner. And, considering the low prices these days, if you really need to burn DVDs rather frequently, buying an inexpensive DVD burner is going to be more convenient.

Mac mini + usb2 external drive problems

Hello !
I have a huge problem with my mac mini - I find the same error on my power mac g5.
I use Tiger 10.4.1
So, I have the mac mini and 2 LACIE external Harddrives.
One Hardrives is allready full with about 40 GB data. Now I want t copy all the data from the one HD to the other hd.
BUT IT IS NOT WORKING - after about 4-8 GBs the system just stops copying data and the finder freezes.
I only can turn off the power.
This happens with or ithout hub.
Does anybody know something about USB problems on macs ?

Hello,
I am resurrecting this thread to see if there has been any recent "developments" concerning the under powered usb situation. I have a similar & frustrating encounter with the mini & a portable 40 gig wd passport hd. Believe me, I have tried EVERY combination of attaching this hard drive to the mini--powered usb hub, directly to the mini...I have even tried a 2 "headed" (for lack of a technical term) usb cable! (does not have fw option)The only thing I have not done is to buy a power source for the portable hd. Here are a few characteristics...
1.) The hard drive mounts but freezes when I try to open it (spinning beach ball thing) and I end up having to disconnect the portable. 2.) works fine on the PC winXP & Mac G4s at work 3.) works great on my brand new 12" ibook...
I am a little sad because the purpose was to be able to store & travel with shared info.
Any news, solutions, or "fixes" ?
P.S. My mini is still OS10.3.9
Beth

Mac mini and External Optical drives

hi all,
just wondering if i'll be able to use external optical drives with my mac mini which doesn't have a DVD writer, it detects and mounts in OSX, but can't playback a dvd or burn, do i have to use any third party software like roxio?
any help would be much appreciated.

You omit specifics but this might help, especially if you already have an external hd on firewire and plan to add an ext optical drive to the firewire chain. Burn Disk created one perfect DVD (consisting of backup files) but then became flaky, dying during burns. Patchburn (www.patchburn.de) did not help this problem but it did change system profile of the new optical drive from: 'unsupported' to 'vendor authorized' which may have helped generally. With Panther it will be required!
I did lots of searching on Web, Groups & Apple Discussions but could not find anything on "Error: 0x80020020: BE, sense error, etc".
I discovered the solution to this problem: I put the DVD external drive between the Mac Mini & the external harddrive (instead of at the end) and now BurnDisk works 100%. "Sense Errors" were common back when I was using SCSI drives and usually pointed to cable length issues. This was the simplest alteration I could make to my PPC G4 Mac Mini setup. I am using the 3 ft shielded cables that came with both of my external enclosures so it is reasurring that these did not have to be modified.
Now Burn Disc creates solid DVDs of backup folders, no more coasters or long pauses in the burning process, followed by the inevitable error code.
Using Pioneer DVR-112D drive in a generic ext enclosure. The drive is current production so I have not modified the firmware. Using Memorex DVD-R from WalMart.
--

USING MAC MINI, IPHOTO PICTURES TRANSFER TO EXTERNAL HD

im using mac mini, how to transfer iphoto pictures to external hard drive?

Close iPhoto.
Use finder to copy your iPhoto Library to your external drive.
Hold down the option key while you start up iPhoto.
IPhoto will ask you to select a photo library. Point it to your library on the external drive.
Once you verify everything is working properly you can delete the iPhoto library from you internal drive if desired.

How do i move files from mac mini to external hard drive

how do i move files from mac mini to external hard drive

The simplest method would be to drag & drop the files you want to move to the external drive using the Finder. Just open both the source and destination locations in separate Finder windows.

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.

Can the mac osxlion usb jump drive be used after as a external drive for storing media files

can the mac osxlion usb jump drive be used after as a external drive for storing media files

If you are talking about the Lion install USB thumb drive sold by Apple then no it can't. it has some specail formatting that makes it show up as a DVD drive and is securely locked from any changes.
But I must ask why would you want to. That would destroy that drive and wipe out the Lion installer.
USB thumb drive can be bought for $8.

Please help! We got a used Mac Mini and we don't have the former owner's password, so we can't install anything like flash player. Does anyone know how to get around this?

Please help! We got a used Mac Mini and we don't have the former owner's password, so we can't install anything like flash player. Does anyone know how to get around this? I don't know how to wipe the hard drive, and the support online doesn't seem to work.

As posted previously:
Reinstall OS X without erasing the drive
Do the following:
1. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your Snow Leopard 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 Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. If the drive is OK then quit DU and return to the installer. Proceed with reinstalling OS X. Note that the Snow Leopard installer will not erase your drive or disturb your files. After installing a fresh copy of OS X the installer will move your Home folder, third-party applications, support items, and network preferences into the newly installed system.
If installing Leopard the process is similar in some respects. If you wish to begin anew then after selecting the target disk click on the Options button and select the Erase and Install option then click on the OK button. To install over an existing system do the following:
How to Perform an Archive and Install
An Archive and Install will NOT erase your hard drive, but you must have sufficient free space for a second OS X installation which could be from 3-9 GBs depending upon the version of OS X and selected installation options. The free space requirement is over and above normal free space requirements which should be at least 6-10 GBs. Read all the linked references carefully before proceeding.
1. Be sure to use Disk Utility first to repair the disk before performing the Archive and Install.
Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
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, Leopard or Snow Leopard.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now restart normally.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
2. Do not proceed with an Archive and Install if DU reports errors it cannot fix. In that case use Disk Warrior and/or TechTool Pro to repair the hard drive. If neither can repair the drive, then you will have to erase the drive and reinstall from scratch.
3. Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When you reach the screen to select a destination drive click once on the destination drive then click on the Option button. Select the Archive and Install option. You have an option to preserve users and network preferences. Only select this option if you are sure you have no corrupted files in your user accounts. Otherwise leave this option unchecked. Click on the OK button and continue with the OS X Installation.
4. Upon completion of the Archive and Install you will have a Previous System Folder in the root directory. You should retain the PSF until you are sure you do not need to manually transfer any items from the PSF to your newly installed system.
5. After moving any items you want to keep from the PSF you should delete it. You can back it up if you prefer, but you must delete it from the hard drive.
6. You can now download a Combo Updater directly from Apple's download site to update your new system to the desired version as well as install any security or other updates. You can also do this using Software Update.

Iphoto on my used mac mini will not open my photos from my new macbook air, it says to update software but there arent any available.. please help

iphoto on my used mac mini will not open my photos from my new macbook air, it says something about updating the software, but i checked and there arent any updates available... please help

Sorry for the second post..
I currently do not have an older version of iPhoto to test this on, but you might also try coping the Originals from the iPhoto Library of iPhoto 11.
To do that;
1. Right (control) click on the iPhoto Library in the Picture Folder on the MacBook Air
2. Select Show Package Content.
3. Click on the Originals Folder
4. Navigate to the disired Event or photos and copy those images to your Flash or External Drive, then copy those to the older version of iPhoto.
Beware do not move, add or delete anything in the iPhoto Library, Apple has intensionally hidden it in later versions to prevent people from messing things up.

Used Mac Mini and reinstalling OS X

I bought a used Mac mini (late 2009) with mountain lion installed. The previous owner didn't do a factory reset, so I attempted to by using OS X Utilities and reformatting the hard drive. I then attempted to reinstall OS X, but since I'm not the original registered owner, I can't get past the login dialog during the license verification stage. What should I do at this point?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

The first thing to do with a second-hand computer is to erase the internal drive and install a clean copy of OS X. You—not the original owner—must do that. Changes made by Apple over the years have made this seemingly straightforward task very complex.
How you go about it depends on the model, and on whether you already own another Mac. If you're not sure of the model, enter the serial number on this page. Then find the model on this page to see what OS version was originally installed.
It's unsafe, and may be unlawful, to use a computer with software installed by a previous owner.
1. If you don't own another Mac
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, you need a boxed and shrink-wrapped retail Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) installation disc from the Apple Store or a reputable reseller—not from eBay or anything of the kind. If the machine is very old and has less than 1 GB of memory, you'll need to add more in order to install 10.6. Preferably, install as much memory as it can take, according to the technical specifications.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.6, you need the installation media that came with it: gray installation discs, or a USB flash drive for a MacBook Air. You should have received those media from the original owner, but if you didn't, order replacements from Apple. A retail disc, or the gray discs from another model, will not work.
To start up from an optical disc or a flash drive, insert it, then restart the computer and hold down the C key at the startup chime. Release the key when you see the gray Apple logo on the screen.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.7 or later, you don't need media. It should start up in Internet Recovery mode when you hold down the key combination option-command-R at the startup chime. Release the keys when you see a spinning globe.
Some models shipped with OS X 10.6 and received a firmware update after 10.7 was released, enabling them to use Internet Recovery. If you have one of those models, you may not be able to reinstall 10.6 even from the original discs, and Internet Recovery may not work either without the original owner's Apple ID. In that case, contact Apple Support, or take the machine to an Apple Store or another authorized service provider to have the OS installed.
2. If you do own another Mac
If you already own another Mac that was upgraded in the App Store to the version of OS X that you want to install, and if the new Mac is compatible with it, then you can install it. Use Recovery Disk Assistant to prepare a USB device, then start up the new Mac from it by holding down the C key at the startup chime. Alternatively, if you have a Time Machine backup of OS X 10.7.3 or later on an external hard drive (not a Time Capsule or other network device), you can start from that by holding down the option key and selecting it from the row of icons that appears. Note that if your other Mac was never upgraded in the App Store, you can't use this method.
3. Partition and install OS X
a. If you see a lock screen when trying to start up from installation media or in Recovery mode, then a firmware password was set by the previous owner, or the machine was remotely locked via iCloud. You'll either have to contact the owner or take the machine to an Apple Store or another service provider to be unlocked. You may be asked for proof of ownership.
b. Launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the internal drive—not any of the volume icons nested beneath it. In the Partition tab, select the default options: a GUID partition table with one data volume in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. This operation will permanently remove all existing data on the drive.
c. An unusual problem may arise if all the following conditions apply:
OS X 10.7 or later was installed by the previous owner
The startup volume was encrypted with FileVault
You're booted in Recovery mode (that is, not from a 10.6 installation disc)
In that case, you won't be able to unlock the volume or partition the drive without the FileVault password. Ask for guidance or see this discussion.
d. After partitioning, quit Disk Utility and run the OS X Installer. If you're installing a version of OS X acquired from the App Store, you will need the Apple ID and password that you used. When the installation is done, the system will automatically restart into the Setup Assistant, which will prompt you to transfer the data from another Mac, its backups, or from a Windows computer. If you have any data to transfer, this is usually the best time to do it.
e. Run Software Update and install all available system updates from Apple. To upgrade to a major version of OS X newer than 10.6, get it from the Mac App Store. Note that you can't keep an upgraded version that was installed by the original owner. He or she can't legally transfer it to you, and without the Apple ID you won't be able to update it in Software Update or reinstall, if that becomes necessary. The same goes for any App Store products that the previous owner installed—you have to repurchase them.
4. Other issues
a. If the original owner "accepted" the bundled iLife applications (iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band) in the App Store so that he or she could update them, then they're irrevocably linked to that Apple ID and you won't be able to download them without buying them. Reportedly, Mac App Store Customer Service has sometimes issued redemption codes for these apps to second owners who asked.
b. If the previous owner didn't deauthorize the computer in the iTunes Store under his Apple ID, you wont be able to authorize it immediately under your ID. In that case, you'll either have to wait up to 90 days or contact iTunes Support.
c. When trying to create a new iCloud account, you might get a failure message: "Account limit reached." Apple imposes a lifetime limit of three iCloud account setups per device. Erasing the device does not reset the limit. You can still use an iCloud account that was created on another device, but you won't be able to create a new one. Contact iCloud Support for more information. The setup limit doesn't apply to Apple ID accounts used for other services, such as the iTunes and Mac App Stores, or iMessage. You can create as many of those accounts as you like.

Bought a used Mac Mini and can't get past security password Seller refuses to answer emails. is there a keyboard command to take it back to factory settings or do I need to buy a Disc set and OS???

bought a used Mac Mini and can't get past security password Seller refuses to answer emails. is there a keyboard command to take it back to factory settings or do I need to buy a Disc set and OS???

You can bypass the password and wipe the drive and return to the original facory installation if the seller included the orginal install DVDs with the Mac mini. If not you will need a retail version of Mac OS X. To boot from the Install DVD restart the mini, immediately slip in the DVD and press and hold the C key.

I got an old Apple G5 shell from Goodwill. I'd like to salvage the Superdrive and use it as an external drive for my Apple laptop. Is this possible, and what cables would I need if so?

I got an old Apple G5 shell from Goodwill. I'd like to salvage the Superdrive and use it as an external drive for my Apple laptop. Is this possible, and what cables would I need if so?
Other info is available:
Superdrive MFG date: Sept 2009
Model: DVR-118LBK DVD-R/RW Writer Unit
My Macbook is: Mid-2010, running Mavericks
Thanks in advance, God bless!

That's a nice Pioneer DVD±RW drive - and an upgraded replacement for the original optical drive that shipped with that G5. For a finished look, you'd want to install it in an external enclosure for 5.25" IDE/ATAPI drives that converts it to USB connectivity. Because SATA optical drives have replaced ATAPI drives in recent years, the selection is getting more limited for a new enclosure, although used ones can undoubtedly be found at ebay. Here's an example of one, although it only features USB connectivity. You can also find enclosures that have both FireWire and USB connectivity, which for Mac users is beneficial. Booting the computer (if needed) by a FireWire-connected device is generally more reliable than USB booting. If this isn't important to you, then a USB-only enclosure would be adequate. The enclosure will have directions, but essentially all you need to do is plug in the power cable and data ribbon cable and then secure the drive to the bottom plate of the enclosure with the included machine screws.

Use Mac Mini as external drive

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