Which HD for Time Machine should I buy?
Here are my thoughts:
I've seen people complain about so many drives, I was wondering if anyone has a drive that has worked for more than 5 or 6 months.
I would prefer FireWire 800 or 400 rather than USB.
I would prefer a QUIET drive WITH a fan - there have been issues which I think may be fan related.
My first drive was a Seagate FreeAgent Desktop 320 GB. It stopped working ater 4 month. Hooking it up now lags my Mac and makes it crash. It's that bad.
I just want a good, affordable drive that works.
Oh yes, and I would prefer it to automatically turn on/off with my Mac.
Thanks!
Well. I've been using LaCie d2's some of them for years without an issue with them. Also, a good brand is the Mercury Elite from OWC. AFA turning on and off with your Mac, that is pot luck The same drives on one system will turn off and on another not. But it's really not an issue as within 15 minutes of inactivity they spin down.
-mj
Similar Messages
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How to reinitialize an external hard disk drive which serves for Time Machine?
How to reinitialize an external hard disk drive which serves for Time Machine?
Thanks for your answer.Everything you need to know about initializing (formatting) is here.
http://pondini.org/OSX/DU1.html
Lots of useful information on TM is here in the same place.
http://pondini.org/OSX/Home.html -
Time Capsule, AEBS+USB drive, Linux server: Which system for Time Machine?
I'm planning to get a new Macbook Pro, and upgrading my iMac in the near future. In making the big leap to Leopard, I am going to upgrade my router to at least the AEBS. But I'm not sure what the best way is to take advantage of the Time Machine function.
Here's my take on the situation:
Time Capsule
Pros: all in one solution
Cons: I'm stuck if one day I need a bigger drive, or need to replace it.
AEBS+USB drive
Pros: Easy way to upgrade/replace drive if needed
Cons: Extra device needed
Using a drive on my Linux fileserver
Pros: Easy way to upgrade/replace drive(s) if needed, can set up RAID1 for extra redundancy
Cons: Not officially supported, but apparently can use the "defaults write com.apple.systempreferences TMShowUnsupportedNetworkVolumes 1" tweak to get this going.
Which would you do?Assuming that the USB drive has been formatted in Mac OS Extended (Journaled)......
Open System Preferences (gear icon on the dock) on your Mac
Open Time Machine
Insure that the USB drive is configured as a destination for Time Machine backups
If it is not, click Add or Remove Disks
Click the USB drive to highlight it
Click Use Disk
Time Machine will now backup to the USB disk, and alternate disks if you have other disks selected as Time Machine backup destinations. -
Can I choose which backup for Time Machine to use if I have backups from two macs on one drive?
I have Time Machine backup on an external drive. I want to mirgrate all my files onto the new Mac Pro but migration is getting hung up and cant find the drive. Can I set up Time Machine for the new mac on this same drive and then select the old macs backup from within Time Machine?
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 -
I have a mid2009 MacBook Pro running Mavericks for which I have been using a USB WD HD for Time Machine. I'd like to get a wireless HD and start a new Time Machine backup for this Mac and retire the 5 year old WD drive. Can I start over?
no archive/ backup is perfect, HD clones can be set to make incremental additions, same as time machine however, though they are more time involved in doing so.
See the + and - of all data backup/ archives below and "spread it around".... or the "dont put your eggs all in one basket" philosophy.
Peace
Data Storage Platforms; their Drawbacks & Advantages
#1. Time Machine / Time Capsule
Drawbacks:
1. Time Machine is not bootable, if your internal drive fails, you cannot access files or boot from TM directly from the dead computer.
2. Time machine is controlled by complex software, and while you can delve into the TM backup database for specific file(s) extraction, this is not ideal or desirable.
3. Time machine can and does have the potential for many error codes in which data corruption can occur and your important backup files may not be saved correctly, at all, or even damaged. This extra link of failure in placing software between your data and its recovery is a point of risk and failure. A HD clone is not subject to these errors.
4. Time machine mirrors your internal HD, in which cases of data corruption, this corruption can immediately spread to the backup as the two are linked. TM is perpetually connected (or often) to your computer, and corruption spread to corruption, without isolation, which TM lacks (usually), migrating errors or corruption is either automatic or extremely easy to unwittingly do.
5. Time Machine does not keep endless copies of changed or deleted data, and you are often not notified when it deletes them; likewise you may accidently delete files off your computer and this accident is mirrored on TM.
6. Restoring from TM is quite time intensive.
7. TM is a backup and not a data archive, and therefore by definition a low-level security of vital/important data.
8. TM working premise is a “black box” backup of OS, APPS, settings, and vital data that nearly 100% of users never verify until an emergency hits or their computers internal SSD or HD that is corrupt or dead and this is an extremely bad working premise on vital data.
9. Given that data created and stored is growing exponentially, the fact that TM operates as a “store-it-all” backup nexus makes TM inherently incapable to easily backup massive amounts of data, nor is doing so a good idea.
10. TM working premise is a backup of a users system and active working data, and NOT massive amounts of static data, yet most users never take this into consideration, making TM a high-risk locus of data “bloat”.
11. In the case of Time Capsule, wifi data storage is a less than ideal premise given possible wireless data corruption.
12. TM like all HD-based data is subject to ferromagnetic and mechanical failure.
13. *Level-1 security of your vital data.
Advantages:
1. TM is very easy to use either in automatic mode or in 1-click backups.
2. TM is a perfect novice level simplex backup single-layer security save against internal HD failure or corruption.
3. TM can easily provide a seamless no-gap policy of active data that is often not easily capable in HD clones or HD archives (only if the user is lazy is making data saves).
#2. HD archives
Drawbacks:
1. Like all HD-based data is subject to ferromagnetic and mechanical failure.
2. Unless the user ritually copies working active data to HD external archives, then there is a time-gap of potential missing data; as such users must be proactive in archiving data that is being worked on or recently saved or created.
Advantages:
1. Fills the gap left in a week or 2-week-old HD clone, as an example.
2. Simplex no-software data storage that is isolated and autonomous from the computer (in most cases).
3. HD archives are the best idealized storage source for storing huge and multi-terabytes of data.
4. Best-idealized 1st platform redundancy for data protection.
5. *Perfect primary tier and level-2 security of your vital data.
#3. HD clones (see below for full advantages / drawbacks)
Drawbacks:
1. HD clones can be incrementally updated to hourly or daily, however this is time consuming and HD clones are, often, a week or more old, in which case data between today and the most fresh HD clone can and would be lost (however this gap is filled by use of HD archives listed above or by a TM backup).
2. Like all HD-based data is subject to ferromagnetic and mechanical failure.
Advantages:
1. HD clones are the best, quickest way to get back to 100% full operation in mere seconds.
2. Once a HD clone is created, the creation software (Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper) is no longer needed whatsoever, and unlike TM, which requires complex software for its operational transference of data, a HD clone is its own bootable entity.
3. HD clones are unconnected and isolated from recent corruption.
4. HD clones allow a “portable copy” of your computer that you can likewise connect to another same Mac and have all your APPS and data at hand, which is extremely useful.
5. Rather than, as many users do, thinking of a HD clone as a “complimentary backup” to the use of TM, a HD clone is superior to TM both in ease of returning to 100% quickly, and its autonomous nature; while each has its place, TM can and does fill the gap in, say, a 2 week old clone. As an analogy, the HD clone itself is the brick wall of protection, whereas TM can be thought of as the mortar, which will fill any cracks in data on a week, 2-week, or 1-month old HD clone.
6. Best-idealized 2nd platform redundancy for data protection, and 1st level for system restore of your computers internal HD. (Time machine being 2nd level for system restore of the computer’s internal HD).
7. *Level-2 security of your vital data.
HD cloning software options:
1. SuperDuper HD cloning software APP (free)
2. Carbon Copy Cloner APP (will copy the recovery partition as well)
3. Disk utility HD bootable clone.
#4. Online archives
Drawbacks:
1. Subject to server failure or due to non-payment of your hosting account, it can be suspended.
2. Subject, due to lack of security on your part, to being attacked and hacked/erased.
Advantages:
1. In case of house fire, etc. your data is safe.
2. In travels, and propagating files to friends and likewise, a mere link by email is all that is needed and no large media needs to be sent across the net.
3. Online archives are the perfect and best-idealized 3rd platform redundancy for data protection.
4. Supremely useful in data isolation from backups and local archives in being online and offsite for long-distance security in isolation.
5. *Level-1.5 security of your vital data.
#5. DVD professional archival media
Drawbacks:
1. DVD single-layer disks are limited to 4.7Gigabytes of data.
2. DVD media are, given rough handling, prone to scratches and light-degradation if not stored correctly.
Advantages:
1. Archival DVD professional blank media is rated for in excess of 100+ years.
2. DVD is not subject to mechanical breakdown.
3. DVD archival media is not subject to ferromagnetic degradation.
4. DVD archival media correctly sleeved and stored is currently a supreme storage method of archiving vital data.
5. DVD media is once written and therefore free of data corruption if the write is correct.
6. DVD media is the perfect ideal for “freezing” and isolating old copies of data for reference in case newer generations of data become corrupted and an older copy is needed to revert to.
7. Best-idealized 4th platform redundancy for data protection.
8. *Level-3 (highest) security of your vital data.
[*Level-4 data security under development as once-written metallic plates and synthetic sapphire and likewise ultra-long-term data storage]
#6. Cloud based storage
Drawbacks:
1. Cloud storage can only be quasi-possessed.
2. No genuine true security and privacy of data.
3. Should never be considered for vital data storage or especially long-term.
4. *Level-0 security of your vital data.
Advantages:
1. Quick, easy and cheap storage location for simplex files for transfer to keep on hand and yet off the computer.
2. Easy source for small-file data sharing. -
I've used an external drive for time machine which has important files on it. After trying to back up my computer, it suddenly needed to be "repaired" by utilities. Now it's not being "seen" at all! How do I recover my important files off the drive?
If the external drive can be seen at all in Disk Utility, follow the instructions for repair here.
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I have just upgraded from a Macbook to a Macbook Air. I have been using a iomega external hard drive for Time Machine, which use a Firewire. However, Macbook Air's do not have a Firewire port and i cannot find an adaptor anywhere. Can anyone help?? Thanks
There has never been a reliable firewire ---> USB adapter suitable for external high speed storage. This was a major issue when the MacBooks lost the firewire port a number of years ago (Apple subsequently brought it back).
The only high speed port on the Air is the ThunderBolt port. There are external ThunderBolt drive options out there, but they're somewhat more expensive than traditional USB/FireWire options. -
I have snow leopard 10.6.8 and want to get on iCloud which requires Lion... should I buy Lion at $29.99 now and upgrade to Mountain Lion when available (I can't see where it is available for download yet) and what is cost of upgrade to Mountain Lion? Or should I simply wait for Mountain Lion?
I would wait for Mountain Lion to be released. According to Apple, Mountain Lion will be released by end of July 2012.
It will cost you only $19.99 to upgrade. You can find all the details at the following link...
http://www.apple.com/osx/ -
Cannot install Mountain Lion on my hard disc, as I keep getting the message" 'This disk is used for Time Machine backups'. Which it isn't - I don't use Time Machine
Check to see if you have a folder named "Backups.backupdb" at the root level of your hard disk. That can cause this error message.
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How much should I partition for Time Machine/Backup?
Hi all,
I upgraded my PB G4 HD to a 160GB recently and have just purchased a 1TB External HD. How much should I partition in the external to be used for Time Machine backup purposes of my internal HD? Will the same size suffice, or should I allocate more?
Also, I was thinking of formatting the drive so that it's both Windows and OS X friendly, but that means formatting it to MS-DOS something (I was just reading about it in another thread), will that cause any issues for the partition for Time Machine that I created? Thanks.Also, I was thinking of formatting the drive so that it's both Windows and OS X friendly, but that means formatting it to MS-DOS something (I was just reading about it in another thread), will that cause any issues for the partition for Time Machine that I created? Thanks.
That's not practical. If you want to use the hard drive on a Windows machin while still being useful for Time Machine you should use MacDrive.
I upgraded my PB G4 HD to a 160GB recently and have just purchased a 1TB External HD. How much should I partition in the external to be used for Time Machine backup purposes of my internal HD? Will the same size suffice, or should I allocate more?
I would make the partition at least twice the size of the internal drive. Preferably, you would want 50 GB for a Leopard install that includes just the base operating system so you can boot off the 50 GB to recover your Time Machine data if your Leopard installer disc ever becomes unusable.
Also since you have a Powerbook, your 1 TB hard drive should be Firewire. USB will not boot Powerbooks. If it is USB only, you can remove the external hard drive case and replace it with one compatible with the drive inside that case from http://www.macsales.com/ that has Firewire. -
External hard drive used for Time Machine is full and having a hrad time backing up. What is my best option moving forward? NAS?
For All things Time Machine see Pondini's Excellent Infirmation here...
http://pondini.org/OSX/Home.html
Start with FAQs and Troubleshooting. -
How large should a disk for time machine be vs the hard disk
Can anyone tell me how large a disk for time machine be vs the size of the hard disk?
I usually say 2x or more but your milage may vary on that based on how much your hard drive is actually used, what sort of data (how large the files are) you typically handle and how far back you want your TM backup to go.
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Can I use my 2TB Time Capsule ONLY as an external hard drive for Time Machine backups?
Hi...wondering if somebody could help me out there.
I currently have an older Apple 2TB Time Capsule (previous generation) which I'm using as both my WiFi access point, as well as my Time Machine backup location for both my iMac and my MacBook Pro.
We've been having slow WiFi issues in our home, and seeing as how this Time Capsule is a number of years old, were thinking of upgrading to the faster WiFi routers with 802.11ac capability. I'll be honest when I say we were considering other options, beyond the newest Time Capsule.
My question is, can we somehow use the 2TB of storage on our current Time Capsule for the purpose of backing up our computers with Time Machine, but NOT use the WiFi functionality of the Time Capsule itself?
I'm assuming if I manually plugged either my iMac or MacBook Pro (wired ethernet) into the Time Capsule, I could likely get that computer to recognize and use it for Time Machine purposes, but I'd like to use it to backup both computers, ideally wirelessly on the MacBook Pro.
Any help would be great.
Right now I'm running a DSL line into a DSL modem, which then runs ethernet into my Time Capsule. From there, I have a 4 port switch connected for wired devices (we wired our home with ethernet jacks in almost every room). We also have an Airport Express to extend the range of the network.
Thanks,
JasonYou can bridge the TC and plug it into whatever wireless router you buy.
There is no need to turn off the wireless in the TC.. but you can set it up as a secondary wireless network. That is totally up to you. I find the Gen4 TC very fast on 5ghz.. but you need it to be close to the computers.. in your case that should be dead easy.. simply plug it in by ethernet in the same room as the iMac say.. and set it up with bridge and the imac plugged into it by ethernet.. one computer then can access the internet and backup via ethernet with huge speed improvements.. the laptop can then use whatever your new router wireless network.. or the TC one if it is close enough..
So there are plenty of variations and your setup is easy to handle with the large amount of ethernet you have.
Just post again if you need specifics.. but I need specifics to give them!! -
Adding a Dedicated External Drive for Time Machine
Hello,
I want to use a dedicated external drive for Time Machine backup and another drive for a SuperDuper backup. Before even adding another drive, I'm already pulling and replacing usb connections from the back of my computer.
Can anyone tell me if a splitter is a workable solution? Something like this:
7-Port USB High-speed Hub with Splitter Cable -- http://www.shop4tech.com/user.htm?go=view_item&id=8997&r=183 -- or perhaps other recommendations ..
Thanks....I recall reading that USB 2 was faster ... but I think they said faster than FW 400, but the drive I have is FW 800.
USB2 is 480mbps and Firewire400 is 400mbps. On paper, this would appear that USB2 is faster than Firewire400. But USB2 cannot handle large data transfers very effectively. I can't explain the technicals, but suffice to say that the figures I gave of 40min-versus-2-hours-for-25GB is typical of Firewire400 versus USB2.
Firewire800 is 800mbps, so would potentially be even faster. However the physical hard drive that's installed in the Firewire enclosure would be the bottleneck as a normal "platter" hard drive is much slower than Firewire400 or 800. If it were an SSD drive, then you'd likely see a very significant difference.
But regardless, USB2 cannot keep up with a large data stream like Firewire can. Potentially USB3, which is up to 5Gbps, would be faster than either Firewire 400 or 800, although I suspect would be on par with Firewire3200 in the real world. However since there are no adapters for either USB3 or Firewire3200 for the Mac, it's a moot point for now. (Your drive is not USB3, there are only a few USB3 drives available, and you'd need a Mac Pro to add the adapter in anyway, if they existed.)
So are you saying that FW 800 is faster than USB 2.0 -- and that I should be using the FW connection to get better throughput? And that I can resume daisy-chaining multiple external drives through the one port?
Definitely Firewire would be faster than USB. And I have 5 external hard drives daisy-chained through a single Firewire800 port on my Mac. So daisy-chained Firewire is the way to go.
Like I said, for the small, incremental, hourly Time Machine backups, the speed difference is insignificant. But when the day comes that you have to restore your hard drive, (i.e.: hard drive dead so you buy new blank hard drive. Or you just want to replace with a larger drive,) if say your Time Machine backup is 80GB, that restore would probably take several hours over USB2. On my Firewire400 drive, my 100GB Time Machine restore of my Macbook Pro took about an hour and a half. (The data transfer was about an hour, but OSX took awhile after that to finish up the restore.) YMMV, of course, but IMHO, use Firewire over USB2 as much as possible. If you're lucky enough to have a Mac Pro or iMac and can use multiple internal hard drives or eSATA, then that would be even faster than Firewire800. Only owners of a Macbook Air or non-Firewire Macbook should resign themselves to USB2. -
Newbie asking iMac Pros for Time Machine Backup help
I have tried to do a lot of reading (FAQ & Google Search) about Time Machine. I have to admit it seems more than a bit complicated to me. In fact, perhaps I read and searched too much.
1) I have a wireless mouse and a wireless key board which work well with my iMac, although my mouse seems to use-up/run-down batteries (I do use rechargeable usually) somewhat fast. I have my DSL modem plugged into the Ethernet slot. I assume that means I can not use an ethernet cable with a Time Capsule drive. Will a wireless Time Capsule drive run as easily as my mouse and keyboard have? I'll be honest, $299 seems a bit steep if my iMac's life is only going to be around 3-4 years. Of course, losing everything on my internal HD wouldn't be a picnic either. I have manually backed up data such as mp3's, photos, and other files onto a Mentor HD, but it is not nearly big enough for Time Machine.
2) If I were to buy an external drive that I hook-up via USB cable, I need a iMac Pro to give me a good idea as to which ones seem to have had the best "life." I have a 1T internal drive; I assume that I should buy a 1T external drive, although I can't see me actually using that much space. Could I get by with a 500g, I wonder.
3) Finally, I would really appreciate if you could give me some pointers on what would be the best drive and best way for me to use Time Machine. I can come up with $200-$400 that may be necessary, even if I complain about doing it.
Thanks in advance if someone can help guide me.JohnHusk wrote:
A) Time Capsule is NOT a wireless external HD as such; in other words, I can not just store my Time Machine backup data on it WITHOUT hooking it up to a Network.
well, that would be the most convenient solution.
you can turn the TC's wireless off and, by using an _*ethernet switch*_, could hook up both modem and TC to your iMac's ethernet port. i haven't tried such a setup but i believe it should work.
another option that i haven't tried would be to share your iMac's internet connection wirelessly with the TC by enabling +internet sharing+ in system preferences > sharing.
B) I can hook my DSL router into Time Capsule, but then I would have to configure Airport in order to connect my iMac to the internet?
yes. the setup is very easy.
C) ... I do not have a home network.
if your iMac has an airport card, you do
and I have my printer hooked-up to my iMac via USB.
the TC has an USB port for sharing e.g. a printer on your network
I do have a 7-year old working Dell Dimension that is not currently hooked-up to the Internet, unless I remove the Ethernet cable to the iMac and plug it into the Dell.
again, using an ethernet switch, it can be hooked to your iMac along with the modem. or, it could be connected to one of the TC's ethernet ports.
in fact, i have both my Macs and my Apple TV hardwired to my TC. additionally, by using *powerline adapters* _*such as these*_, i have an older airport extreme and two PC's connected to it via ethernet as well.
I'm just not grasping the overall concept too well. I read the section about Time Machine in my "Mac OS X 'In Depth'" Manual. I also have been trying to search the forums and use iMac Basics on the Apple Home Site.
see _*Time Machine 101*_ for more information.
JGG
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