As my current Macbook Air is 7 years old and out of space, I decided to go ahead and buy a new one before mine died. I have kept it backed up with Time Machine on an external drive and I am under the impression this backup will allow my new computer to look just like my old. So my bookmarks, documents and desktop should be identical. If I am correct, I should be able to plug in the drive to the new computer, follow the prompts, and be good to go. It all sounds to easy!
My computer shop that handles our office computers as well as my husbands PC said they can do it for me as they also service Macs. One of the guys said he would remove the current HD to copy the data to the new Mac and then replace it. He said if I would prefer to use the Time Machine backuo, he could do that also, although sometimes Time Machine doesn’t get everything. I do not remember how my 7 year old Mac was set up as it was so long ago, although I am sure I let the Apple Genius Bar do it for me!
While I am tech savvy enough, I want this done correctly. Do I want to copy from computer to computer, or will using the Time Machine back up do it all? My bookmarks and desktop folders are just as important as the saved files, so whichever way will make my new computer a mirror image of the old one, that is what I want. I don’t mind paying Apple or my local computer store to do this for me if there is a chance I can’t do what I want.
@snowball I recently had a Macbook Pro that died (the hard drive failed), so I was forced to buy a new Macbook and use my most recent Time Machine backup to retrieve what I could of my old data. It was very easy to do. However, in your situation, since your old computer is still working, I would recommend that you use Apple’s Migration Assistant to get everything you want from your old computer to your new computer. It’s very easy to use and doesn’t require removing the hard drives from either computer. Here are the step-by-step instructions from the Apple website:
One other thing–if your new computer has a newer operating system than your old computer, it may not look exactly the same, but you will be able to get all of your bookmarks and documents copied from the old computer to the new one.
I do know to use Migration Assistant and would do so with the Time Machine backup; I just got worried when the computer guy said Time Machine might not have everything. I would of course backup again right before the transfer to ensure I had the most current backup.
My current Macbook is running OS 10.10. 5, Yosemite. As it started slowing down, I decided not to update again; not really sure why as I always keep my electronics updated. Once I missed an update or two, I decided not to bother as I no longer used the computer for work, just my personal use.
I guess if something important doesn’t show up on the new computer, I have it all on the old one and can move it independently; the advantages of not waiting until this one dies! Why I am so afraid to just do this; I am the family go to person for all computer issues and I can’t seem to take care of my own problems
the beauty of a mac is that it can use your existing machine to copy everything over directly (without TM). Migration Assistant works great, albeit slowly if you have everything encrypted. The only reason you’d need to go into TM is if you have a bunch of files (pics, videos) stored there that you do not have on your Air.
Don’t be afraid. I just ran this drill last summer when I got laid off and they let me keep my office Mac. So, I came home and moved everything over from my Mac Mini onto my former-office Mac. (Also have TM, but no need to use it for the file transfers.)
I finally opened the box with my new Mac and working on setting it up. I totally forgot that my bookmarks and passwords would be save when I signed into Firefox which is my default browser, so at less that is done. I had to buy a new version on Microsoft Office as I was still using 2011 on my old Mac; ordered online from Costco and waiting on the product code so I can download it before transferring my documents.
It has been a while since I set up a new computer, but I have to say dealing with my Macs are so much easier than my husbands PCs! For some OCD reason he has kept a separate back up of each previous computer, so the same documents are on the newest computer about 4 times; he still can find anything when he wants it!
Find a new “computer guy”. Yours does not know what he is talking about! I have restored Macs from Time Machine backups and also migrated from one machine to another. No files are skipped, the restore is flawless. Get a new guy.
I have never had this company work on my Macs, only PCs. I called and it is possible he was not the kid that works on the Macs. Any service I have needed has been done through Apple. I knew when I talked to him what he said didn’t make sense.
Looks like everything transferred over, although it took almost 7 hours over wifi. I haven’t had time to check everything out, but looks like very little needs to be done. I have some old apps that came over and need to be updated or deleted, but for the most part, all is good.
he has kept a separate back up of each previous computer, so the same documents are on the newest computer about 4 times; he still can find anything when he wants it!