[aehaas]

I just got my MacPro 3.0 2008. I only have one monitor. I want to migrate my old dp 2.7 G5 powerMac to the MacPro. Then I want to erase the HD in the old tower. Can I use my MBP as a monitor somehow to see both computers at the same time?

aehaas

[Big Mac]

No, but you don't need a monitor to enable target disk mode. All you need is a keyboard. Just hold the T key at startup on the G5, and when you connect it to the Mac Pro the drive will mount and be usable in Migration Assistant.

[SierraDragon]

Migration is a very bad idea because it just perpetuates all the file corruptions that have built up for years. Far better is to start fresh with a new box. Do a fresh install of every app and only "migrate" data. Burning DVDs is a good way to do that. It is slow, but after copying relevant (often much of the old data need not be moved) data from DVDs to the new box the DVDs remain as backup so you can safely reformat the original box as you suggest.

-Allen Wicks

[eggman]

I have to disagree with Allen here. If you're not having problems with your existing setup, those "file corruptions that have built up for years" probably don't exist. In which case, you can spend a lot of time reinstalling your apps when Migration Assistant can be automating the process for you.

Case in point: I had my Dual 2GHz G5 from the time that they were introduced, which must be, what, 4.5 to 5 years? I wasn't having problems with my system, apart from it just seeming increasingly slow as I was throwing ever more demanding tasks at it. When I got my new Mac Pro I ran Migration Assistant and it moved my user folders AND applications over without a hitch, while I slept.

I woke up to a brand new system that was configured like my prior system, and aside from a few apps that wanted me to re-enter serial numbers... and a few Photoshop plug-ins that were not Intel-compatible binaries (and which just didn't load), I was literally up and running without any downtime.

And still am. Considering that I was migrating not only from one system to a new one, but to an entirely different processor architecture, the fact that the migration was so painless was remarkable.

[Simon]

I'm going to disagree with that too.

You should have a working backup anyway (forget DVDs, they're too small and too slow - think disks instead). You also have the older Mac still sitting there with all your data. Migrate the easy way first. Most of the time (and especially if you have a tidy system) it will work just fine and it will have been a huge time saver. If and only if you actually run into problems you can go the hard way and do manual migration or reinstall apps, etc.

There's no reason to go through a lengthy and tedious process because there might be problems down the road. Only go that path if you need to.

[aehaas]

I did it OK, all is fine but I do have the widely reported restart issue when waking from sleep.

aehaas

[SierraDragon]

Interesting viewpoints. Obviously I disagree. I wonder if having lots of heavy graphics apps like years of Adobe Premium Creative Suite upgrades, evolutions of printers/scanner drivers, Aperture, Lightroom, etc. make a difference. Generally I would opine that most folks on the Photoshop forums would suggest not migrating. Not to mention MS apps which are always a corruption.

IMO issues of corrupting legacy code are non-obvious. Just at some point folks often ask "why is my box slower than others with the same setup?" At that point diagnosis and repair can be virtually impossible. Personally I will continue to install new versions of apps on new boxes. However I do recognize that for folks not particularly challenging their boxes with nutso graphics apps the tedious installation process may not be worth the trouble.

-Allen Wicks

[eggman]

Having lots of heavy graphics apps must not be the issue, because I'd installed and run generations of Adobe apps, in addition to what were Macromedia apps before them, various 3D and video products, etc.

Now, if I were running Windows, with its mountain of DLL resources that can get out of phase with versioning problems, or a shared registry to corrupt, I'd see your point. But OS X just isn't like that... and I've generally been capable of finding the source of system performance or stability issues by consulting the log files. For example, I once found that there a driver for a Canon scanner which was crashing and restarting itself hundreds of times each hour. But the point is that if you're not having such issues to begin with, then you don't have to worry that they will migrate to a new machine.

Also, I tend to avoid haxies that patch system level resources, too, which I think is asking for trouble.

[francklazare]

I'm getting ready to migrate from an old G4 to a Mac Pro. What level of control does Migration Assistant gives you? I'm thinking of using the assistant to migrate mail, bookmarks, address book, ICal and IPhoto library. Is that doable? The rest of the applications and data, I'd rather do manually from a back up drive. - My current G4 has two Hard Drives. Some things are messy, i.e. I know I do not want to migrate the font folder as it is now. Can Migration Assistant give that kind of control?

[peeb]

You might want to do an archive and install - that will give you complete control.

[francklazare]

The G4 is running Tiger, the Mac Pro will run Leopard. Isn't archive and install limited to the OS?

[peeb]

Well, you will end up with a fresh install, and an 'archive' of your old stuff - you can manually migrate from the archive.

[SierraDragon]

Be aware that Adobe CS3 is NOT fully compatible with OS 10.5.x and upgrading production environments is not recommended without a backup 10.4.11/CS3 installation also available. Adobe alleges the problem is with the OS and will not be resolved until 10.5.3 at the earliest.

I expect to do a 10.5.2/CS3 installation but I do have a MBP with 10.4.11/CS3 readily available.

-Allen Wicks