[deermatt]

i sold my 20in imac g5 on ebay, but i need to get all my stuff off this computer! like 50gb worth of stuff . i see everyone suggest carbon copy cloner and retrospect and this and that, but CCC wont let me copy all my stuff, im pulling my hair out. i dont get this at all , and im getting really frustrated, please help me !

[deermatt]

im trying to do this in CCC , is this the easiest way ? should i make a clone to some where on my hd then burn to disks with toast? im gonna throw this thing in the trash in a minute

[badidea]

You can clone your HD with DiskUtility (if you have Tiger)!

[Chuckit]

What kind of stuff are you talking about? I'd just drag it off onto another drive. That's always worked for me.

[deermatt]

i have tiger, and i tried to do it with disk utility in tiger, and i dont get how to do it. i only have 1 hard drive, so theres no dragging into another drive.

[Randman]

Do you have an external hard drive? If so, get the Tiger ready version of CCC and clone it to the external.

If not, your best best is just to drag and drop the files you need and burn data DVDs (if you have SuperDrive), CDs otherwise.

[deermatt]

no external hard drive , i have a stack of blank dvds, and need to know how to get everything from this computer, to dvd, so i can take the dvds, load them into the next laptop i get, and load my stuff onto that.

[PurpleGiant]

Easiest way: Buy an external HD the same size. Copy everything onto it. Or copy straight onto your new laptop.

Harder way: Pick and choose individual files and folders you want to backup onto DVDs.

[deermatt]

yeah ithink im giving up on this "burning to dvd" idea , i think i might just buy a external hd, do the transfer, then return the external

[Randman]

Having an external is always a good idea, for backup purposes. Do consider that.

[deermatt]

anyone wanna let me borrow theirs to save the trouble of buying one then returning it ? i would buy one and keep it, but its an expense that i dont need to make right now

[TETENAL]

A backup drive is an expense you should make.

[only120xs]

First off, you shouldn't have sold your computer without at least KNOWING how to get your stuff off of it......

Secondly, I just saw ads this weekend for a 200 GB external drive for less than $100, and you don't even need one that big. Go buy one. OR - The other thing you could do is borrow a friend's Mac if they have enough extra space on their drive (you could do it with windows too, but that gets more complicated).

Or if you can't do either of those things, start burning.... put in the DVD, drag & drop files into it from the finder, and when it's full, hit burn. Pull it out, label it well, and do it again. This will take probably 11-15 DVDs and a significant amount of time (depending on how fast your burner is), but you don't have to leave the house, or buy anything...

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by deermatt

anyone wanna let me borrow theirs to save the trouble of buying one then returning it ? i would buy one and keep it, but its an expense that i dont need to make right now

A backup is an expense you should make.

[Love Calm Quiet]

Backup drives are completely unnecessary - if all your data is completey expendable.

Just like seat belts are unnecessary if your head is expendable.

Otherwise: don't send back the external drive.

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by Love Calm Quiet

Backup drives are completely unnecessary - if all your data is completey expendable.

Just like seat belts are unnecessary if your head is expendable.

Otherwise: don't send back the external drive.

Also, buying something to use it once and then return it is something I find unethical as well. Just my 2 cents.

[wataru]

Going to these lengths not to have a backup? That's just stupid.

[mpancha]

Don't go through all that hassle. Find a friend with a mac, and do target disk mode, and just copy everythign u need to their computer.

Or, swallow the expense of under 100 bucks for an external drive.

[outsourced]

I won't call you stupid, and I won't assume that you can spend "only $100" for a hard drive.

Use the DVDs that you have to backup your files, as some others have stated.

If you don't know how, just access the Help system for dvd burning or just burning. You won't even have to buy a book.

If you want a practice run, just use a CD for your first burn. Then practice copying a file or two back onto your system to see how that works.

When you're satisfied that you know how to burn an optical disc, use your DVDs.

Good luck.

[deermatt]

damn, i just went to office depot to buy an external 100gb hd, its advertised as 79.99. i go to pay, she says "149.99" im like, no it says 79.99... then she gos on about how its a 6week mail in rebate, i dont have 6 weeks for a rebate, so i couldnt get it , anyone know of any other deals? just fyi, im not like someone in their 30s or 40s and being cheap, i just turned 20, make 7.75 an hour, and its hard to survive, so i cant afford to spend like 200 and wait for a rebate

[Chuckit]

Fry's around here sells 80 GB drives for about that much without a rebate. I saw it last weekend or so. Don't know about Maryland, though.

[DarwinX]

Originally Posted by deermatt

damn, i just went to office depot to buy an external 100gb hd, its advertised as 79.99. i go to pay, she says "149.99" im like, no it says 79.99... then she gos on about how its a 6week mail in rebate, i dont have 6 weeks for a rebate, so i couldnt get it , anyone know of any other deals? just fyi, im not like someone in their 30s or 40s and being cheap, i just turned 20, make 7.75 an hour, and its hard to survive, so i cant afford to spend like 200 and wait for a rebate

My favorite site that might help you:

http://bensbargains.net/

[Big Mac]

Some people shouldn't use computers.

[deermatt]

i shouldnt use a computer because i didnt know if there was a program to easily help me burn all my info in an orderly fashion? that was a asshole statement , im just looking for help , if you dont want to help, click the back button. Thanks to everyone that did respond with helpful info

[Big Mac]

No, not being knowledgeable about computers is one thing. Willfully coming across in a belligerent fashion due to that ignorance and advocating dishonest behavior is a different matter entirely.

[deermatt]

boo hoo . your not god or my father so dont tell me whats dishonest. dont respond if you want to argue. or im me - dryoungboy . I decided im going to go to another computer store to look for a external hd.

[steve626]

Deermat -- I think you have what you need to make your backups ... you said you have a stack of blank DVD's. You can fit 47 Gig on 10 DVDs. You can insert a blank DVD, drag folders to the DVD (making sure not to exceed the space on the DVD, about 4.7 Gig each), then click "burn." It will burn the files onto the DVD. Then eject and continue until you have a copy of every folder that matters to you.

With Retrospect, you can make backups that span across multiple DVDs but that program costs more than $100, probably something you aren't going to be able to purchase if you can't afford the external hard drive. I have also heard of a free program called SilverKeeper that might provide a way to backup to DVDs, but the drag/burn approach I describe should work in terms of making copies of files you want to save. The drag/burn method saves files but won't enable you to completely recreate your system and folder structure on your new computer ... to do that requires use of CCC or Retrospect in conjunction with an external hard drive. You can also do it with Retrospect and your stack of DVDs -- I did this once myself using CDs a few years ago in fact. But Retrospect costs $100+, the drag/burn method is free (if you already bought your DVDs).

Don't be so reactive to people who made those comments above -- that's what these forums are about (people expressing what they think, even if it's not polite) and those comments are pretty typical. Telling people who want to argue not to post will, in fact, encourage them to post, of course.

I think you should be all set if you have that stack of blank DVDs.

[deermatt]

oh thanks steve! well if burning all my stuff to dvds wont really recreate my system onto another computer, it might not be good. Im gonna go back out and look for any external hd deals, then if not, dvds it is ! thanks for the helpful comment

[steve626]

If you want to recreate your entire system, users folder(s) and whole setup of your old computer on the new one (with a working operating system that you can boot from), then

(1) Figure out how much space you need (you said 50 Gig) -- make sure you leave an extra 10% or so at least.

(2) Get the smallest/cheapest firewire external drive you can afford to meet needs of (1). Note it should be firewire. You cannot boot from an external USB drive reliably.

(3) Download CCC, latest version -- it is free.

(4) Follow the instructions carefully on CCC web site. Do EVERYTHING they say to do in exactly the order they say (including the long thorough erase of the firewire drive, also checking with fsck or other utilities that your original hard drive is in good shape, fixing permissions etc). Then clone your entire hard drive onto the firewire external drive using CCC.

(5) Boot from the external firewire hard drive to make sure it works. Use it for a little while doing things you normally do on your computer to make sure it is a true clone. Any irregularities are warning flags that your clone might not have all your files. All your applications should be "installed" and working on that clone. This is a way of transferring applications, operating system, everything from one machine to another, even if you lack the original installer disks.

(6) When you get your new computer, boot from your external firewire cloned drive and thoroughly erase the internal drive and run CCC to clone back to that internal drive. Check it carefully to make sure all is in order before doing anything to that precious clone on the firewire drive.

(7) This process is outlined in more detail on the CCC web site. It can't really be rushed because the integrity of your files (50 Gigs!) is at stake. Check everything carefully at each step. Cloning 50 Gigs could take more than an hour, by the way. If it were me, in addition, I'd also make the drag/burn DVD copies of crucial data files (you must have a lot of photos, movies, or songs or something -- if you do, you don't want to lose those!) you can't live without, just in case something happens to that firewire drive.

Good luck! Read that CCC site instruction set very carefully if you decide to use CCC. There's a forum there with some very expert CCC users moderating the forum -- they can answer ANY question about CCC.

[deermatt]

wow, thanks steve. I had no luck purchasing an external hd today, im gonna go get a more expensive one today and just return it once i dont need it anymore, cause all the cheap priced external hd's i see, are all firewire 2.0 .The bigger 200gb hds are firewire i think, so ill get that for the time being. this is what i have if your wondering :

14.5gb of movies and/ or tv shows from dvd
29gb of music
12.5gb of programs
5gb of pictures

so roughly , 60gb of precious stuff i need to save and move on ill give you an update of how it goes

[Spliff]

Originally Posted by deermatt

14.5gb of movies and/ or tv shows from dvd
29gb of music
12.5gb of programs
5gb of pictures

so roughly , 60gb of precious stuff i need to save and move on ill give you an update of how it goes

This stuff is "precious" to you? Then you really should keep the external hard drive so you can backup your files. Gollum would never have lost his "precious" if he had kept a copy of the One Ring on an external HD.

[voicebox]

Originally Posted by steve626

If you want to recreate your entire system, users folder(s) and whole setup of your old computer on the new one (with a working operating system that you can boot from), then

(1) Figure out how much space you need (you said 50 Gig) -- make sure you leave an extra 10% or so at least.

(2) Get the smallest/cheapest firewire external drive you can afford to meet needs of (1). Note it should be firewire. You cannot boot from an external USB drive reliably.

(3) Download CCC, latest version -- it is free.

(4) Follow the instructions carefully on CCC web site. Do EVERYTHING they say to do in exactly the order they say (including the long thorough erase of the firewire drive, also checking with fsck or other utilities that your original hard drive is in good shape, fixing permissions etc). Then clone your entire hard drive onto the firewire external drive using CCC.

(5) Boot from the external firewire hard drive to make sure it works. Use it for a little while doing things you normally do on your computer to make sure it is a true clone. Any irregularities are warning flags that your clone might not have all your files. All your applications should be "installed" and working on that clone. This is a way of transferring applications, operating system, everything from one machine to another, even if you lack the original installer disks.

(6) When you get your new computer, boot from your external firewire cloned drive and thoroughly erase the internal drive and run CCC to clone back to that internal drive. Check it carefully to make sure all is in order before doing anything to that precious clone on the firewire drive.

(7) This process is outlined in more detail on the CCC web site. It can't really be rushed because the integrity of your files (50 Gigs!) is at stake. Check everything carefully at each step. Cloning 50 Gigs could take more than an hour, by the way. If it were me, in addition, I'd also make the drag/burn DVD copies of crucial data files (you must have a lot of photos, movies, or songs or something -- if you do, you don't want to lose those!) you can't live without, just in case something happens to that firewire drive.

Good luck! Read that CCC site instruction set very carefully if you decide to use CCC. There's a forum there with some very expert CCC users moderating the forum -- they can answer ANY question about CCC.

Hi steve626,
The above advice is about the best advice I have read on this topic, well done! If dear old 'deermatt' can't get it together after that, then I fear there is no hope for him!
And all this from a one star, 7 post junior member to a three star,124 post senior member - talk about teaching granny to suck eggs ....wow!!
My two cents worth?
Deermatt, pull yourself together and go out and buy a LaCie 100GB or a 150GB external HD - Firewire or USB - your choice but USB is cheaper, then use Carbon Copy Cloner which is a FREE download from VersionTracker (something for free deermatt - should make you happy!) and copy your whole darn system onto it; it might take a little time, so order a Pizza and be prepared to make lots of tea or coffee!!
Bon voyage
voicebox

[Gee4orce]

Can you wait until you get your new laptop before you get rid of your old one ? Even just for a few hours ?

If so, you can use the setup assistant on the new laptop to copy over all your data from the old one. It's very easy to do - all you need is a firewire cable. It walks you through the process.

[wadesworld]

1) If you have DVD's, you have everything you need. Drag the files you want to keep to a DVD and then choose Burn from the File menu. Repeat until finished.

2) Buying something only to return it a day later after you've used it is dishonest and unethical, and I don't have to be your father or God to say that. After you've opened it, if you can't prove it's defective, you might not be able to return it.

Wade

[wataru]

Originally Posted by deermatt

wow, thanks steve. I had no luck purchasing an external hd today, im gonna go get a more expensive one today and just return it once i dont need it anymore, cause all the cheap priced external hd's i see, are all firewire 2.0 .The bigger 200gb hds are firewire i think, so ill get that for the time being. this is what i have if your wondering :

14.5gb of movies and/ or tv shows from dvd
29gb of music
12.5gb of programs
5gb of pictures

so roughly , 60gb of precious stuff i need to save and move on ill give you an update of how it goes

What in the world are you smoking? FireWire 800 is almost always more expensive.

So you're going to pull some jackass maneuver like returning the drive because you can't afford to backup your "precious" data? You are some piece of work.

[deermatt]

haha i love these comments. i never said anything about "firewire 800 being cheaper" i said steve suggested that i get a firewire external, not usb, and maxtor only makes their 200gb and up externals firewire.

[Chuckit]

You said the cheap drives were all Firewire 2.0.

[deermatt]

yeah, and the more expensive drives are firewire . im about to go to the store and see what i can get

[wataru]

Do you even read your own writing? You are pretty much incoherent.

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by deermatt

yeah, and the more expensive drives are firewire . im about to go to the store and see what i can get

There is no FireWire 2.0. There are USB 2.0, FireWire 400 and FireWire 800. Sometimes FireWire 400 and 800 are referred to 1394 and 1394b, respectively.

You cannot boot off USB drives currently, so any FireWire drive would be preferable. I've seen 160 gig Lacie Porsche drives for around 130 € in Germany.

[deermatt]

what? the cheaper externals are usb. the more expensive ones are firewire. steve said i should get a firewire. how is that hard to understand ?

[cybergoober]

What's so hard to understand is this:

Originally Posted by deermatt

… cause all the cheap priced external hd's i see, are all firewire 2.0…

Originally Posted by deermatt

haha i love these comments. i never said anything about "firewire 800 being cheaper" i said steve suggested that i get a firewire external, not usb, and maxtor only makes their 200gb and up externals firewire.

Originally Posted by Chuckit

You said the cheap drives were all Firewire 2.0.

Originally Posted by deermatt

yeah, and the more expensive drives are firewire . im about to go to the store and see what i can get

Originally Posted by wataru

There is no FireWire 2.0. There are USB 2.0, FireWire 400 and FireWire 800. Sometimes FireWire 400 and 800 are referred to 1394 and 1394b, respectively.

You cannot boot off USB drives currently, so any FireWire drive would be preferable. I've seen 160 gig Lacie Porsche drives for around 130 € in Germany

Originally Posted by deermatt

what? the cheaper externals are usb. the more expensive ones are firewire. steve said i should get a firewire. how is that hard to understand ?what? the cheaper externals are usb. the more expensive ones are firewire. steve said i should get a firewire. how is that hard to understand ?

Okay, so you obviously meant to say USB 2.0, but you said FireWire 2.0 and you fail to see how that could confuse someone?

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by deermatt

what? the cheaper externals are usb. the more expensive ones are firewire. steve said i should get a firewire. how is that hard to understand ?

You mistook USB 2.0 for FireWire 2.0 in your earlier post, so some posters wanted to clarify that. They thought maybe you don't know the difference between the various interfaces (no offense intended).

[deermatt]

ok , i made a mistake , sorry.. i just got back from best buy. picked up a maxtor 80gb external usb 2.0. When i go to use CCC now, it says " CCC could not find any local disks mounted on your system besides the startup disk. please mount another local disk and try running ccc again"

[budster101]

Anyone in Maryland give this fellow a helping hand? Come on, he seems harmless enough, just lend him your external, you can meet at the local Apple Store and get it done.

I think also, if you want, Apple will do the transfer for you for free if you bought the computer from them, or charge you like $30.00 to do it. Just a thought.

You got one near you?
Wish I coudl help you out, but I'm in Chicago.

[deermatt]

budster, i bought a external! haha, now i tried CCC, but couldnt get it to work with this hard drive, so im just dragging my files from here to the external, and hope everything works. I sound like a moron, this is the first time i ever had to do something like this. I should probably keep all my stuff backed up regularly, but i dont

[budster101]

Oh, I think I missed that part. In any case if you went into an Apple Store, they'd look in on you and make sure you were doing everything right, as a courtesy.

.Mark

[Jens Peter]

Originally Posted by deermatt

I should probably keep all my stuff backed up regularly, but i dont

If your data are so valuable, keep the external disk and use it for backup - otherwise if your harddrive crashes, you will have to pay a lot more money to get your data back, than you paid for external disk.
Harddrive failitures are not that commond, but I have tried that twice. The first time without a backup, and the second time I had a backup - and valuable data!

[Randman]

Originally Posted by deermatt

I should probably keep all my stuff backed up regularly, but i dont

Originally Posted by deermatt

I sound like a moron

[budster101]

The best thing I can do here is agree with him. Tough love is the best I can offer.