Ann, The Airport Extreme's that were one version back from the current version (square model) have the USB port and I went to great length to put two USB firewire drives on shelving next to the two Airport Extremes (these are the new ones, not the flying saucers two generations ago). I later learned that the newer Airport Extremes DID NOT allow the backup from the USB Airport to the firewire drive. Bummer. Of course they had the Time Capsule that would allow since the drive was included in the Extreme.
Now however they have the latest and greatest Extremes out and I understand that they DO allow the USB drive to backup the network computers. They also allow dual connectivity which means we can allow guest onto the internet without handing out our password. Now understand that backing up 5 Mac's wirelessly will take a HUGE amount of time at least initially. I don't know how you would be able to backup your computer remotely for you are talking about a time factor that would be unbelievable since you would be using internet connections. Most backup software will backup any disk mounted on the desktop so connecting your remote Mac to a Mac at home may allow Time Machine to back it up but you would have to stay connected for a large length of time to get it done. To get a "real" answer you might go to Apple's support site and ask about Time Machine remote backup. John On May 1, 2009, at 7:03 PM, [email protected] wrote: > I am curious about Time Machine. Can I use it to back up multiple (5 > different macs in the household) Macs by plugging a > sufficiently big --1TB maybe--drive into an airport extreme's usb > port? (Are only certain hard drives useable for Time Machine > backups or will any do?) > All 5 macs are running Leopard. Also can one computer back up > remotely--using only web access--and would additional software be > needed for that macbook? > Sorry for asking several questions at once, but they are kind of all > part of the same unresolved situation. > > Thanks in advance for your always very helpful suggestions. > > Ann Richmond > > > _______________________________________________ > The next Louisville Computer Society meeting will > be April 28 at MacAuthority, 128 Breckinridge Lane. > Posting address: [email protected] > Information: http://www.math.louisville.edu/mailman/listinfo/macgroup > _______________________________________________ The next Louisville Computer Society meeting will be April 28 at MacAuthority, 128 Breckinridge Lane. Posting address: [email protected] Information: http://www.math.louisville.edu/mailman/listinfo/macgroup
