Hi Chris, I agree with Daniel on Seagate external drives, I prefer using WD. The tutorial you downloaded from my website - How To: 'Format and Partition External Drive for Time Machine explains everything clearly for you.
<http://ronnibrown.net/tutorials/format--partition-external/index.html> Cheers, Ronni Sent from Ronni's iPad4 > On 20 Jan 2015, at 5:23 pm, Chris Burton <[email protected]> wrote: > > Hi Daniel > > Thanks very much for your details on using a larger drive for backup and I > agree with everything you say. I presently have 3 x 3tb WD external HD which > have copies of my data, movies and photos and I intend keeping these as > multiple backs of a larger drive like the Seagate 5tb. After your email I did > some looking on line and found various other comments, some of which also say > what you have re Seagate. It always a big risk and I sure feel better when I > have at least 2 copies of everything. > > I havnt used Time Machine yet but want to now so I will follow some of > Ronnie's great suggestions and documents to use it. > I guess I just need to format the drive as Mac OS Extended journaled to use > TM, is that right? > > The Seagate 5tb is reasonably priced as well which is appealing and I havnt > seen any WD 5tb down here yet. > > Many thanks and best regards > > Chris > >> On Tue, Jan 20, 2015 at 12:29 PM, Daniel Kerr <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> Hi Chris >> >> Pretty much any drive can be reformatted for the Mac, so you'd be able to >> erase that drive in Disk Utility. >> You'd just need get the software that comes with it, as it would be Windows >> only. However it would/should work with Time Machine ok anyway. >> >> A few things to consider though. Some of this is my own experience and >> personal preference so others may disagree or have different >> experiences...... >> >> 1) Just be aware that the larger the drive the more you'll lose should it >> all fall over in a big heap. eg someone with 2x 2TB has less to lose versus >> someone with 4TBs. So the bigger the drive, the more you store on it, the >> more gets lost if the drive falls over. So really need more then one backup >> "just in case". >> 2) If the computer doesn't have USB3 then it will just drop back to USB2 so >> a little slower to access. >> 3) I'm not a huge fan of Seagate gear. Again, this is my own experience and >> personal opinion. I've had more of their gear fail then any other brand. >> (And they were the brand that had a large failure rate in iMacs a few years >> back). >> They may be slightly better now, but I'm still a bit cautious. So I'd just >> be a bit cautious of not "putting all your eggs in one basket". Just make >> sure to cover yourself should anything happen to that drive. (Though the >> same applies for any drive really). Whereas Western Digital I find really >> great and it's my "go to" drive brand. I just find them more reliable and >> better follow service if needed. Again, just my experience. >> >> But to answer your question again, yes it should work fine once reformatted. >> >> Kind regards >> Daniel >> >> Sent from my iPhone 6 >> >> --- >> Daniel Kerr >> MacWizardry >> >> Phone: 0414 795 960 >> Email: <danielATmacwizardry.com.au> >> Web: <http://www.macwizardry.com.au> >> >> >> **For everything Apple** >> >> NOTE: Any information provided in this email may be my personal opinion and >> as such should be taken accordingly, and may not be the views of >> MacWizardry. Any information provided does not offer or warrant any form of >> warranty or accept liability. It would be appreciated that if any >> information in this email is to be disseminated, distributed or copied, that >> permission by the author be requested. >> >>> On 20 Jan 2015, at 12:06 pm, Chris Burton <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> Good afternoon wamuggers, >>> >>> I was in Good Guys this morning and noticed a number of Seagate HD, one of >>> which was 5tb 'Expansion drive'; I didnt know these were available and it >>> really got my attention as I am in the process of consolidating all my data >>> from numerous drives, and this size would be perfect as my offsite backup >>> drive. >>> >>> However, on closer inspection I noticed that it was for Windose only which >>> is a real bummer and has 'Backup software ready to go' and is USB 3 >>> enabled. They do have a 'Desktop Backup drive 2tb' that can be used with >>> both Win and Macs without reformatting and using Seagate's backup software. >>> >>> My question is, can I reformat this drive for use with my iMac as I want to >>> start using Time Machine for my backups now and this size would see me good >>> for a few years. >>> >>> I cant find anything online saying I shouldnt reformat and wanted to check >>> with you good people before I handed over the dollars. One cnet review says >>> that it is possible to reformat as per other external HD >>> >>> Many thanks and best regards to all >>> >>> Chris
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