Time machine backup too large to restore to new HD

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Level 1

33 points

Time machine backup too large to restore to new HD

Hi,

My 3TB fusion drive on my 2013 27" iMac failed recently so I replaced the HD with a new 1TB SSD.

When I try to recover from the latest backup it turns out the back up is too large for my new SSD (I think around 2.1TB of the iMac HD was being used).

The main culprit is Dropbox (1.8TB) and if I uncheck that box on migration assistant, everything is fine and I can reinstate everything else....EXCEPT my Desktop, Downloads and Music are gone (because these folders were synced and backed up to dropbox).

Unfortunately I can't reinstall dropbox again because my download folder is non-existant so no destination for downloads to go to (there's simply a question mark in the place where it should be on the right of the dock), so I can't even download the installer.

It's quite nice having a completely clean desktop too but TBH I'd like to access the files that were on there.

Is my only option to get a larger external harddrive and make that the iMac's main drive?

If so I've wasted time and money on the new SSD.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

GK

iMac 27″, macOS 10.15

Posted on May 7, 2024 7:12 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

rkaufmann87

Level 10

140,976 points

May 7, 2024 9:36 PM in response to gkmach1ne

"Is my only option to get a larger external harddrive and make that the iMac's main drive?"

Yup, however rather than going to the pain of tearing the machine down again why not simply get an external SSD (I recommend the OWC Envoy Pro EX Thunderbolt 3 ) and set up the external SSD as your boot drive. Instructions for doing so are in How to setup an external SSD as your startup disk.

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Answer 2

gkmach1ne Author

Level 1

33 points

May 9, 2024 10:14 AM in response to rkaufmann87

hi rkaufmann87

Thanks for your response.

I've been away out the house for 5 hours and have come back to find that it's now at 5hrs 44mins. So we have movement!

I got that OWC Mercury Elite pro on your recommendation...and that's now the external drive for the iMac.

My time machine backup is on a WD My Passport 4TB.

The migration is from the WD to the OWC

I'm optimistic, now that there's been some sort of jump in the time remaining to transfer.

Thanks a lot for your help.

GK

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Answer 3

Old Toad

Level 10

207,829 points

May 8, 2024 11:24 AM in response to rkaufmann87

rkaufmann87 wrote:

"Is my only option to get a larger external harddrive and make that the iMac's main drive?"

Yup, however rather than going to the pain of tearing the machine down again why not simply get an external SSD (I recommend the OWC Envoy Pro EX Thunderbolt 3 ) and set up the external SSD as your boot drive. Instructions for doing so are in How to setup an external SSD as your startup disk.

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Answer 4

steve626

Level 6

10,217 points

May 7, 2024 9:19 PM in response to gkmach1ne

You can access all your Dropbox files by logging in from the web browser interface. You will see all your files and folders there. Then you can create manually a new Downloads folder but you will need to judiciously download only files that will fit on the new drive, or leave them in the cloud and use the Downloads folder you manually created to download the Dropbox application.

Alternatively, you can specify a new folder to download to in your browser settings. Download the Dropbox installer and install it but take care to keep the files in the cloud until you can figure out where to put them.

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Answer 5

rkaufmann87

Level 10

140,976 points

May 8, 2024 9:27 AM in response to gkmach1ne

"How do I create a new Downloads Folder?"

A quick Google search found https://www.wikihow.com/Create-a-Download-Folder#:~:text=Push%20the%20gray%20cogwheel%20button,appear%20named%20%22untitled%20folder.%22&text=Type%20%22Downloads%22%20to%20change%20the,are%20using%20to%20save%20downloads.

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Answer 6

gkmach1ne Author

Level 1

33 points

May 9, 2024 5:39 AM in response to rkaufmann87

Hi rkaufmann87

I have done what you suggested and ordered a new (larger) SSD.

Installation of Catalina went smoothly.

However, when using migration assistant to transfer data from a time machine back up (from an external hard drive by USB) it keeps on freezing.

I've tried now three times....and each time, the transfer freezes on 8 hours and 34 minutes.

It's been like this for well over an hour (but the transfer rate seems to change a little)...maybe almost two hours.

Is this common? From what I can tell it's mostly wifi transfers that freeze.

What could be causing this?

Thanks

GK

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Answer 7

rkaufmann87

Level 10

140,976 points

May 9, 2024 8:21 AM in response to gkmach1ne

If your Time Machine External Hard Disk has corruption or is old and failing that can cause problems. As a general rule of thumb, it is wise to change your External Hard Disk about every 5 years or so. All spinning HD's die, the question is when which is unpredictable. The good news is they are inexpensive now and changing them is pretty simple only require simple screw driver assuming you are using a high quality enclosure. You can use the old HD for non-critical duties or simply erase it and take it to a recycler so it eventually turns into new Toyota's. The External Hard Disk I'd recommend for Time Machine is the OWC Mercury Elite Pro due to it's high quality enclosure, reliability, reasonable cost and the service of OWC.

Let your migration run for about 24 hours to give your Time Machine External Hard Disk a chance to do its work. If it's still not done after 24 hours, then shut down the computer, disconnect the old Time Machine drive and startup the computer and see how it's doing. It may be just fine.

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