Migration from Mac Pro 2012 to Mac Pro 2019 OS and Certain App Question

Question

Level 1

28 points

Migration from Mac Pro 2012 to Mac Pro 2019 OS and Certain App Question

Ok I have a Mac Pro 2012 which is running Mojave ( that model can't go any higher) I want to migrate MOST of my files to my Mac Pro 2019 but I have a few questions on doing this as I have done migrations before but this time goal is bit different.

There are files on the 2012 that I do not need to migrate to the 2019
The 2012 has Mojave and I want to go to Catalina on the 2019

Now do I just migrate straight to the 2019 which will have Mojave installed from the migration and THEN upgrade the 2019 to Catalina and delete the apps and files I don't want on the 2019 after the migration?

Or is there a better way?

??

Posted on Oct 31, 2020 7:03 AM

Reply

Answer 1

Oct 31, 2020 7:14 AM in response to dagwaremedia

Migration Assistant is designed to copy over your files, settings, and Applications (but NOT MacOS itself) from an old computer, possibly not running the same version of MacOS.

How to move your content to a new Mac - Apple Support

.

Reply

Answer 2

Oct 31, 2020 9:28 AM in response to dagwaremedia

Sure. That is what all the postings above described.

Migration Assistant (and its cousin Setup Assistant) copy only User files, not MacOS.

to install MacOS on a post-2012 Mac:

How to reinstall macOS from macOS Recovery - Apple Support

The only surprise is that getting to Recovery takes a while, depending on your internet connection speed. Downloading macOS takes a while, and Installing once downloaded takes a while...

Reply

Answer 3

dagwaremedia Author

Level 1

28 points

Nov 6, 2020 12:12 PM in response to Ronasara

Migration assistant does not see a USB cable I have connected from my mac Pro 2012 to my Mac Pro 2019. I had to get a USB Thunderbolt 3 connector, it's plugged in but Migration only sees wireless or ethernet. This is the cable connection I have that goes to a USB male to male. With this adapter https://www.apple.com/shop/product/MJ1M2AM/A/usb-c-to-usb-adapter?fnode=8b

What do I do here as I do NOT want to wait 22 hours for the date to transfer thru ethernet. ( I stopped it because of the time and figured I would go with a USB cable. Any help here?

R

Reply

Answer 4

Ronasara

Level 6

14,649 points

Oct 31, 2020 7:10 AM in response to dagwaremedia

A couple of points here. If your 2019 computer came with Catalina, it is not possible to install an earlier OS in it. So, the OS will not be changed in the new computer, but your settings, etc will be carried over. Then, as you suggest, you can just delete any unwanted files or apps from the new computer.

Reply

Answer 5

dagwaremedia Author

Level 1

28 points

Oct 31, 2020 7:48 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Great thanks for that, one last thing. The 2019 had a mishap during an update a few months ago. I lost some of my files so now will I be able to wipe the drive on the 2019 and then install Catalina as I do not want to migrate with the files that are on the drive now I would rather have the machine clean.

Will the 2019 allow me to zero the drive and THEN re install Catalina? BEFORE I migrate???

Thx

Reply

Answer 6

Oct 31, 2020 8:05 AM in response to dagwaremedia

The saved copy of your files is supposed to be safe on your Trusted local disk-based backup drive.

ERASE-ing a drive removes all the files on it. You can't first ERASE a drive and then copy ANYTHING off it. All the files will be gone.

¿What is the date of your most recent backup, and by what method?

--------

The new Mac comes with a fresh copy of Catalina. There is no need to erase and reinstall on that machine, but it is possible you wish. Or just use Migration Assistant to copy over only the files you want. If you wish, you can manually copy only certain files from any category instead of the entire category.

You can use either drive sharing or Target Disk Mode to accomplish a connection for manual copying.

Reply

Answer 7

dagwaremedia Author

Level 1

28 points

Oct 31, 2020 8:18 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Long story but my 2019 had issues during an upgrade on Catalina ( system) the result was me not being able to access any files on my 2019 . Apple investigated and of course blamed it on a non Apple issue. Anyway the 2019 is sitting for two months as I have a mac pro trash can I'm using but I want to use the 2019 for another set up I have in my recording studio. So thats why I was a little concerned if I just do a straight migration or erase the 2019 drive and put Catalina on first or can I even do that?

R

Reply

Answer 8

dagwaremedia Author

Level 1

28 points

Oct 31, 2020 9:22 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Understood but just want to make sure that I can FIRST zero the 2019 drive THEN upload a fresh Catalina install. Can I do that?

If I can then I know there is nothing on the 2019 drive but Catalina, Then do a migration with ALL the files from my 2012 which if I'm correct will only migrate the files NOT THE OS ( in other words overwrite Catalina on the 2019)

THEN remove the files I don't want off of the 2019 drive, I need to ERASE the drive FIRST on the 2019 as there are corrupt files which gave me problems 2 months ago, follow?

Can I do this??

Reply

Answer 9

dagwaremedia Author

Level 1

28 points

Nov 5, 2020 4:42 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Ok was going to do this but I did not want to do it over the internet way way way too long as I mentioned I just need to copy files from my Mac Pro 2012 to my Mac Pro 2019 The 2012 is running Mojave and the 2019 is running Catalina ( fresh install) I want to do this by connection so only way is usb from 2012 to thunderbolt 3 adapter into 2019. Will this work? If so how do I transfer? In target disk mode??

R

Reply

Answer 10

Ronasara

Level 6

14,649 points

Nov 5, 2020 5:12 PM in response to dagwaremedia

No, you do not use Target Disk Mode. Actually transfers are fairly simple and easy to do. You should use the Migration Assistant app to do it and connect the two computers together with a USB cable. No adapters are needed. When you get to the selection window, you have only a couple of options. You will want to transfer your settings and your files. You can not select some files and not others. So, you will have to delete any files you no longer want after the transfer. The transfer can take up to an hour, more or less, so just let it be. Enjoy your new computer.

Reply

Answer 11

Nov 5, 2020 6:12 PM in response to dagwaremedia

The article about Migration assistant I posted above has three suggested connection methods to accomplish a migration assistant transfer:

• connecting both devices to your Router

This Does NOT send the files "over the Internet" it will accomplish a strictly local, computer-to-computer transfer. However if either leg of the transfer is over Wi-Fi, it will still be very slow. If you could get an ethernet connection to each computer, Gigabit Ethernet is comparable to hard disk speeds.

• Using Target Disk Mode

this mounts the drive of the source computer as another drive on the destination computer. (which is the Target always confuses me, so I do not use that term)

• using a Time Machine (or other) backup drive of the old computer

-------

In any these connection methods, Migration Assistant can facilitate the transfer of as much or as little as you like.

Reply

Answer 12

Ronasara

Level 6

14,649 points

Nov 5, 2020 10:22 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

You are right, USB is not used as a networking connection. Transferring data from an old computer to a new one is not a network process. USBs primary use is the connection of devices to each other. Apple's instructions for transferring data from an old computer to a new one advises to use Migration Assistant. That is specifically what M.A. is used for. Their instructions further suggest using Wi-Fi, an Ethernet cable or a USB cable to accommodate the transfer. The only problem is that using Wi-Fi has shown that due to the volume of data being transferred, it sometimes gets corrupted and then the problems come about, such as never getting the transfer completed. Using a USB cable has shown itself to be trouble free, unlike the other two methods. The process couldn't be any simpler. There is no known reason to be skeptical about doing a transfer by this method. I've not heard of one problem with such a transfer. I definitely have with any kind of wireless method. That is my experience. Your experience certainly may be different.

Reply