how to change from intel Mini (2018) to new M2 Mini

The fastest, easiest and most reliable way, is to connect the 2018 Mac mini’s Time Machine backup to the new M2 Mac mini and Migrate everything from it.

see > Move content to a new Mac - Apple Support

Yes. Avoid Migration Assistant/Time Machine, these are robo-copy programs that pull in stuff blindly including any faulty settings/malware that may be lurking on the old system. They are fast & easy, yes, reliable, no. Often, they sputter and stutter. Avoid.

Start afresh on a clean slate, you’ll learn your new system better (and enjoy it too). Install Apps and copy user data on an as needed basis. Have fun, all the best!

den.thed wrote:

She just wants to sit down and use her new computer without having to fiddle around.

That's the key point for me. Back when I was young and computers were new and I didn't need them to do actual work, I loved playing around and would spend days setting up a new one. And it was fun. And sometimes necessary. We also didn't have Migration Assistant. But Migration Assistant has gotten good! When I replaced my computer in July, I think it took less than two hours to transfer everything. It was almost completely seamless. It was kind of like having the movers come, pack everything up, move it and then put it away in all the right places at the new house (to extend on the analogy).

I found Migration Assistant to be both fast and reliable. If you don't have malware on your computer in the first place (and it's pretty easy to avoid if you have a Mac), there's nothing nasty to get transferred.

Nasty isn’t just malware, it’s all sorts of leftover files, un-updated files, old installs, setups , settings, neglected config etc lying around in difficult places. It’s a robo-copy - user has no clue what’s getting migrated, no say either. Great for the hesitant-computer not-so-literate, but otherwise you can’t beat a fresh setup with active engagement from the user at every step. Sort of like moving houses, one choice is to ask the moving company to just pack everything no questions and deliver, the other is to see it as an opportunity to clean house before starting afresh.

Anyway, ‘nuf said. OP can decide.

I've had Macs since 1984 and Apple Computers since before that. So, I don't put myself in the hesitant, computer not-so-literate category (and presuming that only people without what you consider expertise would use time and labor saving features is a tad condescending). I gave up the whole "clean install" thing decades ago and haven't looked back. It is, in my opinion, a major waste of time and mental effort. The only time I consider it necessary is if I was having problems with the old computer. You can't beat the ease of connecting the two devices and coming back an hour later to find your new computer is all set up and ready for you to get to work.

I have to agree with IdrisSeabright and stand behind my original post 100%.

We just moved the wife from a 2012 Mac Mini to an M1 Mac mini and she does not like moving or wasting time with what you call active engagement. She just wants to sit down and use her new computer without having to fiddle around. Had she followed your advise, you would still be here painfully sorting things out for her and she would not be happy with you.

You can do that because there’s no one answer 😎 and our different experiences add value to the OP’s query, nothing else. Migration assistant is like all assistants including human, useful to some, not so much to others. Which is why it’s entirely optional.

Noted. Going through my notes, I also have this on my don’t-advise-Mrs-den.thed list: don’t ask her to shut the computer instead of sleeping it because she might knock the coffee cup down when reaching for the power switch at the back of the mini.

Hey, nobody’s denying your preference. Or recommending a clean install. However, your experience since time immemorial is not the the divine truth and suggesting that it is, is a tad whatever. It could also be seen as a handicap as in finding it obstinately difficult to get rid of bad habits or see other points of view. In this case not, but be aware that the “since 1984” argument can work both ways. Which is why I don’t back my responses in that way.

Anyways, OP has probably noted your arguments, hang in there might even mark it helpful. I’ll get started on that now, no worries 👍🍻

hcsitas wrote:

Hey, nobody’s denying your preference. Or recommending a clean install. However, your experience since time immemorial is not the the divine truth and suggesting that it is, is a tad whatever.

I never suggested it was some sort of divine truth. I only gave my personal experience to counter your rather assertive suggestion that Migration Assistant was bad and clean installs were best. I'm sorry that people presenting alternative points of view is disturbing to you.

Best of luck.

You’re welcome! All the best.

I know and I agree! I wasn't clamming that one way was better than the other. I just wanted to share one of many stories were Migration got it right.