I used Setup Assistant and my Time Machine backup drive to setup my new 24" iMac yesterday. No downloads or documents seemed to transfer over and only a few pictures from iPhotos are on the new computer. I don't know if it's because I was never backing those up or what.
How would I go about getting those items transferred over to the new computer at this point? Would I want to use Migration Assistant or some other way?
Thanks
I am not sure what you did wrong, however follow the MA steps as described below:
When you buy a new Mac the easiest, quickest and most reliable method to migrate from the old Mac to the new Mac is to simply connect the old Mac's Time Machine External Hard Disk to the new Mac using a USB cable before you turn on the new Mac. You will likely need a USB A to USB C adapter, you can find them on Amazon for $10 or less. When you start the new Mac for the first time it will startup Setup Assistant (SA), SA will get to a point where it asks if you are migrating from another computer, select Yes and follow the on-screen prompts and it's done! It is THAT simple.
If you have already done SA on the new computer then simply connect the Time Machine External Hard Disk using a USB cable and launch Migration Assistant (MA) which is located in Applications - Utilities - MA. Then follow the on-screen prompts.
The ONLY difference between MA and SA is MA will create a new user account that you need to log into.
Both SA and MA migrate applications (not 32 bit apps), data files & settings. They do not migrate Mac OS itself. Some professional apps such as Adobe and Microsoft apps may require re-installing their apps as they will not allow them to be migrated. As long as you kept the security keys for installing their apps, it is not an issue.
Finally, never EVER use Wi-Fi when doing Setup Assistant or Migration Assistant. Why, it simply fails in most cases. Please read and follow the directions in Setup Assistant and Migration Assistant. If you do not have a Time Machine backup of the older Mac then create one! If you are not aware of Time Machine, please read Back up your Mac with Time Machine and finally if you need an External Hard Disk to use as a Time Machine External Hard Disk then many experience users on these forums prefer the OWC Mercury Elite Pro due to it's reasonable price, high level of quality and ease of use.
I am not sure what you did wrong, however follow the MA steps as described below:
When you buy a new Mac the easiest, quickest and most reliable method to migrate from the old Mac to the new Mac is to simply connect the old Mac's Time Machine External Hard Disk to the new Mac using a USB cable before you turn on the new Mac. You will likely need a USB A to USB C adapter, you can find them on Amazon for $10 or less. When you start the new Mac for the first time it will startup Setup Assistant (SA), SA will get to a point where it asks if you are migrating from another computer, select Yes and follow the on-screen prompts and it's done! It is THAT simple.
If you have already done SA on the new computer then simply connect the Time Machine External Hard Disk using a USB cable and launch Migration Assistant (MA) which is located in Applications - Utilities - MA. Then follow the on-screen prompts.
The ONLY difference between MA and SA is MA will create a new user account that you need to log into.
Both SA and MA migrate applications (not 32 bit apps), data files & settings. They do not migrate Mac OS itself. Some professional apps such as Adobe and Microsoft apps may require re-installing their apps as they will not allow them to be migrated. As long as you kept the security keys for installing their apps, it is not an issue.
Finally, never EVER use Wi-Fi when doing Setup Assistant or Migration Assistant. Why, it simply fails in most cases. Please read and follow the directions in Setup Assistant and Migration Assistant. If you do not have a Time Machine backup of the older Mac then create one! If you are not aware of Time Machine, please read Back up your Mac with Time Machine and finally if you need an External Hard Disk to use as a Time Machine External Hard Disk then many experience users on these forums prefer the OWC Mercury Elite Pro due to it's reasonable price, high level of quality and ease of use.
Okay, if the photos are in the Photos app then simply copy the library to a flash drive or an external drive then connect that to the new Mac and drag it to the Photos app icon in the Dock and you are done! Photos are imported!
Where are photos store, in the Photos app or just some random folders? Sam with documents and downloads, where are the stored? That information will depend on the best method to migrate them.
It was pretty straight forward and I think I followed the instructions okay. I think it's more likely I was never backing up pictures and documents for some reason. I made a lot of changes on my old computer over the years trying to get rid of my beachball problems and that could have something to do with it.
Everything is still there on my old computer, is there a way to transfer photos, documents and downloads straight from the old late 2013 iMac to the new M3 iMac?
The photos are in the photos app. When I click on finder there is a list of different things that show up on the left of the screen. 2 of them are documents and downloads that's where I'm trying to transfer from. I don't have any folders that I know of.
I appreciate you trying to help me.
Okay, thank you. I have the photos on the flash drive now but will need to get an adapter to connect it to the new computer.
Is it safe to assume I can transfer the documents and downloads the same way?
Yes, you can import your other docs and downloads the same way.
Everything worked perfectly, thank you so much for helping me.
Your welcome.
Transferring data from old to new iMac?
