Time Machine and Upgrading to Snow Leopard

Were I you I would not use TM. I would make a bootable backup of your current system volume that you can use just in case the upgrade doesn't work out.

Clone using Restore Option of Disk Utility

1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
2. Select the destination volume from the left side list.
3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
4.Check the box labeled Erase destination.
5. Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
6. Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.

Destination means the external backup drive.
Source means the internal startup drive.

You don't need to reformat the drive unless you are having problems with the drive and/or your Leopard system. You can simply run the SL installer which will automatically upgrade Leopard as well as retain all your files where they are. To do this successfully you need to:

1. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions

Boot from the Snow Leopard Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes.

If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.

2. Clone using Restore Option of Disk Utility

3. Proceed with the Snow Leopard installation.

If you are intent on erasing the drive before installing Snow Leopard then do the following after you have cloned your existing system per the above Steps 1 and 2.

Drive Preparation

1. Boot from Snow Leopard Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.

2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.

3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID (for Intel Macs) or APM (for PPC Macs) then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed.

4. Quit DU and return to the installer. Complete the OS X installation.

I am a Newbie to this area of installing hard drives and reinstalling operating systems/apps, so please bear with me on my questions that may have obvious answers to most people.

I just added *2TB WD My Book Studio LX external HD* +as a backup for my MacPro 1+ (original start up HD). I also just installed a *2TB WD Black Caviar Internal HD* into bay 2. I had been instructed to reformat my new internal HD (to remove PC format for Windows, just as I did for the MyBook Studio LX) via *Finder>Applications>Utilities>Disc Utility,* then
*1. Launch DU*
*2. Click ERASE, Enter New Name for Desktop Icon, Confirm ERASE*

I was NOT instructed to choose a format on the scroll down window, so when I did not address this it defaulted to a format: MS-DOS (FAT) but afterwards I realized my original start up HD was formatted in MAC OSX extended (journaled). After reading your post, I clicked to see if my SMART status was verified and it was. When I clicked on Partition to see if it was set at 1, I noticed it said : "_this partition cannot be modified. This disc appears to be partitioned for Boot Camp. Changing the partition map may make this disc unbootable using Windows."_ (I have Boot Camp partitioned on my original HD and never use it, so this was unintentional.

*A. If I erase this new 2TB HD disc and reformat it for MAC OSX ext (journaled) will I in some way erase my ability to use Windows on my original HD? Is there some other steps I will need to take to correct this?*

*B. Should I even reformat it from MS-DOS (FAT) to MAC OSX ext(journaled)? Other options were MAC OSX,MAC OSX Extended (Case Sensitive-Journaled) or MAC OSX Extended (Case Sensitive).*

Just want to be sure I complete or prep my disc correctly before installing SNOW LEOPARD.

*C. Can you confirm if these next steps are correct or if there is something else I may need to address?*

*D. Will it be necessary for me to re-install iLife, iWork, Aperture, Mobile Me, CS4, MS OFFICE for Mac for use on this disc? Or do the steps (stated below) I'm taking auto transfer all of these apps? If I need to reinstall them, what are the steps necessary since these are apps and are not operating systems?*

*E. After I reformatted MY BOOK Studio LX (back up) I went to System Preferences>click on Time Machine, clicked on SELECT BACKUP DISC, then selected MY BOOK icon and clicked START BACKING UP DISC. Do I have to repeat step after I format the 2TB BLK CAVIAR HD before I install SL or does Time Machine already recognize the HD is there and begin backing up this new disc as well as the original Macintosh HD disc???*

*F.Once I begin using this new hard drive, will the steps I've taken allow me to have access to all my files on this new HD so I don't have to go back and forth? Or will I have to somehow go back to the old disc to access photos in iPhoto or other files*?

_My next steps (depending on how I need to reformat) for installing SNOW LEOPARD (SL)onto the new 2TB HD were:_

1. Insert SL Disc, choose largest available HD space (in my case 2TB), click yes to install/license agreement. (wait 30-40 min for install)

2. Go to *System Preferences>System>START UP DISC* and click launch.

3. Next screen, *choose HD with oldest system* (in my case MAC OSX 10.4) and click on that then click RESTART.

4. After computer restarts, then choose OTHER VOLUME IN THIS COMPUTER.

5. Check ALL check marks, click TRANSFER. (process takes a few hrs)

Your assistance would be greatly appreciated. Assume that I know nothing and am dependent on your detailed instruction.

If you follow the steps outlined above then you will have your new drive prepped correctly. This will not impair your ability to install Windows using Boot Camp Assistant. BCA will create a bootable Windows partition for you. All you will then need do is install Windows for which you will need a retail Windows installer for XP w/SP2, Vista, or Windows 7.

For future reference you posted in another users topic which is called threadjacking. This is something you should not do. Instead you should create your own new topic. Fortunately, I had not unsubscribed to this topic and found your post. If you don't know how to post a new topic then you should read the Help & Terms of Use by clicking on the link in the right sidebar of this page.

I apologize for the misunderstanding, this was my first post so I'm sorry for the mistake. I thought I was supposed to find a related topic and join in on that topic, so please forgive the misunderstanding. Re: Your info about Windows, I'm not trying to install Windows at all. I'm trying to install Snow Leopard Operating System on my the new HD I have added to my MACPro ( I had Snow Leopard on my old HD and was told I would have to install it on my newly added HD) I want to Prepare the Disc for Snow Leopard not Windows or Bootcamp.

I was also unsure if I'd have to install every Apple app such iLife, iWorks, Aperature, MS Office for MAC, MobileME, Adobe CS4 on my new HD or if the computer would still recognize it on my desktop for use with new HD?????. I do not want Boot Camp or anything to do with windows on my new HD as I am a Mac user. Perhaps, this was not clear...Boot Camp was on my ORIGINAL HD (I put it on my old HD thinking I may need it for some websites, but never really have used it) and I just want to understand why the msg I stated above (the msg about this disc seems to formatted for Boot Camp) appears on my partition when I formatted my new HD (original Macintosh HD on my computer has the Boot Camp partition, but not trying to use that on my new disc).

Do you mind re-reading my questions A-F ? I had questions relative to Time Machine and if I should re-Format my new HD from MAC-Dos FAT to MAC OSX, etc. When you say follow steps outlined above, are you referring to the steps I stated or those you stated in a previous thread?

Thank you again for the Help & Terms of Use reference.