Clarification of which data is copied by Migration Assistant?

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Level 1

9 points

Clarification of which data is copied by Migration Assistant?

I just got a new MBP and am excited to start using it. Before I use Migration Assistant to copy data from my old (2007) MBP, I would like some clarification of what some of the copied data is.

Specifically, can anyone tell me where the data coming from in the following folders that appear in the Migration Assistant dialogue window (the first three appear when I click the disclosure triangle under my old username).

Public

Sites

Other Data

Other Files and Folders

Thanks for anyone's help.

P.S. The reason I ask is that I want to copy the minimal amount of data to keep my new hard drive as clean and lean as possible. For example, I'm not transferring applications, and instead will install them.

MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014), OS X Yosemite (10.10.1)

Posted on Dec 11, 2014 9:16 PM

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Answer 1

Dec 11, 2014 9:36 PM in response to trobert225

Public and Sites are the default folders in your old user account that are for local content sharing with other systems on your network, and other users on your Mac. Since other users cannot access your home folder's contents, the Public folder is set up so its contents are available to another user who logs on and would like to access anything in it. The Public folder is read-only to other users, but contains a Dropbox folder that can be written to by others, so they can copy files to your account in this way.

The Sites folder contains a default user Web page that is pointed to by the Web Sharing service in older versions of OS X. Apple has done away with supporting this in newer versions, so the folder is just a remnant of prior OS X versions you had running on your Mac. With the Web Sharing service enabled, folks could go to "http://YourMacsAddress/username" and be able to load the Web pages you have configured in the Sites folder.

The Other Data and Other Files and Folders are options for grabbing all of the miscellaneous files and folders from your other computer's account that are not in the default folders (ie, Documents, Desktop, Movies, Music, Pictures, etc.). If you have any custom folders you have made in your home directory, or any hidden files or folders that are important, then these settings will ensure they are copied to your new Mac.

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Answer 2

trobert225 Author

Level 1

9 points

Dec 12, 2014 1:11 PM in response to Topher Kessler

Thanks very much, Topher. Just for my own edification, how did you discover this info? I did a number of searches both within the Apple Support Site and on the web in general, but was unable to find out.

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