Time capsule problem

is this a possible drive failure?

A solid, fixed amber light is usually displayed when the drive fails.

using airport utility on a widows pc I am able to access it to set up a wireless network

Using AirPort Utility on the PC.....

Click on the Time Capsule icon, then click Manual Setup

Click directly on the word Status and a message will appear

What is the message?

Restart the Time Capsule and your Macs.

Are you able to access AirPort Utility using either the Mini or Pro?

If yes, click on the Time Capsule, then look for Status again in the smaller window that appears. Click on the amber dot there to see if a message appears.

If you can see the Time Capsule on the iPad Air using AirPort Utility....tap on the Time Capsule icon, then tap on Status Messages

Power off the entire network.....all devices, Macs, iPhones, iPads, printers, etc.....in any order that you want

Wait a minute

Start the modem first, and let it run a few minutes

Start the next device connected to the modem and let it run a full minute

Keep starting devices one at a time about a minute apart until the entire network is back up

Check the network again to see if devices have appeared again.

To save another step, and your time, you will need to check a setting on each of your Macs, when you can.

Open System Preferences (gear icon on the dock)

Open Network

Click on WiFi on the left to highlight it

Click Advanced at the lower right

Click the TCP/IP tab

Make sure that the setting for Configure IPv6 is set to Link Local Only

Click OK

Click Apply

Then go back and click Ethernet to highlight it, and follow the exact same steps.

Do this on all of your Macs. This is necessary to help try to work around some of the many bugs in Mavericks and Yosemite that are causing AirPorts and Time Capsules to become "lost".

Just so I am clear, going back to your original statement that the Mac Mini and MacBook Pro do not work with the Time Capsule......you are now saying that both the Mini and Pro can "see" the Time Capsule in AirPort Utility, but neither one will work when you try to run a Time Machine backup?

The reason I ask is that you will not be able to see previous backups until you have current backups working correctly.

Is there a method of erasing the drive contents and starting over again?

Yes, there is.....but that would wipe the entire contents of the Time Capsule drive, so you would be starting all over again with the Macs that you want to back up to the Time Capsule. This procedure would normally be a last resort, when all else fails.

Let's first see if we can get backups going again, since erasing the drive will be no guarantee to solve the issue.

On the Mac Mini, open any Finder window or open Macintosh HD and look on the left side of the window to look for a Shared heading. Under that heading, the Time Capsule icon should appear.

Does it?

Then do the same check on the MacBook to see if the Time Capsule icon will appear.

In the example below, you can see my Time Capsule, which is named TC, under the Shared heading on the left side of the window.

That is encouraging.

On the Mac Mini.......

Open Macintosh HD

Open Library

Open Preferences

Locate only the com.apple.TimeMachine.plist file and drag it to the desktop of the Mini. (Leave the other TimeMachine.plist.Lockfile alone).

Restart the Mac Mini

When the Mini restarts, click on the Time Machine clock icon at the top of the screen

Open Time Machine Preferences

Turn ON Time Machine

Click Select Disk....or....it might read Add or Remove Disk

Select your Time Capsule

Click Use Disk

Wait a minute, then click the Time Machine icon at the top of the screen again

Click Backup Now

Report on your results

Unfortunately, then there are more problems that will need to be solved. Try powering off the Mini and Time Capsule again and start them back up.

Unfortunately, I am not familiar with the issue that you are now reporting.

At this point, I do not think that erasing the Time Capsule drive will help at all, and would suggest that you get with Apple Support on the phone so that they can walk you through a possible solution.

If you do want to erase the Time Capsule drive, I can tell you how to do that.

Another user may be able to help as well.

Good luck.