Apple Event: May 7th at 7 am PT
Time Capsule 802.11n. Started having "Unexpected Error" issues. Been replaced. Need to delete contents added via time machine so can recycle it. Tried all reset options including Factory reset always get "Unexpected Error". Suggestions?
Mac mini (Late 2012), OS X Mavericks (10.9.5)
If the older Time Capsule is not beyond hope, we may be able to come up with a special workaround that will allow direct access to the Time Capsule, so that you can erase the contents of the drive.....but.....no guarantees if you decide that you want to try this.
Will you be using the Mac Mini for this?
Is it still running Mavericks (10.9.5)?
Do you have a short spare Ethernet cable?....any length will do
If the older Time Capsule is not beyond hope, we may be able to come up with a special workaround that will allow direct access to the Time Capsule, so that you can erase the contents of the drive.....but.....no guarantees if you decide that you want to try this.
Will you be using the Mac Mini for this?
Is it still running Mavericks (10.9.5)?
Do you have a short spare Ethernet cable?....any length will do
Yes to all three questions.
The old Time Capsule needs to be accessed in total isolation. That would mean that you need to temporarily power off any other AirPort Time Capsules or other Apple router(s) that you have, so you may want to try this late at night or another time when folks won't complain that the Internet is down.
Connect an Ethernet cable from the Mac Mini to one of the three LAN <--> ports on the Time Capsule.
Open up AirPort Utility on your Mac Mini
Click the File menu in the upper left hand corner of the screen and select Configure Other.
For Address, Enter
10.0.1.1
Leave the Password area blank for now
Click OK
If things work......you will see a summary page of settings with tabs for Summary, Base Station, Internet, Wireless, Network, Disks
if you are asked for a password above.....Enter
public
If you cannot access the settings with the steps above, then I know of no other way to get into the old Time Capsule.
Please report on your results so far, and we'll continue with the procedure to erase the disk and review some options if the Summary page appears.
After entering the address I get the message "An error occurred while reading configuration". From what you said above, it appears I am at the end of the line. I guess I just store it a secure area subject to high temperatures for a decade and assume that temperature and time will render the contents useless. :=) Thanks for the help.
Please check one more thing on your Mac and then try the whole isolated setup again when you can.
Open System Preferences (gear icon on the dock)
Open Network
Click on WiFi on the left side panel to highlight it
Click Advanced at the lower right of the window
Click the TCP/IP tab
Make sure that the setting for Configure IPv6 is set to Link Local Only
Click OK
Click Apply in the next window
Then repeat the same sequence as above, except start by clicking on Ethernet to highlight it
Once done, restart the Mac again and give it a try
Prior to initiating this discussion, I had read other discussions and tried the above settings, apparently forgetting to change them back. Specifically, prior to the attempt described in my 2:20 PM message the settings were as described above and Ethernet was green and Wi-Fi red. Have I understood you correctly?
Most users who set the IPv6 settings to Link Local Only leave them that way, since this setting often solves a common bug in Mavericks and Yosemite with "lost" AirPorts that will not appear in AirPort Utility.
It wouldn't hurt to try moving the settings back to Automatic, but I would be surprised if that helped in this case.
At this point, it is looking like the firmware on the older Time Capsule has somehow become corrupted, and I'm not aware of anything that can fix that.
Just as a double check, if you have another Mac that you could use, that is worth a try. If the same error appears, then I'm afraid that I'm out of ideas at this point.
Tried another mac mini with the same operating system. Same result. Thanks for the help.
Unfortunately, not much that you can do at this point. One option would be to open up the Time Capsule and pull the hard drive, but not sure if you want to go to that kind of trouble.
Time Capsule 802.11n trying to delete contents from time machine.
