Time Machine Restore after corrupt memory

You can use your Time Machine disk with Migration Assistant:

How to move your content to a new Mac - Apple Support

This may transfer problems but if it does, you can always wipe the disk and start over. I think it's worth the shot.

I think I would try an erase/reformat and then reinstall the OS in an attempt to fix the hard drive and the lack of a Recovery Partition. Go to the App Store and download a new copy of Sierra. Quit the installer. You can make a bootable USB stick to install using this free program which will do all the work for you. Once you have the USB and are sure you can boot from it, do a couple of backups, then boot from the USB stick. Run Disk Utility/First Aid. Reformat the drive using Disk Utility/Erase Mac OS Extended (Journaled), then click the Option button and select GUID. Quit Disk Utility, then re-install the OS. Test.

Bootable USB Flash Drive – Diskmaker X oruse Apple’s method Create a bootable installer for OS

Sierra download

My recollection is that Setup Assistant goes through a few screens of basic information, then goes to a screen asking you if you want to transfer your information. The Support Topics don't specify what process it's using (and to add to the confusion say you can use "Migration Assistant" later). But I believe they are one in the same. I don't know what other process it would be using. I'm going to look around to see if I can get more clarification on this.

No, I don't think you can do it that way because the new Mac will not recognize the TM disk as from that computer. So you won't be able to enter the TM interface from that Mac. But you can run Migration Assistant again, it shouldn't migrate any files that have already been transferred.

I wouldn't be able to use my Time Machine backup on my external harddrive as a separate hard drive and connect it to my new mac to just copy over the specific document files and photos etc (as if it were a flash drive).

You should be able to copy over using the Time Machine application. My 2 backups I'm using on my current computer are the backups from my previous computer and I have no problems accessing the older backups.

If you use the inherit links, the old backup becomes the backup for the new computer.

Based on my experience, you should be able to do that. As previously stated, I can access backups made on my last computer that are a year + older than my new computer. I just tested again and I am able to restore the old computer files.

You are welcome. If you want to replace your current MacBook Pro hard drive, you might want to look at the site below. I have purchased RAM several times and a hard drive from Other World Computing and have always been very satisfied with the product and service. If you got an SSD hard drive, ir should speed up your computer.

Other World Computing

That's correct, you can only selectively transfer the groups it allows:

Clicking on the disclosure triangles gives you further choice, but that's it.

When you get the new computer, when you first start the machine, Setup Assistant will run. I would use that rather than Migration Assistant.

Set up a New Mac

I believe Setup Assistant prompts you to run Migration Assistant?