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Do I need to buy an iMac?

K

Kalkanprince

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 18, 2020
9
1
Hi All,

So I used to work from an old MacBook Pro with 1TB storage but upgraded about a year ago to a new MacBook Air, 16gb Ram, 256SSD. At the time my thinking was I don't need to worry about storage, all my files and photos are in the cloud, be it iCloud or OneDrive.

However my MacBook Air seems to be constantly running out of disk space, complaining the swap file is low etc, I have checked all settings to make sure I have as few files as possible on my Macbook (it transpires iCloud is a sync service not a cloud drive so clearly I misunderstood what they told me in the Apple store at the time)

This has got me thinking.... and nervous that my photos are in the cloud with no real Backup so to speak - Is it time to buy an iMac with a big drive installed so that I know my files are physically safe and well then use my Air not as my primary machine but instead when I need to travel or work away?

Friends have told me to move to Windows (I know, what sort of friend says that) as they say I could buy a "Beast of a machine" for all my files as a windows desktop and then share it on the network with the MacBook Air.

Any advice welcomed.
 
However you decide, do not buy one of the current iMacs, especially not the ones with Fusion Drive or HDD. In my opinion they are the worst value Apple offers across all of its products. There are a lot of rumors for a refreshed iMac during WWDC, starting Monday, June 22nd. Also likely they will remove the option for Fusion Drives and HDDs (finally). So for a 1TB SSD, you will have to pay top dollar (compare the SSD upgrade costs on the MBPs, for example) or you can work with an external hard drive in your current setup.
 
Thanks jj, I was thinking about that, if Apple ditch fusion drives the cost will be horrific for any decent level of storage! I was thinking of an external HDD but Im not sure if Photos/iCloud etc could sync to this could it?
 
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It sounds like you're only relying on iCloud for backup, so you may want to expand your backup options to include one or more external drives. Multiple backup options is the way to go. You can use Time Machine to help automate the backups, or simply copy over your files to the external drives. You could also add an external DVD burner to create additional backups.

When you're experiencing the low disk space issues, what does Activity Monitor show as the highest CPU activity percentage?
 
Yes Namara you are correct, iCloud is my only backup as I have nearly 600gb of files there plus my photos yet only a 256gb drive in my Macbook. Apple were adamant this was fine and I don't need to worry but I do feel nervous that everything is only in iCloud.

Ill check activity monitor next time I get the warning.... Thats why I was thinking do I need an iMac or similar with a pile of storage just acting as a (a very expensive) backup

Hope that makes sense what I am trying to do
 
Kalkanprince said:
Yes Namara you are correct, iCloud is my only backup as I have nearly 600gb of files there plus my photos yet only a 256gb drive in my Macbook. Apple were adamant this was fine and I don't need to worry but I do feel nervous that everything is only in iCloud.

Ill check activity monitor next time I get the warning.... Thats why I was thinking do I need an iMac or similar with a pile of storage just acting as a (a very expensive) backup

Hope that makes sense what I am trying to do
Click to expand...
I understand your thinking about having a large HD, but it should not be considered a backup by any means. Your HD is your primary storage. iCloud and external methods are your backups. Even if you bought an iMac with a large HD, you're still going to need a multi-method backup strategy. External drives are fairly cheap. If it was me, I would keep the MacBook and get a couple of 1 or 2TB external drives.

www.apple.com

Storage - Mac Accessories

Backup your Mac with a portable or desktop hard drive. Safekeep all of your music, photographs, movies and more. Buy online with fast, free shipping.
www.apple.com
 
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Thanks Namara,

Is there a way I can copy my data out of iCloud to the external drive? I think that's my issue at the moment, I cant even download my photos to my Macbook due to insufficient local space - Thats why I thought I needed an iMac with a big HDD then an external HDD as a backup
 
I think you are misunderstanding what you need to do. It wouldn’t change things at all even if you could download all of your iCloud data to your Macbook, or if you got an iMac so you could do so. Cloud storage is not a backup. Not if it’s iCloud. Not if it’s OneDrive. Not if it’s Dropbox. Some cloud providers also provide some level of backups (the ability to restore previous versions of files) but I would still suggest you separate your backups from your cloud storage.

Now yes, without a device with the ability to download your entire iCloud data set locally, you can’t backup those files that are stored only in iCloud - but again - this is not a problem unique to iCloud. One way or another you need a device that can download your entire data set locally, so that you can create a backup of it - to another local drive or to a cloud backup service.

The easiest, cheapest solution is to likely divide your data into that which you really need accessible in the cloud, and that which can be archived to a couple of local drives for redundancy. Get your iCloud data set small enough that you can download it in full to at least one of your computers, and then back up that computer.
 
Thanks Zhenya

perhaps thats why my friends are saying buy a cheap windows pc with lots of storage then back that up. As you say my dilemma at the moment is I can’t get my data out of the cloud. all my photos that are in iphotos ive no idea where they are stored 🤷🏻‍♂️
 
Kalkanprince said:
Thanks Zhenya

perhaps thats why my friends are saying buy a cheap windows pc with lots of storage then back that up. As you say my dilemma at the moment is I can’t get my data out of the cloud. all my photos that are in iphotos ive no idea where they are stored 🤷🏻‍♂️
Click to expand...

I don't understand your dilemma. You can copy your photo's from iCloud to an external drive:

https://appletoolbox.com/how-to-download-photos-from-icloud/

There are many more links where this came from. If the link above is not helpful enough simply Google something like 'copy files from iCloud to external drive' or 'backup files from iCloud' and you will find lots of other helpful links.

So my advice is (do with it what you want):
  • Buy an external USB drive (2 TB or more should suffice).
  • Follow the link above (or search for other links) to backup your photo's (and other files) from iCloud to the external drive. Also use a backup program to automate this.
  • Do not use your internal drive as a backup medium. Only use the internal drive for your operating system (MacOS in your case) and maybe install apps/programs on it.
  • Do not buy a new iMac. The current iMac needs an urgent overhaul because it is getting long in the tooth. Also, as stated above: a larger internal drive is not suitable as a backup device. Also, if you want to buy a new computer, buy at least something decent with an SSD. In your case your MacBook Air should be more than sufficient if you don't put unnecessary files on your internal drive. Just the OS and the programs you use. Put all the rest in iCloud and/or on external drives.
  • Your friends mean well. Also if they recommend another brand of computer than Apple, it does not mean they are not good friends. Friendship should not be dependant on the brand of tools one uses ;)
Edit:
I forgot: Always backup, backup, backup :) Never put all your eggs in one basket. If you don't know how to backup your files: Learn it.
 
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