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Moving to a new iMac - Migration Assistant vs manual migration
- Thread starter andyramone
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The end result is the same. The only difference is MA runs after setup and the SA runs during setup.
The problem is, and Mike alluded to it, is you do not want to create a user account then afterwards run MA. Give this a read.
Again, if your current Mac/backup is on Yosemite and the new Mac is on Yosemite, there is no problem using the setup assistant to migrate in your data.
Do even try to screw around with importing one account into the other. You will have a bad time... guaranteed.
Within a day or two of a new point release, the full App Store version is always updated to that version. 10.10.5 in this case.
Thank you very much for all your help, really appreciated.
What would you advice, making a new clean installation on first boot up, erasing hd and installin 10.10.5 and then migrate in the setup assistant window or save some time and boot up the new rMBP with 10.10.2 and migrate from my TM with 10.10.5 and then update the osx?
One other doubt i have, after migrating everything, will itunes copy its entire database too? i mean when i connect my iphone to my new mac will it recognize it as if it were my old mac and not asks me to erase the iphone as it if were a new computer?
Thank you!
Either one will work, as it would take the same data, assuming that you haven't updated/downloaded anything new since your last TM backup.
However, I'd definitely recommend the clean 10.10.5 install, then Migration Assistant. At that point (I'm coming in late to the thread), you could either migrate from your older Mac over the network, or from the TM backup. At that point, it would comedown to throughput on the device. What we don't know is what media your TM backup is on (read: USB, thunderbolt, etc.), so that may be faster. Otherwise, you could do it from Mac to Mac, which would be over WiFi (your rMBP won't have an ethernet port, unless it connects over Thunderbolt or USB) which would be slower.
So I'd say to make your USB stick from the latest installer, clean install your rMBP, then Migration Assistant from that using your TM backup.
An alternative would be to boot your rMBP with 10.10.2, Migration Assistant to migrate your data over, then use the Combo updater from Apple's website (not the App store) and update to 10.10.5 that way.
If you tell Migration Assistant to migrate everything you need over, it will definitely take your iTunes database, which would include your iPhone backups. However, just be sure to check your Apple ID when you get into iTunes. That should come over cleanly, but just be sure, and also be sure to deauthorize your other Mac, otherwise, you'll burn one of your 5 authorizations.
BL.
Hi Bradl, thanks for your help
My TM backup is on an external USB2.0 HD, its something like a 80-85gb backup, although when i check my MBA internal hd it says ive used 90gb, my backup its just 80ish gb, i guess thats normal?
How long do you think it will take the Setup assistant to migrate everything over a 2.0 USB HD to the rMBP?
Thank you!
90GB? Roughly an hour at the most. However, I would suggest to not bring over your network settings from the TM backup. I say that, because that could include the hardware address of your old Mac's wifi card, which would be a different address than your new one. Much better to set up the network on your own.
If you were migrating over WiFi, it would be significantly longer, as you'd be limited to the speed of your WiFi router, which you'd may as well set it to run overnight and come back to it in the morning.
BL.
There is absolutely no reason to install 10.10.5 first, nor is there any need to wipe and reinstall first. Both are a complete waste if time. As I mentioned, if you make an account first then use Migration Assistant afterwards, you may have the userID conflict described in my earlier link.
Just start the new system and when prompted attached the TM drive as the source for the migration and that's it. Then once the migration is done, run software update to apply the latest updates.
I don't mean to offend, but you are making this more difficult than it needs to be.
What I described is exactly what that setup assistant is designed for.
The TM will be a little smaller that the space used on the main drive because there are some cache and swap files that are not backed up.
There is absolutely no reason to install 10.10.5 first, nor is there any need to wipe and reinstall first. Both are a complete waste if time. As I mentioned, if you make an account first then use Migration Assistant afterwards, you may have the userID conflict described in my earlier link.
Just start the new system and when prompted attached the TM drive as the source for the migration and that's it. Then once the migration is done, run software update to apply the latest updates.
I don't mean to offend, but you are making this more difficult than it needs to be.
What I described is exactly what that setup assistant is designed for.
The TM will be a little smaller that the space used on the main drive because there are some cache and swap files that are not backed up.
I was going to post along the same lines - this is a dead easy process, so much so that on the last occasion as I was busy I left it to my 'pet dog' to carry out the transfer using Time Machine.
BTW that was transferring from a Mac Mini to an iMac - totally painless 100% effective. Don't complicate the uncomplicated.
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LOL Weaselboy im really grateful for all your help, let me tell you that the method you suggested me is the one i want to do, but as i posted earlier there is one person from this thread that posted this:
and thats what made me doubt abuout MA from 10.10.5 to 10.10.2, but i repeat, i think that method is the easiest and fastest one.
Thank you!
There is absolutely no reason to install 10.10.5 first, nor is there any need to wipe and reinstall first. Both are a complete waste if time. As I mentioned, if you make an account first then use Migration Assistant afterwards, you may have the userID conflict described in my earlier link.
Just start the new system and when prompted attached the TM drive as the source for the migration and that's it. Then once the migration is done, run software update to apply the latest updates.
I don't mean to offend, but you are making this more difficult than it needs to be.
What I described is exactly what that setup assistant is designed for.
The TM will be a little smaller that the space used on the main drive because there are some cache and swap files that are not backed up.
LOL Weaselboy im really grateful for all your help, let me tell you that the method you suggested me is the one i want to do, but as i posted earlier there is one person from this thread that posted this:
and thats what made me doubt abuout MA from 10.10.5 to 10.10.2, but i repeat, i think that method is the easiest and fastest one.
Thank you!
Just to clarify - I tried to do the migration from the old mac to the new through the network; I assume that the requirement for the OSes to be on the same version is related to that. If you're migrating from a USB connected drive, this shouldn't be a problem.
In retrospect, my guess is that I ran into problems due to the infamous 'discoveryd' daemon, which was now finally dumped by Apple.
I was going to post along the same lines - this is a dead easy process, so much so that on the last occasion as I was busy I left it to my 'pet dog' to carry out the transfer using Time Machine.
BTW that was transferring from a Mac Mini to an iMac - totally painless 100% effective. Don't complicate the uncomplicated.
I just want to echo Weaselboy and Lankyman that using SA from the beginning is the right way to go. I just finished migration to my new iMac 5K. and it was a smooth painless process.
My old iMac is 10.11.1 while the new one came as 10.11 but no issue at all. Start from Setup Assistant and better use a thunderbolt cable.
I bumped into this thread because I had the same old mentality like many others: keep worrying about migration assistant might leave something behind and unnoticed... but we really shouldn't complicate the unnecessary. Other than the speediness of a new Mac, in terms of files/apps/content, I feel like using the exact same machine - everything is where it used to be.
(I still bothered to compare each folder one by one. and glad to find that the only difference in Application folder is that the new Mac didn't copy over the outdated iWork folder and iMovie 9.0 from the old Mac.)
May be known to many but still want to remind that Bootcamp won't get migrated.
in a similar position myself except there is nothing wrong with my mid 2011 iMac so I'm thinking of just using migration assistant and my time machine backup that is on an external hard drive when my new iMac arrives. It will save a lot of time. It won't bring over an OS files will it? I just need the data.
edit: maybe it won't save that much time as the new Imac has an SSD
edit: maybe it won't save that much time as the new Imac has an SSD
You can control what data you want it to bring over, from data, to applications to any other necessary files you may need. So Migration Assistant and a TM backup should be all that you need.
I've reloaded my MBA each time from a valid TM backup each time a new OS has come out (Lion - Mountain Lion - Mavericks - Yosemite - El Capitan), and has worked every time.
BL.