When You Use another Mac as Time Machine, What are It's Limitations?

[Alvin777]

Hi. I read that you can use another Mac (for example iMac to Mac Mini, the latter being the Time Machine ) as a Time Machine to backup your main Mac? What are it's limitations though, compared to Time Machine on the regular external drive?

If you got the storage on the Mac that was used as Time Machine and plug it in an external enclosure (USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt), can you still restore with that Time Machine?

Thank you.
God bless, Revelation 21:4

 

[Boyd01]

I use my old 2012 Mini as a time machine server on my local network, the backups are stored on a 5tb external hard disk. It works exactly the same as my old Apple Time Capsule. Not aware of any limitations to this setup. I have recovered old versions of files from it with no problem but haven't ever done a full restore. Don't see why that wouldn't work, however I would never use Time Machine to restore a whole computer anyway, that's what Carbon Copy Clones are for.

Caveat: I am still using Catalina, not Big Sur.

 

[Alvin777]

Hi, thanks. I remember Carbon Copy Cloner and also SuperDuper!
I guess, that's the beauty of Apple, Macs and macOS it's way easier to do thing in the Apple ecosystem.

I might try FreeNAS along side using the other iMac as Time Machine and 2nd monitor (so I can use some old but still cool, PCs lying around and put a lot of extra hardisks in them and also for some extra USB-A slots and extra I/Os and to help reduce landfill waste).

God bless, Revelation 21:4