how best to migrate from old macbook to new macbook

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how best to migrate from old macbook to new macbook

I use Time Machine on my current MBP. I'm moving to a new one and want to know whether I should restore EVERYTHING (OS and all files) or just all files to the new one. I've not done this in the Mac world before and don't want to make a mistake I'll regret. And of course, once I'm on the new MBP I'll want to move my Time Machine backup to that machine and clean out the old machine.

The descriptions of the options I've seen don't go into any detail so I'm unsure what corners I might back myself into and am looking for people's experiences and recommendations about what path to take, hopefully including your rationale. Thanks in advance.

MacBook Pro 15", macOS 10.15

Posted on Mar 23, 2020 2:39 PM

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Answer 1

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TheLittles

Level 10

195,162 points

Mar 23, 2020 3:10 PM in response to marvonel

marvonel Said:

"how best to migrate from old macbook to new MacBook"

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Based on the Above, Use Migration Assistant:

Use Migration Assistant to move the content from the Time Machine Backup to the new Mac. If you need to reinstall software because it is not running on a new Mac, then contact the developer and request a new license.

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Answer 2

marvonel Author

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Mar 23, 2020 3:46 PM in response to BobTheFisherman

Is this because there are problems letting Time Machine do it? And what about the OS? Let TM copy from the backup or just restore into what's already on the new machine instead? If you have information about how these options tend to work (well? badly?) and what problems they exhibit, I'd be grateful. If I can do so reasonably, I'd like to avoid reinstalling a lot of individual apps, etc. I have certainly done that kind of thing in the past in Windows, but would prefer not to. The ideal would be easily getting all my stuff moved to the new machine and behaving like it did, just faster / better / cooler, so to speak. Apple does a pretty good job of this in the iOS world but I have no experience with it in the macOS stuff.

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Answer 3

Mar 23, 2020 3:49 PM in response to marvonel

The reason I do it this way is because when I get a new computer it typically has different hardware and/or OS. Given these major system differences I want to make sure my apps are installed correctly with the new environment.

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Answer 4

marvonel Author

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Mar 23, 2020 3:50 PM in response to TheLittles

OK, but as far as I know, I get one shot to do it right. What options should I know about or make choices about and why? I'd like the cleanest and most functional result, hopefully without a whole lot of fiddling about. My goal is the new machine looking and acting like the original, only better.

And, by the way, thank you for giving me your answer. I do appreciate your time.

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Answer 5

marvonel Author

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Mar 23, 2020 3:54 PM in response to BobTheFisherman

True enough. There will be some differences and I'll try to follow them through, but they may end up being individual configuration changes for a handful of apps. Since I'm moving from a 2015 MBP to a 2020 MBP, a lot will be same/compatible, I believe and/or auto-adjusting.

And regarding OS, it will, presumably, be Catalina on both old and new. Is there an advantage you can see for either option (restore OS vs leave OS alone)?

Lastly, I forgot initially to thank you for your answer. I do appreciate any help.

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Answer 6

y_p_w

Level 6

17,678 points

Mar 23, 2020 4:00 PM in response to marvonel

marvonel wrote:

OK, but as far as I know, I get one shot to do it right. What options should I know about or make choices about and why? I'd like the cleanest and most functional result, hopefully without a whole lot of fiddling about. My goal is the new machine looking and acting like the original, only better.

And, by the way, thank you for giving me your answer. I do appreciate your time.

There's more than one shot. If a mistake is made, it's possible to do a complete erase and install of MacOS and try it again. It would be slow and painful though.

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Answer 7

TheLittles

Level 10

195,162 points

Mar 23, 2020 4:10 PM in response to marvonel

marvonel Said:

"[...]OK, but as far as I know, I get one shot to do it right. What options should I know about or make choices about and why? I'd like the cleanest and most functional result, hopefully without a whole lot of fiddling about. My goal is the new machine looking and acting like the original, only better[...]"

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For the Cleanliest Transfer: Just migrate all media and document files. Then, reinstall all applications anew.

In more depth:

You can transfer it over as any times as you desire.

Transferring Applications:

If software does not transfer, then it does not transfer. Only 64-bit software is compatible with Catalina (macOS 10.15). If it will not install due to compatibility, then request the 64-bit version key. Only the developer has the call of licensing.

Transferring All Else:

Just import all media files and document files using Migration assistant. Upload it to iCloud, and all of these items will be transferrable and accessible easily (if associated to the same Apple ID). It will go in nice and quick.

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Answer 8

y_p_w

Level 6

17,678 points

Mar 23, 2020 5:20 PM in response to marvonel

Yeah - after initial startup there is Migration Assistant, but that seems to have issues. The main complaint seems to be that it creates another user and it's kind of hard to . When I've used Setup Assistant (straight out of the box) it more or less replicated the previous environment. I've successfully gone from my late 2001 iBook G3 600/2005 iBook G4 1.42/late 2007 (Santa Rosa) MacBook/mid 2012 MBP. I haven't had to set up an environment from scratch since that time.

But basically the user can wipe the entire operating system and start over like it's a new computer out of the box starting up for the first time.

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Answer 9

Mar 23, 2020 3:13 PM in response to marvonel

Personally when transitioning to a new computer I restore my data and reinstall the apps.

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Answer 10

marvonel Author

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12 points

Mar 23, 2020 4:09 PM in response to y_p_w

That's good to know. Thanks.

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how best to migrate from old macbook to new macbook

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