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Erasing data on dying iMac then restoring from Time Machine and/or carbon Copy Cloner backups up?

How do I erase data on a dying 27 in Late 2014 iMac 3 TB Fusion hard drive before replacing machine with newer Mac when it can barely boot up since I'd have cut off the glass to remove the hard drive?


I can barely get the Mac to turn on as it is right now. Running Big Sur, last remotely compatible OS. Can I wipe drive completely by running Disk First Aid from another Mac which I dont have? Or can Apple wipe it remotely?


I have two backups one current on Time Machine on external WD Passport HD, and a week older but probably sufficient, nonbootable Carbon Copy Cloner backup on external hard drive.


If I buy new iMac with only 256 GB SSD and store my data on an external HD, will it be hard to tell Time Machine or Migration Assistant which files should go where? Might want some data kept on 256 SSD or might upgrade to 512 SSD for fast Photohop file writing. Sorry I've never had to restore from Time Machine before but I used to use Migration Assistant with older pre High Sierra Macs.

iMac (2017 – 2020)

Posted on Dec 3, 2023 10:10 AM

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4 replies

Dec 3, 2023 10:23 AM in response to TurksCap

You follow the steps in What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your Mac. If you cannot get it to run, then you don't need to worry about the data. Just have the old machine recycled by Apple, follow Apple Recycling Programs


To migrate, follow the directions below!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


If the old Mac has more data stored on it than 256GB, then buy one that has adequate storage (same as or more than the old computer) or your migration will be difficult and messy.


When you buy a new Mac the easiest, quickest and most reliable method to migrate from the old Mac to the new Mac is to simply connect the old Mac's Time Machine External Hard Disk to the new Mac using a USB cable before you turn on the new Mac. You will likely need a USB A to USB C adapter, you can find them on Amazon for $10 or less. When you start the new Mac for the first time it will startup Setup Assistant (SA), SA will get to a point where it asks if you are migrating from another computer, select Yes  and follow the on-screen prompts and it's done! It is THAT simple.

 

If you have already done SA on the new computer then simply connect the Time Machine External Hard Disk using a USB cable and launch Migration Assistant (MA) which is located in Applications - Utilities - MA. Then follow the on-screen prompts. 

 

The ONLY difference between MA and SA is MA will create a new user account that you need to log into.

 

Both SA and MA migrate applications (not 32 bit apps), data files & settings. They do not migrate Mac OS itself. Some professional apps such as Adobe and Microsoft apps may require re-installing their apps as they will not allow them to be migrated. As long as you kept the security keys for installing their apps, it is not an issue. 

 

Finally, never EVER use Wi-Fi when doing Setup Assistant or Migration Assistant. Why, it simply fails in most cases. Please read and follow the directions in Setup Assistant and Migration Assistant. If you do not have a Time Machine backup of the older Mac then create one! If you are not aware of Time Machine, please read Back up your Mac with Time Machine and finally if you need an External Hard Disk to use as a Time Machine External Hard Disk then many experience users on these forums prefer the OWC Mercury Elite Pro due to it's reasonable price, high level of quality and ease of use. 


Dec 3, 2023 8:28 PM in response to TurksCap

Hey there!


I wouldn't worry about erasing the old iMac just yet - I'd wait until your new Mac is setup with data migrated.


It sounds like you'll need a lot of external storage with your new Mac. Since it looks like your primary storage will become external, I'd suggest choosing either a high capacity fast external hard disk or solid state drive (SSD). For a hard disk, the LaCie 8TB d2 Professional Desktop Hard Drive - Black - Apple would be a great choice. It's fast at ~260MB/s and has a very large capacity. For even better performance, but less capacity, you could choose an SSD option, such as a LaCie 2TB Mobile SSD Secure USB-C Drive - Gray - Apple. It can reach speeds of ~1000MB/s.


When migrating data to an external disk, Migration Assistant won't work; it's only able to migrate data to the current startup disk, which sounds like in your case would be the internal 256GB or 512GB Apple SSD. Therefore, I'd recommend you manually copy and paste your user data, including Photos Library, to the new external disk for storage from your CCC backup disk. Also, be sure that you mark your large 600GB Photos library residing on an external disk as your system photos library. You can then manually reinstall applications from the original source to the Mac's internal drive.


Hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any questions!


-Jack

Dec 3, 2023 6:36 PM in response to rkaufmann87

Thank you!!! I’ve got about 1.5 TB of system, apps and data on my old iMacs 3 TB Fusion Drive. I won’t come close to fitting it all onto a new Silicon iMac with either a 256 or 512 GB internal SSD (tight budget) so I will have to be selective about what goes where. That could be tedious and painful.


Of the 1.5 TB total used, system and apps consume about 82 GB, but some apps are old 32-bit Adobe CS 6’s so they won’t migrate. My Photos Library is pushing 600 GB. I don’t know whether I should get the 512 SSD for room to grow. I mostly use Mac for InDesign and Photoshop, some Illustrator and website design but never do much video editing and no games.


My Time Machine is on a ~5 yr old Western Digital Passport external. My Carbon Copy Cloner (CCC) backup is on a fast 1 yr old Novus Oyen Digital external recommended by CCC.


Hope I don’t need to buy TWO new externals because I shouldn’t partition dedicated drives — an OWC dedicated to new Time Machine (since WD could be getting old) AND one for ALL the data that won’t fit onto the 256 or 512 new SSD internal. Don’t want to commit to big (2 TB?) iCloud account. Used to have OWC Mercury Elites back in FireWire days—good drives!

Erasing data on dying iMac then restoring from Time Machine and/or carbon Copy Cloner backups up?

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