I want to transfer files from my Mac Pro (5,1 - mid-2012, High Sierra) to my new M4 Mac mini (Tahoe, 26.2). I tried to use Migration Assistant. I couldn't get it to work. I called Apple Support and was told that my Mac Pro is too old to work using MA via an Ethernet cable. They suggested that I use Dropbox.
If I use DB, how do I ensure the files end up in the correct location?
Mac Pro, macOS 10.13
Forget DropBox. I have no idea why Apple would even suggest that over a USB3 SSD.
I would first try making a Time Machine backup of your old Mac. Then try to use Setup Assistant (or if you can use Migration Assistant afterwards) to see if you can migrate just the macOS user accounts. Avoid transferring anything else since it will be too outdated.
You could also just transfer your files to a USB3 SSD, then connect the SSD to the new Mac & transfer those files to the new Mac.
You could use a third party app such as Carbon Copy Cloner (CCC) to clone your home user folder to a folder on a USB3 SSD or a DMG archive. You would then have a copy of all your data on the USB SSD just in case you missed transferring something to the new Mac. If your old Mac is running macOS 10.14 or earlier, then make sure you check the root of the old drive for any files & folders you may have placed there & transfer them as well (macOS 10.15+ no longer allows storing user files on the root of the boot drive). CCC does have older versions of their app available to download so there should be a version compatible with whatever version of macOS you have on the old Mac.
If you utilized iTunes, iPhoto, or other old style macOS apps with libraries, then those libraries will need to be converted to the new library format for the respective new apps. This makes migrating from a Time Machine backup the easiest & best option if it works.
FYI, just make sure you have frequent & regular backups of your new Mac. There are a lot more new ways to permanently lose access to the data stored on the internal SSD of recent Macs due to all of the hardware, software, and security changes. Also, make sure you also backup any important & unique data stored on external media (including the cloud).
Forget DropBox. I have no idea why Apple would even suggest that over a USB3 SSD.
I would first try making a Time Machine backup of your old Mac. Then try to use Setup Assistant (or if you can use Migration Assistant afterwards) to see if you can migrate just the macOS user accounts. Avoid transferring anything else since it will be too outdated.
You could also just transfer your files to a USB3 SSD, then connect the SSD to the new Mac & transfer those files to the new Mac.
You could use a third party app such as Carbon Copy Cloner (CCC) to clone your home user folder to a folder on a USB3 SSD or a DMG archive. You would then have a copy of all your data on the USB SSD just in case you missed transferring something to the new Mac. If your old Mac is running macOS 10.14 or earlier, then make sure you check the root of the old drive for any files & folders you may have placed there & transfer them as well (macOS 10.15+ no longer allows storing user files on the root of the boot drive). CCC does have older versions of their app available to download so there should be a version compatible with whatever version of macOS you have on the old Mac.
If you utilized iTunes, iPhoto, or other old style macOS apps with libraries, then those libraries will need to be converted to the new library format for the respective new apps. This makes migrating from a Time Machine backup the easiest & best option if it works.
FYI, just make sure you have frequent & regular backups of your new Mac. There are a lot more new ways to permanently lose access to the data stored on the internal SSD of recent Macs due to all of the hardware, software, and security changes. Also, make sure you also backup any important & unique data stored on external media (including the cloud).
Transferring files from Mac Pro to Mac mini using Dropbox
