Specs page on NewerTech VoyagerQ hdd dock suggests I could boot from it - just like any external enclosure. Anyone actually used/using dock instead of enclosure confirm? Seems like a simpler and more elegant solution when you have various back up drives outside.
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Booting from Hard drive Dock
- Thread starter nedlah
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IMPORTANT QUESTIONS:
- Will you be booting from USB or firewire?
- How old is your Mac?
My particular case may be unique. I have a 2007 (white) Intel iMac. About a year ago I picked up the NewerTech Voyager Quad which has both USB2 and firewire800 connections.
The iMac will boot from the docked drive via USB.
It WILL NOT boot from the docked drive via firewire.
I did some poking around, and found that Newer had made some kind of internal change to their docks, which prevented older Macs from booting via firewire from newer (in age) docks. This was actually confirmed on the Other World Computing web site.
So.... consider.....
- If you are going to boot via USB, you'll have no problems
- If you have a recent Mac, you should be able to boot via firewire without problems
- If you have an older Mac, you may not be able to boot via firewire.
Very clear, eh?
Having written that, if you have a recent Mac that has USB3, I'd suggest AVOIDING the Voyager Quad (too much money). You can buy ANY USB3 docking station, and have a faster booter than you would with firewire...
- Will you be booting from USB or firewire?
- How old is your Mac?
My particular case may be unique. I have a 2007 (white) Intel iMac. About a year ago I picked up the NewerTech Voyager Quad which has both USB2 and firewire800 connections.
The iMac will boot from the docked drive via USB.
It WILL NOT boot from the docked drive via firewire.
I did some poking around, and found that Newer had made some kind of internal change to their docks, which prevented older Macs from booting via firewire from newer (in age) docks. This was actually confirmed on the Other World Computing web site.
So.... consider.....
- If you are going to boot via USB, you'll have no problems
- If you have a recent Mac, you should be able to boot via firewire without problems
- If you have an older Mac, you may not be able to boot via firewire.
Very clear, eh?
Having written that, if you have a recent Mac that has USB3, I'd suggest AVOIDING the Voyager Quad (too much money). You can buy ANY USB3 docking station, and have a faster booter than you would with firewire...