Time Machine Now Works with Airport Extreme USB Drives

MacRumors · Mar 19, 2008, 10:28 PM

After the release of today's Time Machine and Airport update, several readers report that Time Machine now supports backups to USB drives connected to your Airport Extreme basestation. This configuration essentially reproduces the functionality of Apple's Time Capsule product.

Apple had originally advertised these "AirPort Disk" wireless backups as a feature for Leopard, but this feature was removed prior to its launch. Speculation had suggested that it may have been due to some unresolved security issues, but Apple has made no official statements. While there had been workarounds published, today's update appears to officially restore this feature.

Article Link

flopticalcube · Mar 19, 2008, 10:30 PM

About time too...

stephenli · Mar 19, 2008, 10:30 PM

great! I will buy a 1T tonite and connect to my Airport Extreme!

Telp · Mar 19, 2008, 10:32 PM

Yes. Finally! This is great news!! Tried this before and all i got was good old kernal panic.

Stella · Mar 19, 2008, 10:33 PM

Great news for people who bought the AE for this very reason

I'm wondering the performance difference between the Extreme and Capsule ( over a wireless network ), since USB for Extreme is fast enough to keep up with an 'N' network.

flopticalcube · Mar 19, 2008, 10:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stella

Great news for people who bought the AE for this very reason

I'm wondering the performance difference between the Extreme and Capsule ( over a wireless network ), since USB for Extreme is fast enough to keep up with an 'N' network.

USB is fast enough, unfortunately the CPU inside the AEBS isn't. Disk transfers from an attached USB are very slow.

Quote:

Originally Posted by conebbs

Now will people stop bitching now?

Not unles the reliability of Airdisks improves with this update as well.

Telp · Mar 19, 2008, 10:40 PM

Wait, will this work if the EHD is connected to the main mac, and is seen as a shared device between computers? Even if its not connected to the router?

coolfactor · Mar 19, 2008, 10:44 PM

I don't want to burst anybody's bubbles, but I haven't experienced any success with this. It's no different for me from before the software/firmware update. My USB drive does not show up in Time Machine until after I manually mount it in Finder. Of course, the drive has an existing Time Machine backup on it already, so maybe I need to reformat the drive before this actually works as people are saying it does. So far, no go here.

hayesk · Mar 19, 2008, 11:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flopticalcube

Not unles the reliability of Airdisks improves with this update as well.

I think that's why they didn't allow TM backups. This update is supposed to fix it.

heffeque · Mar 20, 2008, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flopticalcube

USB is fast enough, unfortunately the CPU inside the AEBS isn't. Disk transfers from an attached USB are very slow.

So... any benchmarks of TC vs AEBS?

MacFly123 · 10:32 PM

NICE! I think this is going to make a lot of people very happy

Now I need to figure out all that importing DVDs and the Apple TV thing

Robjw · Mar 19, 2008, 10:33 PM

damn it! Now I don't know if I should buy an AEBS and just attach an existing HD or go all out and get a TC!

conebbs · Mar 19, 2008, 10:37 PM

Now will people stop bitching now?

asketchbook · Mar 19, 2008, 10:42 PM

Never!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by conebbs

Now will people stop bitching now?

Zwhaler · Mar 19, 2008, 10:45 PM

****, this just makes me even more pissed off that my external Hard Drive is dead... and my friend voided the warranty...

kkat69 · Mar 19, 2008, 10:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conebbs

Now will people stop bitching now?

You first

bigandtasty · 12:31 AM

Read this on the earlier forum post, tried it with my Airport Extreme and it worked! This is the reason I bought the Airport Extreme. I am stoked it works.

The ironic part of this story is I just received my 1T TC this morning! I contemplated not opening it when I got airdisk working, but couldn't resist.

I am now setting up my AE to extend my network off the 1T TC.

FUNNY THOUGH, had this fix come out 2 weeks ago I would have splurged and just purchased a 2T external drive for the AE.

Either way, Nice job

B&T

arn · Mar 19, 2008, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigandtasty

Read this on the earlier forum post, tried it with my Airport Express and it worked! This is the reason I bought the Airport Express. I am stoked it works.

I think you mean Airport Extreme, not Airport Express.

arn

Fiveos22 · Mar 20, 2008, 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigandtasty

Read this on the earlier forum post, tried it with my Airport Express and it worked! This is the reason I bought the Airport Express. I am stoked it works.

The ironic part of this story is I just received my 1T TC this morning! I contemplated not opening it when I got airdisk working, but couldn't resist.

I am now setting up my AE to extend my network off the 1T TC.

FUNNY THOUGH, had this fix come out 2 weeks ago I would have splurged and just purchased a 2T external drive for the AE.

Either way, Nice job

B&T

Holy crap. Can you comment on the speed and reliability of data transfer from your network drive to your computer (for example - large files or music streaming to iTunes).

i.maverick · Mar 20, 2008, 01:20 AM

its good that they finally got around to providing this functionality. It was wa ted by many. Now, i'm not sure but considering it does not work for everyone this may have been an unintended side effect of the update.
or maybe time capsules were just not selling enough and they realized sin e we arent really selling these then well let them backup using the AEBS's they already own!!
but its just me.!!
good for the people either way

moc.liame · Mar 20, 2008, 03:58 AM

So I hooked up my hard-drive that I was currently using via usb for Time machine, into my airport extreme. And yeah I guess it thinks it can back up to it. But it has image writing issues and then doesn't work. Any sudgestions??

krye · Mar 20, 2008, 08:10 AM

Good, now all the people that jumped the gun and ran out and bought an Airport Extreme before Leopard officially launched and was disappointed to find out that "subject to change without notice" also applied to software can now officially chill out.

mikecorp · Mar 20, 2008, 10:51 AM

That is great news for everyone who did not buy TC.

Unfortunately, I received mine yesterday. I would be happy with my Buffalo HD and old AEBS. Now I have to figure out What to do with AEBS!! any suggestions?

amnguy · Mar 20, 2008, 03:40 PM

I've got an Airport Extreme with new firmware 7.3.1 and the Mac OS Time Machine and Airport Update 1.0 installed, but found that Time Machine will not recognize Airport USB disks unless settings are correct.

If the Airport USB disk is configured to use User Accounts within the Airport Utility, Time Machine will not see the disk. You are not able to mount a user's folder and select that, it just doesn't work.

To get Time Machine to see a disk, within the Airport utility, you must select an options other than "User Accounts" AKA protection via disk password or Airport password.

If you're like me and have a current disk that smaller than what you'd like to use, you can transfer older backups to a larger disk via Disk Utilities restore feature. This will copy the older Time Machine backups to the new destination, then enabling file sharing with disk password in the Airport Utility, things work great.

It also works perfectly to first use Time Machine with a new disk locally connected to your machine and then connect this disk to your Airport Extreme for "networked" Time Machine Backups. A connection via eSATA or Firewire for the first "big" backup and then moving the disk to the Airport Extreme as a USB disk for all backups after.

As many have said, this process is not automatic, unlike Time Capsule, but it's really not that difficult to just mount a disk. iCal or a small script could be used to do this on any desired schedule.

Those that complain about the "automatic" feature not being a part of the Airport Extreme should consider that if they really need automation can go buy a Time Capsule.....

If anyone has figured out how or has had success getting Time Machine to see a USB disk protected via user accounts, I'd really like to know!!

winterspan · Mar 21, 2008, 02:52 PM

Apple definitely needs to stop being secretive with regards to stuff like this.
I mean seriously, they got a lot of bad PR and feelings from users when everyone thought they pulled this functionality from Leopard so that users would buy a time capsule!
Yet all along they were going to make it available, they just had to fix some problems first.

Why in the hell would they let a situation like that go silent and not announce
what is really going on. Especially when they launched the time capsule... Everyone in the audience was thinking the same thing. A simple, "hey btw - we're working on wireless backups for Airport's USB drive connection, but there are still some bugs to be worked out"????

alas, at least people will stop complaining now

Mar 19, 2008, 10:28 PM	#1
MacRumors macrumors bot Join Date: Apr 2001	Time Machine Now Works with Airport Extreme USB Drives After the release of today's Time Machine and Airport update, several readers report that Time Machine now supports backups to USB drives connected to your Airport Extreme basestation. This configuration essentially reproduces the functionality of Apple's Time Capsule product. Apple had originally advertised these "AirPort Disk" wireless backups as a feature for Leopard, but this feature was removed prior to its launch. Speculation had suggested that it may have been due to some unresolved security issues, but Apple has made no official statements. While there had been workarounds published, today's update appears to officially restore this feature. Article Link

Mar 19, 2008, 10:30 PM	#3
stephenli macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jul 2004	great! I will buy a 1T tonite and connect to my Airport Extreme! __________________ I think therefore iPod

Mar 19, 2008, 10:32 PM	#4
Telp macrumors 68030 Join Date: Feb 2007	Yes. Finally! This is great news!! Tried this before and all i got was good old kernal panic. __________________ Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower. -Steve Jobs

Mar 19, 2008, 10:40 PM	#7
Telp macrumors 68030 Join Date: Feb 2007	Wait, will this work if the EHD is connected to the main mac, and is seen as a shared device between computers? Even if its not connected to the router? __________________ Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower. -Steve Jobs

Mar 19, 2008, 10:44 PM	#8
coolfactor macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Campbell River, BC, CANADA	not me I don't want to burst anybody's bubbles, but I haven't experienced any success with this. It's no different for me from before the software/firmware update. My USB drive does not show up in Time Machine until after I manually mount it in Finder. Of course, the drive has an existing Time Machine backup on it already, so maybe I need to reformat the drive before this actually works as people are saying it does. So far, no go here.

Mar 19, 2008, 10:30 PM	#2
flopticalcube macrumors 601 Join Date: Sep 2006	About time too...

Mar 19, 2008, 10:33 PM	#5
Stella macrumors 68040 Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada	Great news for people who bought the AE for this very reason I'm wondering the performance difference between the Extreme and Capsule ( over a wireless network ), since USB for Extreme is fast enough to keep up with an 'N' network.

Mar 19, 2008, 10:31 PM	#11
MacFly123 macrumors 68000 Join Date: Dec 2006	NICE! I think this is going to make a lot of people very happy Now I need to figure out all that importing DVDs and the Apple TV thing __________________ - Steve Jobs' best friend! Last edited by MacFly123 : Mar 19, 2008 at 10:32 PM. Reason: edit

Mar 19, 2008, 10:33 PM	#12
Robjw macrumors newbie Join Date: Dec 2007	damn it! Now I don't know if I should buy an AEBS and just attach an existing HD or go all out and get a TC!

Mar 19, 2008, 10:37 PM	#13
conebbs macrumors newbie Join Date: May 2007	Now will people stop bitching now?

Mar 19, 2008, 10:45 PM	#15
Zwhaler macrumors 68040 Join Date: Jun 2006	****, this just makes me even more pissed off that my external Hard Drive is dead... and my friend voided the warranty...

Mar 19, 2008, 10:45 PM	#17
bigandtasty macrumors regular Join Date: Dec 2006	How Ironic! Read this on the earlier forum post, tried it with my Airport Extreme and it worked! This is the reason I bought the Airport Extreme. I am stoked it works. The ironic part of this story is I just received my 1T TC this morning! I contemplated not opening it when I got airdisk working, but couldn't resist. I am now setting up my AE to extend my network off the 1T TC. FUNNY THOUGH, had this fix come out 2 weeks ago I would have splurged and just purchased a 2T external drive for the AE. Either way, Nice job B&T Last edited by bigandtasty : Mar 20, 2008 at 12:31 AM. Reason: ARN CORRECTED ME! THANKS:)

Mar 20, 2008, 01:20 AM	#20
i.maverick macrumors regular Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: somewhere I belong	well.. its good that they finally got around to providing this functionality. It was wa ted by many. Now, i'm not sure but considering it does not work for everyone this may have been an unintended side effect of the update. or maybe time capsules were just not selling enough and they realized sin e we arent really selling these then well let them backup using the AEBS's they already own!! but its just me.!! good for the people either way __________________ why so serious?

Mar 20, 2008, 03:58 AM	#21
moc.liame macrumors newbie Join Date: Mar 2008	ummm....no luck so-far So I hooked up my hard-drive that I was currently using via usb for Time machine, into my airport extreme. And yeah I guess it thinks it can back up to it. But it has image writing issues and then doesn't work. Any sudgestions??

Mar 20, 2008, 08:10 AM	#22
krye macrumors 68000 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: USA	Good, now all the people that jumped the gun and ran out and bought an Airport Extreme before Leopard officially launched and was disappointed to find out that "subject to change without notice" also applied to software can now officially chill out. __________________ RyeMAC3.net RescueMyClassicMac.com iNeedCoffeeToCode.com 8 Core Mac Pro, 30" ACD, iPod Mini, Nano, Shuffle, iPhone 3G, MSi Wind with OSX

Mar 20, 2008, 10:51 AM	#23
mikecorp macrumors newbie Join Date: Mar 2008	Damn, That is great news for everyone who did not buy TC. Unfortunately, I received mine yesterday. I would be happy with my Buffalo HD and old AEBS. Now I have to figure out What to do with AEBS!! any suggestions?

Mar 20, 2008, 03:40 PM	#24
amnguy macrumors newbie Join Date: Mar 2008	Correct Settings and this works! I've got an Airport Extreme with new firmware 7.3.1 and the Mac OS Time Machine and Airport Update 1.0 installed, but found that Time Machine will not recognize Airport USB disks unless settings are correct. If the Airport USB disk is configured to use User Accounts within the Airport Utility, Time Machine will not see the disk. You are not able to mount a user's folder and select that, it just doesn't work. To get Time Machine to see a disk, within the Airport utility, you must select an options other than "User Accounts" AKA protection via disk password or Airport password. If you're like me and have a current disk that smaller than what you'd like to use, you can transfer older backups to a larger disk via Disk Utilities restore feature. This will copy the older Time Machine backups to the new destination, then enabling file sharing with disk password in the Airport Utility, things work great. It also works perfectly to first use Time Machine with a new disk locally connected to your machine and then connect this disk to your Airport Extreme for "networked" Time Machine Backups. A connection via eSATA or Firewire for the first "big" backup and then moving the disk to the Airport Extreme as a USB disk for all backups after. As many have said, this process is not automatic, unlike Time Capsule, but it's really not that difficult to just mount a disk. iCal or a small script could be used to do this on any desired schedule. Those that complain about the "automatic" feature not being a part of the Airport Extreme should consider that if they really need automation can go buy a Time Capsule..... If anyone has figured out how or has had success getting Time Machine to see a USB disk protected via user accounts, I'd really like to know!!

Mar 21, 2008, 02:52 PM	#25
winterspan macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jun 2007	Apple definitely needs to stop being secretive with regards to stuff like this. I mean seriously, they got a lot of bad PR and feelings from users when everyone thought they pulled this functionality from Leopard so that users would buy a time capsule! Yet all along they were going to make it available, they just had to fix some problems first. Why in the hell would they let a situation like that go silent and not announce what is really going on. Especially when they launched the time capsule... Everyone in the audience was thinking the same thing. A simple, "hey btw - we're working on wireless backups for Airport's USB drive connection, but there are still some bugs to be worked out"???? alas, at least people will stop complaining now

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