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Any rumors that Apple will replace the Time Capsule?

MitzEclipse said:
Interesting option, however not keen on using some hack workaround approach especially when dealing with my data. Plus my Time Capsule hardware is coming up to 15+ years old...it's done its service, time for an upgrade. Now the question is - to what?
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The ubiquity UNAS series looks very good to me. But this is a bad time to buy external storage…
 
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So, I still have a 2TB time capsule. It is my understanding that the remote protocol is the one being discontinued. I assume that attaching a network cable directly to it would work. It's not far away.
 
jbachandouris said:
So, I still have a 2TB time capsule. It is my understanding that the remote protocol is the one being discontinued. I assume that attaching a network cable directly to it would work. It's not far away.
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No, you still won't be able to back up to it once you update to macOS 27, regardless of whether or not you're using wifi or ethernet.
 
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Soondae said:
Time Machine is not going away. AFP support for the Time Capsule actually went away with MacOS 26 Tahoe, so I had to purchase a new 2TB drive that I formatted APFS and leave connected to my Mac Mini M4 in order to use Time Machine backups. Attached is a photo of my setup. I still use my Time Capsule as an internet repeater in my office, it works great but I no longer use the 2TB drive in the Time Capsule. I also have a Synology NAS that I could have set up a time machine backup to but Synology doesn't support APFS which is the format I want to use. The research I did couldn't find any NAS or Router with USB support that will work with APFS so I have opted to leave the Time Capsule drive connected 24/7 to my Mini. Probably an issue for notebook users. So my recommendation for you would be to go with a Synology NAS or an ASUS router with USB support as the ASUS routers support Time Machine back up that your MacBook can connect to at night for backups. Just remember that you cannot use AFP or APFS file systems. Synology uses a proprietary format and the ASUS USB suggests HFS+ for Time Machine back up.
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Do you know of the specific router ASUS that can connect to a USB HD as a Time Machine?
 
Undecided said:
As many know, Apple will end support for Time Machine over AFP (and, therefore, backing up to Time Capsules) with macOS 27 (see, for example, https://sixcolors.com/post/2026/01/apple-is-burying-the-time-capsule-but-how-to-replace-it/). I will need a technophobe-compatible, boomer-compatible solution for easy backups of a MacBook Pro to replace it, and right now there doesn't seem to be anything. Even just periodically plugging in an external drive isn't boomer-compatible. So, are there any rumors about Apple coming out with something to replace the Time Capsule?
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"Boomer-compatible" - wtf?
 
boomom999 said:
"Boomer-compatible" - wtf?
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josehill said:
Ageism is a real thing. Worse, a lot of people seem to think it's kind of cool.
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Good grief. As I said in another comment in this thread:
Undecided said:
Guys, I was using "technophobe" as an adjective to modify "boomers" - it was not intended to imply that all boomers are technophobes. And it was only an attempt to indicate that any solution has to be simple.
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josehill, you even "liked" that comment!! 🤨
 
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lostPod said:
Do you know of the specific router ASUS that can connect to a USB HD as a Time Machine?
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Numerous models, pretty much any with USB support. Go to ASUS website and read the support documents of their firmware and they give a good explanation of their time machine support.
 
MitzEclipse said:
Interesting option, however not keen on using some hack workaround approach especially when dealing with my data. Plus my Time Capsule hardware is coming up to 15+ years old...it's done its service, time for an upgrade. Now the question is - to what?
Click to expand...
I'm less worried about my old Airport Extreme connected to a new(ish) HD . . .
 
leman said:
The ubiquity UNAS series looks very good to me. But this is a bad time to buy external storage…
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The absence of RAID 0 is a bit frustrating - it means that if you fill both bays you're only getting the storage capacity of one bay . . . making storage costs even more of an issue because you need a 1X drive rather than 2 x 1/2X drives.
 
I used WD MyBook (2) before giving up then went back to connected drive the T7 Samsung which has worked flawless and the new addition Ugreen NAS which works well some glitches after upgrades on both the MBP and the Ugreen .
 
Le Big Mac said:
The absence of RAID 0 is a bit frustrating - it means that if you fill both bays you're only getting the storage capacity of one bay . . . making storage costs even more of an issue because you need a 1X drive rather than 2 x 1/2X drives.
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yeah i just got a UNAS 2 and you're correct about the RAID 0, it works very well out of the box for mac
 
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Thank you for the report, I have a perfectly working Time Capsule from 2015 purchase. I will apply this new firmware this week and report back. I can't wait to get it back to its original purchase use.
 
MitzEclipse said:
Interesting option, however not keen on using some hack workaround approach especially when dealing with my data. Plus my Time Capsule hardware is coming up to 15+ years old...it's done its service, time for an upgrade. Now the question is - to what?
Click to expand...
SuperDuper or Carbon Copy with a SSD
 
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benwiggy said:
I've tried this, and it works really well. I can now select the Time Capsule drive as a backup destination on OS 27..!
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Thanks for posting this.

Based on your success I installed it on my 4th gen TC in anticipation of the public release of macOS 27 (I’m still on Sequoia) and hope to use SMB thereafter to continue the encrypted secondary backups that I make to the drive with CCC.

It’s an impressive hack, with an unexpectedly sophisticated GUI installer and maintenance app. Kind of remarkable, really. I don’t use Time Machine, but I've had good success running CCC backups over SMB so far, albeit at speeds noticeably below those that I achieved with AFP. If nothing else, it’s good to know I won’t lose access to the TC disk past Tahoe.

Interestingly, I didn't deploy the "boot hook" firmware flash that's said to be required for automatic Samba restarts when older NetBSD 4-based TCs are rebooted, yet in my tests it's always restarted itself anyway.
 
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Apathist said:
Thanks for posting this.

Based on your success I installed it on my 4th gen TC in anticipation of the public release of macOS 27 (I’m still on Sequoia) and hope to use SMB thereafter to continue the encrypted secondary backups that I make to the drive with CCC.

It’s an impressive hack, with an unexpectedly sophisticated GUI installer and maintenance app. Kind of remarkable, really. I don’t use Time Machine, but I've had good success running CCC backups over SMB so far, albeit at speeds noticeably below those that I achieved with AFP. If nothing else, it’s good to know I won’t lose access to the TC disk past Tahoe.

Interestingly, I didn't deploy the "boot hook" firmware flash that's said to be required for automatic Samba restarts when older NetBSD 4-based TCs are rebooted, yet in my tests it's always restarted itself anyway.
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Please let the Developer know about the “boot hook” firmware flash.
 
Arran said:
OTOH, A dedicated mini would have been easier for less $$$. Nothing to learn. Maybe a Neo would be an even better backup server solution since it comes with a built-in screen, keyboard and UPS (battery). You could just stick it and the external hard drives in a closet and forget it.
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What software would you use to backup your main desktop to the Neo's external drives? What would you use to turn that external drive into a "cloud"? I've been wanting to do something like this, but have no idea where to start.
 
lostPod said:
What software would you use to backup your main desktop to the Neo's external drives? What would you use to turn that external drive into a "cloud"? I've been wanting to do something like this, but have no idea where to start.
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I think Time Machine will still work.
 
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lostPod said:
What software would you use to backup your main desktop to the Neo's external drives? What would you use to turn that external drive into a "cloud"? I've been wanting to do something like this, but have no idea where to start.
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No software needed. Just share the Neo's external drive on your home network using the sharing feature built into Mac OS. Then, on your main desktop, point TM to the Neo's shared drive. (Edit: This assumes you don't already have a second Mac permanently on your local network. Something like a "shared Mac" for guests or kids to use? If you do, then congrats! - there's no need to buy a Neo!)

Of course, you'll need to leave the Neo (or other Mac) powered on 24x7 (along with its external hard drive) if you want to emulate exactly what the old time capsule offered.

OTOH, buying a cheap (~$200) NAS - like an Ubiquiti UNAS2 or a UGREEN DH2300 and sticking a single hard drive in it (which you could easily pull out of an old time capsule for free, if that's what you have now) would be cheaper and simpler. My original suggestion to use Neo to replace a TC was made in retrospect: It was made AFTER I'd purchased an expensive NAS (Synology) and filled it with expensive hard drives (~$1.6K in total). A Neo and a big external hard drive would've been half the price.
 
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jbachandouris said:
So, I still have a 2TB time capsule. It is my understanding that the remote protocol is the one being discontinued. I assume that attaching a network cable directly to it would work. It's not far away.
Click to expand...
I don't think so. Transport via wireless vs. wired doesn't make a difference. It's the ancient AFP protocol that's being retired.
 
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