iMac Pro Best Time Machine external HD/SSD for iMac?

[Turnpike]

I learned my lesson the hard way, and now I'm going to set up Time Machine and do it RIGHT.

I'm using a 2017 27" iMac Pro and have a few 2015 and 2019 27" iMacs for backup and other use. On my main iMac, I use an external 2TB SSD so I can download a lot of footage and files, and understand that the ideal time machine hard drive is twice what you actually use.

So my question- for a 4TB or 6TB Time machine hard drive is there any benefit or disadvantage to having a 4TB SSD, or is it just as good to use a 4/6TB Seagate huge old style in a cradle? I care mostly about dependability and plan to set it to back up once a day or something like that.

Thanks!

 

[Apple_Robert]

Unless you find a Toshiba or Seagate SSD on sale, there is no need to use an SSD for TM. A traditional HD will do fine.

 

[ovbacon]

I learned my lesson the hard way, and now I'm going to set up Time Machine and do it RIGHT.

I'm using a 2017 27" iMac Pro and have a few 2015 and 2019 27" iMacs for backup and other use. On my main iMac, I use an external 2TB SSD so I can download a lot of footage and files, and understand that the ideal time machine hard drive is twice what you actually use.

So my question- for a 4TB or 6TB Time machine hard drive is there any benefit or disadvantage to having a 4TB SSD, or is it just as good to use a 4/6TB Seagate huge old style in a cradle? I care mostly about dependability and plan to set it to back up once a day or something like that.

Thanks!

Absolutely no reason to use a ssd for backups. I use a Seagate 5TB HDD for my mini backups. I do use a ssd for my MBA as I need it to backup while traveling and the ssd is just easier to carry around (but I use a cheap option: Qwiizlab M.2 NVMe and SATA External Enclosure with a a Leven JPS600 2TB ssd, enclosure and ssd combined +/- $105.-).

 

[Turnpike]

Thanks guys! That makes a large heavy 6GB Seagate that I already have thrown into a cradle seem to be a dependable option, my mind is at ease with no money out. Thank you!

 

[smirking]

Unless you find a Toshiba or Seagate SSD on sale, there is no need to use an SSD for TM. A traditional HD will do fine.

Second this. I have a "pop-up toaster" type of hard drive interface that lets me plug in one HDD at a time like a piece of bread in a toaster oven. Works great! All of my old HDD have been repurposed to be Time Machine and other types of archival volumes that I rotate through. It does take longer than backing up to an SSD, but not so much longer that it's actually an issue.

I do have a 2TB SSD for Time Machine that I use to backup when I'm traveling or when I need a backup to complete ASAP.

 

[Jackbequickly]

I just purchased the Sandisk Professional 1TB G40 SSD Thunderbolt 3 on Amazon for my M3 iMac.
It is on sale for $169

Hoping it will take care of all of my storage needs

​

 

[IngerMan]

I got rid of all my HD drives a few years back.. I got tired of hearing the startup spin disk in a quiet work environment. I been using SSD for TM for some time now. Either one works and it is your personal preference.

I have this in a 2TB for TM.

Crucial X6 4TB Portable SSD - Up to 800MB/s - PC and Mac - USB 3.2 USB-C External Solid State Drive - CT4000X6SSD9

How much can you carry between the tips of your fingers? With the Crucial X6 Portable SSD, the answer is: A lot! Whether you’re downloading videos for offline travel, organizing family photos, collaborating with classmates, or heading off on a great adventure, the Crucial X6 is affordable, and re...

www.amazon.com

 

[Ifti]

Either will work, but like the above poster I got rid of all my HDDs several years back.
I use a 2TB external SSD to backup my MacBook.
Another 2TB external thats partitioned, used for CCC clones.

The main benefit of using an external SSD is not just faster backups, but faster restores. If my system goes down I like to know I will be up and running in the shortest amount of time.

 

[richard13]

Or you could go with a NAS, which is what I do. I have a Synology NAS with 2x 4TB IronWolf Seagate drives in a RAID for my Time Machine needs.

 

[Jay Tee]

I just purchased the Sandisk Professional 1TB G40 SSD Thunderbolt 3 on Amazon for my M3 iMac.
It is on sale for $169

Hoping it will take care of all of my storage needs

​

Just want to jump in on this - the SanDisk external SSDs have a very high failure rate:

SanDisk Extreme SSDs keep abruptly failing—firmware fix for only some promised

Ars saw two 2TB units become unreadable, but SanDisk only confirms 4TB troubles.

arstechnica.com

Buyer beware: some SanDisk Extreme SSDs are wiping people’s data

There’s a firmware update coming for the 4TB mode.

www.theverge.com

SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD Suffer Sudden Failures: WD Responds

The firm will issue a 4TB SSD firmware update "soon," but seems to have ignored the woes of 2TB users.

www.tomshardware.com

So I would perhaps... grab something else.

SanDisk probably has fixed whatever issues they had by now, but just giving you a heads-up.

 

[Jay Tee]

I got rid of all my HD drives a few years back.. I got tired of hearing the startup spin disk in a quiet work environment. I been using SSD for TM for some time now. Either one works and it is your personal preference.

I have this in a 2TB for TM.

Crucial X6 4TB Portable SSD - Up to 800MB/s - PC and Mac - USB 3.2 USB-C External Solid State Drive - CT4000X6SSD9

How much can you carry between the tips of your fingers? With the Crucial X6 Portable SSD, the answer is: A lot! Whether you’re downloading videos for offline travel, organizing family photos, collaborating with classmates, or heading off on a great adventure, the Crucial X6 is affordable, and re...

www.amazon.com

That looks really good. How long have you had yours ?

Does your Crucial remain warm to the touch between backups; my SanDisk does, and I'm not happy about that ?

 

[IngerMan]

No not at all between backups. I just forced a manual back up while holding the disk and it did not get warm either but it was only 1.5 GB of data.

I recently got this X6 for the new iMac. But i have a X8 for over a year and I been using Crucial SSD's for some time.

 

[Jackbequickly]

SanDisk probably has fixed whatever issues they had by now, but just giving you a heads-up.

I believe that the G40 Thunderbolt Professional drive is in another class from the Sandisk SSD drives. From what I have read, they are very dependable and extremely fast. We shall see.

 

[Jackbequickly]

What I find that I do not like about the G40 Thunderbolt drive is I put my iMac to sleep most of the day, between use. The G40 LED light stays on and the device is warm to the touch. I know there are no moving parts but is it good to leave the Thunderbolt drive running all day?

 

[Apple_Robert]

What I find that I do not like about the G40 Thunderbolt drive is I put my iMac to sleep most of the day, between use. The G40 LED light stays on and the device is warm to the touch. I know there are no moving parts but is it good to leave the Thunderbolt drive running all day?

Leaving it plugged in all day is fine.

 

[Jackbequickly]

Leaving it plugged in all day is fine.

Why is it so warm? With the iMac on Standby is evidently keeps running.

Thanks

 

[Jay Tee]

Why is it so warm? With the iMac on Standby is evidently keeps running.

Thanks

Mine remains warm as long as it's plugged in, even after unmounting the drive in Finder.

I don't like that.