I tried using an external SSD with a USB 3.0 enclosure on my iMac. I ran into several issues with the drive freezing and disconnecting as well as radio interference with my router which sits pretty close to the computer so I decided to go back to using the internal HDD, for now. After disconnecting the external and signing everything back into iCloud on the internal drive, I accidentally deleted some of my conversations in Messages.
I already know how to restore the Messages database and the Archive in the Containers folder. My question is, if I hook up the external drive to the iMac again, can I access these folders through finder on my current installation without booting to the external SSD? I would like to avoid booting the external because, even though it's the same computer, it causes problems with some programs and makes me reactivate them when I go back to the internal drive again. Thanks.
I already know how to restore the Messages database and the Archive in the Containers folder. My question is, if I hook up the external drive to the iMac again, can I access these folders through finder on my current installation without booting to the external SSD? I would like to avoid booting the external because, even though it's the same computer, it causes problems with some programs and makes me reactivate them when I go back to the internal drive again. Thanks.