I got a macbook pro and a My Book 1tb. Want to finally put away my old PC (which is running only on UBUNTU) away but I need to get the files off my PC onto the MY BOOK. Well after setting up the time machine and what not I move the HD & connect it to my PC & attempt to drag files onto it.Says it's read only. Tried changing the sharing options to read and write for everyone on my mac. Still the same. Used disk utility to wipe clean the entire HD. Still read only. Posting this on Ubuntu forums but I'm positive the problem is on the Mac. hoping someone knows what the deal is.
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External HD is read only on PC
- Thread starter CharmlessMan
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File system
What file system did you reformat it to? That is, when you wiped it clean did you use hfs+, hfs, fat32, etc. when you partitioned it?
What file system did you reformat it to? That is, when you wiped it clean did you use hfs+, hfs, fat32, etc. when you partitioned it?
Damn not sure I ever even properly partitioned it. First thing I did was have the time machine erase everything as it suggested then when I found out it was read only I used disk utility to erase it.
Which Mybook did you get? Some are formated for NTFS, others for HFS+, or whatever.
Your Mac cannot write to an NTFS (Windows) partition out of the box, but it can read it. If you don't intend to use the disk for anything but Mac, try formatting it to HFS+. If you plan to use it for OS X and Windows, format it to FAT32, since both OS's can read and write to that filesystem.
Your Mac cannot write to an NTFS (Windows) partition out of the box, but it can read it. If you don't intend to use the disk for anything but Mac, try formatting it to HFS+. If you plan to use it for OS X and Windows, format it to FAT32, since both OS's can read and write to that filesystem.
got a mybook essential 1tb. It's mostly for a mac but I need to get those files off that Ubuntu PC but if it's read only that does no help. I was able to do it at first but after time machine erased everything it became read only
That's probably because it is formatted for HFS+, which is Mac-only, but is the only format supported by Time Machine. End result is that you either need to devote the drive to a common format that both the Mac and Ubuntu can use (which leaves out Time Machine), or format it as 2 separate partitions, one for TM (HFS+) and one for Ubuntu/sharing (probably FAT32).
Another possibility is to network the 2 computers (do you have a network?) and copy files that way (the format of the drive doesn't matter, the network does the conversion). Put the new external drive on one computer (your Mac since it is formatted for TM), and copy the files that you need.
Another possibility is to network the 2 computers (do you have a network?) and copy files that way (the format of the drive doesn't matter, the network does the conversion). Put the new external drive on one computer (your Mac since it is formatted for TM), and copy the files that you need.
Not sure how you're connecting the drive, but if you have it shared as a network device, you can use SMB to share it across different filesystems.
Being computer illetiterate as it is how do I format it? I do have a crossover cable but have had trouble getting everything to work (i.e. reallt don't know how because I'm not exactly tech smart)
You don't need a crossover cable. Plug it into your Mac via USB or FW. Open Disk Utility, select the drive, and select Partition. Choose your format (Mac OS Extended (Journaled) is probably best, but it's not compatible with Windows. Again, if you're going to use this drive for both OS X and Windows, format it to FAT32.