firewire target mode to PC

i don't think this is possible. i was just in an apple store because my logic board failed and i needed to transfer files. i told them the only other computers i had at home were PCs and they told me it wasn't possible.

 

I'm pretty sure windows can't read the mac file format, thus why we needed a windows specific ipod back in the day. So, no i dont think you can.

 

A program called MacOpener can read HFS and HFS+ formatted disks on Windows.

I have plugged my iBook into my PC, and it has recognized the iBook as a firewire hard drive, but since I don't have MacOpener, it will not read the contents.

I assume it would work with MacOpener.

 

After a bit of looking into this I have come to the following:

1. target mode does not play nice between Mac and PC.
2. IP over firewire does not have fast transfer rates (500MB in 15 minutes is fastest I found)
3. most people end up using the tried and true ethernet patch cable...
4. some have resorted to burning CD's
5. or even just making a zip file, uploading to private website, and downloading to different machine (by far the least efficient).

MacOpener is not cheap

http://www.dataviz.com/products/macopener/

 

hey guys,

What about the reverse?

If I have an NTFS (or FAT32) formatted drive in a Firewire enclosure, will the Mac play nice with it?

The idea is that I have a common Firewire external drive for storing "repository" files -- videos for editing, MP3's, who knows... and plug it into the machine that needs it, be it a Mac or a PC.

Would it work?

 

Macs can't read NTFS. PCs can read Mac formats (there's another one besides MacOpener that is cheaper: MacDrive.) I know Macs and PCs can share FAT, but I think Macs can't support FAT32.

 

mac os x 10.2 at least can do FAT32 - i loaded a pc drive that was fat32 to recover the contents. Twas easy.

 

NTFS on Mac OS X

I have seen software on VersionTracker and other Mac download sites, which gives the ability to mount and read NTFS volumes. (It is unable to write to NTFS volumes at the moment.)

However, the ability to access an NTFS volume fully, is claimed to be a feature of Mac OS X 10.3

How well Mac OS X 10.3 will deal with NTFS volumes remains to be seen, but this ability is well within the scope of Mac OS X. It is also in line with Apple's drive towards becoming as compatible with Windows systems as possible.

Hope this info is of use.

 

Look at MacDrive and see if it will serve your needs. I'm not sure about using the target disk mode and all, but it works for my external HFS+ drive. Plus the company is really good with service (they also make XPlay).

 

The Mac OS has been able to deal with FAT32 since the days of system 7, however NTFS is more complicated as it incorporates a form of journaling. Panther will be able to read NTFS disks but not write to them. There is a program available for Windows called MacDrive. I've used an external firewire drive in HFS+ format in Windows with this software, I assume a firewire target disk mac wouldn't be any different.