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PC to iMac using USB

T

tximacusr

macrumors member
Original poster
I am getting rid of my old WinXP Dell, but it has files I want to transfer using a USB since the PC doesn't have a Firewire connection.

The PC is stand alone and does not have an IP address, so how do I do this? Thanks for your help!
 
If your PC has an Ethernet port, you can use an Ethernet cable to connect the two computers. You can then use Migration Assistant to transfer your files.
 
I read in Macworld about a drop and drag USB cable you could buy called a wormhole switch. If you don't have ethanet it could work for you. It was made by J5create.
 
I'd say go with the Ethernet option if you know what you are doing, otherwise, just use a USB thumb drive to transfer necessary files.

The USB caddy option seems too much trouble for such a trivial matter.
 
jji7skyline said:
The USB caddy option seems too much trouble for such a trivial matter.
Click to expand...

I haven't ever had the opportunity to use Migration Assistant so I can't comment on that, but pulling the hard drive out and hooking that directly to the Mac is really the best way to do this IMO. Unless all you are transferring are files in My Documents, there are many other things that need to come over. Email data files, bookmarks, the inevitable files and folders on the desktop of possible multiple users, and you always forget something. Having the hard drive there makes it easy to get anything left behind. This also eliminates having to double copy things, from the PC to USB and then to the Mac. 1GB of data? Not so bad. 50GB? Brutal.
 
Caromsoft said:
I haven't ever had the opportunity to use Migration Assistant so I can't comment on that, but pulling the hard drive out and hooking that directly to the Mac is really the best way to do this IMO. Unless all you are transferring are files in My Documents, there are many other things that need to come over. Email data files, bookmarks, the inevitable files and folders on the desktop of possible multiple users, and you always forget something. Having the hard drive there makes it easy to get anything left behind. This also eliminates having to double copy things, from the PC to USB and then to the Mac. 1GB of data? Not so bad. 50GB? Brutal.
Click to expand...

True. I was assuming it was simple files and things, but if you need to import lots of data and stuff, Migration Assistant would be the best option, whether with Ethernet or with a HDD dock.

But you know, if the laptop is old, it probably uses IDE, and IDE HDD enclosures are pretty expensive where I live 😛
 
jji7skyline said:
True. I was assuming it was simple files and things, but if you need to import lots of data and stuff, Migration Assistant would be the best option, whether with Ethernet or with a HDD dock.

But you know, if the laptop is old, it probably uses IDE, and IDE HDD enclosures are pretty expensive where I live 😛
Click to expand...

I have a USB cable that has connectors for 3.5 and 2.5 IDE drives as well as SATA, so it is just a matter of plugging the drive into the cable. Pretty inexpensive and worth it's weight in gold if you are doing consulting work like I am. 🙂
 
I tried using MA, but the PC needed to have XP SP3 installed, which it did not have and didn't want to download and install. I did download the MA for PC but still didn't want to make a connection. This, after I connected the PC on the same network, disabled any restrictions and accesses to the PC.

I then attempted it through Utilities "Connect to Server." Didn't work either. I just decided to use my USB, which took me all afternoon and evening to complete. Nevertheless, I got it done.
 
Caromsoft said:
I have a USB cable that has connectors for 3.5 and 2.5 IDE drives as well as SATA, so it is just a matter of plugging the drive into the cable. Pretty inexpensive and worth it's weight in gold if you are doing consulting work like I am. 🙂
Click to expand...

Where did you buy it?
 
How big are the files? You could install dropbox on both and drop them in there. With their "same network" check, the files won't even have to upload to dropbox servers.
 
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