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e30m3

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 3, 2010
2
0
Somewhat new to Macs. Year old aluminum macbook (not pro) with 160 gb hard drive - "Startup disk full" message - Finder says 159 gb used, 1 gb available. I am sure I could delete some software or photos but will run into same problem later. What is the best solution - put a larger hard drive in or can I use an external hard drive for additional storage (how to do this, will this impact performance). I have a 500 gb external hd for backup - can I use this?? Any suggestions greatly appreciated.
 
I'd buy a new 500GB drive and install it your macbook. Then use timemachine to restore your files from your backup.

You have a couple of choices.

1. Delete stuff off your drive.
2. Get an external drive and move stuff you don't use a lot to the new external drive.
3. Install a larger drive.

In my case it's been a bit of all three of the listed choices.
 
HD replacement

Best choice for a replacement hd?? Can I do it myself?? Upgrade ram at same time - currently 2gb??
 
Yes you can do it yourself. It's easy. Just check YouTube for tutorial videos.

I personally like this hard drive because of its balance between price, performance and space. But most 2.5" Sata hard drives will do.

And yes, you can also up the RAM. 4GB is a good amount. :)
 
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