Time Capsule

Philistine · « **on:** 27 Jul 2008, 04:05 pm »

I'm helping a friend in the UK choose her first computer, she's been out of the loop for the last 14 years with health issues and I recommended an iMac.
We went to the local Apple store in the UK for a personal shop (they did a great job in finding her needs and recommending which model and software to get), and we were impressed with their personal training program. This is 1 hour a week, one on one on the topic of your choice, and costs $99 in the US and about $180 in the UK. So she's on board with an iMac as the direction for her to go.

I've recommended having a back up strategy in place from day one and have a question on the Time Capsule - the wireless backup and storage looks a great idea but I've seen poor reviews on the implementation and issues with connectivity. Have TC owners had similar problems, or is it robust in operation?

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

andrewbee · « **Reply #1 on:** 27 Jul 2008, 04:30 pm »

Unless the wireless capability is required I would suggest a regular external USB HD be used with the time machine application.
Time Capsule is basically an External HD and Airport Extreme in one case.
I have only installed one for a client. It runs hot and works most of the time but I have seen the connectivity issue you described with it once, it worked for ~ 2 weeks then "disappeared". Had to reset it and connect it again. I think it may all be straightened out with a software update though, I don't think its anything major at this point.
Time Machine (TM) is great, the only issue is with database files e.g. ( MS Entourage ) and the way they are backed up. The long and short of it is if you have dB files it will fill the HD quicker, but TM compensates for this by deleting the oldest backups to make room. If you do not have any DB files then of course its a non-issue.

Andrew

PhilNYC · « **Reply #2 on:** 27 Jul 2008, 04:32 pm »

I agree...I have an iMac and run Time Capsule on it, with the backup files being stored on an external Firewire drive. Works fine with no issues...

yooper · « **Reply #3 on:** 27 Jul 2008, 05:41 pm »

My iMac and Mini work great with the TC, no issues here.

Mark

Philistine · « **Reply #4 on:** 29 Jul 2008, 01:58 am »

Thanks for the feedback.
Looks like any connection issues have either been resolved or fixable with firmware updates.

Crimson · « **Reply #5 on:** 29 Jul 2008, 11:35 am »

Ditto. I've never had any connectivity issues with it, and have it set up as the access point in a distributed system with Extremes and Expresses.

Loftprojection · « **Reply #6 on:** 29 Jul 2008, 02:04 pm »

Mine works fine, I've got a bit more then 500Mb of .wav files on my TC accessed with Slimserver from my Macbook to my Squeezebox. I use the rest of the terabyte for TimeMachine backup of my Macbook. I do have some very infrequent disconnects from time to time but I don't think it is a specific TimeCapsule problem, it is either the internet connection or some wi-fi interference. Overall I'm happy with the TC, does the wi-fi router job as well as any other Dlink or Linksys and I find it much more convenient for backup then a regular USB or Firewire that you have to manually connect each time you want to use it.

Cheers.

chosenhandle · « **Reply #7 on:** 29 Jul 2008, 02:22 pm »

I have had good luck with my Time Capsule as well.

If you decide to go with it, I would recommend that the intial backup be done wired. I started my initial backup wireless and it projected a day and a half to backup the system, so I canceled it. By moving the mac near to the TC and plugging in, I was able to do the backup in an hour or so. After that, it pretty much just works unattended.

My system has typical home programs and data, so i am not a "power user" or anything like that.