Can I use 1 device for a Mac & PC? I have a Mac & a PC that I need to backup. I can I use 1 of these devices for both at the same time or do I have to get 1 devices?

Question

nana925 · Accepted Answer

I have one external hard drive an Ultra 2TB External USB 3.0/2.0 Portable Hard Drive and I use it for back up for my apple lap top and my gate way desk top I dont leave the external hooked up to either ( you should never do this in casr hakers get into your PC) there are setting to change to back up the 2 different typys of systems

Answered by nana925 10 years ago

maxperts · Answer

Your answer is YES but not as well or easily... The Mac's Time Machine software requires the drive use the Mac OS Extended, while Windows will want the drive to use FAT32 or NTFS. The Mac can use FAT32, as can Windows, however you would possibly be limited to some issues, like files over 4GB can't be stored on a FAT32 format, which would generally be disk images, large video files or could be various types of large formats. And there are sometimes issues with file names being too long or having incompatible characters or formatting.

So the answer is yes, if you don't have any of the conflicting issues, you may be able to find either bundled or other backup software for either or both Mac and Windows that can backup to a single drive in FAT32 format. However, I would recommend using separate drives for best compatibility, especially if you have a lot of stuff to backup. If its just some documents and a few photos from each, then sharing should't be too troublesome. Good luck!

Kimmy3771 · Answer

There is software onboard for both Mac and PC. Install that and you should be ready.

Colinrw · Answer

You can use the same device for multiple devices but not at the same time. If that is what you are asking. You can't plug it into your Mac and download and then PC.

CDub · Answer

You will have to reform it look at the instruction manual for help it is available on line

Janksy · Answer

Yes.

Rali · Answer

As mentioned in my review, I tried, but ended up crashing my drive. While it is technically possible, it is not recommended. I lost all of my backup data. Fortunately, I was setting up a new computer and replacing an old drive that was ful and still had the few days of lost data still on my computers. Hope this helps.

Answered by Rali 10 years ago

Hope this helps.

Yahoo4753 · Answer

If you are just backing up files, it should be fine. This hard drive is inter-platform.

lisadawn · Answer

You should be able to use one for both devices.

lisadawn · Answer

You should be able to use one drive for both.

“Can I use 1 device for a Mac & PC? I have a Mac & a PC that I need to backup. I can I use 1 of these devices for both at the same time or do I have to get 1 devices?”

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