Hard Drive Recommendation
March 25, 2021 10:11 AM Subscribe
I need a new exterior hard drive for back ups. My present one is a very old Apple Time Capsule that also serves as my wifi server, which is quite slow. If I can get both the hard drive and wifi in one unit, that'd be nice. — MacOS Big Sur
I spent a bunch of time trying to figure out this problem last fall, and honestly I couldn't find a good, affordable all-in-one solution for a hosted network backup disk plus a router. The router I did end up going with supports network drives in principle, but I found the interface clumsy and it didn't support time machine backups well without bending over backwards.
I've come to the conclusion that if you want reliable, easy-to-use, networked storage, you'll need to invest in a dedicated network attached storage (NAS) solution, and these get expensive fast. It's probably cheaper to buy a dedicated local backup disk for each computer separately.
The Time Capsule was a great product, and I was really disappointed that I couldn't find a plug-and-play replacement.
posted by mr_roboto at 11:48 AM on March 25, 2021 [1 favorite]
I've come to the conclusion that if you want reliable, easy-to-use, networked storage, you'll need to invest in a dedicated network attached storage (NAS) solution, and these get expensive fast. It's probably cheaper to buy a dedicated local backup disk for each computer separately.
The Time Capsule was a great product, and I was really disappointed that I couldn't find a plug-and-play replacement.
posted by mr_roboto at 11:48 AM on March 25, 2021 [1 favorite]
Most "modern" routers, even those that come from the ISP, have a USB3 port that you can plug an external hard drive into and voila, shared storage.
If you have a USB flash drive around, just plug it into the router for a test drive. Check your modem's documentation for the exact procedure to map it for use on your desktop. If that works, you can buy an external drive (spinning or SSD) of your choosing and plug it in. And that'd be the most economical solution.
posted by kschang at 12:13 PM on March 25, 2021 [2 favorites]
If you have a USB flash drive around, just plug it into the router for a test drive. Check your modem's documentation for the exact procedure to map it for use on your desktop. If that works, you can buy an external drive (spinning or SSD) of your choosing and plug it in. And that'd be the most economical solution.
posted by kschang at 12:13 PM on March 25, 2021 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: @caek — I'd like a wireless hard drive with a router. The wifi is very slow on this 2008 Time Capsule.
posted by partner at 1:11 PM on March 25, 2021
posted by partner at 1:11 PM on March 25, 2021
Verify the problem is the wireless (rather than your internet connection) by running a speed test over wifi and then over a wired connection (you can connect your computer directly to the time capsule via Ethernet cable). If wifi is significantly slower than the wired connection then a new device might help.
But the time capsule is kind of a unique product and if the hard drive and the router have to be the same device for your use case then you should probably just track down a fifth generation 2013 time capsule.
posted by caek at 2:02 PM on March 25, 2021
But the time capsule is kind of a unique product and if the hard drive and the router have to be the same device for your use case then you should probably just track down a fifth generation 2013 time capsule.
posted by caek at 2:02 PM on March 25, 2021
Most "modern" routers, even those that come from the ISP, have a USB3 port that you can plug an external hard drive into and voila, shared storage.
Do you have a suggestion for a config that plays well with time machine? The routers I’ve seen all have kind of clunky interfaces to provide various flavors of networked storage, and nothing is nearly as seamless as the time capsule.
posted by mr_roboto at 6:45 PM on March 25, 2021
Do you have a suggestion for a config that plays well with time machine? The routers I’ve seen all have kind of clunky interfaces to provide various flavors of networked storage, and nothing is nearly as seamless as the time capsule.
posted by mr_roboto at 6:45 PM on March 25, 2021
Like for instance I couldn’t get it working well with NFS or SMB.
posted by mr_roboto at 7:44 PM on March 25, 2021
posted by mr_roboto at 7:44 PM on March 25, 2021
Is there any way I can convince you to use Time Machine instead? :)
posted by kschang at 8:54 PM on March 25, 2021
posted by kschang at 8:54 PM on March 25, 2021
I have this router - Netgear C-3700 - which has a USB port that lets you add a drive and mount it as a directory.
posted by bendy at 11:26 PM on March 25, 2021
posted by bendy at 11:26 PM on March 25, 2021
if the hard drive and the router have to be the same device for your use case then you should probably just track down a fifth generation 2013 time capsule.
I'm going to have to disagree with this advice. I love my Time Capsule, but it's 7 years old at this point. Even if you got one that was produced in 2018, just prior to it being discontinued, it would still be 4 years old.
It's only a matter of time before the spinning hard drive inside it fails, and although it's replaceable, it's a pain. I opened mine up to clean and lubricate the fan, and it wasn't a pleasant experience.
I'd recommend getting a new router, and a USB hard drive to go with it.
If you're backing up a single desktop Mac, then plug the USB hard drive directly into the Mac, and set up Time Machine to back up to that drive. It'll save you network bandwidth, and be plenty fast.
If you're backing up a laptop that isn't typically tied to a desk, or backing up multiple machines, get a router that has a USB port and Time Machine support, and plug the hard drive into the router.
Many ASUS routers feature Time Machine support built-in, which will ensure that it'll work seamlessly. If the hard drive ever fails, you can replace it without replacing the router.
Routers have come a long way since 2008, in terms of security and performance. I would highly recommend the upgrade.
posted by vitout at 6:31 AM on March 26, 2021
I'm going to have to disagree with this advice. I love my Time Capsule, but it's 7 years old at this point. Even if you got one that was produced in 2018, just prior to it being discontinued, it would still be 4 years old.
It's only a matter of time before the spinning hard drive inside it fails, and although it's replaceable, it's a pain. I opened mine up to clean and lubricate the fan, and it wasn't a pleasant experience.
I'd recommend getting a new router, and a USB hard drive to go with it.
If you're backing up a single desktop Mac, then plug the USB hard drive directly into the Mac, and set up Time Machine to back up to that drive. It'll save you network bandwidth, and be plenty fast.
If you're backing up a laptop that isn't typically tied to a desk, or backing up multiple machines, get a router that has a USB port and Time Machine support, and plug the hard drive into the router.
Many ASUS routers feature Time Machine support built-in, which will ensure that it'll work seamlessly. If the hard drive ever fails, you can replace it without replacing the router.
Routers have come a long way since 2008, in terms of security and performance. I would highly recommend the upgrade.
posted by vitout at 6:31 AM on March 26, 2021
This thread is closed to new comments.
What aspect of the Time Capsule is slow? It's performance as a wifi router or accessing its disk?
And which generation of Time Capsule is it? It's honestly a great product for a lot of people (all in one router and storage, first class Time Machine support, great macOS UI, etc.), and maybe you just need the most recent (last) version they made, which you should be able to find on Craigslist.
posted by caek at 10:33 AM on March 25, 2021