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What size should your Time Machine backup drive be?
A general “rule of thumb” is, to keep a reasonable “depth” of backups, Time Machine needs 2 to 4 times as much space as the data it’s backing-up (not necessarily the entire size of your internal HD). Be sure to add the size of the data on any other drives/partitions you want to back up.
Can I use Time Machine as an external hard drive?
External drive connected to an AirPort Extreme Base Station (802.11ac) or AirPort Time Capsule. Time Machine can back up to an external USB drive connected to an AirPort Extreme Base Station (802.11ac model) or AirPort Time Capsule. Connect the drive directly to your Mac, then use Disk Utility to erase it.
How big of a disk do I need for a Time Machine backup?
If I take a backup of A) on C) then clearly backup process will not have any issue because 200 GB is what is really needed. Over the time also if usage grows but remain less than 500 GB the C) will still accommodate the backup of A)
Can a Time Machine restore to a smaller disk?
Time Machine (and Disk Utility restores) work well as long as the “cargo” fits with maybe just a little extra room for overhead. Generally, less space is wasted at the end of files on smaller drives, so the thousands of small preference files pack more tightly on smaller drives.
Can a time machine back up to a Windows device?
If the disk isn’t using the correct format, Time Machine automatically prompts you to erase it when you connect it to your Mac: If you need to erase the disk manually, use the Disk Utility app to erase using the Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. Time Machine can’t back up to an iOS device or disk formatted for Windows.
Do you need to format a time machine disc?
Once your disc space is full, time machine will start erasing old backups however so it can always store your most-recent backup. If the disc was formatted for Windows/PC use, it would need to be reformatted and formatting it for Time Machine will erase all data.