Apple yanks wireless backup from Leopard last minute
To the dismay of what is sure to be many, Apple Inc. appears to have pulled one of the more compelling features of its Leopard operating system last minute: the ability to use its revolutionary Time Machine backup software with wireless AirPort Disks.
"It looks like Time Machine will not work with AirPort Disks after all," HelgeG, a members of the company's technical support forums, wrote in a post Thursday afternoon. "All references to AirPort have been removed from the Time Machine page."
In the months and weeks leading up to this evening's launch of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Apple had widely touted the feature under the tag line "Effortless meets wireless."
"With a hard disk connected to your AirPort Extreme Base Station, all the Macs in your house can use Time Machine to back up wirelessly," read an earlier description of the feature on the company's website. "Simply select your AirPort Disk as the backup disk for each computer and the whole family can enjoy the benefits of Time Machine."
However, as of last week, all references to wireless backup via Time Machine had been stricken from Apple.com. A new description of Time Machine's compatible backup drives options reads as follows:
"You can designate just about any HFS+ formatted FireWire or USB drive connected to a Mac as a Time Machine backup drive. Time Machine can also back up to another Mac running Leopard with Personal File Sharing, Leopard Server, or Xsan storage devices."
The apparent about-face on Apple's part has already frustrated a number of would-be Leopard users, several of which had not only been looking forward to the convenience of the wireless solution, but also went out and purchased AirPort Extreme 802.11n Base Stations from the company in anticipation of the feature.
"Ouch! I just purchased and installed and AirPort Express Gigabit expressly for the purpose of having network attached storage that I could backup my iMac and my wife's PowerBook to using Time Machine," wrote etaxif, another member of Apple's support forums. "A few days ago this was a feature I found Apple was going to support and now it's gone? I'm very disappointed."
"I'm in the same boat. I purchased a AirPort Extreme solely to use it as a Time Machine backup disk," said another. "I was all ready to purchase Leopard next Friday, but I guess I'll wait now to see if an AirPort Disk is truly supported by Time Machine."
In its own checks, AppleInsider was able to confirm the absence of any AirPort Disk support in the version of Time Machine due to go on sale at 6:00 p.m. today as part of Leopard, even though earlier pre-release betas of the software had supported the feature. In addition, all references to wireless backup were also removed from the Time Machine help files included with the distribution.
AirPort Disk backup support is not the only feature to have fallen victim to Apple's self-imposed October launch deadline for Leopard. Last week AppleInsider noted that the ability to sync Mail notes to iPhone had seemingly also been axed.
Obviously, the hope is that Apple continues to refine these features -- and others that may have missed the cut --with the intention of releasing them in the coming months as part of a Leopard software update.
"It looks like Time Machine will not work with AirPort Disks after all," HelgeG, a members of the company's technical support forums, wrote in a post Thursday afternoon. "All references to AirPort have been removed from the Time Machine page."
In the months and weeks leading up to this evening's launch of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Apple had widely touted the feature under the tag line "Effortless meets wireless."
"With a hard disk connected to your AirPort Extreme Base Station, all the Macs in your house can use Time Machine to back up wirelessly," read an earlier description of the feature on the company's website. "Simply select your AirPort Disk as the backup disk for each computer and the whole family can enjoy the benefits of Time Machine."
However, as of last week, all references to wireless backup via Time Machine had been stricken from Apple.com. A new description of Time Machine's compatible backup drives options reads as follows:
"You can designate just about any HFS+ formatted FireWire or USB drive connected to a Mac as a Time Machine backup drive. Time Machine can also back up to another Mac running Leopard with Personal File Sharing, Leopard Server, or Xsan storage devices."
The apparent about-face on Apple's part has already frustrated a number of would-be Leopard users, several of which had not only been looking forward to the convenience of the wireless solution, but also went out and purchased AirPort Extreme 802.11n Base Stations from the company in anticipation of the feature.
"Ouch! I just purchased and installed and AirPort Express Gigabit expressly for the purpose of having network attached storage that I could backup my iMac and my wife's PowerBook to using Time Machine," wrote etaxif, another member of Apple's support forums. "A few days ago this was a feature I found Apple was going to support and now it's gone? I'm very disappointed."
"I'm in the same boat. I purchased a AirPort Extreme solely to use it as a Time Machine backup disk," said another. "I was all ready to purchase Leopard next Friday, but I guess I'll wait now to see if an AirPort Disk is truly supported by Time Machine."
In its own checks, AppleInsider was able to confirm the absence of any AirPort Disk support in the version of Time Machine due to go on sale at 6:00 p.m. today as part of Leopard, even though earlier pre-release betas of the software had supported the feature. In addition, all references to wireless backup were also removed from the Time Machine help files included with the distribution.
AirPort Disk backup support is not the only feature to have fallen victim to Apple's self-imposed October launch deadline for Leopard. Last week AppleInsider noted that the ability to sync Mail notes to iPhone had seemingly also been axed.
Obviously, the hope is that Apple continues to refine these features -- and others that may have missed the cut --with the intention of releasing them in the coming months as part of a Leopard software update.
Comments
Not only were the secret features yanked, we get several announced ones yanked too.
Yeah, way to go Apple!!! Start selling a product and THEN remove features from it!! It's like ordering a car and between the order time and the delivery time the airbags go missing. I can smell another class action...
Is Apple able to include these additional features and still comply with Sarbanes Oxley?
Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does the Sarbanes-Oxley Act got to do with this?
You can pretty much simulate this feature by sharing an external disk on a second computer.
At least Apple stayed on schedule.
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthre...99#post4389999
Of course, I'd like to find a way to do an initial backup over GigE, then incrementals over wireless. But I'll be backing up to ZFS on Solaris 10!
"With a hard disk connected to your AirPort Extreme Base Station, all the Macs in your house can use Time Machine to back up wirelessly," read an earlier description of the feature on the company's website. "Simply select your AirPort Disk as the backup disk for each computer and the whole family can enjoy the benefits of Time Machine."
It's unfortunate that they had to ship Leopard with this feature off. I, too, was looking to buy AirPort Extreme to do just this across 3 Mac in my household. I'm happy now that I'd waited before I started buying all that hardware. It's certainly lame, and Apple should be criticized duly.
With that said, this most likely isn't a case of Apple "pulling" a feature at the last minute (like MS "pulled" so many features out of Vista), but likely a minor bug that prompted them to temporarily turn the feature off. It will likely come back in the first or second point update.
Big deal! So Apple yanked one or two small (and I do mean SMALL) sub-features before release. Maybe it had some problems and wasn't ready. Would you rather have the feature and lose data? I think Apple's done this in the past once or twice. Something isn't ready for the Gold Master, so they don't put it in and release it in a later update.
You can pretty much simulate this feature by sharing an external disk on a second computer.
At least Apple stayed on schedule.
Are you kidding? You must be smoking way too much pot, because you seem to forget that 10.5 is NOT on schedule.
Yeah, way to go Apple!!! Start selling a product and THEN remove features from it!! It's like ordering a car and between the order time and the delivery time the airbags go missing. I can smell another class action...
Ah yes... the howling at the moon begins.
Get a clue... features miss release. Welcome to the real world.
The fact that it was on the list in the first place means that it will be out as soon as its reliably working. (Want to see how many MORE people would be pissed if it had been shoehorned in and it didn't work properly?)
And finally, anyone who buys based on rumors of features is a f**cking idiot.
Here is a link to my quick easy workaround to getting airport disk working with time machine.
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthre...99#post4389999
HELLO??? Read this (and other) posts...there is a hack to get it to work.
HELLO??? Read this (and other) posts...there is a hack to get it to work.
That's not the point, do you know many people who will bother? Isn't the whole idea of the Mac that "it just works" (even though that's just one of the worst marketing mottos I've ever seen in my life)?
HELLO??? Read this (and other) posts...there is a hack to get it to work.
Hack ≠ Feature.
I bought two airport extreme to use it with time machine.
Hope this will be there in a next update of the system. Like the Apple TV, they update the possibility to wirelessly see photos with it.
Let's go Apple, I did not buy those airport extreme for nothing
Here is a link to my quick easy workaround to getting airport disk working with time machine.
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthre...99#post4389999
I get all of it except for AFP? Sorry, what does it stand for? Thanks for the help.
Ah yes... the howling at the moon begins.
Get a clue... features miss release. Welcome to the real world.
The fact that it was on the list in the first place means that it will be out as soon as its reliably working. (Want to see how many MORE people would be pissed if it had been shoehorned in and it didn't work properly?)
And finally, anyone who buys based on rumors of features is a f**cking idiot.
It wasn't exactly a rumor. Apple had it plastered as a prominant feature on their website a week ago. How's that being an idiot?
Whaaaat
I bought two airport extreme to use it with time machine.
Hope this will be there in a next update of the system. Like the Apple TV, they update the possibility to wirelessly see photos with it.
Let's go Apple, I did not buy those airport extreme for nothing
They don't want a rash of AirPorts dying, I've burned out Airports in the past from transmittin too much through them. I think it'll be back, there was probably a few bugs they couldn't live with.
I get all of it except for AFP? Sorry, what does it stand for? Thanks for the help.
AFP is Appleshare File Protocol.
They don't want a rash of AirPorts dying, I've burned out Airports in the past from transmittin too much through them. I think it'll be back, there was probably a few bugs they couldn't live with.
I don't think anyone is accusing them of being careful, but of selling a product and then removing features from it. Come on, not even Microsoft did that with Vista, some features might have been axed, but at least when you bought it you knew what to expect.