Interesting... But how do you edit your tune names and playlists etc if you can only connect as a shared user?
What I'd really love is a server with all my iTunes on... Then to login *with* password to the iTunes Server, and once logged in I could then do everything I do normally with iTunes (add and remove music, rip, rename, catalogue/playlist etc). Any way of doing that?
Yep. The NAS drives that have dappd running also usually have a local web server running on them too and you just manage your music with that. See the firefly media server link for screenshots.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jowie74
Don't you think someone may hack it though?
Unlikely. I don't know what Apple is using as the OS on the Time Capsule but I suspect it's not Linux or open source.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jowie74
I'm a little annoyed they've monopolised the whole Time Machine thing by making it an all-in-one unit. I've heard loads of friends' mopes and groans about the Airport Extreme. I'd rather use my own router personally.
Just stick an ethernet based disk on your router and share it. The problem traditionally has been poor AFP implementations or having to use SMB where you run into issues with filenames and resource forks. That's what AirDisk and TimeCapsules are supposed to solve when Apple gets it's bugs worked out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarafa
Backing up data -- from multiple computers, no less -- to a device that is not itself redundant or fault-tolerant in any way, is asking for trouble.
A single hard drive failure now means that all archived data from all your household's machines is gone in one fell swoop.
It is just the archived data, not the live data. If the archive is important then you should still have a backup strategy for that, same as you would for a RAID system, which can and do fail.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarafa
Can data on a Time Capsule be further backed up, to something more redundant? Can a Drobo, for instance, be attached to the USB port? Can it push data to Windows Home Server over the network? Can a network-attached file server of some other type attach via NFS or SMB to archive the data? Can we create a simple drive mirror by attaching a USB drive?
All good questions. We'll see how useful that USB port is when it lands. It is a pity in a way that they didn't put two drives in for redundancy if you wanted it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zarafa
Until we get some sort of positive answer to one or more of those questions, I would not personally trust anything important to Time Capsule.
A little OTT perhaps. It is an online backup device afterall, not a critical server. It'd still be sensible to have offline storage.
Please set me straight if my thinking is incorrect. Airport Extreme costs about $180 and a ½ TB external HDD costs about $120 (cheap one). That’s $300 and the Time Capsule costs $300. Wouldn’t it be better to get the TC? What would be the downside?
In my case, each week I use SuperDuper to back up to a 233GB LaCie HDD. Therefore, I wouldn’t be putting all my “eggs in one basket”. Am I overlooking something?
Would an external DVD still be needed, for example, to update a MacBook Air? Could the upgrade DVD disks be loaded in another Mac and sent to the MBA directly or through the TC?
For you, probably not much. In terms of cost, it is comparable.
For me, and other that bought new AES basestations and expected Leopard would do TimeMachine to AirPort disks, as advertised, we get shafted. Simply to sell more TimeCapsules.
Also, if you need to do a large file transfer, you don't have the option of unplugging the drive from the AES and into your computer. Given the flakyness of Airport Drives with +1gig file transfers, you might be a tight spot. I have _never_ had a file transfer of over a gig succeed to the Airport drive. Plugging in directly has no problem.
Would an external DVD still be needed, for example, to update a MacBook Air? Could the upgrade DVD disks be loaded in another Mac and sent to the MBA directly or through the TC?
They were not clear on this. If it was just an upgrade, this might work. I imagine the installer would set the Mac to network boot off of the remove DVD. But, this might get trickier when trying to do a full re-install.
Yep. The NAS drives that have dappd running also usually have a local web server running on them too and you just manage your music with that. See the firefly media server link for screenshots.
That would be excellent. However I've been to that Firefly site and have no idea where to start.
There's a Wiki, but all I can see is how to install it or how to use a Wiki. Can't find any "What it is and how it works" information. The forum is no better, I wonder if people will laugh at me if I ask them what it is and how it works.
I can't see any screenshots, do you have a link to them? Will I need to install OSX Server or do you reckon I'll get away with the normal client version?
If this is any good, it would be another tempting reason to buy a Bubba Server.
It is quite complex though. If you're not familiar with Terminal, then best not start.
Complex... Tell me about it. The Wiki may tell you how to install and configure it, but pretty much nothing about how it works. No proper instruction manual.
I've been looking at the Linux installation and it looks a piece of p!ss. Maybe I'll get that Bubba Server after all! I guess if I run it on Linux I'll be able to connect to it using iTunes on a Mac, yes?
I know Terminal... That's about it though. I doesn't talk about Terminal though, just MacPorts and Fink.
I'd love to meet someone who has it up and running so I could see exactly how it worked!
Stop press: I've just discovered that Bubba Server comes with Firefly... Preinstalled!! €473 for the 750GB version. It also comes preinstalled with torrent software. Where do I sign!
I was able to use the Time Capsule storage as a NAS volume while at Macworld. Copied some PNGs from a MacBook Air to the Time Capsule's root volume, alongside all the Time Machine backup sparse images.
So, with the NAS option, I'm more inclined to get the 1 TB model.
I dont know if this was previously discussed, but on the Apple site for the Time Capsule it shows this picture:
The USB port says it can be used for a printer OR an external HD. Now I'm not too familiar with terminal, but does anyone think it'd be possible to set up a sort of RAID array with the HD in the TC and an external HD?
I dont know if this was previously discussed, but on the Apple site for the Time Capsule it shows this picture:
The USB port says it can be used for a printer OR an external HD. Now I'm not too familiar with terminal, but does anyone think it'd be possible to set up a sort of RAID array with the HD in the TC and an external HD?
Probably wouldn't want to RAID across a USB HD, but a RAID device attached via USB (like Drobo) is probably possible.
I can't imagine USB is fast enough to allow for RAID, but I could be wrong. I think I'd be happier with a separate NAS with RAID-1 though.
RAID isn't just about speed, it's also about resiliance.
A general reminder: When looking at non-Apple solutions, bear in mind the need for directory hard links - a disk attached to a Leopard OS X server or to Time Capsule will be OK, but other solutions probably won't.
I expect that after the release of the Time Capsule Apple will release a software update for the current base station to allow wireless Time Machine backup. Remember: this feature was in the last Leopard builds but was dropped due to bugs!
Why Time Capsule then? Because:
Apple wants to make profit on the hard drives as well.
Most current external HD are large and noisy or too expensive. Apple's package is very elegant, compact and competitively priced! I have an external 1TB LaCie drive. It was more expensive than the whole Capsule when I bough it. May be it is cheaper now but I would pay a premium for a smaller, quieter package.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jowie74
From what I assumed Time Machine won't work on an Airport Extreme with an external drive attached. That's the thing I'm a little annoyed about. It appears they have deliberately removed the feature in order to plug their all-in-one unit.
Of course they have. I love how everyone still buys the fact that the feature was buggy so they naturally canceled it. This is APPLE we're talking about here. You know, the Apple that makes you pay $30 for QT Pro every few years for no good reason...the one that charged $1.99 for enabling N access on MBPs...the one that marketed their machines with iTools and then .Mac as part of the integrated system, then decided to charge $100 a year for that part of their OS.
Please. They decided to try and get people to buy a $500 "backup appliance" that is nothing more than an HDD rammed into an existing airport station. They're probably making 20-30% on the product...perhaps more. No way are they going to allow Time Machine backups to happen wirelessly without their product. This is Apple.
Comments
Hasn't anybody enquired about backing up to networked drives / drives attached to an Aiport base station while at Macworld?
My brother is there and he asked an Apple rep and was told basically the same thing that the people at Ars Technica were told.
"We spoke with a few Apple reps on the floor, and unfortunately, none of them have heard of any plans to update current AirPort Extreme stations."
Interesting... But how do you edit your tune names and playlists etc if you can only connect as a shared user?
What I'd really love is a server with all my iTunes on... Then to login *with* password to the iTunes Server, and once logged in I could then do everything I do normally with iTunes (add and remove music, rip, rename, catalogue/playlist etc). Any way of doing that?
Yep. The NAS drives that have dappd running also usually have a local web server running on them too and you just manage your music with that. See the firefly media server link for screenshots.
Don't you think someone may hack it though?
Unlikely. I don't know what Apple is using as the OS on the Time Capsule but I suspect it's not Linux or open source.
I'm a little annoyed they've monopolised the whole Time Machine thing by making it an all-in-one unit. I've heard loads of friends' mopes and groans about the Airport Extreme. I'd rather use my own router personally.
Just stick an ethernet based disk on your router and share it. The problem traditionally has been poor AFP implementations or having to use SMB where you run into issues with filenames and resource forks. That's what AirDisk and TimeCapsules are supposed to solve when Apple gets it's bugs worked out.
Backing up data -- from multiple computers, no less -- to a device that is not itself redundant or fault-tolerant in any way, is asking for trouble.
A single hard drive failure now means that all archived data from all your household's machines is gone in one fell swoop.
It is just the archived data, not the live data. If the archive is important then you should still have a backup strategy for that, same as you would for a RAID system, which can and do fail.
Can data on a Time Capsule be further backed up, to something more redundant? Can a Drobo, for instance, be attached to the USB port? Can it push data to Windows Home Server over the network? Can a network-attached file server of some other type attach via NFS or SMB to archive the data? Can we create a simple drive mirror by attaching a USB drive?
All good questions. We'll see how useful that USB port is when it lands. It is a pity in a way that they didn't put two drives in for redundancy if you wanted it.
Until we get some sort of positive answer to one or more of those questions, I would not personally trust anything important to Time Capsule.
A little OTT perhaps. It is an online backup device afterall, not a critical server. It'd still be sensible to have offline storage.
In my case, each week I use SuperDuper to back up to a 233GB LaCie HDD. Therefore, I wouldn’t be putting all my “eggs in one basket”. Am I overlooking something?
Would an external DVD still be needed, for example, to update a MacBook Air? Could the upgrade DVD disks be loaded in another Mac and sent to the MBA directly or through the TC?
What would be the downside?
For you, probably not much. In terms of cost, it is comparable.
For me, and other that bought new AES basestations and expected Leopard would do TimeMachine to AirPort disks, as advertised, we get shafted. Simply to sell more TimeCapsules.
Also, if you need to do a large file transfer, you don't have the option of unplugging the drive from the AES and into your computer. Given the flakyness of Airport Drives with +1gig file transfers, you might be a tight spot. I have _never_ had a file transfer of over a gig succeed to the Airport drive. Plugging in directly has no problem.
Would an external DVD still be needed, for example, to update a MacBook Air? Could the upgrade DVD disks be loaded in another Mac and sent to the MBA directly or through the TC?
They were not clear on this. If it was just an upgrade, this might work. I imagine the installer would set the Mac to network boot off of the remove DVD. But, this might get trickier when trying to do a full re-install.
Yep. The NAS drives that have dappd running also usually have a local web server running on them too and you just manage your music with that. See the firefly media server link for screenshots.
That would be excellent. However I've been to that Firefly site and have no idea where to start.
There's a Wiki, but all I can see is how to install it or how to use a Wiki. Can't find any "What it is and how it works" information. The forum is no better, I wonder if people will laugh at me if I ask them what it is and how it works.
I can't see any screenshots, do you have a link to them? Will I need to install OSX Server or do you reckon I'll get away with the normal client version?
If this is any good, it would be another tempting reason to buy a Bubba Server.
What it is, installation and configuration - http://wiki.fireflymediaserver.org/
It is quite complex though. If you're not familiar with Terminal, then best not start.
This is why Apple would do well including something like it in TimeCapsule or making AppleTV into a proper media server.
It is quite complex though. If you're not familiar with Terminal, then best not start.
Complex... Tell me about it. The Wiki may tell you how to install and configure it, but pretty much nothing about how it works. No proper instruction manual.
I've been looking at the Linux installation and it looks a piece of p!ss. Maybe I'll get that Bubba Server after all! I guess if I run it on Linux I'll be able to connect to it using iTunes on a Mac, yes?
I know Terminal... That's about it though. I doesn't talk about Terminal though, just MacPorts and Fink.
I'd love to meet someone who has it up and running so I could see exactly how it worked!
...Just stick an ethernet based disk on your router and share it.
Are we still talking about TimeMachine? It uses directory hardlinks, which this setup wouldn't provide.
absolutely. But since Time Machine won't connect to external drives, we don't have that option. Annoyingly.
...Time Machine won't connect to external wireless drives...
...Time Machine won't connect to external wireless drives...
ooops...
So, with the NAS option, I'm more inclined to get the 1 TB model.
The USB port says it can be used for a printer OR an external HD. Now I'm not too familiar with terminal, but does anyone think it'd be possible to set up a sort of RAID array with the HD in the TC and an external HD?
I dont know if this was previously discussed, but on the Apple site for the Time Capsule it shows this picture:
The USB port says it can be used for a printer OR an external HD. Now I'm not too familiar with terminal, but does anyone think it'd be possible to set up a sort of RAID array with the HD in the TC and an external HD?
Probably wouldn't want to RAID across a USB HD, but a RAID device attached via USB (like Drobo) is probably possible.
I can't imagine USB is fast enough to allow for RAID, but I could be wrong. I think I'd be happier with a separate NAS with RAID-1 though.
RAID isn't just about speed, it's also about resiliance.
A general reminder: When looking at non-Apple solutions, bear in mind the need for directory hard links - a disk attached to a Leopard OS X server or to Time Capsule will be OK, but other solutions probably won't.
I expect that after the release of the Time Capsule Apple will release a software update for the current base station to allow wireless Time Machine backup. Remember: this feature was in the last Leopard builds but was dropped due to bugs!
Why Time Capsule then? Because:
From what I assumed Time Machine won't work on an Airport Extreme with an external drive attached. That's the thing I'm a little annoyed about. It appears they have deliberately removed the feature in order to plug their all-in-one unit.
Of course they have. I love how everyone still buys the fact that the feature was buggy so they naturally canceled it. This is APPLE we're talking about here. You know, the Apple that makes you pay $30 for QT Pro every few years for no good reason...the one that charged $1.99 for enabling N access on MBPs...the one that marketed their machines with iTools and then .Mac as part of the integrated system, then decided to charge $100 a year for that part of their OS.
Please. They decided to try and get people to buy a $500 "backup appliance" that is nothing more than an HDD rammed into an existing airport station. They're probably making 20-30% on the product...perhaps more. No way are they going to allow Time Machine backups to happen wirelessly without their product. This is Apple.