Is my Mac Time Capsule dying?

[PaBear]

I run a 2016 Mac Time capsule (A1470) to 2TB Time Machine back ups for three Macs. They are a 2016 MbPro, a 2014 MacBook air (both on Catalina 10.15.5) and a 2010 I-mac on Mac OS High Sierra 10.13.6.

The two MacBooks seem unable to compete any backups on the Time Capsule though the i-mac seems untroubled. The MBP (2016) repeatedly tells me it has veriied a back upo and asks me to do a whole device fresh backup. There is 918Gb of space on the Time capsule.

It looks like the time has come for a replacement external HDD. Can someone please recommend a 3 to 6 TB replacement, with wi-fi of course, that I can buy here (UK)?

 

[Lufbrarunner]

I use an A1470 3TB Time Capsule, which does the job.

 

[PaBear]

Unfortunately, the last A1470s were made in about 2016 and Apple no longer support it. Mine is one of the last.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello,

There are a few vendors that support Wi-Fi Time Machine backups with their NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices: Synology, Drobo, and LaCie - not sure if LaCie still sells them though. They can be a little pricey - more than the Time Capsules were, but you can get them with incredible amounts of space.

If you have an Apple AirPort Base Station, you can connect a USB drive to it and use that for Time Machine. Also, if you have multiple Macs, you can use one of them as a shared Time Machine destination

Back up your Mac with Time Machine

C

 

[PaBear]

Thank you, Cory.

I have been looking for Time Machine alternatives , perhaps WD MyCloud, Synology. There are some which don't seem to have network wi-fi access and even a few which are sold without any storage and/or disks [and not just among the lower priced models].

I'd like to see examples hands-on but there are few retail outlets which are open at the moment. Not completely happy with many on-line offers. So many versions with poor descriptions and very varied customer feedback.

 

[Cory Cooper]

No problem.

I do know that Synology makes great products, but they can be more expensive than others. Friends of mine use old Drobo units and haven't had any issues, other than the inevitable drive failure. WD MyClouds have had some reliability issues, but I don't have personal experience with them.

Feel free to let us know what you are considering, and we'll be happy to discuss further.

C