One of my favorite features of macOS is Time Machine, a built-in backup service that easily allows users the option to store versioned backups of their entire hard drive in the event of a restore or device transfer. I’ve been using it for years, and the Mac mini hub I purchased last year is used almost exclusively for Time Machine (check out the article to learn more). As has been well documented, I’m a bit obsessed with storage and external storage. I’ve been looking into a NAS system for quite some time, but one fateful day, I stumbled across this video from Quinn Nelson, aka Snazzy Labs. In it, he mentions taking an old Apple Time Capsule and restoring it to act as another Time Machine, or more interestingly, a media server. So I naturally had to buy one.
As far as old Apple products go, this one is extremely inexpensive. I purchased mine on eBay for $40 with shipping, and it came with an internal (functioning!) 1TB HDD. Aside from not being erased as the listing said, the device was perfectly functional. So much so that I debated just erasing the drive and using that, but common sense prevailed. I went to my nearby Walmart and picked up a 2TB Western Digital SSD, a heat gun, and some ethernet cables. Now, the fun part.
Getting into the device was fairly straightforward, especially with the heat gun. All I had to do was heat the bottom of the device for a few minutes and the silicon backing started to peel away. Whatever adhesive Apple uses is legit though, let me tell you. Once I managed to remove the backing (rather poorly, I might add), there were ten screws to remove from the casing itself. Removing the screws was painless, except for the last one which was simply not screwed into anything. After five minutes of panic, I got into the brains of the device.
Once inside, I carefully disconnected the HDD from the SATA connector and swapped it with my newly purchased SSD. That’s it. It really is that simple. I put the screws back in their place, attached the backing, and warmed it up slightly to release the adhesive again. After that, all I had to do was go to my ethernet switch and plug everything in.
Connecting to the device was as simple as opening AirPort Utility on my MacBook (yes, that MacBook), selecting the device, formatting the drive, and naming it. Once that was done, I was done. I named the device, added some folders, and started transferring content over. But let’s talk about that for a second.
I’ve always had a hard time figuring out where to store what file, but I wanted this device to be fairly straightforward. I’ve grown to despise my Samsung T5 SSDs so much over the past few months, so I decided to break the Time Capsule into three “sections.” The first, Designs, is exactly that — a place to store backups of my Pixelmator Pro documents. The second, Files, is for backups of personal documents, Xcode files, and downloads that I easily want access to regardless of device. The last one, Media, is for backups of all of my finished video projects. I wanted it to be simple, even with the 2TB of storage I now have at my fingertips. Transferring my videos was hilariously slow, but what can I expect from a decades-old device?
As much as I want to say my external storage woes are behind me, I still have a lot of work to do to completely remove the headache from my life. I’m still in the dedicated NAS market, mainly because this device can’t handle anything more than file transfers. I’ve also been really enjoying physical media lately, and having my own Plex Server is certainly a goal of mine. I also haven’t been able to remove the T5 SSDs from my life entirely, and that is something I desperately want to accomplish. There have been some alterations to the previously described plan, but I think they’re ultimately the right decision and one that will save me a little money in the process. Those upgrades are still a distance away, especially with what I plan on doing next, but it’s coming.
In total, this project cost $170, considerably less than my original plan. This is just the latest piece of my storage puzzle, but I think it’s one that will greatly help my workflow and file management. Plus, you can never have too many backups, right?! Even if you’re practicing the 3/2/1 rule. That being said, storage has been weighing on me so much lately that I decided to release an iOS app to help. You can read more about it here. And download it here. Okay, I’m all out of words. See you when I see you.