2 PCs, 1 MacBook Pro and 2 iPhones... How do I maintan 1 music library?

[acosmichippo]

Originally Posted by 420greg

This link will help you get your drives set-up so they can see each other on a mixed network.

http://www.ifelix.co.uk/tech/3020.html

it's actually nowhere near that complicated if he's using a time capsule or airport extreme to share a hard drive on a network (it's all handled through airport utility)... also, that's a walkthrough for Tiger, so it is a bit outdated.

[iMerlin]

So hippo, what kind of issues have you had with TC that you recommend against it?

[acosmichippo]

Well, every time I need to edit ANY setting on the TC through AirPort utility, the TC must restart (understandably), but after it does so, i usually have to restart it AGAIN AT LEAST 5 times before it starts functioning properly. Also, after two or three of the software updates for the Airport Utility, and the ONLY firmware update for the TC, my network was COMPLETELY hosed. All three times i had to redo the network completely, AND do the initial backup ALL over again (which takes FOREVER if you have any sizeable amount of data). After one of these restores, my backup was actually still available on the disk, but time machine would NOT append any more backups to it, so, like i said, i had to redo the initial backup anyway.

With all of the issues that i have had, i am NOT very confident in the TC as a backup device... which kinda defeats the whole purpose, right? I have since purchased another 500GB hard drive and hooked that up to my TC for time machine backups, and just store videos and music on the TC...

Oh, and i also got a new router to replace it... so it's kinda just a glorified file server at this point... too bad, really.

[iMerlin]

Thanks for the details hippo. So did you get the Airport Extreme? Since your rec Ive been doing some more reading about the TC and most people like it if they only do backups but if you want more out of it, the reviews dont sound to good. A lot of people say it can only be used as a shared network drive OR a back up device, but not both.
The thing that appeals to me is the USB port on it to share the printer and a USB HDD. Can that be dont with the USB port on the Airport Extreme? I would want to get a USB hub and connect my printer and 2 500gb USB drives. One as a shared network drive with all the families media on it, the other as a back up.
This seems like the ideal situation but I thought I read somewhere that the Airport Extreme USB port only supports one device. Can't remember where I read that though.
Ive also seen a lot of stuff about NAS devices and RAID setups but Im not to familiar with that stuff. I just want a centralized location for our media.

On another note, I bought an Airport Express a while ago to stream music from iTunes to my HT, and it took me months to get the thing working. Finally one night I decided I was going to return it cause it wouldnt consistently stay up, then all of a sudden, green light and the thing has been working ever since. I dont even know what I did. If setting up the TC (or the Airport Extreme for that matter) is that difficult, I might look into an entirely different solution.

[iMerlin]

Also, any recs on the type of external drive to get? I know 7200rpm is ideal. And Im assuming USB 2.0. Any other things I should look out for?

[acosmichippo]

Originally Posted by iMerlin

Thanks for the details hippo. So did you get the Airport Extreme? Since your rec Ive been doing some more reading about the TC and most people like it if they only do backups but if you want more out of it, the reviews dont sound to good. A lot of people say it can only be used as a shared network drive OR a back up device, but not both.
The thing that appeals to me is the USB port on it to share the printer and a USB HDD. Can that be dont with the USB port on the Airport Extreme? I would want to get a USB hub and connect my printer and 2 500gb USB drives. One as a shared network drive with all the families media on it, the other as a back up.
This seems like the ideal situation but I thought I read somewhere that the Airport Extreme USB port only supports one device. Can't remember where I read that though.
Ive also seen a lot of stuff about NAS devices and RAID setups but Im not to familiar with that stuff. I just want a centralized location for our media.

On another note, I bought an Airport Express a while ago to stream music from iTunes to my HT, and it took me months to get the thing working. Finally one night I decided I was going to return it cause it wouldnt consistently stay up, then all of a sudden, green light and the thing has been working ever since. I dont even know what I did. If setting up the TC (or the Airport Extreme for that matter) is that difficult, I might look into an entirely different solution.

i actually got a cradlepoint MBR 1000. I probably would have just bit the bullet and stuck with the TC, but i needed this specific router to share internet from an aircard.

You CAN use the HD in the time capsule as a time machine backup device AND for general storage. There's just no way to partition that disk, and with time machine adding backups until the disk is full, it makes it impractical to mix backups and storage.

I'm not sure how these things work with USB hubs... never had to try it myself. There are, however, wireless USB hubs that you can add to any existing network. like this belkin. I'm not sure how difficult or easy it would be to configure HDs hooked up to it to be used as a time machine backup, though.

[acosmichippo]

Originally Posted by iMerlin

Also, any recs on the type of external drive to get? I know 7200rpm is ideal. And Im assuming USB 2.0. Any other things I should look out for?

USB 2.0 is standard these days, but you may consider looking for one that also has a firewire port on it. If you go for your new mac, it will have a corresponding firewire port, and that will offer much faster transfer speeds. If we're talking about LARGE backups, the difference will be huge. Granted, it's going to be hooked up to your TC anyway, BUT this will help you when you do the initial backup (instead of doing it wirelessly which could literally take DAYS), and also if you have to restore any large amount of data.

You could look for an eSATA port, which is also very fast (actually faster than firewire right now), but most computers don't come stock with an eSATA port, so you'd have to purchase a card for that.

As long as you're looking at full-sized 3.5" external hard drives (as opposed to 2.5" portable drives), i can't imagine any of them are slower (or faster) than 7200 rpm.

Oh, and the only other thing i would consider is the warranty that comes with them. I know Western Digital come with 3 years, but Seagate and Maxtor both come with 5 years.

[iMerlin]

Originally Posted by acosmichippo

USB 2.0 is standard these days, but you may consider looking for one that also has a firewire port on it. If you go for your new mac, it will have a corresponding firewire port, and that will offer much faster transfer speeds. If we're talking about LARGE backups, the difference will be huge. Granted, it's going to be hooked up to your TC anyway, BUT this will help you when you do the initial backup (instead of doing it wirelessly which could literally take DAYS), and also if you have to restore any large amount of data.

You could look for an eSATA port, which is also very fast (actually faster than firewire right now), but most computers don't come stock with an eSATA port, so you'd have to purchase a card for that.

As long as you're looking at full-sized 3.5" external hard drives (as opposed to 2.5" portable drives), i can't imagine any of them are slower (or faster) than 7200 rpm.

Oh, and the only other thing i would consider is the warranty that comes with them. I know Western Digital come with 3 years, but Seagate and Maxtor both come with 5 years.

Great info hippo. I will leave you alone now!