PC to Mac Transfer I am about to become a Mac owner and need to get the files off my old PC. I was wondering if I get this hard drive and save everything to it on my PC and then plug it into my Mac, will I have to reformat it? And if so, will this delete the files I've saved from the PC? Please help. PC to Mac Transfer I am about to become a Mac owner and need to get the files off my old PC. I was wondering if I get this hard drive and save everything to it on my PC and then plug it into my... » Read More PC to Mac Transfer I am about to become a Mac owner and need to get the files off my old PC. I was wondering if I get this hard drive and save everything to it on my PC and then plug it into my Mac, will I have to reformat it? And if so, will this delete the files I've saved from the PC? Please help. « Show Less
322988
Hi, do you know the process? I'm facing the same problem. It's not reading on windows! :(
322989
I upgraded from a PC to a Mac last weekend, and was able to copy my iTunes library, pics, videos, and miscellaneous spreadsheets/word files onto this drive. Plugged it into my iMac and am able to access everything perfectly.You will only be copying from your PC to the drive, so the files will still remain on the PC also.
322990
If you found out an answer to this problem let me know. I am trying to use it on a windows, from a mac, and it wont even read it.
935260
No one has responded. My tech expert son believes that we will be able to do it. We will try this afternoon. I will hopefully be able to update you on our progress. Only other issue is that I do not have sufficient memory on my MacBook Pro right now...so we will try to transfer "through" the Mac to an external hard drive.
735344
Mine is hooked up to a PC, mapped to the network (Windows for all its sins does this pretty well in the Control Panel), and I just drag and drop to it from my Mac all the time. I partitioned it before use. Most seamless thing ever.
2158870
I couldn't tell you, I don't use pc I'm a mac guy. I worked in my Power Mac, but I now have an iMac and it won't work w/ new OS. Sorry I couldn't help more but I had mine before USB 3.0 became a reality.
1778365
yes, unless one is a mac..then no. you will have to re format the hard drive after using it for a mac.
1294087
I would suggest that you copy and paste all of your photos in to a new folder then write a batch command that will save them as PC instead of MAC. Then they should transfer.
77303
yes, i transferred data from an iMac to a macbook, but it works the same. You will just have to make the computer you are transferring TO like a disk (I forget how, but I got a good tutorial on a forum with one quick google search -- you just start the computer in a certain mode with a disk utility or something). best to you!
1518709
There are some HD's out there now that can run both Mac and PC platforms but they have to be partitioned for each platform. I want to say Click Free has one like this now. The best thing is to inquire with the manufacture before purchasing one. Or have one for your PC and one for your Mac.
457650
I specifically purchased to back up my MacBook. I am unsure if you can reformat it to use it with a PC.
801649
I'm a Mac guy. But I would think so. A hard drive is a hard drive. You may need to format it before using. No big deal.
1433595
I think you saying that you will transfer the data from both macs to this hard drive and then partition the hard drive of both macs and then transfer the information back to the macs. If this is correct, then your answer is yes, you can use this hard drive to help accomplish your end goal.
454467
Dee, there are multiple options to do this, I may need additional information to help you. If you just purchased a MacBook Pro and you attemping to transfer data from the Seagate drive from one Mac to another Mac, then attach your Seagate to your Mac and simply copy and paste whatever you wish to place on your Mac. If you are trying to migrate data from a PC to a Mac, then use a ethernet cable and Migration Assistant to transfer data from your PC to your MacBook. Migration Assistant is an app on your Mac. Assuming your Seagate is not formatted for Windows, then connect it to your Mac and copy and paste your data. Your question is very technical in-nature, as there multiple ways to transfer data to your Mac, including using Command R on your Mac and recovering your data as a Time Machine Back-up. Please tell me specifically about your configuration and I will be in a better position to help you.
515166
I use this strictly to do OSX backups using TimeMachine. This drive is formatted for use with Apple computers and is not formatted to be accessed by PCs. I have no idea what you are trying to accomplish, whether it is backing up data using backup tools or just trying to copy files to an external drive that either system can read. Regardless, this is not a good, cost effective, starting point for you. You would need to totally reformat the drive and consider if your PC supports USB 3 because this drive is built to support that higher transfer rate.
1219416
I am looking for a back up drive and something I can use to transfer my Itunes and pics/videos from my PC to my Macbook. Is this the product I need to do both? Thanks for your help!
704150
Files such as txt, doc, pdf, and other cross-platform files can be transferred over to a Mac from a PC as long as you have formatted the hard drive correctly (exFAT). I'd definitely recommend reading up on the drive format and transferring files as there are a lot of great online resources. Keep in mind that .exe or executable files (applications) are not cross platform and therefore you can't open up MS Word from a PC on a Mac. However, documents, videos, etc. should all have some cross-platform application that can read/write them when required. Although, some content may need to be transformed (video formats on PC aren't super kind on Mac). One final note - fonts. You may have awesome files that are formatted with great fonts and the like on a Mac or PC. These layouts don't translate well in Word or Powerpoint due to the differences in fonts from one platform to the next. PDF is a great way to ensure accurate layout, but expect layouts to shift if fonts differ from one computer to the next. PS I use Unix, PC and Mac, so I have a lot of ways to transfer content between the three (although I use UNIX primarily for serving web content and programming, so that's not that relevant here). Also, if you want to run Windows on a Mac, I would recommend looking into Parallels or Boot Camp. I prefer Parallels because I can have Windows apps open along with Mac apps at the same time. Just make sure you beef up on RAM and processor speeds. Knowledge is power, so make sure you use the web to fill in your knowledge gaps. Don't want to lose data!
135687
Can you further explain how to format this for Mac -- and can it be interswitched between a Mac and a PC?
2136758
Yes, but accessing the data will depend on how the drive is formatted. I think (you'll have to check) the drive comes formatted in NTSF. For use with both PC and Mac, you'll have to re-format the drive in something like FAT 23. Both Mac and PC should recognize the drive, but FAT 23 has file size limitations.