Panther and Firewire enclosures

D

dtruett1

Registered
I really want to upgrade to Panther now that almost all of my apps have been rewritten. My fear is all the talk of FW drives losing data. I use CCC to back everything to a 120GB ATA drive in a 1394 ADS FW 400 enclosure. I know that most, but not all of the problems are with FW 800, but there have been some. I refuse to crawl under the desk and unplug the drive every time I restart.
Tried the web site, but there are no updated drivers. What is the risk factor here? I need to have my data backed up in case the worst happens with a Panther install. Any thoughts on this?
 
I am not very familar with the firewire issue on panther. But I was thinking of something very similar. Wanted to have a very secure way to be able to backup my data without any risc. And it turned out, that the network solution is the best. You setup a cheap linux pc with a huge disc, connect to it over 100mbit lan. Works really great and it's completely trustful. The only problem is the samba filename-length limitation.
But maybe someone else can tell you more about the risc of using firewire on panther.

Oh, I just understood it's not about finding a secure way to backup, but if you should update to panther. Anyway, maybe my idea is useful for you. Panther is really worth.

And welcome to the forum :)
 
I have had it for 2 years now and have had no problems whatsoever. I use it with CCC all the time and have used it to boot dead Macs as well.

I think the problems associated with FW800 are real but not going to affect a FW400 user. At least that has been my experience so far and I like the Micronet Advantage for its quiet running and super support.

Mikey
 
The problem 10.3 originally had with Firewire 800 drives has been fixed since then; just be sure to update to 10.3.2 as soon as you finish installing Panther. You should not have a problem with a Firewire 400 drive. That's what I used to back up my iMac to install Panther, and I had no problem with getting my data back.
 
The problems with FireWire drives were fixed by firmware updates from the manufacturers of the drives, not by Apple. Check with the manufacturer of your FireWire drive/enclosure for an update to the drive. Then, upgrade to Panther and immediately upgrade to 10.3.2, which helps with the FireWire problem. Don't connect your FireWire drive until you've updated OS X all the way.

That should be the safest and most foolproof way to upgrade to Panther and circumventing the FireWire problem. Just be sure you keep a good backup of your FireWire drives around if you're timid about losing data.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top