Transferring files from G4 to G5

E

eric.e

Registered
I have been using an iMac G4 for some years but have recently acquired a G5. How might I best transfer files from the old computer to the new one? Is there a quicker solution than filling memory sticks or sending email attachments to myself?

Eric
 
Get a firewire 400 cable. Connect both of the computers together using the firewire cable. Boot the G4 into target disk mode by starting the T key at startup. On the G5 go to applications/utilities/migration assistant. Follow along the prompts. When its asks where you are transferring from select from another Mac, and let it do its thing. If you haven't created a user account on the G5 yet, migration assistant will come up before you set up a new account and let you transfer everything in without setting up an account.
 
That sounds very useful, djackmack. The only bit that flummoxes me is how to interpret "start the T key at start-up". Do you mean keep the T key pressed while starting up?

Reards,
Eric
 
eric.e said:
That sounds very useful, djackmack. The only bit that flummoxes me is how to interpret "start the T key at start-up". Do you mean keep the T key pressed while starting up?

Reards,
Eric
Click to expand...

Yes exactly, hold it until the the Firewire sign pops up.
Although personally I would drag over all the files myself instead of using the Migration Assistant, that way I know where all my files are exactly.
 
icemanjc said:
Yes exactly, hold it until the the Firewire sign pops up.
Although personally I would drag over all the files myself instead of using the Migration Assistant, that way I know where all my files are exactly.
Click to expand...

Yeah, typo on my part. Thanks Icemanjc for setting that straight.

You can do the drag and drop, in some situations (like failing HD) there is no other choice. But apps aren't that easy to just drag and drop and then expect full functionality. I use migration assistant all the time and as long as there is no corruption or files it doesn't know how to copy, it works great and puts everything where its supposed to. Plus it migrates the system and user libraries across as well to completely retain your settings.
 
djackmac said:
Yeah, typo on my part. Thanks Icemanjc for setting that straight.

You can do the drag and drop, in some situations (like failing HD) there is no other choice. But apps aren't that easy to just drag and drop and then expect full functionality. I use migration assistant all the time and as long as there is no corruption or files it doesn't know how to copy, it works great and puts everything where its supposed to. Plus it migrates the system and user libraries across as well to completely retain your settings.
Click to expand...

Very true, I never really thought about apps. That would get messy after a while because the files aren't always in Application Support.

It was just out of personal preference that I start fresh, just makes me feel like I get out any problems.
 
Just one caution. Be sure and check the volume structure of both the source and target drives before migrating the files. Migrating from or to a damaged volume can really mess things up.
 
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