Hi guys, The weekend just gone I discovered that I have a split in my macbook outer case but is just outside the warranty. I am going to replace this part myself but need to take the internal Hard Drive out to do the job. So I thought while I was there I may as well upgrade my poxy 80GB HD and put a bigger and faster one in. Now is there an easy way to transfer my current drive to say and an external drive then copy it back across when the new one in installed? Also wont the new HD need formating and OSX installing? Basically I have lots of Logic projects, VST presets etc. So I am trying to do this with little distruption as poss. Any ideas?

Hi Kristoff, You'll need to clone the drive to an external. Using standard copy will not work as it won't copy the hidden files etc... Check out Carbon Copy Cloner (I use this and love it): [url]http://www.bombich.com/ccc[/url] or Super Duper (also well known and used): [url]http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html[/url] I'd recommend keeping separate backups of your projects on DVD or a separate HD... Cheers Rounik

Not sure if this reply should be placed elsewhere but as you mentioned that you split your case, I thought it relevant. My macbook has split along the front of the casing just from everyday wear and tear. It has not been dropped or mishandled in anyway... and it seems that it is quite a common issue. There are a couple of articles on it, see below, and it seems that Apple are open to the idea of covering it as long as the request is obviously a manufacture defect. Never hurts to ask! http://brianford.newsvine.com/_news/2008/03/27/1393716-macbook-casing-defect-prevalent-cracking?threadId=370198 http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?p=512406

Hi JF! Good to see you/read you again ;-) I enjoyed your Cameo on the TNT series last month. Useful tips! 1. & 2. Great advice - especially as the Language Fonts and printer drivers can be really large! 3. I actually would advise against using Migration assistant to reinstall Logic studio & FCS2 apps from an external drive/mac to a new mac... I know a few people who've had issues using the Migration assistant with Logic, so I've never tried using it and done clean installations for pro apps or cloned my clone backup back to the mac's startup drive. 4. Yes! Definitely, Leopard requires room to breathe :). I'd be interested in what other people's experiences are, but I also try to keep between 10-15% free space on my startup drive. Best, Rounik

Hi J .F. Great! Glad you'll be around macprovideo.com more! Enjoy the rest of the weekend :) Rounik

Hi. Just running a new MackBook Pro with Pro apps FCP and Logic Pro installed using Migration Assistant from my desktop Mac Pro and no problems at present with them. Could you be more precise about the problems could I find doing so? I'm afraid to have them when not expected and in the middle of a long project. Thanks, Ignacio

Hi igarti, I've never used the migration assistant for transfering pro apps... but I know some students a while back had sluggish performance and some found 'permissions' issues with some apple loops and presets. Thanks Rounik

Hi, The only problem I found with the Migration Assistant was that I did not deactivate Adobe Apps in the older machine before formating it, but in contact with the Adobe support they reactivated on-line and everything runs smooth. Ignacio