Just had a HD crash...Time Machine Next Steps

Hello, great info on these forums. I have searched but have not yet found an answer on exactly how to proceed with restoring my MBP after a hard drive replacement. My MBP had been regularly backing up with Time Machine to an external USB drive when my HD bit the dust, so I should have a pretty recent backup, from which to restore.

When the drive died, I had a local mac service place (MyService, in Santa Clara) do the drive replacement. They replaced the drive, and re-loaded the OS (10.5). I just picked up the machine an hour ago, haven't even booted it yet. (They did not give me a 10.5 install disk, now that I think about it!)

So, to restore my system with time machine, do I just boot up the machine (as normal, from the new HD), plug in the USB drive, launch time machine, restore from the latest backup, wait the several hours it will take to restore, and....That's it?

I have never used Time Machine to do a restore, so I'm just wondering if there are any precautions to take, pitfalls to be aware of, etc.

Depending on what I read, some say you need to boot from the install disk, and others say you can just boot from the HD and start the process from the Time Machine application...?

Rob

Welcome to Mac Forums Rob.
You'll need the install disc.

Connect your Time Machine backup.
Insert the disc and double-click the Install Mac OS X icon.
In the Installer, click Utilities, and then click Restart.
When the Language Chooser appears, select your language, and then click the Continue button (looks like an arrow).
In the menu bar, choose Utilities > Restore System From Backup.
Select the HD and click Continue.
Select the date and time of the backup you want to restore, and then follow the instructions.

Success!

Thanks 6string...I guess I was worried about nothing. I did have to go and buy another OS10.5 disc, but, oh well.

Restored my machine successfully, Time Machine is brilliant! Didn't lose a thing, Apps are all as they were, etc...