Time Capsule and Time Machine

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I recently started using a time capsule (TC), which I have set up to act as an external storage drive, and also to handle time machine (TM) back up's.

I used to back up TM to a "regular" external HD, where I could specify where the backups went. i.e. I have many folders on that HD and I created one specifically for TM back up's, and they were all stored there (automatically.)

I'm having some trouble doing that with the TC, i.e. it just wants to save the backups on the drive in general, and I can't organize a folder system. I did the initial back up to the TC, then moved that backup "sparse" file into the folder where I wanted subsequent backups to be stored. When TC went to back up again, I think it "lost" that initial back up, and started from scratch-saving on the TC like it did the first time (and not in the folder where I moved the completed first back up to.)

Is there anyway to tell TM to back up to a specific folder/location on the TC, or does it have to be saved "unorganized", if you will.

I ask because I want to allow a few different computers to access the TC, some of which will be backing up there. I'd like to keep a nice organized file structure, instead of having "random" backup's "all over" the drive.

Thanks in advance.
 
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Time Machine will keep things organised on your TC by creating a sparsebundle for each computer that is backing up to the TC ( <computername>.sparsebundle )
All backup management tasks are done through the TimeMachine app.
Do not use the finder or any other disk management tool to manage the TM backups. :)
 

bobtomay

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I have 3 Macs that use TM to backup to a single TC.
As McBie stated, they won't be "all over" the drive, each Mac will create a "single" sparsebundle for all of it's TM backups located at the root of the drive.

You can still use the TC for other file storage in whatever folder structure you would like.
You'll still have only one sparsebundle for each Mac TM backup.

Bottom line, sorry but no, TM will not allow you to select a folder on the TC for it's backups.
 
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Appreciate the info-I guess having a file for each machine backing up isn't the end of the world :)
 

Slydude

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Actually it is probably a good thing. In multiple Mac households I find the two machines are rarely identical even if some effort is put into making them so. They start out that way but deviate over time.

In my case until recently we had both a Mac Pro and MacBook Pro in the house. The software was mostly the same except for the following:

1. Some software that I only had one license for (Photoshop)
2. Hardware that worked with one machine and not another (video capture card). That hardware had its own software.
3. Eventual OS differences (Mac Pro could not run Mountain Lion)
 

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