Apple's confusing instructions for new Mac

[Rod]

Maybe I should just say inadequate or incomplete but no matter how I put it there is a definite shortfall in the instructions provided for;



Note that it does say "new Mac". So, you unbox your new Mac, open the lid, then what? You are greeted with the Setup Assistant but what do you setup?
These are the instructions from Transfer to a new Mac with Migration Assistant – Apple Support (UK) At no point do they make it clear that decisions made during that setup may be in conflict with the account transfer later in the process. **It really falls to the user to read and understand all of the instructions before even starting to setup the new device, something which is very tempting to do.

**This only applies where you are using Migration Assistant to transfer both your user account and data from your old device to a new one.

This is Apple's Mac equivalent to the Quick Start method for upgrading/updating to a new iPhone/iPad. It's just as successful and works in much the same way.

Being your "new" computer it will often be intended as a replacement for the old device which you may intend to trade in so, you might decide to create a new user name or admin password (just for security sake) but that would be a mistake because in the transfer process you are only offered two alternatives;

"Rename: the account on your old Mac will appear as an additional user on your new Mac, with a separate login and home folder."
"Replace: the account on your old Mac will replace the identically named account on your new Mac".

If as above this new Mac is to be an upgrade for your old Mac and identical to it then you don't want another user account that's essentially redundant. True you could delete it after completion but this can have unintended repercussions as it will be the same Apple ID as the one you are migrating.
Ideally you just want to replace the account you created at setup but you can't because its not identically named.

This is a real bind situation but luckily with the new silicon macs you can Erase all Contents and Settings directly from System Settings and start again, in fact you can even initiate the Migration process with Migration Assistant from the same window. Not so with the Intel Mac's.

My point is that if the initial instructions included one small sentence, eg, "If this new Mac is to be a replacement/upgrade device for your existing Mac ensure that on initial setup you use the identical user name". That way you simply choose "Replace" in Step 2 of On Your New Mac in the instructions.
(In fact even if you did it right and used the same user name and password you still need to choose "Replace".) ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Not really intuitive.

The result will be a "clone" of your old device, the same in every way including settings. You can now erase the old machine following the linked page: What to do before you sell, give away, trade in or recycle your Mac

 

[IWT]

Yes, Rod. This is a worrying feature that has caught out some members already.

I have never used Migration Assistant. I have always transferred everything from my TM backup; which is easy and straightforward. It may take longer - I don't know - but it works just fine.

A good post, Rod. Thanks.

Ian

 

[Jimmysb]

I use MA when I moved from my Windows PC, having never used a Mac before I was very confused as exactly what it did - other than stall - 3 times. On further research (using windows) I found that if you had lots of files then stalling was not uncommon, but what it did was create 3 accounts on my Mac. Jim1, Jim2 and Jim3, which then took some sorting out for a Mac Virgin, thankfully no thanks to Apple all is well.

 

[Rod]

Thanks Ian, I don't think the Migration Assistant method is any faster having tried both but then I usually let it run over night. I'm not sure either has any big advantages over the other other than the above mentioned lack of clarity.
Of course you can use a TM (or other) backup in conjunction with the MA method giving even more options but it feels like double handling to me.

 

[MacInWin]

What I have always done is to run MA at the very first time it is offered. That's before you get to setting up any account. That way, MA creates the same account you had on the old machine, with the same password. No conflicts, no troubles.

But what happens too often is that the eager new user wants to have that account set up, so they blow by the first offer of migration, then later on, the migration issue you described kicks in.

 

[Jimmysb]

But what happens too often is that the eager new user wants to have that account set up, so they blow by the first offer of migration, then later on, the migration issue you described kicks in.

You may be correct, however, new first Mac, and I honestly cannot remember, just it initially went "pear shaped" but was recoverable.

 

[Rod]

What I have always done is to run MA at the very first time it is offered. That's before you get to setting up any account. That way, MA creates the same account you had on the old machine, with the same password. No conflicts, no troubles.

But what happens too often is that the eager new user wants to have that account set up, so they blow by the first offer of migration, then later on, the migration issue you described kicks in.

Yes, it's really tempting I admit to "try out" the shiny new Mac but let me get this straight because Apple doesn't mention this either.

At what point does "the very first time it is offered" occur?
This is very relevant to me personally because my wife is about to receive a new M2 15" MBA.

So, with her old MBP on and logged in we open the the new MBA, it switches on, then what?

 

[Rod]

I only ask because it was my understanding that both devices needed to be running the latest macOS and logged into the same WiFi network. How do I achieve that without logging in on the new Mac?

 

[MacInWin]

At what point does "the very first time it is offered" occur?
This is very relevant to me personally because my wife is about to receive a new M2 15" MBA.

So, with her old MBP on and logged in we open the the new MBA, it switches on, then what?

There is a basic setup (Language, for example. I don't remember all of it) then BEFORE offering to create a new account, it will offer to migrate data for you. That is the "first time" itis offered. So, if you get to where you can create a new account, you've gone too far. With an M2 Mac, you can back it out with the "Erase All Content" found in Settings>Transfer or Reset. That option will reset the Mac back to "factory" state, with anything you have done and all data erased. Then start again at the "Welcome" screen and look carefully for the migration offer. Once you find it, just follow the instructions. It's not complicated once you get to the right place.

 

[MacInWin]

I only ask because it was my understanding that both devices needed to be running the latest macOS and logged into the same WiFi network. How do I achieve that without logging in on the new Mac?

The network login may be in the setup stage before you create an account on the Mac. As I said, it's been a while since I last did it.

Here is Apple's article on the steps:

Set up your MacBook Pro for current Mac users

Walk through how to use Setup Assistant to set up your MacBook Pro for current Mac users.

support.apple.com

Note that you set up language, country or region, any accessibility features you need, then WiFi network and THEN comes the transfer offer. The two Macs don't need to have the same version of OS, just be in the same WiFi network. The caution in the "Before You Begin" about being updated on the old machine is not critical, in my experience. If they are compatible, the transfer will take place. If it doesn't and complains about the old machine being too old, then you can update the old one and try again. But if at this point you decide to "Transfer Data Later" then the next step is to login to the AppleID account and to create an account on the Mac, at which time you have gone too far.

 

[Rod]

Thank you so much Jake. I was really hoping to get it right this time so I could document the process a simply as possible, a lot of which you have already done.

"As I said, it's been a while since I last did it." Yes, it's about 2 years since I last did it. The article you attached from Apple is not one I've seen and like many of their Support articles they try to cover every contingency meaning many of the instructions are irrelevant and can be ignored in "normal" circumstances. They just "muddy the waters" making extracting the basic setup confusing to say the least.
For example they say, "Note: During setup, you may be prompted to download the latest version of macOS. Follow the instructions to install, then continue with the setup process."
And, "Before you begin. Ensure that the other Mac is updated to the latest available software version."
As you say this is not critical but, if prompted I will do it.

In the last instance I did this process it was the new device that needed to be updated which I did when prompted.

Then there is the whole, "Sign in with Apple ID and set up your computer account" section which seemingly has nothing to do with the migration process at all. More muddy water. Then just to make it more confusing there's the "Make this your new Mac" paragraph which explains "Express Setup". I cannot tell when or if this option appears as part of migration. Just have to play that one by ear.

The rest of the article concerns customising and setup preferences none of which apply if you migrated your account and data using MA. So, again it's just Apple trying to cover all contingencies.

This is why we get posts from users who say, I tried to follow the instructions on this page, I did this and that but when I got to .... I didn't know what to do so I did this and now I can't do that.

Anyway, you have been really helpful. Annie's MBP is running the current macOS so I will;
start up (open) the new MBA,
perform the setup on the MBA to the point of completing WiFi network and password,
launch MA on the old MBP an see what happens.

I think from what you say, MA should detect the new MBA and offer to transfer user account and data or, maybe Express Setup will appear.
Either way I will follow instructions (as I always do) and as we stated if I take a wrong turn I can always Erase all Contents and Settings and start again.

Whatever happens I will document the process here in the hope that it will unmuddy the waters for those users who simply wish to replace an old mac with a new one using MA with no special requirements other than to produce a duplicate of their existing device.

Wish me luck.

​

 

[MacInWin]

In the last instance I did this process it was the new device that needed to be updated which I did when prompted.

That is the best time to get the new machine to the latest release. Nothing on it to lose, it's clean and fast.

Then there is the whole, "Sign in with Apple ID and set up your computer account" section which seemingly has nothing to do with the migration process at all. More muddy water. Then just to make it more confusing there's the "Make this your new Mac" paragraph which explains "Express Setup". I cannot tell when or if this option appears as part of migration. Just have to play that one by ear.

The "Sign in with Apple ID..." comes AFTER the migration step. No, nothing to do with the migration, but definitely a setup step. The article isn't about migration, it's about setup.

Anyway, you have been really helpful. Annie's MBP is running the current macOS so I will;
start up (open) the new MBA,
perform the setup on the MBA to the point of completing WiFi network and password,
launch MA on the old MBP an see what happens.

Just follow the directions, don't assume you know what to do. A lot of folks get into trouble because they think they know what to do from last time, but if Apple makes a change and they don't actually read and perform the steps as outlined, they get into trouble. There were (and maybe still are) a lot of folks who got wrapped around the axle when Apple introduced APFS and they "assumed" that Macintosh HD was still the same as it was in HFS+. Then that "knowledge" led, as I recall, one person reinstalling macOS 4-5 times, recreating Macintosh HD and Macintosh HD - Data each time, until his drive got full. So, read what the prompts say, read the documentation and don't assume it's the same as it was last time.

It's actually not that complicated or hard to do, just read carefully and make sure you check the "defaults" that Apple suggests: things like "Optimize storage," etc., that you probably do NOT want turned on are on by default. But you will be offered a chance to turn them off in the setup, as long as you read and don't hit the "continue" button automatically.

 

[Rod]

Got it! Never assume (my grandfather used to say, when you assume you make an ass of u and me) and don't press "continue" before I understand what it means.

 

[MacInWin]

Got it! Never assume (my grandfather used to say, when you assume you make an ass of u and me) and don't press "continue" before I understand what it means.

Right there are the keys to happy computing!!!!

 

[Rod]

All done!



That's a good result. As Jake has already said, "It's actually not that complicated or hard to do" and that's true so long as you know or understand what options to choose at each step for your desired result.
In the interests of making it easier for others I will start a thread with the step by step process as I did it called, How to create a duplicate of your old MacBook on a new Macbook.