03-20-2025, 01:01 AM
Special,
Correct. With M series Macs, the internal drive must be in proper working order even if you're booting the machine off an external drive. The machine becomes a paperweight if the internal drive goes kablooey. It’s another reason why backups are a must and one of the reasons I prefer keeping the boot drive, apps and data external. If the machine goes, replace it and move the external hardware to the new machine.
Our M4 Pro Mini has three drives. The first is its internal 1TB SSD. The second is its 1TB external Thunderbolt boot drive. The third is a backup of the boot drive. If the Mini's internal drive craps out, we'll replace it with an identical mini (if available). Configure its boot settings to allow booting from an external. Connect the external boot drive to it. Reboot and go back to work.
If the replacement is a newer model mini, we'd nuke the backup of the boot drive. Reinstall the OS and then use Migration Assistant to carry over the data from the old boot drive. The old boot drive, in turn, becomes the new backup of the boot drive.
Robert
Correct. With M series Macs, the internal drive must be in proper working order even if you're booting the machine off an external drive. The machine becomes a paperweight if the internal drive goes kablooey. It’s another reason why backups are a must and one of the reasons I prefer keeping the boot drive, apps and data external. If the machine goes, replace it and move the external hardware to the new machine.
Our M4 Pro Mini has three drives. The first is its internal 1TB SSD. The second is its 1TB external Thunderbolt boot drive. The third is a backup of the boot drive. If the Mini's internal drive craps out, we'll replace it with an identical mini (if available). Configure its boot settings to allow booting from an external. Connect the external boot drive to it. Reboot and go back to work.
If the replacement is a newer model mini, we'd nuke the backup of the boot drive. Reinstall the OS and then use Migration Assistant to carry over the data from the old boot drive. The old boot drive, in turn, becomes the new backup of the boot drive.
Robert