AirPort Extreme owners using a recently resurrected feature of the WiFi routers that lets externally connected USB hard drives act as wireless backup volumes for Time Machine shouldn't come knocking on Apple's door if problems arise, the company now says.
Time Capsule expands the wireless base station into a file and printer sharing solution and Time Machine target. This segment, the last of six exploring Time Capsule in depth, provides a review of its features and limitations as a wireless file sharing and backup appliance, along with comparisons to alternative products and previous AirPort models.
Time Capsule is billed as an ideal backup target for Time Machine. At the same time, networked drives (and particularly wireless shares) are often slower than a directly connected USB backup drive. This segment, the fifth of six exploring Time Capsule in depth, compares the pros and cons of using a solution like Time Capsule and the AirPort Extreme to perform Time Machine backups relative to using a directly attached hard drive.
Time Capsule, like most of Apple's earlier AirPort base stations, can handle both wired and wireless networked devices, but is optimized for serving wireless clients. This segment, the fourth of six exploring Time Capsule in depth, highlights the differences between wired and wireless networking on Time Capsule and the AirPort Extreme.
A software update released Wednesday allows Apple's Time Machine software to perform backups to external USB drives connected to AirPort Extreme 802.11n Base Stations, essentially replicating the behavior of the company's Time Capsule appliance.
Apple on Wednesday afternoon posted a fix that amends issues with both its AirPort wireless adapters and its Time Machine backup utility.
Following our introduction and teardown of Time Capsule, we were deluged with questions from readers about the product and how it works. Here's what we've found, along with some discoveries reported by readers.
Time Capsule moves Apple's popular AirPort line of wireless base stations one step closer into the realm of embedded servers, providing shared file and print services in addition to acting as a target for Leopard's Time Machine feature. Here's a look at how it works with Leopard, Tiger and Windows clients, and what components are inside the device making everything happen.
Time Capsule, Apple's brand name for an Airport Extreme Base Station with an integrated hard drive and power adapter, is now shipping. Here's a look at what's in the box, and how the new Apple TV-sized wireless backup unit stacks up against the existing AirPort Extreme.
The stability and performance of Time Machine, Apple's easy-to-use backup software included with Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, remains one of the final focus areas for testers evaluating the company's impending 10.5.2 operating system update.
Time Capsule pairs the existing AirPort Extreme with a half or full terabyte hard drive to serve as a backup appliance for Leopard machines running Time Machine, in addition to acting as a simple file and print server. It is offered for both Mac and Windows users, although Windows PCs (or Macs not running Leopard) won't have Time Machine and therefore will access it only as a regular file and print server.
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AppleInsider Staff
Prince McLean
Slash Lane
Katie Marsal
Daniel Eran Dilger
