By Graham K. Rogers

I am taking a long time to set up a Mac mini from new. This was initially intended as an office machine, but the need to take my main computer in for a warranty repair, means it has been promoted. With the space available on the SSD I am trying to put all content onto an external drive.

Earlier today I wrote in the Bangkok Post and on my own site about backing up on the new Mac mini I have. As the hard disk is a SSD with some 256 GB of space, I decided that most of the content will reside on a 1 TB Seagate external hard disk; and I bought a second Seagate disk of 2 TB for Time Machine backups.

As I expect the MacBook Pro to be dropped off at one of the service agents tomorrow, I am making last minute adjustments: installing some essential applications; and moving data about. My main concern was my website. There is no point working on this in two places unless a system is in place to synchronise the two. I work on one computer and backup to disks and other computers from time to time as well as to Time Machine. If the hard disk failed, I could download all from the website in a worst case scenario; but I am covered there.

The most critical of the site files is the RSS feed and that really should be created on and uploaded from one machine in my basic set up. I copied the XML file onto the Mac mini, installed the feed-writing application and will work only from the newer computer until such time as the MacBook Pro returns.

While I was thinking about moving data, I decided to move the Photos library off the main hard disk and onto the external drive with all the other data. To do this, after quitting Photos, I dragged the file "Photos Library" into the folder where I also store Aperture libraries. As it is only 7 GB the copying did not take long. When done, I deleted the Photos Library in the Pictures folder on the main drive.

To make Photos recognise the library, I double-clicked on the file on the external drive which started Photos. I was warned that there was an incomplete process and I could either quit or continue, but that I should then confirm the new location in preferences. I clicked on continue, Photos opened with the main display panel and I confirmed the location of the library.

Although the external hard disk is always connected, there may be a time - when moving the computer, for example - that the disk is not attached. Before starting Photos, I must always mane sure that disk is available, or Photos will create a new library.

Graham K. Rogers teaches at the Faculty of Engineering, Mahidol University in Thailand where he is also Assistant Dean. He wrote in the Bangkok Post, Database supplement on IT subjects. For the last seven years of Database he wrote a column on Apple and Macs. He is now continuing that in the Bangkok Post supplement, Life.