{"id":55314,"date":"2019-10-30T09:19:48","date_gmt":"2019-10-30T14:19:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eshop.macsales.com\/blog\/?p=55314"},"modified":"2020-09-08T18:14:24","modified_gmt":"2020-09-08T23:14:24","slug":"how-to-use-migration-assistant-with-macos-catalina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eshop.macsales.com\/blog\/55314-how-to-use-migration-assistant-with-macos-catalina\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Use Migration Assistant with macOS Catalina"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If you just upgraded to a new Mac, or used the clean install method to upgrade to macOS Catalina<\/a>, chances are you\u2019re going to need to copy information from your old Mac, or older Mac OS, to your upgraded Mac.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a number of ways to perform this task but by far the easiest is to use the Migration Assistant included with the Mac operating system. The Migration Assistant can transfer your applications, documents, computer settings, printer setups, and user accounts to your new or updated Mac.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The macOS Catalina version of the Migration Assistant hasn\u2019t seen a lot of changes, at least not on the external interface of the app. If you\u2019ve used the Migration Assistant in the past, you should be right at home with the newer version.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Migration
Migration Assistant can transfer information from your older Mac, or an older version of the OS, to your newly upgraded Mac.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

There are, however, a few tips we\u2019re going to go over that may help you overcome any problems that could arise when moving information to your macOS Catalina-equipped Mac.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ways to Use Migration Assistant<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In this Rocket Yard guide we’re going to look at two of the possible ways to move the information to your new install of macOS Catalina. If you wish to migrate from an older Mac to a new Mac you just purchased, you\u2019ll find detailed instructions in the guide:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Migration Assistant: The Easy Way to Transfer Your Data to a New Mac<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The method we\u2019re going to focus on involves directly connecting a startup drive, clone, or Time Machine drive to your Mac. The reason for concentrating on these two methods is to avoid some common issues that can occur when migrating data; slow or inconsistent network performance, or failure of the Migration Assistant to locate a network-connected drive (or Mac) to transfer data from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preparation Before Using the Migration Assistant<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As we mentioned, this guide looks at transferring information from a directly connected storage device, and our preparation notes reflect that. Check the Migration Assistant link above for more detailed information about transferring data and files using network connections or Target Disk Mode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Migration Assistant will work with a source drive running OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.8 or later. However, you should, if possible, update your source drive to the most current version of the Mac OS that the drive is currently using. As an example, macOS Sierra\u2019s last minor version update was to macOS Sierra 10.12.6. Updating to the latest revision for the operating system helps to ensure that bugs, and issues that could affect data transfer, are reduced as much as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Migration Assistant supports the following connection methods:<\/p>\n\n\n\n