Here is the link to just properly moving both your iTunes and iPhoto libraries to an external drive. Then, you can start deleting all of the large folders and files off of the internal drive and start cleaning it out. Once you are convinced that everything is on the external drive, you can go into iTunes and iPhoto and redirect their libraries via the last part of the instructions I have linked here. This will make a completely bootable external drive. Then use a data cloning app such as CarbonCop圜loner or SuperDuper to completely clone your iMac's internal hard drive to the new external drive. Formatting as an Mac OS X extended journaled format, using the GUID partition scheme.

The easiest way to transfer everything from your internal hard drive to the new external drive is to first format the drive, using OS X Disk Utility. You can use twomof the same capacity storage drives, if you want or your can have the Time Machine backup drive larger if you prefer. I would definitely invest in two external hard drives.One for just data storage and for creating another bootable copy of OS X to run off on if something should happen to the internal hard drive.Īnd use the second drive for Time Machine backups only. Copy all your files in your external folder to another external, unplug it, and leave it somewhere safe 🙂 They will always fail eventually and I think nothing is backed up unless it is backed up twice.at least. What I would have done is to buy two externals, not one. What I don't know is whether there is a setting which stops itunes importing copies of the files into it's own folder.there must be, surely.you'd hope.

Go through the normal itunes import to library procedure, but import the folder on the external (for each user?) - this should mean everyone has access to everything. Open itunes and remove everything from the library (you might alerts to the effect the files are gone from step 2 but that's OK, just remove from the library anyway)Ħ. MOVE the files which are on your machine in the itunes folder to another folder on your machine and leave them there for now ( i.e. Copy ALL music and video files to a folder on the external.Ģ. Having said that, here is what I would try myself.ġ.

I honestly don't know so I would not want to lead you in the wrong direction.

Expand mac hard drive space