Transferring information from a Time Machine back up

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Level 1

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Transferring information from a Time Machine back up

I am trying to transfer information from a Time Machine backup to my new Macbook Pro on ethernet. For about 5 hours the number of Files Transferred kept increasing and the Hours Remaining were decreasing. However for about 8 hours has said : "This Mac is attempting to reconnect to your source," with the Files Transferred staying the same and the Hours Remaining increasing.

Is it still running and should I let it keep running? (this is my second try - I know my back up is very large)

MacBook Pro 16″, macOS 15.6

Posted on Oct 27, 2025 9:40 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

John Galt

Level 10

154,696 points

Oct 27, 2025 9:57 AM in response to cathi288

No; terminate the transfer. The reason the connection broke needs to be addressed. Often, processing information on the new Mac takes so long the remote Mac or hard disk drive goes to sleep. It ought to wake on its own, but for some reason perhaps that didn't happen. You may want to alter the source Mac's Energy Saver settings to leave it on until the transfer is finished.

How is that TM backup disk connected? Directly to a Time Capsule or AEBS? Or...? If the backup disk is connected through Ethernet, what are the intervening devices? You can, for example, connect the two Macs to each other directly.

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