How long, o electronic gods, how long ...

[Pixelated]

Can somebody please tell me what's involved in doing a data transfer between an old Mac Mini and a new one??

Could I do it myself? Without, say, running the risk of blowing up the new machine ... ?

Thank you to all who respond.

[RealUnimportant]

When you're setting the new one up, follow the prompts to plug old one into new one or get them both on the same wifi, and it'll transfer most stuff. Alternatively, if you have Time Machine backups you can also use those to restore old date onto the new system. It's all pretty painless, and you can always go back and grab any files that might have been missed later on.

[Pixelated]

So ... it doesn't sound like a lengthy or terribly complicated process. The reason I am asking is because my two computers (new and old) are in the shop for this very thing. Initially we had trouble with my Apple ID and password... mostly because I couldn't remember either. But I dug them up and was talking to the tech guy and it sounded as if he was getting the process started ... he was indicating the ID and password were successful and saying things like, "OK, now it's asking for a new password..."

But that was four days ago ... and when I went in yesterday to pick up my new monitor, I asked if they had any estimate of when it would be finished ... and the guy said no (don't know if he's a tech guy or just a sales associate). Is this normal? Or should I get my computers back, buy the damn cable and do it myself?

[Buzzard]

The file transfers are largely automated, requiring just a little periodic eyeballing to make sure things are still progressing. The scheduling issue is getting bench space for both machines, and it's a waste of time to put them on the bench without the login credentials.

The second guy... he seems a bit clueless. Wouldn't rule out apathy, either.

[RealUnimportant]

Unless you have multi-terabyte drives installed in your old Mini, which judging from your stated level of competence I'm going to say is very unlikely, it shouldn't take more than a few hours.

The new password it asked for will literally be just that - a new master password for the new system. You can of course re-use the old one, if you find it easier to remember and don't think anyone knows it that shouldn't. It'll be the one you need whenever you install stuff, not the one tied to your Apple ID (as uses in the iTunes store, etc.)

[Pixelated]

Unless you have multi-terabyte drives installed in your old Mini, which judging from your stated level of competence I'm going to say is very unlikely,

You got that right -- I don't even know what that means.

Okay, thanks, folks. Buzzard, I'm guessing that bench space might be the issue, so I'll give it more time before I opt to try doing it myself... heaven help my poor computers...

[Buzzard]

If anything, don't take "Duh, I dunno" for an answer.
Now if you get "There's X units/customers ahead of you and ..." That's the one you want to talk to. Some things can be time-estimated, and some things go... strange, so estimates are just educated guesswork. You don't need to talk to the tech doing the work, but there will be someone there who's job involves keeping the customer informed and out of the tech's hair. Mr. "Duh, no idea" isn't him.

And for information: Terabyte is 1000 Gigabytes. Giga is 1000 Megabytes. (Close enough for easy figuring, anyways) Multi-terabyte drives = mondo huge space to put your stuff.

[RealUnimportant]

Really, with Mac Minis the only holdup should be available power sockets. They don't need much physical desk space, can be stacked, have built-in wifi which can link them directly and excusively even if there's no other cables available, and once the initial passwords are entered they should be able to run unsupervised to completion. Maybe the techs are a little wary of them if they're only used to PCs, but in that case they shouldn't be offering Mac service.

[Pixelated]

YAY! I HAZ NEW COMPOOTER ALL HOOKED UP!!

No idea what the delay was -- I didn't ask, TBH. Mostly because I didn't see the person who made the original call to pick it up (about a day or so after the above posts) and who apologized for but didn't explain the delay.

Haven't hooked up the printer yet, but everything else is working fine. Now I have to sort through the crap I uploaded and see what I want to keep and what needs to go.

And I still can't play Farmville, dammit .. It loads about 75% of the game and then seems to stall.

Thanks for all the help and advice, folks. Hopefully I won't have to do this again for MANY years! (By which time I will of course have forgotten the process and will of course have to get used to all kinds of new stuff ...)