[Leica] OT - Time Machine problems

[hartzell at alerce.com (George Hartzell)]

Gerry Walden writes:
 > This is for the Mac users on here please.
 > 
 > I have just rather frighteningly discovered that my external hard
 > disk has not been backed up for a long time because I excluded it
 > from backup using Time Machine. As a result of including it now I
 > needed a larger backup disk so I bought a G-Drive 2TB disk but it
 > is taking for ever to back up. I only have just over 1TB to do, but
 > it is saying it will take 56 days after running since last night
 > (it is now 1.30 p.m. here). Is this normal? It has come down from
 > around 73 days at 7 a.m. today. 
 > 

Your first backup will be big, and therefor slow, but that's longer
than it should be.

Google sez that the G-Drive supports USB-2.0, Firewire 400 and
Firewire-800.

Which mac do you have?

How do you have it connected to your mac?  If you're using USB are you
directly connected or using a hub?

If you go Apple icon in the upper left of your screen, choose "About
this Mac" and then ask for a system report, where does the device show
up (USB, Firewire)?  What speed does it report?  A usb-2.0 device
should report "up to 480Mb/sec, I think.

Is it making any abnormal clicking or whirring sounds as it runs?

I, myself, would cancel the backup, try a different cable, and use
diskutility to erase the disk with the option to write zeros over the
entire thing turned on.  That'll probably take overnight or so.  If it
claims that it's going to take weeks I'd take the drive back.

g.