iMacs (Mid-2007) [#2]: FireWire problems: Target disk mode and others (cont.); screen issues

FireWire problems: Target disk mode and others We've received a surprisingly high number of reports indicating significant issues with the newly released Mid-2007 iMacs and FireWire target disk mode. Problem reports fall into two groups:

1. Other Macs are not recognized at all when connected via FireWire target disk mode to the new iMacs
2. Transfers that occur over a FireWire target disk mode connection (particularly system migrations) fail part-way through

A few sample reports:

• "I purchased a new 24" 2.4GHz iMac on Saturday, and could not connect to a Mac G4 533Mhz DP machine in Target Disk Mode. Things I tried: connecting a camcorder and opening iMovie to confirm that the iMac Firewire port was functioning (it was); zapping PRAM on both the new and old Macs; swapping out the Firewire cable."
• "I tried to connect my MacBook Pro in target disk mode to my new iMac 2.4GHz 20" to transfer my info/settings/etc. It worked briefly -- it was once able to see the contents of the MBP disk accurately, but then kept deciding either there was no disc attached, or that the disc attached had no copy of OS X on it. My solution was to take a recent backup of my MacBook Pro and use that to get my info/settings into the new iMac -- it recognized the external firewire drive without a problem. At first i had thought the transfer problem was an issue with my MacBook Pros firewire port, but now that i see others have had the exact same problem, I am not so sure." -- Adam Gillitt
• "I too had a problem with my new 24? iMac (Aluminum) and an iBook G4 ( 1 ghz) during system migration. At first it seemed to work but it stalled and said 1 hr. 58 mins. Well several hours later, I realized that nothing was going on. Kept trying and trying. I had to manually copy over files using the regular Firewire = networking. This is unfortunate because I had high hopes that the Migration Assistant would have made moving files from the old Mac easier." -- Michael Vega

Potential fix Oddly, some users have reproted that putting a FireWire hub or a FireWire drive with an extra port between the older Mac and the new iMac results in successful FireWire target disk mode. You could, for instance, plug a FireWire drive into the iMac and daisy-chain it to the older machine, then re-attempt transfer via FireWire target disk mode.

Screen problems Meanwhile, users continue to report some screen issues with the new iMacs.

One reader writes:

"I can't continue with the history of this iMac because I also had a screen anomaly - an amorphous 3" patch that looked like a purple ghost. This ghosting was only visible if the screen was black (as in the screen saver that displays the computer name). Apple Phone Support said to bring the iMac to my local Genius, who declared it DOA; so they gave me a new iMac and transferred my data for me! I haven't tested TDM with the new one."

Feedback? Late-breakers@macfixit.com.

Previous coverage:

• iMacs (Mid-2007): Problems with FireWire target disk mode; Condensation under glass

Resources