Time Machine does not show MyBook - is there an easy way to fix this?

WD External and Portable SSD External SSD for macOS
1

I am not very tech savvy, an old girl trying to learn new tricks. As per instructions that I spent several hours searching for, I tried to erase MyBook but the utility says that it is completely full (4T) with no purgeable items. I purchased the MyBook due to several reviews that touted its ease of us – that’s not what I’m experiencing. I had hoped to plug in the power chord, connect MyBook to my MacBook Air os10.12.6 (yes, I know it’s old; I want to update it but want to back it up first, hence the purchase of an external drive), start TimeMachine, click on the MyBook icon and let it do its work. What am I missing? Is there a better external drive to purchase that intuitively works for Macs?

2

Hello,

Please refer to the following KBA article: How to Use macOS Time Machine Backups to WD Network Attached Storage (NAS)

4

The reason your new 4TB drive says it is “completely full” is a communication glitch between its factory settings and your older Mac operating system (macOS 10.12.6).

To make Time Machine recognize the drive, you need to properly wipe it using the right settings in Disk Utility. Because your macOS is older, the view in Disk Utility is likely hiding the actual button you need.

1. Plug in the drive to both the wall power and your Mac’s USB port.

2. Open Disk Utility (Go to your desktop, click Go in the top menu bar > Utilities > Disk Utility).

3. Look at the very top-left corner of the Disk Utility window. Click the View dropdown menu and select Show All Devices. (It reveals the actual hardware drive, not just the misread partition).

4. In the left sidebar, look for the main, top-level Western Digital drive name (it might say something like “WD My Book…”). Click on it.

5. Click the Erase button at the top of the window.

6. A pop-up box will ask for three things. Fill them out exactly like this:

• Name: Give it a simple name, like Mac Backup.

• Format: Choose Mac OS Extended (Journaled).

• Scheme: Choose GUID Partition Map.

[ Important note: do not choose APFS format; your older Mac cannot use APFS for Time Machine. This article is helpful - Disk Format for Time Machine & How to Format Drive for Time Machine? ]

7. Click Erase. It should take less than a minute. Once completed, your Mac will likely pop up a message asking, “Do you want to use this drive to back up with Time Machine?” Click Use as Backup Disk, and you are ready to go!