Owais Crawford
Apple's AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule are two different products with similar physical designs. While the AirPort Extreme is a wireless router, the AirPort Time Capsule offers additional functionality as a backup disk due to its built-in HDD. Although Apple discontinued the AirPort Time Capsule in 2018, exiting the router market, it is still possible to convert an AirPort Extreme into a Time Capsule by connecting an external HDD or SSD to the USB port. This allows users to back up content to the drive, essentially replicating the functionality of a Time Capsule.
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What You'll Learn
- The Airport Extreme and Time Capsule have similar features but differ in their capabilities
- The Time Capsule can be used as a wireless router and repeater, and a backup disk
- The Airport Extreme can be used as a wireless router and repeater, but it does not have a built-in HDD
- To convert the Airport Extreme to a Time Capsule, connect an external HDD or SSD to the USB port
- The external drive needs to be formatted in Disk Utility for Mac OS Extended or APFS
The Airport Extreme and Time Capsule have similar features but differ in their capabilities
The Airport Extreme and Time Capsule are two different products released by Apple that physically look the same. The Airport Extreme acts as a wireless router and a repeater, while the Time Capsule acts as a wireless router, repeater, and backup disk. The Time Capsule has an internal hard drive, while the Airport Extreme does not.
The Airport Extreme can be used as a wireless router to create a large, high-speed network of up to 50 users. It has four Gigabit Ethernet ports and a USB port to connect a printer or external hard drive. The USB port, however, is only USB2, which is slower compared to USB3. It is possible to add a hard drive to the last generation of Airport Extreme to turn it into a Time Capsule. However, this is not recommended as it is more expensive and requires modifying the firmware and adding small components to the logic board of the base station.
The Time Capsule has all the features of the Airport Extreme but with the addition of a server-grade hard disk drive (1TB, 2TB, or 3TB) for use with Mac OS Leopard/Snow Leopard's backup utility called Time Machine. It supports simultaneous dual-band operation, allowing older devices to use slower wireless speeds without affecting the performance of devices that can use higher 802.11n speeds. It also includes the Guest Networking feature, which allows the creation of a separate wireless network for guests with different authentication credentials.
Both devices can be used as a Time Machine hard drive. However, the Airport Extreme requires an external hard drive to be connected to its USB port, while the Time Capsule has a built-in hard drive.
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The Time Capsule can be used as a wireless router and repeater, and a backup disk
Apple's AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule are two different products that physically look the same. The AirPort Extreme is a wireless router with other wireless features such as a repeater. On the other hand, the Time Capsule acts as both a wireless router/repeater and a backup disk due to its built-in HDD.
Since the AirPort Extreme does not have an internal hard drive, it cannot be used as a backup disk. However, you can connect an external HDD or SSD to the USB port at the back of the device, essentially turning it into a Time Capsule. To do this, you will need to format the external drive using Disk Utility to either Mac OS Extended (Journaled) or APFS so that it is readable by the AirPort Extreme.
If you are using a mesh network, you will need to disable the wifi part of the AirPort Extreme and put it in "Bridge" mode so that you can use the disk part wirelessly for Time Machine. This can be done by connecting your computer to the AirPort Extreme using an ethernet cable and turning off network mode in the wireless tab, selecting "Off (Bridge Mode)" in the Network tab.
It is important to note that upgrading an AirPort Extreme to a Time Capsule by adding a hard drive is possible but not recommended. This is because it is more expensive to buy separate parts to create a Time Capsule, and you would need to add several small components to the logic board of the base station and modify the firmware.
The Time Capsule has been available since 2008 and has gradually improved in network capabilities and storage amounts. In 2013, Apple released the fifth-generation model, which featured a name change to AirPort Time Capsule and a redesign with a more vertical form factor. In 2018, Apple formally discontinued the Time Capsule, exiting the router market. While the product has been discontinued, it will still be available for sale while supplies last.
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The Airport Extreme can be used as a wireless router and repeater, but it does not have a built-in HDD
The Airport Extreme is a wireless router and repeater that connects to a printer via a USB port. It can also be used as a wireless network or to extend an existing wireless network. The Airport Extreme does not have a built-in HDD.
The Airport Time Capsule, on the other hand, is both a wireless router and repeater, as well as a backup disk, due to its built-in HDD. This allows users to back up their Mac computers to the Airport Time Capsule hard drive wirelessly.
While the Airport Extreme does not have a built-in HDD, it is possible to connect an external HDD or SSD to the USB port on the back of the device. This enables users to back up content to the external drive, essentially turning the Airport Extreme into a Time Capsule.
It is worth noting that Apple discontinued the Airport Time Capsule and Airport Extreme in 2018, exiting the router market. However, it is still possible to use these devices and they are available for purchase while supplies last.
If you are using an Airport Extreme with an external HDD, you may need to disable the WiFi part of the device and put it into "Bridge" mode to use the disk part wirelessly for Time Machine. This can be done by following the steps in the support article on the eero website. Additionally, your Airport Extreme and router will need to be physically close together, connected by an ethernet cable.
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To convert the Airport Extreme to a Time Capsule, connect an external HDD or SSD to the USB port
Apple's AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule look similar and share many features, but there is a key difference: the Time Capsule has a built-in HDD, allowing it to function as a wireless router and repeater, as well as a backup disk. The AirPort Extreme does not have an internal hard drive, but it does have a USB port, which can be used to connect an external HDD or SSD. This essentially turns the AirPort Extreme into a Time Capsule.
If you are using a mesh network, such as Eero, you will need to disable the WiFi part of the Airport Extreme and put it in "Bridge" mode so that you can use the disk part wirelessly for Time Machine. This can be done by following the steps in the Eero support article. You will need an ethernet cable to connect your computer to the Airport Extreme.
It is worth noting that this setup may be slower than using a Time Capsule with an internal hard drive, especially if multiple systems are accessing the drive concurrently. Additionally, it may be more cost-effective to purchase a Time Capsule rather than buying separate parts to add a hard drive to the Airport Extreme.
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The external drive needs to be formatted in Disk Utility for Mac OS Extended or APFS
The Apple AirPort Extreme and the AirPort Time Capsule are two different products that look physically similar. The AirPort Extreme acts as a wireless router, while the Time Capsule acts as both a wireless router and a backup disk due to its built-in HDD.
If you want to use your AirPort Extreme as a Time Capsule, you can connect an external HDD or SSD to the USB port on the back, essentially turning it into a Time Capsule. However, to do this, the external drive needs to be formatted in Disk Utility for Mac OS Extended or APFS.
- Go to Applications > Utilities and launch Disk Utility.
- Choose the external disk in the sidebar.
- Click "Erase" in the toolbar.
- Give the disk a name and choose your format: Mac OS Extended or APFS.
- Click "Erase".
Mac OS Extended is the file system used by macOS 10.12 or earlier. It is a stable option for traditional spinning drives and older systems, offering broad compatibility. If you need your drive to be compatible with older macOS versions, Mac OS Extended (Journaled) is recommended.
APFS is the default file system for Mac computers using macOS 10.13 or later. It offers strong encryption, space sharing, snapshots, fast directory sizing, and improved file system fundamentals. APFS is ideal for SSDs and flash storage running macOS High Sierra or later due to its efficiency and security features. If you are using a fairly recent Mac, APFS is likely the best option for your external drive.
Note that reformatting your drive will erase all data on it, so be sure to back up any important information before proceeding.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, it is possible to convert an Airport Extreme to a Time Capsule by plugging in an external hard drive via USB.
Airport Extreme acts as a wireless router, while Time Capsule can act as both a wireless router and a backup disk due to its built-in HDD.
To convert an Airport Extreme to a Time Capsule, you need to disable the wifi part of the Airport Extreme and put it in "Bridge" mode. This allows you to use the disk part wirelessly for Time Machine. You will also need an ethernet cable to connect your computer to the Airport Extreme.
