If you’re already familiar with mapping a network drive in Mac OS X you can skip the first part of this and go straight to System Preferences in the second section. From the OS X desktop, pull down the “Go” menu and select “Connect to Server” Connect to the server and mount the drive you want to automatically connect to on boot. Oct 24, 2018 Select the appropriate network drive, add it and you are done! If you start your Mac now, this drive will be mounted automatically. Logically only, however, our disk only started when actually accessed. This provides peace of mind when restarting, since. Click on ‘Accounts’ or 'Users and Groups', depending on your version of OS X Click on “Login Items” Click on the + button to add another login item Locate the network drive.
I love my Mac environment, from using macOS to continuity, to iCloud, it allows for me to be able to have a flexible workflow. Whether I'm working on my Mac mini at the start of my day in my office or changing to my back deck using my MacBook Pro in the afternoon, macOS's features allow it to happen since all of my files are accessible to me via iCloud. But iCloud can't help with very large video files, Photo libraries, or Final Cut Pro libraries. Local disk space is what you need to rely on.
Running out of local disk space
Apple making Macs more appliance-like have the major drawback of not being able to install larger drives when you need more disk space. Apple has bet big on using dongled peripherals but that too has its limits (my poor Mac mini has no free TB3 nor USB ports left).
So how can you get more working space without having to buy a brand new Mac with the disk capacities you require? Depending on the type of work you're doing, you can probably connect a network drive and use it like you would locally. Here's how.
Networked drives
A networked drive can range from a specialized appliance that offers data redundant storage such as a Synology Diskstation to a lone PC that has a shared folder visible on the network. If you plan on running your application off of files on a networked drive, you'll be limited to the bandwidth of the networked device.
Accessing Pages files, PDFs, and general text-based documents, a WiFi or 1 gigabit wired ethernet connection might be enough for you.
You could run FCP libraries from that type of ethernet connection or even WiFi, but in reality, you're going to have a bad time. The speed is much too slow.
If you need networked access to very large files, you'll need faster network speeds. For example, a new Mac mini has the ability to be attached with a Cat6 wire to your network at 10-gigabit speeds. Your networked files would be accessible at near HDD speeds (not SSD speeds mind you). So plan accordingly for your requirements.
You can get more information on how to share your files on a network from a Mac.
Making permanent connections
Once you've set up a networked drive or device, you can have your Mac attach to it each time you log in. Here's how.
- From the Mac you want to mount a networked drive, start System Preferences.
- Select Users &Groups.
- Click Login Items.
- Click +.
- Navigate to your networked Server.
- Highlight the share you'd like to have automatically mount.
- Click Add.
Now each time you log in, that remote drive will be mounted.
Making the extra disk space usable
Now that you have the network drive permanently mounted, you can assign your various programs to use that location for default file storage. Typically, the mount will be in /Volumes/NameOfShareYouSelected. So for example, if you want to open a new Photo Library from the networked location, do the following.
- Option-Click Photos.
- Click Create New.
- Navigate to your Mounted Drive.
- Click Ok.
Now you'll have a Photo Library running from your remote drive no longer using local disk space.
Some extras
If you're really in need of freeing up local disk space, you can also set up Symbolic Links in your home folder to have all of your documents, downloads, music, etc, run from the remote disk. Note that these types of customized home folders should only be used if you use a stationary Mac like a Mac mini or an iMac.
Mac Os X Startup Programs
Final thoughts
With the sort of experience I'm having with maxing out my Mac mini's Thunderbolt 3 ports, I'd be lying if said I wasn't worried about Apple's upcoming Mac Pro that is rumored to be 'modular'. Will it be limited also to dongles or only Apple-approved expansion modules? Probably. Swapping in a 2 TB HDD will always be cheaper than buying an Apple certified 2TB expansion HDD with an Apple-branded modular enclosure. That being said, hopefully, there will still be a way to make your Mac computing flexible to fit your needs. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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By default, your Mac starts up from its built-in hard disk, but a startup disk can be any storage device that contains an operating system compatible with your Mac. For example, if you install macOS on an internal or external drive, your Mac can recognize that drive as a startup disk. You can then follow the steps in this article to start up from it.
Use Startup Disk preferences
When you use Startup Disk preferences to select a startup disk, your Mac starts up from that disk until you choose a different one.
- Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Startup Disk.
- Click the lock and enter your administrator password.
- Select your startup disk, then restart your Mac.
If you see a message that your security settings do not allow this Mac to use an external startup disk, check the External Boot setting in Startup Security Utility.
Use Startup Manager
When you use Startup Manager to select a startup disk, your Mac starts up from that disk once, then returns to using the disk selected in Startup Disk preferences.
- Press and hold the Option (Alt) key immediately after turning on or restarting your Mac.
- Release the Option key when you see the Startup Manager window.
If your Mac is protected by a firmware password, you can release the key when you're asked to enter the password. - Select your startup disk, then click the arrow under its icon, or press Return.
If you press and hold the Control key during this step, your selection is saved in Startup Disk preferences, so it persists until you change it.
If your Mac is using OS X Lion 10.7.3 or later, you can also use this method to start up from your Time Machine backup disk. Startup Manager identifies your Time Machine backup as ”EFI Boot.”
If you can't select your startup disk or start up from it
Check for these possibilities if you can't see your disk in Startup Disk preferences or Startup Manager, or your Mac won't start up from it.
Check for a compatible operating system on the startup disk
Make sure that your startup disk is using a version of macOS that is compatible with your Mac.
To start up from an external disk with macOS Catalina 10.15 or later, the disk must connect via USB-A, USB-C, or Thunderbolt, not FireWire.
Check startup security settings
Mount Network Drive On Startup Mac Os X Commands
If you're using a Mac that has the Apple T2 Security Chip, check the settings in Startup Security Utility. These settings determine whether your Mac can start up from another disk.
Check for Option ROM firmware
If you're in Startup Manager and can't see a third-party startup disk, the startup disk could be using Option ROM firmware. To enhance system security, Mac computers with up-to-date software don’t show devices that use Option ROM firmware until you load their firmware. To do that, press Option-Shift-Command-Period while in Startup Manager. If your startup disk appears, do that each time you want to start up from it or from another disk connected to it.
If you're using a firmware password, the ability to load Option ROM firmware is disabled as an additional security protection.