With target disk mode your laptop shows up on any computer it’s connected to as local storage. This is true even if you’re running something other than Lightroom, but it works particularly well with Lightroom classic catalogs. If you regularly work from more than one machine (desktop & laptop?!) then target disk mode should be utilized daily to run an incredibly elegant & efficient multi computer setup. Target disk mode has ben sunset by apple with their release of the M1 chip, and that’s devastating. Well, I’m sad to say that though the MacBook M1 is an incredible standalone machine it just isn’t going to work with my current workflow oscillating between 2 machines (iMac Pro desktop and MacBook Pro laptop). Another good option is Carbonite (opens in new tab) because it's foolproof enough for everyone.(video is still processing on YouTube so please refresh if it’s still not loading) We also like to use Time Machine (opens in new tab), as it already comes with your Mac and is completely free to use - all you need is an external hard drive, which can be pretty cheap to obtain these days. Our personal favorite from these is Backblaze because it provides simple cloud backup at an incredibly affordable rate. After all, if your house burns down and you leave your external hard drive with your backup behind, then all of your data just went up in flames.

We always recommend having both a physical backup available (check out some of the best external hard drives to use for that) as well as an off-site cloud backup. With so many options available, there is no reason why you should be confused on how to back up your Mac regularly.

Our team of Apple experts have years of experience testing all kinds of tech and gadgets, so you can be sure our recommendations and criticisms are accurate and helpful.

Backblaze m1