Understanding FireWire Devices and Battery Power

You can use FireWire devices, such as certain external hard disk drives, that are powered by the MacBook FireWire connection instead of by a separate power adapter. However, these FireWire devices can cause your MacBook battery to be depleted faster. If a device will be connected for an extended period, it is a good idea to connect the MacBook power adapter.

Note: The FireWire (H) port is designed to support power for FireWire devices (up to 7 watts maximum). You can connect multiple devices to each other and connect the chain of devices to the FireWire port on your computer, but only one device should get power from the computer. The rest of the devices in the chain should be powered by separate power adapters. Connecting more than one FireWire device that gets power from the port can cause problems. If a problem occurs, shut down the computer, disconnect the FireWire devices, and restart your computer.

Connecting Your MacBook to Another Computer Using FireWire

If you want to transfer files between your MacBook and another FireWire-equipped computer, or if you have a problem that prevents your computer from starting up, you can use FireWire Target Disk Mode to connect to another computer. When you start up your MacBook in FireWire Target Disk Mode, the other computer can access your MacBook as if it were an external hard disk.

Note: When using FireWire Target Disk Mode, it’s a good idea to connect your power adapter to the MacBook.

Chapter 3 Using Your MacBook

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Apple APLLE MACBOOK manual Understanding FireWire Devices and Battery Power