Upgrading from 2019 iMac to Mac mini question about system data.

You would be wise to configure the MM with a 2 TB SSD. When the new machine arrives connect the old Macs Time Machine External Hard Disk to the MM. when you turn on the MM it will start setup assistant. SA will get to a point where it asks if you are migrating from another Mac, select yes and follow the on-screen prompts.

This is the fastest and safest method of migration!!!

HCraigF wrote:

I'm going to upgrade from a 2019 iMac Intel based to one of the new M4 Mac mini's. My question is how much memory do I need. Actual memory usage on my iMac is around 300 GB and I have a 2 TB fusion drive in the iMac.

You're talking about storage, not memory. No Mac except for the desktop Mac Pro (2019) supports anywhere near 300 GB of RAM.

Based on the fact that you are already using 300 GB, and that you need to leave some free storage on any drive, I would say that 256 GB is too small. 512 GB might prove to be a bit tight, but you could make that work if you were willing to add external drives as needed.

My system data however, reads over a terabyte in size. With upgrading well that system data shrink or do I need to take into account that terabyte the system data when upgrading to a new Mac mini?.

I'm not sure why you have a terabyte of system data, and I would not expect a new Mac to have that much, either. Maybe someone else can help you to figure out what's going on with your current Mac.

As far as the new Mac is concerned, you should count on some space being used for macOS and applications. If that 300 GB is just for your data, exclusive of macOS and applications, you would need to adjust your estimate of your storage needs to account for that.

I have to agree with Servant of Cats, regarding the amount of storage you will need I am going to change my assessment and recommend the 1TB SSD which should be just fine.

As we don't know how you use your Mac the amount of RAM. you need is still up in the air. If you are a typical user (web surfing, e-mail, occasional productivity software, occasional photo editing etc....) then the base 16GB of RAM is perfect.

HCraigF wrote:

I'm going to upgrade from a 2019 iMac Intel based to one of the new M4 Mac mini's. My question is how much memory do I need. Actual memory usage on my iMac is around 300 GB and I have a 2 TB fusion drive in the iMac. My system data however, reads over a terabyte in size. With upgrading well that system data shrink or do I need to take into account that terabyte the system data when upgrading to a new Mac mini?.

Thank you so much in advance.

Craig

I would agree with the other guys but your terminology is confusing. You say memory when you really mean storage. You indicate that "actual memory usage" is 300 GB but you also say "system data" is over 1 TB. No way the operating system takes over 1 TB, so I am guessing this is actually including the operating system and also what is in the Library, so that "data" can include emails and a variety of other things. But nominally, you can expect your new Mac to use what your old Mac used. So that would mean you need at least 2 TB of storage. But before going much further, I would get to the bottom of that 1 TB of "system data." Get DaisyDisk or a good utility like that and figure out where your storage has gone, before migrating to the new Mac. 1 TB seems like a lot, even if it has your emails, it seems way too large. Photos can easily take over 1 TB, but you called it "system data" which doesn't sound like photos.