DynaFlash Tech

Introduction
Image Source Drive
Partition New Drive

AtvCloner is basically an application designed to run on Mac OSX Leopard (tested on 10.5.7) which uses several built in system utilities to format a new drive to work properly on the AppleTV. There are already several guides published to do this manually using Terminal.app however, I have found all of them lacking for some reason on my system in one respect or another. Once I got a system down I became tired of constantly using the Terminal to manually type in the commands so I wrote AtvCloner to do it for me.

At any rate, here goes some basic instructions on how it works though most of it should be self explanatory (at least it seems so to me).

There are two basic concepts to taking a stock AppleTV drive and putting in another (usually larger) drive. One is imaging the stock drive partitions and their contents. The other is using those images to properly format a new drive. AtvCloner has a two tabbed interface, one tab for each of those operations.

When you launch AtvCloner it will first do a scan of all of you’re attached drives.

Note Regarding Progress Notification:

Currently AtvCloner does not really monitor the progress of the underlying utilities very well. In most cases this is not an issue, however during the longer processes like imaging source partitions and cloning them back to the new drive, this can take some time depending on how you have you’re drive attached to you’re computer. USB is slower than Firewire for instance. These phases of the operation take the longest so you will not get feedback as to their progress until they are done:
Imaging/Copying the boot partition/image is 900 MB.
Imaging/Copying the recovery partition/image is 400 MB.
Imaging/Copying the efi partition/image is 34 MB.

These phases will result in some time before getting user feedback just like using the terminal methods. Be patient it shouldn’t take too long ( on my tests using usb the longest operation, which is imaging/copying the boot partition/image, is about four or five minutes).

Image Source Drive Partitions Tab

AtvCloner 0.1.1 Image Source Drive Partitions Tab

This tab is used to make images from you’re source drive. It will create the three images needed to properly format a new AppleTV drive boot.dmg, recovery.dmg and efi.dmg. Once done you will want to save these for future imaging needs or restoration.

1. Choose a source drive. Use the “Choose …” button to select you’re attached AppleTV drive. Alternatively you can paste the device node id into the “Source Device ID” field. Either way will accomplish what you want. The Source Device ID field should now read something like:

/dev/disk1

assuming /dev/disk1 is you’re AppleTV drive.

2. Choose a directory to put the new images in on you’re computer. Use the choose button to select where you wish AtvCloner to put your 3 partition images.

3. Click “Image Source Partitions…” you will be prompted with a warning telling you what AtvCloner is about to do. Once you click “Continue” AtvCloner will begin imaging the AppleTV images to the specified directory.

4. Once AtvCloner is done (you will be notified in the status field) you have successfully imaged the appropriate partitions. I suggest putting them somewhere for safekeeping … you never know.

Partition New Drive Tab

NOTE: AtvCloner 0.1.4b introduces a new checkbox next to the “Prepare New Drive … ” button called “Large Drive Formatting”. When this is checked and you click on “Prepare New Drive …” an alternate method of formatting you’re target drive is employed which fixes an error found on some typically larger drives. I will get around to upating the screenshots at some point.

AtvCloner 0.1.1 Partition New Drive Tab

This tab is used to create a newly AppleTV compliant drive. It requires the three images described in the first tab. However, if you already have that step done by other means, AtvCloner can work with existing images.

1. Choose you’re new drive in the Target Device ID area.

2. Choose each of you’re three AppleTV images, whether images you already have or images you created with AtvCloner. Note: make sure you have the appropriate images in the appropriate fields.
Boot Image Path: should have the boot.dmg
Efi: Image Path: should have the efi.dmg
Recovery Image Path: should have the recovery.dmg

3. Click “Prepare New Drive…” to start prepping you’re new drive. You will first be given a warning that this operation will erase everything existing on the target drive. Clicking “Continue” will start the operation.

NOTE: During new drive preparation you might get a dialogue from time machine asking if you want the new Media partition used for backup. Click “Cancel” to that. As well you will get three complaints from finder that it cannot read the newly formed partition (one for boot, efi and recovery) and Finder will ask if you want it to format, eject or ignore. CLICK IGNORE. These are the same warnings you get when using any of the manual methods and I have found no way so far to suppress them.

4. Once AtvCloner is done formatting you’re new drive, you can disconnect it and plug it into you’re AppleTV. The AppleTV should boot right up as there is no need to do the “Restore” method found in some of the manual method guides.

Note on the Media Partition: The Media Partition will be empty. Meaning if you had media on you’re original AppleTV drive it does not get copied over to you’re new drive. You will have to reconnect and re-sync you’re new drive with iTunes.

Enjoy you’re newly modded AppleTV!