Time Machine - Backup disk connected to AiMesh node no longer found

[Lexicon44]

Hello,

I'm using RT-AX88U Pro as my router, connected via ethernet backhaul to another RT-AX88U Pro as an AiMesh node, connected to a RT-AX86U via ethernet backhaul as another AiMesh node. All running latest firmware (3006.102.4 / 3004.388.9_2).

I connected hard drives to both RT-AX88U Pros with the intention of backing up one Mac to one drive, and the second Mac to the other. When setting this up, the hard drive connected to the node wasn't immediately visible and I had to reboot the router and nodes in order for it to appear to the Mac when adding a disk in Time Machine Settings. I didn't have this issue with the drive connected to the router which I seem to recall appeared immediately after being enabled in the router firmware. I was able to successfully backup both Macs to their respective drives several times over several days.

After 4 or 5 days of backups, the disk connected to the AiMesh node can no longer be found by the Mac and it fails to run backups. The Mac backing up to the router connected drive is fine, and when trying to add a disk from Time Machine Settings, both Macs can see the drive connected to the router but not the one connected to the node.

I know very little about this, but is this related to the avahi-daemon which advertises .local devices on the network? Is there a workaround to this aside from backing both Macs up to a single drive connected to the router only?

 

[bennor]

If you haven't done so already, see the forum search to find past discussions about issues with Time Machine.
https://www.snbforums.com/search/1598555/?q=time+machine&o=relevance
For example this discussion from last year:

Time machine disk not found

I've been running Time Machine for many many months using a USB drive attached to my GT-AX6000 to back up to. After not using my computer much lately, I recently discovered that no backups had occurred for the past two weeks. I thought that might have been because I didn't use my computer...

www.snbforums.com

And more here:
https://www.snbforums.com/search/1598559/?q=avahi+time+machine&o=relevance
And there is this discussion from a few months ago:

Time machine support when AFP is removed from macOS?

In the recent macOS Sequoia 15.5 update, Apple has deprecated AFP: 'Apple Filing Protocol (AFP) client is deprecated and will be removed in a future version of macOS.' Currently Time Machine support works only over AFP as Time Machine does not see SMB shares. Is there a plan to support Time...

www.snbforums.com

PS: Also as a troubleshooting step if you haven't done so already, one may want to delete the AiMesh node that has the USB drive attached, then add the AiMesh node and see if the issue resolves itself.

 

[visortgw]

If you are using each drive to backup a single Mac via Time Machine, why not connect the drives directly to each Mac? Much faster and more reliable — Asus routers are not NASs...

 

[Lexicon44]

I have a server running Unraid with a Time Machine feature available for the shares, but that was not reliable either. I was backing up using individual drives for individual Macs, but the issue is that this is something you have to set a reminder for, plug the drives in, wait for it to complete. I was doing it quarterly and even that was something I dreaded. The idea of a network backup is that it happens daily without me having to think about it.

 

[visortgw]

I have a server running Unraid with a Time Machine feature available for the shares, but that was not reliable either. I was backing up using individual drives for individual Macs, but the issue is that this is something you have to set a reminder for, plug the drives in, wait for it to complete. I was doing it quarterly and even that was something I dreaded. The idea of a network backup is that it happens daily without me having to think about it.

Think about a real NAS -- it is designed for what you are trying to do. I use Synology, but there are others that are comparable.

 

[degrub]

Hello,

I'm using RT-AX88U Pro as my router, connected via ethernet backhaul to another RT-AX88U Pro as an AiMesh node, connected to a RT-AX86U via ethernet backhaul as another AiMesh node. All running latest firmware (3006.102.4 / 3004.388.9_2).

I connected hard drives to both RT-AX88U Pros with the intention of backing up one Mac to one drive, and the second Mac to the other. When setting this up, the hard drive connected to the node wasn't immediately visible and I had to reboot the router and nodes in order for it to appear to the Mac when adding a disk in Time Machine Settings. I didn't have this issue with the drive connected to the router which I seem to recall appeared immediately after being enabled in the router firmware. I was able to successfully backup both Macs to their respective drives several times over several days.

After 4 or 5 days of backups, the disk connected to the AiMesh node can no longer be found by the Mac and it fails to run backups. The Mac backing up to the router connected drive is fine, and when trying to add a disk from Time Machine Settings, both Macs can see the drive connected to the router but not the one connected to the node.

I know very little about this, but is this related to the avahi-daemon which advertises .local devices on the network? Is there a workaround to this aside from backing both Macs up to a single drive connected to the router only?

Are the nodes really daisy chained as the first sentence implies ?
In addition to the AFP support issues, you may have better luck if all three nodes are on the same version family, even if that means downgrading the two "Pro" units.

 

[bennor]

I have a server running Unraid with a Time Machine feature available for the shares, but that was not reliable either.

Maybe you have other network issues that may be manifesting itself when performing Time Machine backups.
For Unraid, ensure you have followed the setup steps for Time Machine: https://docs.unraid.net/unraid-os/guides/configuring-time-machine/
Make sure to connect the Unraid device directly to the main router using Ethernet. Do not connect it to or through an AiMesh node or any other extender method.
Performing long duration backups over WiFi can be problematic if you have WiFi congestion or interference. If possible use Ethernet for network connection if you can.
As previously suggested, remove the AiMesh node with the USB drive and re-add it and see if that fixes the issue.

Otherwise, as others already pointed out, and which has to be pointed out every time someone has router attached USB drive issues. The router is not a NAS. It is not designed to be an NAS. The USB drive feature for Asus routers tends to be mostly a marketing feature. When one tasks the router to handle a USB drive that ends up being used for heavy read/write (including large data backup), one can potentially overtax the router and it's hardware (Processor/RAM) capabilities.

For what ever reason some just seem to have issues with Time Machine and it's backups. Dedicated NAS servers like Synology have their own backup client side apps, like Synology's Active Backup for Business that can backup Mac computers.
macOS - Active Backup for Business
Edit to add: Synology - How do I back up files from my Mac to NAS using Time Machine?

 

[Lexicon44]

Are the nodes really daisy chained as the first sentence implies ?
In addition to the AFP support issues, you may have better luck if all three nodes are on the same version family, even if that means downgrading the two "Pro" units.

Yes. Basement AX88U Pro --> Second Floor AX88U Pro --> Main Level AX86U (with WiFi radios off - serving as media extender almost). This is placed as per where ISP modem is and where ethernet is available as a backhaul.

 

[Lexicon44]

Maybe you have other network issues that may be manifesting itself when performing Time Machine backups.
For Unraid, ensure you have followed the setup steps for Time Machine: https://docs.unraid.net/unraid-os/guides/configuring-time-machine/
Make sure to connect the Unraid device directly to the main router using Ethernet. Do not connect it to or through an AiMesh node or any other extender method.
Performing long duration backups over WiFi can be problematic if you have WiFi congestion or interference. If possible use Ethernet for network connection if you can.
As previously suggested, remove the AiMesh node with the USB drive and re-add it and see if that fixes the issue.

Otherwise, as others already pointed out, and which has to be pointed out every time someone has router attached USB drive issues. The router is not a NAS. It is not designed to be an NAS. The USB drive feature for Asus routers tends to be mostly a marketing feature. When one tasks the router to handle a USB drive that ends up being used for heavy read/write (including large data backup), one can potentially overtax the router and it's hardware (Processor/RAM) capabilities.

For what ever reason some just seem to have issues with Time Machine and it's backups. Dedicated NAS servers like Synology have their own backup client side apps, like Synology's Active Backup for Business that can backup Mac computers.
macOS - Active Backup for Business
Edit to add: Synology - How do I back up files from my Mac to NAS using Time Machine?

Thank you for your input.

I had Unraid configured as per the guide you posted, and it was still unreliable, much like this router solution. Fine for a while, then it just fails, disk can't be found etc.

I suspect removing the AiMesh node and re-adding it will fix the issue and so would rebooting the entire system or just the node, but the issue isn't with being able to get it working again, which I think will work. The issue is that it will keep failing after a while.

Getting a separate NAS is not something I'd want to do just for this purpose. So if there is no solution to get the drive connected to the node to work as reliably as the drive connected to the router, then I guess it's back to quarterly directly connected drive backups. =(

 

[bennor]

I suspect removing the AiMesh node and re-adding it will fix the issue and so would rebooting the entire system or just the node, but the issue isn't with being able to get it working again, which I think will work. The issue is that it will keep failing after a while.

As a troubleshooting step, does the issue persist if you move the USB drive to the main router and not the AiMesh node?

As indicated earlier the disk not being found after a while could be an indicator of something else going on. Like the USB drive going to into sleep mode. Or possibly some kind of a network issue (or misconfiguration). Or even an issue with the Mac computer's network settings. Is the Mac computer going into sleep mode or hibernation mode or it's network adapter going into low power/sleep mode at some point prior to the Time Machine backup running?

If you haven't done so already, you may need to dig into the router logs to see if anything is going on around the time the USB drive becomes inaccessible.

Couple of other suggestions.
Map the USB drive to the Mac computer.
Make sure Time Machine or mapping the USB drive to the computer is done using SMB not AFP. Apple has depreciated the AFP protocol.
If the Mac computer is configured to randomize it's MAC address, try disabling that option.

 

[degrub]

Thank you for your input.

I had Unraid configured as per the guide you posted, and it was still unreliable, much like this router solution. Fine for a while, then it just fails, disk can't be found etc.

I suspect removing the AiMesh node and re-adding it will fix the issue and so would rebooting the entire system or just the node, but the issue isn't with being able to get it working again, which I think will work. The issue is that it will keep failing after a while.

Getting a separate NAS is not something I'd want to do just for this purpose. So if there is no solution to get the drive connected to the node to work as reliably as the drive connected to the router, then I guess it's back to quarterly directly connected drive backups. =(

That is the most reliable, fastest, and cheapest way to do it.

USB ports were a convenient way to upload firmware files in stand alone mode before the internet methods became reliable enough. Before that it was serial port and EEPROMs. Then marketing took over.....