G-Technology G-Mini Install Manual

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 1

G-MINI™

Installation Guide

G-Technology Inc.

Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

[e-mail]

P/N GM080807 RevA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION

2. SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

3. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

4. WHAT’S IN THE BOX

5. G-MINI OVERVIEW

6. INSTALLING G-MINI

7. INITIALIZING G-MINI

7.1 Mac OSX

7.2 Windows 2000/XP

7.3 Cross Platform use

8. UNMOUNTING/DISCONNECTING G-MINI

8.1 Mac OSX

8.2 Windows 2000/XP

9. OPTIMIZING DATA TRANSFER

10. TECHNICAL SUPPORT

11. LIMITED WARRANTY

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 2

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 3

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 4

1. INTRODUCTION
Thank you for purchasing G-MINI™ from G-Technology, Inc.
(G-Tech)! G-MINI is the perfect storage companion for the
Mac mini and Airport Extreme Base Station. G-MINI
compliments the sophisticated design of the Mac mini and
Airport Extreme and is the simple and stylish way to add up
to 1TB of data storage to manage your digital lifestyle. When
connected to an Airport Extreme, G-MINI becomes an instant
shared drive on your wireless network and is the ideal way to
move content to your Apple TV.

2. SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
G-MINI contains a 3.5” shock-resistant hard drive, however
the system is susceptible to damage due to excessive physical
shock. Place the unit in a vented area away from moisture or
liquids. Please handle the unit with care. Do not open the
case. Doing so will void the warranty. If the product is

returned with damage caused by improper handling, the
warranty will be void and liability will rest with the user.

3. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
USB 2.0 operation

• Mac OS X 10.3.x or higher

• Windows 2000 / XP

FireWire 400 operation

• Mac OS 9.x or OS X

• Windows 2000 / XP

4. WHAT’S IN THE BOX

Take a moment to ensure that the following items are
included in the box. If anything is missing, please call G-Tech
at [phone]. Please keep the shipping container and
packing materials. In the unlikely event that you need to

return G-MINI to us for any reason, you must use the
G-Tech shipping container. If the product is returned
damaged caused by improper packaging, the warranty will be
void and liability will rest with the use r.

Kit Contents:

• G-MINI storage system

• FireWire 400 (6-pin to 6-pin) cable

• USB 2.0 cable

• External universal power supply

• Product CD-ROM

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 5

5. G-MINI OVERVIEW

6. INSTALLING G-MINI

G-MINI can be connected to your Mac mini or PC via FireWire
400 or USB. One of the coolest uses for G-MINI is as a
networked drive when used with Apple’s Airport Extreme base
station. In this configuration, content can easily be moved
from G-MINI to Apple TV.

7. INITIALIZING G-MINI

Attention Mac OS X Users

G-MINI is set up at the factory for use with Mac OS
X systems. If you are running Mac OS X,

G-MINI will mount on the OS X desktop right out of
the box. If it becomes necessary to re-format G-MINI for
Mac OS X, see section 7.1.

Attention Windows Users

G-MINI must be formatted for the Windows
Operating System before use on a PC. Please see
section 7.2 for more information.

Attention Cross Platform Users

G-MINI can be used on both MAC and PC
systems by formatting the drive “FAT32.”

There are some limitations when using FAT
32, see section 7.3 for details. Alternatively you can install
software on the Windows machine such as “MacDrive” which
will allow you to mount MAC formatted drives on your PC.

Power and Activity LED

3-Port USB Hub

ON/OFF

USB 2.0

Port

Power

FireWire 400 ports

Security

Variable

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 6

7.1 Mac OS X
G-MINI is initialized at the factory as a single Mac OS X
volume. Power on G-MINI, wait 10 seconds, then power on
your Mac. G-MINI will mount on the desktop as shown
below.

If it becomes necessary to re-initialize G-MINI for Mac OS X,
follow the instructions below.

1. Open the Apple Disk Utility. The Apple Disk Utility is in
the Utilities Folder located in the Applications Folder on
the Macintosh HD. Select G-MINI by clicking on the entry in
the left-hand column as shown below. Information about G­MINI will be displayed at the bottom.

3. Select the Partition tab to view the partition options as
shown below.

4. Set the Volume Scheme: to 1 Partition.
Enter a Volume Name under Volume Information
(in this example “G-MINI”) and set Format to

Mac OS Extended as shown below.

Note: Alternatively, G-MINI can be set up in multiple volumes by

selecting the desired number of partitions from the Volume
Scheme pull-down menu.

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 7

5. Click on the <Partition> button. The dialog box shown
below will appear. Click on the <Partition> button to
continue.

6. When partitioning is complete, G-MINI will be displayed
in the left-hand panel as shown below.

7. Exit the Apple Disk Utility.

8. G-MINI will be displayed on the desktop as shown below.

G-MINI is now set up for use!!

7.2 Windows 2000/XP

1. Power on G-MINI, wait 10 seconds, then power on your
computer.

2. Open the Disk Management utility by right-clicking on
the My Computer icon on the desktop and selecting
“Manage” from the drop down menu as shown below.

3. The Computer Management console will appear as shown
below. Click on “Disk Management” in the left-hand panel.
G-MINI is identified as Disk 1 in this example.

Right click on Disk 1 and select Initialize Disk from the
pull-down menu as shown. The window shown on the next
page will appear.

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 8

4. Click on the <OK> button to continue.

5. The following window will appear. G-MINI (Disk 1) is now
identified as Basic and Online.

6. Right-click on the Disk 1 “Unallocated” bar entry and
select New Partition… from the pull-down menu as shown
below.

7. The window shown below will appear. Click on the
<Next> button to continue.

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 9

8. The following window will appea r. Click on the <Next>
button to continue.

9. The window shown below will appear. Click on the
<Next> button to continue. This will create one large
volume using all of the available space on G-MINI.

Note: Multiple partitions can be created on G-MINI. Consult your
Windows documentation for instructions on setting up multiple partitions.

10. Windows will automatically assign a drive letter, in this
example “D”. Accept this assignment and click on the
<Next> button to continue.

11. Enter a Volume Label: (in this example, G-MINI),
check the Perform a quick format box and click on the
<Next> button to continue.

mini

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 10

12. The following window will appear. Click on the <Finish>
button to continue.

13. Windows will format the volume and then display the
following window. Disk 1 is now identified as G-MINI (E:).
Exit the Computer Management console

14. G-MINI will now be displayed as an available hard

disk drive under My Computer as shown below.

G-MINI is now set up for use!!

7.3. Cross Platform Use

To setup your G-MINI for use on both Windows and
Macintosh systems, use the Apple Disk utility and format G­MINI FAT32.

1. Open the Apple Disk Utility. (The Apple Disk Utility is in
the Utilities Folder located in the Applications Folder
on your system drive).

2. Select the G-MINI from the left-hand column, then
select the “Erase” button at the top as shown. Select
MS-DOS File System from the drop down menu and
Enter “G-MINI” in the Name field.

3. Click on the erase button and the screen on the next
page will appear.

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 11

4. Click “Erase” and your drive will be formatted to its full
capacity as FAT32. With this format, you will be able to
READ/WRITE on both windows (2000/XP) and MAC OS
machines. (NOTE: You could format your drive on a
Windows machine FAT32, however Windows limits
FAT32 partitions to 32GB in size)

WARNING:
THIS WILL ERASE ALL DATA ON YOUR DRIVE.

NOTE: The 'MS-DOS File System' cannot write
files over 4 GB. If you are working with files over

4 GB, you may want to choose a software option
like MacDrive. MacDrive is Windows software that
enables the Windows OS to mount MAC formatted
drives. (www.macdrive.com)

8. UNMOUNTING/DISCONNECTING G-MINI

A great feature of G-MINI is its ability to be connected and
disconnected while your computer is running. To prevent
failures and/or data loss it is important to follow the steps
below when unmounting/disconnecting G-MINI from your
computer.

8.1 Mac OS X Computers

1. Before powering down and disconnecting G-MINI, you
must unmount it from the system by dragging the G-MINI
icon to the trash located in the dock, or by selecting the
drive icon and pressing the apple key and the “E” key at the
same time. (Apple+E)

2. It is now safe to power off and remove G-MINI from your
system.

8.2 Windows Computers

1. Before powering down and disconnecting G-MINI,
left-click on the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon shown below.

2. A box like the following will appea r. Click on the entry.

3. A balloon like the following will appea r.

4. It is now safe to power off and remove G-MINI from your
system.

G-MINI Installation Guide

Page 12

9. OPTIMIZING DATA TRANSFER RATES

G-MINI can be connected to any Mac or PC equipped with a
FireWire 400 or USB 2.0 port. For optimal performance, G-MINI
should be connected via a FireWire 400 port.

10. TECHNICAL SUPPORT

If you encounter any difficulties while installing G-MINI,
please contact G-Tech Technical Support via one of the
following ways:

Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
Internet: www.g-technology.com

When contacting Technical Support, make sure to be in front
of your computer and have the following information readily
available:

• Your G-MINI serial number (on bottom of unit)

• Operating system and version

• Computer brand and model

• Amount of memory installed

• Other devices attached to your computer

Thank you for purchasing G-MINI. If you have any comments
or questions about this manual or the product, please call
(310) 449-4599, or send an email to

[e-mail].

11. LIMITED WARRANTY

G-Technology Inc. (G-Tech) warrants your product against
any defect in material and workmanship, under normal use,
for the designated warranty period. If the product should
become defective within the warranty period, G-Tech, will at
its discretion, repair or replace the product. Repair or
replacement parts or products will be furnished on an
exchange basis and will be either new or reconditioned. All
replaced parts or products shall become the property of G­Tech. This warranty shall not apply if the product has been
damaged by accident, misuse, abuse or as a result of
unauthorized service or parts. Warranty service is available to
the purchaser by obtaining a Return Material Authorization
number (RMA) and by delivering the product during the
warranty period to an authorized G-Tech service facility or to
G-Tech. The purchaser shall bear all shipping, packing and
insurance costs and all other costs, excluding parts and labor,
necessary to effectuate repair, replacement or refund under
this warranty. All returned product must be shipped to
G-Tech in the original shipping container.

For more information on how to obtain warranty service, an
RMA number or to acquire shipping materials, contact G-Tech
at 1629 Stanford Street, Santa Monica, CA 90404, (310) 449­4599 or [e-mail].

IN THE EVENT A PRODUCT BECOMES DEFECTIVE DURING
THE WARRANTY PERIOD, THE PURCHASER’S EXCLUSIVE
REMEDY SHALL BE REPAIR OR REPLACEMENT AS PROVIDED
ABOVE. INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTAL DAMAGES,
INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION LOSS OF DATA, ARISING
FROM BREACH OF ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTY ARE
NOT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF G-TECH AND, TO THE EXTENT
PERMITTED BY LA W, ARE HEREBY EXCLUDED BOTH FOR
PROPERTY DAMAGE, AND TO THE EXTENT NOT
UNCONSCIONABLE, FOR PERSONAL INJURY DAMAGE.