I am replacing my primary computer.
I will be using the assistant in Apple to move everything over to it. I am going from an Intel beast computer to a new Apple silicon-based computer.
Hopefully this will bring everything over. However, I figured I would ask you’re just to be sure of the best way of doing this.
Thanks
Also the Help > Tutorials > Migrate DEVONthink tutorial.
Thank you both for your answers.
Here is also what I am concerned with. There is syncing going on through bonjour as well as icloud (CloudKit). How do I deal with those?
Concerned with what…?
Once these are moved to the new computer, will it just begin syncing again? I assume I will have to begin and connect things again. What about all the space it is taking up now in iCloud? Will it just connect directly to that again or do I need to do more things like delete the old iCloud connections or what have you?
If you’re transferring as described, there should be no interruption in syncing.
OK, as I mentioned to begin with, I intend to use the migration assistant. I assume this will move everything over.
Being that I have a tremendous amount of things to move over, how do you suggest I work with the migration assistant?
I’m thinking I will need to put everything over to an external drive, then eliminated from my primary computer while it’s being replaced. Then move things over from the external drive to the new computer.
Is that about right or am I missing something?
Migration Assistant is most often used with a Time Machine drive. Are you saying you don’t have such backups?
While it has been many years since using Migration Assistant twice (5 and 11 years ago), I recall I was able to go from old machine to new machine with WiFi not using a TimeMachine backup as i was in a hotel room without my backup drive.
Was anxious to get going with new machine!
Yes, it’s possible to migrate direct from machine to machine. However… on WiFi?!? 
What a slog that must have been.
I migrated between two Thunderbolt connected Macs a few months ago and the initial setup – prepping the transfer from the source Mac – still took 30+ minutes. I didn’t mention it as it’s much less common than the Time Machine method. It’s also much less common that people have Thunderbolt cables 
Yea, those cables work too.
But what you gonna do with a brand new MacBook sitting there with nothing else to do that night on a business trip?
It worked well enough.
Haha - indeed 
It might be hard to imagine, but I do not have a back up like that. Then again, most of my things are stored on my RAID 5 drive - actually two of them. I will have a traditional type of back up once I get the new system up and running.
So I have two options. Having researched this as much as I can, it appears that I can make the transfer happen using the migration assistant using a USB C/Thunderbolt 3 connected to an Apple adapter, a thunderbolt 3 to thunderbolt 2.
Or I could do all of the work to put these on a different Drive, follow the instructions and bring them back. My databases that is.
Which do you think would make more sense?
Since I just did the Thunderbolt migration between two Macs and can vouch it worked nicely, I’d opt for that if you’re wanting to move the account over. If you’re just moving bits and bobs to a new installation with a new account, I’d opt for the external drive option.
And yes, please get proper primary backups going soon.
On a side note, the thunderbolt cable seems expensive at first glance until you’re pushing 20Gbps through it and your migration takes minutes instead of hours.
Totally worth the price of admission.
I have migrated and followed the guides mentioned above and had zero issues.
Awesome and thanks for sharing!