Upgrading to El Capitan with an old MacBook Pro - can I?

[iMore Question]

upgrading to El Capitan with an old MacBook Pro -

I have a macbook pro from mid 2009. It's processor is 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo and the Memory is 4 GB. I am currently running OS X Yosemite Versino 10.10.5. I would like to upgrade to El Capitan.
On an info page on this website, it advises me to back up my MAC using time machine. I tried to do this with an external USB harddrive. However, the Time Machine does not ask me to back up to the external drive as the article on this website said it would. I see that it is backing up but am concerned that it is not going to the external drive. How might I insure this is happening? More specifically, I want to make sure I can restore to Yosemite if El Capitan does not work on my Mac. So what files should I look for on the external hard drive to make sure they are there?!!!
Thanks,
Tracy

 

[anon(9602380)]

Re: upgrading to El Capitan with an old MacBook Pro -

Welcome to iMore Tracy!

When using Time Machine your MBP should ask if you want to use the external drive you plug into it for Time Machine. Click on "Use as Backup Disk".

If Time Machine doesn't ask you to choose a backup disk:

1. Open Time Machine preferences from the Time Machine menu
   
   in the menu bar. Or choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Time Machine.
2. Click Select Backup Disk.
3. Select an external hard drive, Time Capsule, or other storage solution from the list, then click Use Disk.
4. After you choose a backup disk, optionally click “Add or Remove Backup Disk” to add more backup disks for extra security and convenience.

Once your backup is done, go into Finder and click on the drive you used for the backup. You will find a folder called Backups.backupdb. That folder will contain all the files you require should you need to backup your machine. I will tell you that I have a 2010 MBP that is currently running El Capitan with no issues. Runs real smooth and is fairly quick. But I have upgraded my HDD to an SSD. Plus I have 8GB RAM. Both were done a couple years ago.

I am also providing a link for a guide to using Time Machine. Hope this helps you. Thanks!