Official Backup FAQ or Start Backing Up Now!

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chscag

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Wasn't the issue with the 27" models?

The 1 TB Seagate drives used in the 2011 27" models were the subject of a recall by Apple. Apple replaced them free of charge. The 500 GB Seagate drives used in the 21.5" 2011 models were not the subject of a recall, however, they too were problematic as I stated above. Apple replaced mine for free (Apple Care) but they replaced it with a Western Digital model. Seagate drives in general are less reliable as shown in many tests and history of repairs. Unfortunately, my late 2013 27" iMac has a 1 TB Seagate Barracuda drive installed. One reason why I'm kind of paranoid about making backups. ;)
 
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Wow, oh my Gosh, if I have to back up the back up that's "space ship redundancy". I don't store much if anything of importance, I just want the convenience of a back up. One less thing to think about, if you will.

My hard drive (and iMac) is from August of 2012. I can't fathom any scenario where it would fail at the same time a back up put into service in May 2015. I'm not being argumentative, but this crosses the boundary into the absurd for my needs. OK, so sometimes the planets align and everything can go bad at once, I suppose!

Have I ever experienced losing everything? Yes. Even my precious iMac suffered a fatal gray screen of death where I had to reformat and of course I lost everything (cause of death was bad aftermarket RAM).
 

chscag

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OK, if you only want to make one backup, then go with CCC or SuperDuper. Both are superior to Time Machine for a total recovery scenario.
 
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The 1 TB Seagate drives used in the 2011 27" models were the subject of a recall by Apple. Apple replaced them free of charge. The 500 GB Seagate drives used in the 21.5" 2011 models were not the subject of a recall, however, they too were problematic as I stated above. Apple replaced mine for free (Apple Care) but they replaced it with a Western Digital model. Seagate drives in general are less reliable as shown in many tests and history of repairs. Unfortunately, my late 2013 27" iMac has a 1 TB Seagate Barracuda drive installed. One reason why I'm kind of paranoid about making backups. ;)

Guess I got lucky. Mine is a WD:

WDC WD5000AAKS-402AA0
 

chscag

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Yep, like I said above when Apple replaced mine they used a Western Digital. Later issues of the 2011 21.5" iMac models all came equipped with a WD drive. Still no excuse for you not to be concerned about making a cloned backup though. WD drives also fail. ;)
 
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I have two more questions. :Evil:

1) Can I plug the external hard drive into the USB port of my TP-Link router? That would be for decluttering purposes.

2) When restoring to a replaced hard drive, do I have to individually restore files, or can everything re restored en masse (bookmarks, settings, etc. ...)? This all with one external hard drive back-up disc scheme.
 

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I don't know exactly how much detail you want at this stage given that you haven't a backup (BU) in place yet.

But, broadly speaking—if you use Time Machine (TM) to back up, does everything for you, once connected and started. The first BU is long because it backs up your entire system, files, folders, photos and so on including all your settings. Subsequent BUs are very much quicker and automatic. If or when you replaced your Mac's HD or bought a new Mac, you simply plug in your TM and it does everything for you restoring the system & settings.

If you backed up using a cloning method, first BU longish subsequent much quicker. Usually these BUs are initiated by you although there are options for timed BUs. You would most usually use the Migration Assistant (part of the OS X) to transfer whatever you desired from the clone to a new HD.

I have deliberately been economical in my summary of the operational side of restoring things because, as I said, you have to decide on your preferred method of BU (TM only, cloning only, both) and then make the BU.

We can assist you with setting up whichever BU you choose, in detail if necessary. And again, should the need arise, help you restore your system.

As to your first question; I'm not quite sure I understand you. Quite possibly my fault. Generally, one would attach the EHD via USB to your Mac rather than through a router and I'm confused by what you mean by decluttering. Unless you are saying that you intend to move stuff off your Mac manually to save space on your Mac's HD??

Ian
 
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Decluttering in the physical realm as in I can hide the external back-up hard drive off my work space next to the router, which is also out of sight, if I can plug it into the router. One less wire to deal with, you know? Yes, my method would be Time Machine, not cloning.
 

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Ah right. I understand. Apologies.

The EHD used for Time Machine (TM) should be directly attached to your iMac. That is, into one of the ports on the back of the computer (not through a hub or router). This will probably be a USB port unless you have other ports such as FireWire. Even then, a USB connection is preferable.
And, once connected, the TM remains attached all the time. So, okay, one more "wire", but once connected, it is left there. No un-mounting and re-mounting. Why? Because TM is designed to run in the back ground, backing up at hourly intervals for the first day, then daily for the next month, and so on. It does all this without interrupting your work or use of the iMac. You can manually add a BU if needed, on top of the automatic ones mentioned.

I don't wish to insult your intelligence by giving precise step-by-step details of formatting the EHD and setting up TM for the first time unless, of course, this would be of assistance to you.

Ian
 
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I don't wish to insult your intelligence by giving precise step-by-step details of formatting the EHD and setting up TM for the first time unless, of course, this would be of assistance to you.

Ian

LOL. Don't worry, my intelligence has already been questioned by a certain prolific member on this message board who thankfully hasn't participated in this discussion.

Looking at Apple's how-to, this is why I asked about plugging it in directly into the router:

"If you back up to a Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme (802.11ac) [of course, I have neither], the initial backup may be faster if your Mac is in the same room as the Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme (802.11ac), or if you connect your Mac to one of the Ethernet ports on the Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme (802.11ac)."
 
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I seem to recall reading in a thread here somewhere that if the drive is mounted on a network instead of being directly connected to the Mac the format of the Time Machine backup changes to being a sparcebundle. What that means, if I understand it, is that the individual files in the backup are then not directly available to you, so you would have to access them through Time Machine. I don't know if that's significant to you or not, but there it is. The reason for the difference is, I believe, to reduce the network traffic during the backup process.

As for the Apple comment, I think what they are trying to say is that WiFi is faster if you are closer to the router.
 

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Well dotdotdot, you seem to have most bases covered. I agree with Jake that Apple is stating the obvious that WiFi is faster & more reliable the closer together the devices are.

Even more reliable and more robust is a direct physical connection between iMac and EHD and as you don't have either of the Apple routers (and even if you did), I would recommend connecting your EHD directly to the iMac. It will serve as your only BU and I wouldn't take any chances.

Ian
 
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Backing up now. Everything is going smoothly. Just a couple of clicks, even the formatting was just a click and required almost no thought. For once, something that is intuitive with this iMac. To answer my own question, plugging the USB into the router does not work for backing up.

So go to Amazon, spend $55 and be done with it!
 

pigoo3

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Just an FYI. This sticky thread is more of a general backup topic discussion area…or short Q&A area. This area really not the best place for full blown problem-solving discussions.

Thanks for understanding,:)

- Nick

p.s. Latest problem-solving discussion moved to it's own thread (Switcher Hangout).
 
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Humble apologies Nick,
I was unsure on my first posting, but understand.
Thanks so much for redirecting.
 

pigoo3

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Humble apologies Nick,
I was unsure on my first posting, but understand.
Thanks so much for redirecting.

No problamo. All is good.:)

- Nick
 
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