NEW Mojave??

[Slydude]

SuperDuper and Carbon Copy Cloner seem to be the two most frequently recommended cloning programs on the forum though there are several others. Both programs have trials that will complete a basic clone and both have some more advanced features that come with the paid version. One difference is that SuperDuper does not clone the Receovery partition of your boot drive and Carbon Copy Cloner will copy thhe Recovery partition.

Some people do not see a huge need to copy the recovery parttition since in the event of a problem you could boot from the clone. I prefer to have the ability to clone the recovery partition so I use Carbon Copy Cloner. Both programs have free versions so it mmight be worth downloading both to look at the interface and see which interface you prefer.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

Many thanks randy.... excellent info link especially the difference between clone and dong time machine backups.
Is the free super duper just basics and pretty good
What does the paid version offer that’s different or better?

The paid version of SuperDuper includes the ability to do a smart update of your clone. So, with the paid version of SuperDuper, when your Mac's internal drive changes, instead of having to do an entirely new clone from scratch, the paid version will only update the things that have changed. Quite a time-saver that encourages you to keep your backup updated.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

One difference is that SuperDuper does not clone the Receovery partition of your boot drive and Carbon Copy Cloner will copy thhe Recovery partition.

That difference is inconsequential. If you want to create a recovery partition on your clone, you can use any of these free products:

Apple's OS X Recovery Disk Assistant (free)
https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1433?locale=en_US

Create Recovery Partition Installer (free)
https://github.com/MagerValp/Create-Recovery-Partition-Installer

Recovery Partition (free)
Recovery Partition 4.0.4 – Musings

Both CCC and SD are excellent products. SD is cheaper, easier to use, and has fabulous support, that's why I usually recommend it. CCC can do more (such as create a versioned backup), which makes it the better choice if you want it's additional features. I usually recommend CCC for more advanced users.

 

[MacInWin]

In addition to Randy's excellent summary, I have had excellent support for CCC as well, so it really is an "up to you" decision. I tried SD once, didn't like it, tried CCC and never went back. I schedule backups to run at night, use the versioning (SafetyNet) that comes with it, and do use it to also make partial backups of some files I want stored in multiple places.

So, as Randy said, SD is cheaper, CCC is more robust. But new users don't need to have any fear of the CCC interface, it's really just drag, drop, clone, unless you want to make it sing and dance more.

 

[Slydude]

Overall I agree with you Randy. Your assessment is spot on as usual.

I've used both SuperDuper and Carbon Copy Cloner before. When I started using CCC some of the utilities that clone the recovery partition either didn't exist or I wasn't aware of them at the time. I don't remember which. Even though I don't often use all of CCC's advanced features, I find that its interface just makes more sense to me. Other users may feel the exact opposite. That's why I usually suggest thhat users look at both proograms to see which one they prefer.

If CCC were no longer being updated I could easily switch to SuperDuper and not miss a beat.

 

[Rod]

I think I can rightly say you will experience a lot more changes moving to Mojave than from Sierra to High Sierra. Be prepared for many of your current third party apps requiring updates for comparability. As well as that changes made to System Security will require specific permission for some apps to access System Files. Those that do will walk you through the process with step by step instructions so nothing to fear there.
You may or may not know that Apple introduced its own filing system in High Sierra called APFS which replaced the old HFS+ system that was previously used.
This in itself should not cause any problems/complications for the average user level but it's good to know what a radical change this upgrade is at the engine room level.
If it's of any interest Mojave also gives you access to "Dark Mode" in the appearance preference settings. Personally I love it and many third party apps have updated incorporating this feature into their updates.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

If it's of any interest Mojave also gives you access to "Dark Mode" in the appearance preference settings. Personally I love it and many third party apps have updated incorporating this feature into their updates.

Funny story... My son is a programmer. He currently works for a company that creates custom accounting software for the Air Force. He was home last weekend and was sitting watching TV with me while he programmed on his laptop. (He has a Macbook Air running Mojave.) Much of what he does is done in Terminal because it is Unix stuff.

Suddenly he sat up straight and started to swear. I asked what was wrong. He said all sorts of lines of code he had written had simply disappeared!

It turns out that the Terminal hasn't been updated for Mojave's Dark Mode. Because of Dark Mode, some of his code turned out being black text on a black background...and thus it appeared to be gone!

Once he adjusted the text colors everything was fine. But we had a few tense minutes there!

 

[Rod]

Ha ha, thats a funny one. I had a similar issue with my email client. Had set my default text colour as dark blue and when I switched to Dark Mode couldn't see any of the text I wrote in replies. Took about an hour to work that out.
If it had been the default black text it would have changed to white but because it wasn't ......

 

[Nighthawk4]

So if SuperDuper! works on HighSierra and Mojave, is it safe to make a backup of my MB Air (HighSierra) and then upgrade in place to Mojave?

It is a recent MB Air but not the very latest one

 

[toMACsh]

So if SuperDuper! works on HighSierra and Mojave, is it safe to make a backup of my MB Air (HighSierra) and then upgrade in place to Mojave?

It is a recent MB Air but not the very latest one

Well, yeah. If it works, where's the risk?

 

[pm-r]

Suddenly he sat up straight and started to swear. I asked what was wrong. He said all sorts of lines of code he had written had simply disappeared!

It turns out that the Terminal hasn't been updated for Mojave's Dark Mode.

;D

I imagine he almost had a personal accident, and I guess MacWorld doesn't consider that Terminal is a proper Mojave application: Hmmm...???

At macOS Mojave’s launch, all apps that are included in the operating system support Dark Mode.[/QUOTE]
https://www.macworld.com/article/3283342/os-x/article.html





- Patrick
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[Rod]

I use CCC but the principal is the same so the answer is yes. First I make a clone, then I put it aside, upgrade the OS then I make a Time Machine backup. I use that in case I make any mistakes in the first week with the new OS then if everything seems okay after about 2 weeks I update the clone.
If for any reason during the two weeks I decide I don't like the new OS I can boot from the clone and reverse the procedure.

 

[MacInWin]

I would add two words between the "make a clone," and "then I put it aside." Those two words would be "test it."

 

[pm-r]

I would add two words between the "make a clone," and "then I put it aside." Those two words would be "test it."

+1!!!





- Patrick
======

 

[Slydude]

+2

I've only had one or two clones fail over the years but it does happen.Better to find that out before you need it.

 

[Rod]

Good point. CCC will tell you on completion if the volume "should" be bootable but I do test that just to sure.

 

[pm-r]

+2

I've only had one or two clones fail over the years but it does happen.Better to find that out before you need it.

Quite true!! And I sure hope all those that haven't done so, will do so.

PS: And thanks for your more appropriate avatar replacement!!! ;D




- Patrick
======

 

[chscag]

PS: And thanks for your more appropriate avatar replacement!!!

LOL, now he's wearing Mr. Magoo glasses! Hey Sly, you can't win. ;P

 

[Slydude]

Hey Sly, you can't win. ;P

I gave up on that long ago. These days I'll settle for breaking even. lol

 

[Rod]

Isnt that the crazy professor from Futurama?