Backup question

[Enemmy]

Model: MacBook Pro, 13-inch, Late 2011
OSX: El Capitan v10.11.3

Please excuse my post, I know I could've followed a simple YouTube video, but I really don't wanna mess up, and I really trust this forum

My parent's laptop (info above) is being slow nowadays, so I want to backup everything in either an External Hard Drive, or on my Time Capsule (I'd prefer this one, because I never used it)

I would use this one:

Or I could buy an external hard drive, there's no problem.

So how can I backup the MacBook Pro?, I just want to send all the files over there, I don't want to delete profiles/accounts, and if possible I don't want to remove programs either, how do I do it?, thanks in advance!

 

[pm-r]

Personally I'd suggest just using a normal External Hard Drive and using CCC (Carbon Copy Cloner).
https://bombich.com

I've seen just too many failures with the Time Capsule and Time Machine plus the fact they aren't bootable and the Time Capsules are generally S L O W !!!

I'l be surprised if longer time member Harry doesn't agree with this when he wakes up and maybe replies later on his New Years Eve day today.

PS: Slow or not, any computer should be using a current backup if the data is worth keeping.





- Patrick
==========

 

[chscag]

I'll second what Patrick stated above. Use Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper to backup to an external hard drive. Both programs create a bootable backup and are very easy to use. The Carbon Copy Cloner program has a free fully functional 30 day trial.

 

[Slydude]

I've been using a Time Capsule and Time Machine to back up my Mac since shortly after Time machine first started supporting backing up to a network device. The combination is pretty dead simple to use. The Time Capsule can be a bit slow at times but that only becomes an issue for me when restoring large number of files.

On the up side I don't have to remember to do a backup. It's taken care of automatically. On the down side the backup is not directly bootable. That's why I have a second backup made with Carbon Copy Cloner that I update regularly.

 

[Enemmy]

Personally I'd suggest just using a normal External Hard Drive and using Carbon Copy Cloner.

I'll second what Patrick stated above, use Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper to backup to an external hard drive.

The Time Capsule can be a bit slow at times but that only becomes an issue for me when restoring large number of files, the backup is not directly bootable, that's why I have a second backup made with Carbon Copy Cloner that I update regularly.

Thank you guys

I'll buy a 500GB External HDD and use Carbon Copy Cloner to do the backup, excuse the silly question, but since its just a backup does that mean I'll have to manually delete the files in the MacBook Pro?, is there a way to delete everything but the programs and profiles / accounts?

 

[pm-r]

I've been using a Time Capsule and Time Machine to back up my Mac since shortly after Time machine first started supporting backing up to a network device.

Good grief, you must be one of the few lucky ones.

Even the old "Apple Time Capsule Memorial Registry" site closed down yeas ago as it was just too full.
http://news.thewindowsclub.com/apples-time-capsule-graveyard-3998/

Anyway, it's nice to hear your's is still working well.





- Patrick
==========

 

[ferrarr]

Thank you guys

I'll buy a 500GB External HDD and use Carbon Copy Cloner to do the backup, excuse the silly question, but since its just a backup does that mean I'll have to manually delete the files in the MacBook Pro?, is there a way to delete everything but the programs and profiles / accounts?

Why are you manually deleting files on the MBP? A backup is a second copy. If you delete one copy, then you only have one copy and you do not have a backup. Or, did I miss something?

 

[Randy B. Singer]

I don't know why people on this forum go around saying that you can't boot from a Time Machine backup. As of OS X 10.7.2, Time Machine backups are bootable. They won't boot into the version of the OS that you were running, and you can't log in to your account, but they will boot into the equivalent of your Recovery Partition. From there, you can reformat disks and do a full restore.

If your Time Machine backup is slow, or if you want to be able to restore things more easily, check out:

BackupLoupe ($10)
BackupLoupe: One Stop Shop for Time Machine

There are good reasons to have a clone backup (e.g. SuperDuper or CCC) and there are good reasons to have a versioned backup (e.g. Time Machine.) Ideally, you'd have both. But if you already have a Time Capsule, and you only intend to do one sort of backup, there is no reason not to go with that, especially if you use a third party utility to make it more useful, such as:

Back-In-Time ($30)
http://www.tri-edre.com/english/backintime.html

There are two basic kinds of backups that you can do of all of your data: a "clone" and a "versioned backup."

A "clone" backup basically creates an exact duplicate of your main hard drive *as of the time of your last backup*. The clone will usually be bootable (that is, you can startup from it), just like the original drive. This type of backup is wonderful to have if you have a catastrophic main hard drive failure, or even if your entire computer is stolen or destroyed. If you have a clone backup all you have to do is designate the hard drive with the clone backup on it as the startup disk in your System Preferences (on any Macintosh computer), and you can go on with your work/life as if nothing happened. (At least as of the date of your last backup. That's why it is important to schedule frequent incremental backups.)

I recommend SuperDuper to make a clone backup:
SuperDuper!
but some users prefer the very similar program Carbon Copy Cloner:
http://www.bombich.com/index.html

Time Machine
macOS Sonoma
does what is known as a "versioned" backup. Instead of creating an exact duplicate of your hard drive, an archive of everything that is now, or *ever has been* on your drive is created, *as of the time of every single past backup*. This type of backup is very valuable if you accidentally trash something that you find that you now need, or if you find that you need a previous version of a document that has since been changed. If your main drive fails, you can still restore it from a versioned backup, but there will be quite a bit more time and work involved than with a clone backup to get things approximately to where they were before your main drive failed, and to create a drive that you can boot from. You will also need to purchase another known good hard drive to create the restored bootable drive on.

In my mind, a clone backup is essential. There are ways to get some of the advantages of having a versioned backup without actually having one. One way to prevent trashing stuff and regretting it later (thus obviating much of the need for TM) is to create a new folder on your desktop and call it something like "Pre-Trash." Don't put stuff you want to get rid of in your Trash. Put it in Pre-Trash instead. Inside of the Pre-Trash folder, set the View to By Column and click on the Date Modified header and click on the Date Modified triangle to have the column show the oldest files first. Every now and then you can go into this folder and manually delete files over a certain age. For example, you can delete files that are over three months old...once you are sure that you will absolutely never need them again.

Is there a valuable reason to have a versioned backup in addition to a clone backup? Yes, a really good one. If the data on your Mac's hard drive becomes corrupted, or hopelessly infected with malware (of a type that does not yet exist), and your clone backup software runs before you detect the problem...all of your data, both on the source and the backup, will probably be destroyed or ruined. However, if you have a versioned backup, even if it has run subsequent to your data being compromised, you can still completely recover your data using the versioned backup.

Much more information about backing up:

Backing Up Your Mac
$15 (currently on sale for $11.25)
210 page ebook in PDF format.
3.1 MB download
Take Control of Backing Up Your Mac – Take Control Books

 

[pm-r]

but since its just a backup does that mean I'll have to manually delete the files in the MacBook Pro?, is there a way to delete everything but the programs and profiles / accounts?

A backup with an app like CCC is designed to make a backup clone onto a bare drive and not to delete stuff, and won't from any source, but one has options to select what does or doesn't get backed up IF you want. Most wouldn't bother I don't think.

 

[chscag]

I don't know why people on this forum go around saying that you can't boot from a Time Machine backup. As of OS X 10.7.2, Time Machine backups are bootable. They won't boot into the version of the OS that you were running, and you can't log in to your account, but they will boot into the equivalent of your Recovery Partition. From there, you can reformat disks and do a full restore.

You're correct Randy but keep in mind that involves a lot more work. And for a novice, many pitfalls.

I personally keep both a CCC and Time Machine backup and recommend that instead of just one or the other.

 

[Slydude]

Thanks for the reminder about bootability Randy. Not sure if I had forgotten it or never noticed that change. Anyway lots of good information there as usual Randy.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

Your correct Randy but keep in mind that involves a lot more work.

Yes, I said that in my post.

"If you have a clone backup all you have to do is designate the hard drive with the clone backup on it as the startup disk in your System Preferences (on any Macintosh computer), and you can go on with your work/life as if nothing happened."

"If your main drive fails, you can still restore it from a versioned backup, but there will be quite a bit more time and work involved than with a clone backup to get things approximately to where they were before your main drive failed, and to create a drive that you can boot from."

There are excellent reasons to have both a clone backup and a versioned backup. However, if a user only intends to have one or the other, a clone, in my mind, is the better choice. But having only a versioned backup wouldn't be a disaster, and it might actually be a godsend if your data were to become infected or corrupted.

 

[Rod]

I think I may have misunderstood your intention, I note you said that, "My parent's laptop (info above) is being slow nowadays" so I take it that the underlying reason you wanted to backup was because you wanted to fix the "slow" problem.
This makes perfect sense and we would have advised a full backup before attempting a "fix" anyway as we always do. CCC is the perfect choice for this.
So getting back to the "slow" problem, this isuue of spinning "beach balls" and slow reaction time is a popular topic which has been covered on this forum a number of times, most recently by digitalbulls in this post: http://www.mac-forums.com/os-x-apps-and-games/338112-10-quick-speed-slow-mac.html?highlight=slow
There are some standout causes though that I think should be checked first because they are easy to confirm.
One of these is storage, a Mac laptop should have at least 10-20% storage free. It is easy to check this from the Apple Menu > About this Computer > Storage tab.
If you do not have 10-20% free storage then the device will definitely slow down.
The other is the operating system in use and the specs of the device running it. You have stated this is a 2011 MBP running El Capitan. So you should have 4 Gb RAM and a 2.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor which is just adequate to run El Capitan. If everything else is operating as it should this is all good but you need to be aware that these are minimum requirements although it's possible you have a 2.8GHz dual-core Intel Core i7 which would be better. Again you can check this from the Apple Menu > About this Mac.
Lastly I would run First Aid from Disk Utility in the Applications Folder > Utilities. If this finds no problems and or can fix any problems found you may well see an instant improvement in performance.
The other option is the one favoured by many for an older laptop that is essentially working OK but may have acquired over time a host of old preference files, system junk, cached info and generally unneeded data that is clogging up the works using up storage and slowing the performance. Commonly called "Nuke an Pave" this refers to erasing everything and installing a new version of the operating system from scratch. You can then copy the files needed back from your CCC clone.
I would also suggest upgrading the Operating System at the same time to the current macOS Sierra 10.12.2
Just be aware that this can be a lengthy procedure and some of the third party applications running on El Capitan will need to be updated to run on Sierra.
You could of course just upgrade the existing macOS El Capitan to macOS Sierra which is a fairly quick and trouble free process with the added insurance of being able to restore the laptop to it's present condition and OS using your CCC clone.
If you wish to go the "Nuke an Pave" way you will need to create a USB (thumb drive) installer about 8-10Gb in size.
We can provide step by step instructions for this if you decide to go that way, it is not difficult just a little time consuming. Up to you.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

So getting back to the "slow" problem, this isuue of spinning "beach balls" and slow reaction time is a popular topic...

So popular that I created two Web sites specifically to deal with the problem(s) in a methodical way:

Macintosh OS X Slowdown Solutions
http://www.macattorney.com/sd.html

Macintosh OS X Beachballs!
http://www.macattorney.com/rbb.html

 

[Rod]

Golly, I am assuming that is the problem and six replies were added between the time I started my reply so sorry if I seem a little out of sequence. When I started no one had tackled the OP's apparent "slow" issue, the reason, I assume, for the initial question about backup options.

 

[Enemmy]

I wanna thank everyone for taking their time to contribute and help

I'll read every single post, and I will post updates / questions that I may have tomorrow, because right now I don't have access to the MacBook (until tomorrow), thanks a lot!

 

[Rod]

Thank you for your loverly reply, dont forget to use the reputation points button (little thumbs up icon bottom left of any post) to add any comments and points to contributors. Hope to hear from you again soon.

 

[Enemmy]

Sorry for the late reply!, I didn't thought I would be busy the first days of the year

...There are two basic kinds of backups that you can do of all of your data: a "clone" and a "versioned backup."...

Thanks for the info! , it was very helpful, my intention would be to do a "carbon copy" and reformat the laptop (I don't know if that's the right term), and since its bootable I won't have any problems if I ever need the info on that copy

...So getting back to the "slow" problem, this isuue of spinning "beach balls" and slow reaction time is...

This MacBook Pro has 205GB free out of 500GB, 4 RAM, 2.4GHz, i5.
"Nuke an Pave" sounds exactly what I'm trying to accomplish, I'll ask for help once I buy the hard drive

...I created two Web sites specifically to deal with the problem(s) in a methodical way...

I'm checking those out!

Thank you for your loverly reply, dont forget to use the reputation points button (little thumbs up icon bottom left of any post) to add any comments and points to contributors. Hope to hear from you again soon.

Rep for everyone