Forums
New posts
Articles
Product Reviews
Policies
FAQ
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
General Discussions
Switcher Hangout (Windows to Mac)
Migration from iMac Catalina (Intel) to iMac Big Sur (M1)
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="MacInWin" data-source="post: 1892986" data-attributes="member: 396914"><p>[USER=329282]@pine man[/USER] I have done a lot of research and from what I can tell, the situation is not as dire as you might think. Basically, on the M1 systems the system files are locked in a secure portion of the System-on-a-Chip (SoC) that is encrypted and only accessible to Apple processes. On boot, the operating files are copied to a separate memory area that then acts like the boot drive we are used to seeing. Even the copies are then encrypted and for the most part write-protected, for security. So when a cloner comes along and wants to clone the System "drive" all it can see is the copies, not the originals, and it can't copy them in a way that would boot because of the boot sequence (copy, etc.) But cloners can, and do, very successfully copy the Data Volume just fine.</p><p></p><p>While that sounds bad for cloners, the same is also true of Time Machine. In the M1 systems, TM also does not backup the system files for the very same reason--they are recreated at boot by the boot process.</p><p></p><p>So, what to do? Just what you are doing now. If you have a cloner, you can continue to use it, and if you are using TM you can continue to use it. </p><p></p><p>But what if the "drive" fails and you need to "restore" the system? In the old days, you could boot from the external clone, then order a replacement drive (If it was replaceable) and when it came in you would swap it in, then clone from the external to the new internal and be on your way. Or you could just continue to boot from the external drive, even if the internal was not replaceable. </p><p></p><p>But in the M1, there is no "drive" to replace. The SoC has memory, some of which is used as a "drive," all tightly integrated. As a result of the design, if the problem is the "drive" has a <strong>hardware</strong> failure, your system is toast. There is no replacement, except to replace the entire logic board. And you cannot boot from an external if the internal is broken because the boot looks for the boot process on the internal storage only, even if you can designate an external as the boot device. If that boot process isn't there, it won't boot, period. </p><p></p><p>But if the issue is a <strong>software</strong> problem on the system drives, you can do a "restore" of the drive, "reinstall" the OS and then restore from the backup. The "reinstall" is not really a reinstall as you would classically think, but it is a recreation the system files as they would be copied over in the first step of the boot process on a new machine. Essentially the result is the same, you have a brand-new, virgin, copy of the OS, to which you can restore with Migration Assistant from either your cloned data or TM backup. </p><p></p><p>So, while a clone is no longer "bootable" as we used to think of it, it is definitely more useful than a chocolate tea pot!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="MacInWin, post: 1892986, member: 396914"] [USER=329282]@pine man[/USER] I have done a lot of research and from what I can tell, the situation is not as dire as you might think. Basically, on the M1 systems the system files are locked in a secure portion of the System-on-a-Chip (SoC) that is encrypted and only accessible to Apple processes. On boot, the operating files are copied to a separate memory area that then acts like the boot drive we are used to seeing. Even the copies are then encrypted and for the most part write-protected, for security. So when a cloner comes along and wants to clone the System "drive" all it can see is the copies, not the originals, and it can't copy them in a way that would boot because of the boot sequence (copy, etc.) But cloners can, and do, very successfully copy the Data Volume just fine. While that sounds bad for cloners, the same is also true of Time Machine. In the M1 systems, TM also does not backup the system files for the very same reason--they are recreated at boot by the boot process. So, what to do? Just what you are doing now. If you have a cloner, you can continue to use it, and if you are using TM you can continue to use it. But what if the "drive" fails and you need to "restore" the system? In the old days, you could boot from the external clone, then order a replacement drive (If it was replaceable) and when it came in you would swap it in, then clone from the external to the new internal and be on your way. Or you could just continue to boot from the external drive, even if the internal was not replaceable. But in the M1, there is no "drive" to replace. The SoC has memory, some of which is used as a "drive," all tightly integrated. As a result of the design, if the problem is the "drive" has a [B]hardware[/B] failure, your system is toast. There is no replacement, except to replace the entire logic board. And you cannot boot from an external if the internal is broken because the boot looks for the boot process on the internal storage only, even if you can designate an external as the boot device. If that boot process isn't there, it won't boot, period. But if the issue is a [B]software[/B] problem on the system drives, you can do a "restore" of the drive, "reinstall" the OS and then restore from the backup. The "reinstall" is not really a reinstall as you would classically think, but it is a recreation the system files as they would be copied over in the first step of the boot process on a new machine. Essentially the result is the same, you have a brand-new, virgin, copy of the OS, to which you can restore with Migration Assistant from either your cloned data or TM backup. So, while a clone is no longer "bootable" as we used to think of it, it is definitely more useful than a chocolate tea pot! [/QUOTE]
Verification
Name this item. 🍎
Post reply
Forums
General Discussions
Switcher Hangout (Windows to Mac)
Migration from iMac Catalina (Intel) to iMac Big Sur (M1)
Top
