How do you get Time Machine to do a Full Backup?

I want to download Lion OS and I will call Apple for help, but I know they will ask if I've backed up everything. I'd like for Time Machine to completely back up my hard drive but I can't seem to find out how to make it do that. There must be an easy way. Any ideas? Thanks.

I know this is more information than you need but it is a fairly complete compilation of facts:
Disks you can use with Time Machine
Time Machine Server Requirements
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/TimeCapsule_SetupGuide.pdf
Pondini's Time Machine FAQ

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How do you get time machine to reset your computer to the specific date you would like?

How do you get time machine to reset your computer to the specific date you would like?

Hey carlleeh,
Thanks for the question. The following resource may guide you through that process:
OS X Mountain Lion: Recover your entire system
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11192
Thanks,
Matt M.

I am trying to update my time machine backup on time capsule, but time machine keeps trying to create an entirely new backup (evidenced by the 200GB backup size). How can I get time machine to modify my old backup rather than create a new one?

I am trying to update my time machine backup on time capsule, but time machine keeps trying to create an entirely new backup (evidenced by the 200GB backup size). How can I get time machine to modify my old backup rather than create a new one?

It must have found the old backup corrupt.. so you will more than likely have little choice. You can archive off the old backup if it is still useful.
You can also verify it. See A5 http://pondini.org/TM/Troubleshooting.html
He also has some info on this problem. eg C13.

How can I get time machine to use a previous backup db

I back up my school macbook pro once every few months. I'd like to use the older backup DBs but time machine keeps creating a new one using the computer's name and adding a number to it. For example School Computer (3) 2. Is there a way to get time machine to just use the old DB so I don't run out of room on my external drive.
Thanks in advance.

Hi I'd like to jump in here. Your app showed me this:
Time Machine:
          Skip System Files: NO
          Mobile backups: OFF
          Auto backup: YES
          Volumes being backed up:
                    Macintosh HD: Disk size: 749.3 GB Disk used: 453.81 GB
          Destinations:
                    Plastic Wrapper [Local] (Last used)
                    Total size: 999.86 GB
                    Total number of backups: 64
                    Oldest backup: 2013-07-24 23:25:11 +0000
                    Last backup: 2013-11-17 01:40:47 +0000
                    Size of backup disk: Too small
                              Backup size 999.86 GB < (Disk used 453.81 GB X 3)
          Time Machine details may not be accurate.
          All volumes being backed up may not be listed.
          /sbin excluded from backup!
          /usr excluded from backup!
          /System excluded from backup!
          /bin excluded from backup!
          /private excluded from backup!
          /Library excluded from backup!
          /Applications excluded from backup!
Aside from the size of my backup drive, which I will increase at some point, I'd really like to have time machine backing up all system folders, especially Applications. How to I reset this hidden exclusions?
Thanks,
Darcy

How Do you get Time Machine to work with a network drive?

I have not been able to choose a Drive for Time Machine on a Network Drive. The network drive is active and shown on my desktop. How Do I use it?

Correct. Back up to a network volume (other than Time Capsule) is not supported, so if you want to do it you have to use the command line to set something as shown in the article.
Another option you could do would be to create a large disk image file on the NAS device and mount it on your client and back up to that. You'd use Disk Utility to create a large (say, 200 GB) sparse image on the network storage and then double click it to mount it on your machine and set TM to back up to that. I could show you how to do this in 30 seconds but instructing it over a forum post... not so easy

How can I get Time Machine to back up an external hard drive (iPhotos) that is attached to airport extreme base station. Note: Time machine is usb to macbook pro and external drive with iphotos is usb to airport extreme base station. Help please. Thanks!

How can I get Time Machine to back up an external hard drive (iPhotos) that is attached to airport extreme base station. Note: Time machine is usb to macbook pro and external drive with iphotos is usb to airport extreme base station. Help please. Thanks!

Once you have the drive connected to your Mac, click System Preferences (gear icon) on the dock
Click Time Machine
Click Options
Be default, the hard drive will be Excluded from backups. Click the drive to highlight it, then click the "-" (minus) button at the bottom of the list to remove the drive from Excluded items.
The drive will be backed up on the next Time Machine pass
Everything above assumes that the hard drive has been formatted in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) as Time Machine will only backup drives in that format.

How does one get Time Machine out of a "Preparing to Backup" loop to actually doing a backup? thanks, AR

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Hi..
Thanks for the reply..
My original I Phone 5 was running IOS 6.12
My I phone 5S currently runs IOS 8..When I upgraded it, it had IOS 7 on it which made the I Photo app compatible with everything below IOS 8...( which the photo app is not compatible with ) so I just connected the I Phone 5S to my computer and thinking the new phone had IOS 7 on it that these was nothing to worry about..I thought all 900 + pictures in the photo stream would transfer but somewhere in the process, I Tunes decides to just go and install IOS 8 which requires that you run a " Photo Migration App" to transfer photos from IOS 7 & below. The problem was is that I didn't want IOS 8 on my new 5S so I thought I wouldn't have to do that part..
Anyway the phone emerged with IOS 8 on it and the only photos that remained were the ones that were actually on the phone..The 900 + I had in the stream didn't transfer because the Photos that works on IOS 7 and below isn't compatible with IOS 8..I guess you have to use the photo migration app that comes with IOS 8 & I phone 6..But I didn't ask to upgrade to IOS 8...It just did it on it's own!
I still have the I Phone 5 Back up that I did just before giving it back to Verizon but if I try to restore the I Phone 5S running IOS 8 those photos in the stream will not go back on the phone because IOS 8 isn't compatible with the I Photos" that ran on IOS 7 and below..
So I have an I Pad mini that runs IOS 7..should I try and erase it...and put that I Phone 5 backup on it and pray the photos that were in the stream come back on it so I can transfer them back to my computer...then erase the I pad mini again and restore it using it's original backup that I have on the computer and the in the cloud?
I know this sounds confusing but I'm at a loss as to what to do..This is what I found ...http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201386
but it doesn't help me..
Steve

HT201250 How do I get Time Machine back on my dock? I made a mistake and removed it from dock, somehow ended up in trash, what do I do

How do I get Time Machine back on my dock? I made a mistake and removed it from dock, somehow ended up in trash, what do I do?

Uh…you're saying two entirely different things here. If you removed Time Machine from the Dock, it could not be in the Trash. But if you removed it from your Applications or Utilities folder and put it in the Trash, that's a problem.
So, which one did you really do?

How do I get Time Machine to back up my iTunes movies and tv shows?

How do I get Time Machine to back up my iTunes movies and tv shows?

They're backed up automatically unless in a folder in the exclusion list of the Time Machine pane of System Preferences.
(59927)

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To use Videora iPod Convertor to convert movies for use on your iPod, consult these helpful links:
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How can I force Time Machine to make a complete backup of my Hard Drive. I just installed a new external drive for Backup since my previous one failed. Now when I back up, Time Machine only backs up my data folder and the Users folder.

How can I force Time Machine to make a complete backup of my Hard Drive. I just installed a new external drive for Backup since my previous one failed. Now when I back up, Time Machine only backs up my data folder and the Users folder.
When I start a backup. Time Machine says "Oldest Backup: None; Latest Backup: None", so it seems like it should do a complete backup, but it only does a partial.

Hi I'd like to jump in here. Your app showed me this:
Time Machine:
          Skip System Files: NO
          Mobile backups: OFF
          Auto backup: YES
          Volumes being backed up:
                    Macintosh HD: Disk size: 749.3 GB Disk used: 453.81 GB
          Destinations:
                    Plastic Wrapper [Local] (Last used)
                    Total size: 999.86 GB
                    Total number of backups: 64
                    Oldest backup: 2013-07-24 23:25:11 +0000
                    Last backup: 2013-11-17 01:40:47 +0000
                    Size of backup disk: Too small
                              Backup size 999.86 GB < (Disk used 453.81 GB X 3)
          Time Machine details may not be accurate.
          All volumes being backed up may not be listed.
          /sbin excluded from backup!
          /usr excluded from backup!
          /System excluded from backup!
          /bin excluded from backup!
          /private excluded from backup!
          /Library excluded from backup!
          /Applications excluded from backup!
Aside from the size of my backup drive, which I will increase at some point, I'd really like to have time machine backing up all system folders, especially Applications. How to I reset this hidden exclusions?
Thanks,
Darcy

HT201250 How do I get Time Machine to resume backing up?

Time Machine is supposed to delete old backups automatically when it is full to make room for new back ups.
After years of use it suddenly is giving me the message that it can't complete a backup.
It lists the "Details" as follows"
"Time Machine couldn't complete the backup to "Time Machine Backups"
The backup disk needs 114.76 GB for the backup but only 103.95 GB are available.
Select a larger backup disk or make the backup smaller by excluding files."
I do not wish to select a larger disk or exclude files.
How do get it to resume deleting old backups to make room for new?

I've got the same issue as OP, but I haven't backed up more than one volume.
My last successful backup was from 2 weeks ago, before going on vacation (I didn't take my Time Machine drive with me). When I look in Time Machine, I can see a number of backups from the intervening days, when my TM drive wasn't connected, and I can't see any of my backups from before the last successful backup.
When I came home from vacation, I connected my TM drive and Time Machine ran on schedule.
I don't know why the system thinks it was making Time Machine backups when the drive wasn't connected, but it seems to have decided these backups were made using a new volume. I'm going to look for troubleshooting options that will allow me to delete this erroneous thread of backups and hopefully force Time Machine to recognize the original volume.
Any other bits of advice would be appreciated. This appears to be the (secondary) result of a bug.

Can you get Time Machine to backup to a disk image?

I just bought an OWC external enclosure that holds two SATA drives. I upgraded my internal (main) HD to a 1TB drive, and then put my old internal 500 gig (main) HD and my old internal 500 gig (time machine) HD into the external enclosure.
So I'm good, with an external time machine raid array, that I can take off site.
But, I really wanted to encrypt the data, so as if someone broke into my car and stole my offsite backup, not have my data.
I thought about creating a 1TB (well, 930 gigs) encrypted image in disk utility on the external, mounting it, and choosing that for time machine. When I leave, shutdown would dismount the image, then turn off drive, unplug and leave.
But time machine won't allow me to choose the image.
I read about a terminal hack for backing up to unsupported network volumes....I tired that just for kicks, didn't work.
Is there any way to get time machine to allow me to choose a mounted disk image as my backup volume?
Thanks!

Likewise, I'm interested in the same question, but for a different reason: backing up to a NAS. Since a disk image gives you a nice virtual HFS+ partition, it seems a lot less suicidal than trying to shoehorn a Time Machine backup into whatever the NAS's native filesystem happens to be.
In theory it should be possible, since nested disk images (even mixing sparsebundle and plain old DMG) work just fine normally. And having your data in a nice monolithic DMG file would make it easier to copy and move the TM backups -- not to mention, you cap the max size and do encryption easily, as you described.
But it's almost impossible to find this information on the Web -- Googling for this topic results in a bunch of noise about Time Machine's sparsebundle images. I managed to find one similar thread:
http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?t=91297
But that thread, like this thread, so far doesn't have any solution.
I'm going to try to copy an existing TM backup to the disk image and see if that works. Will post again later, and hope that someone might have a solution someday.
Incidentally, if all you want is encryption, apparently you can get an encrypted TM backup by manually creating the sparsebundle file and turning on encryption. See the parent thread to this comment:
http://www.macosxhints.com/comment.php?mode=view&cid=98733
Anyway, let's hope someone might have a time-machine-inside-a-disk-image solution someday...

HT201250 how do I get Time Machine to back up files (e.g. iPhoto) stored on an external hard drive?

Installed a new 3TB external hard drive for Time Machine. I have 2 other external hard drives attached to my iMac that contain iTunes and iPhoto. How can I point Time Machine to those external drives to include in the backup?

What is listed in System Preferences > Time Machine > Options... > Exclude these items from backups:?
Any attached external disk not listed there should be backed up.

How do I get Time Machine to delete old files?

On threads for earlier operating systems I've seen similar questions, and it seems Apple hasn't resolved the problem that although Time Machine says it will delete old files when the disc is full, it doesn't do it, even though my hard drive has only ~300 GB of files on it and my external hard drive has 1.5 T, it does nothing to delete old files automatically. This hasn't always been the case. The first few entries were deleted awhile back, freeing space, but that has stopped happening. Any suggestions? Do I have to start with a fresh external hard drive?

ringoiphone wrote:
Thanks. Although the reset did nothing, by deleting enough old backups (a VERY slow process) I could get it to free enough space for another backup. It's not clear to me why it cannot do this automatically.
Time Machine will delete old backups, if it can. So something must be wrong. See #C4 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting.
If nothing there helps, a clue may be lurking in your logs. Use the widget in #A1 of Time Machine - Troubleshooting to display the backup messages from your logs. Locate the backup in question, then copy and post all the messages here.

How do you get Time Machine to do a Full Backup?

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