HT201250 Can Time Machine backup files stored on external hard drive

Can Time Machine back up files that are stored on external hard drive and save them on a different external hard drive?
I have my pictures stored on an external hard drive connected to my iMac. I want to make an exact copy of the pictures folder on a separate external hard drive. Can Time Machine do that?
If yes, how?
If no, what's a good way to create a mirror of the folder on External Hard Drive #1 (the original) on External Hard Drive #2 (the backup)?
I am not opposed to manually copying every couple weeks or month, but (1) it's less convenient and (2) I got an error message the first time I tried this saying the files couldn't be copied because some of the files being copied had the same name as each other (not exactly that, I'm at work and don't have the message in front of me right now, but that was the gist of it).
Thanks!

1. Yes, if both drives are formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
2. Reformat the drives if needed, open the Time Machine pane of System Preferences, and remove the drive with the pictures from the list of items set to be excluded.
(110331)

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How can Time Machine backup automatically when your external hard drive isn't connected?

Everywhere I search, it says that Time Machine will automatically backup every 24 hours and so on.
However, I was wondering - how can these automatic backups take place if you are backing up to an external hard drive which is not always connected?
Is this to say that if you do not connect your external hard drive for a day, no backups will be done that day?
Thank you

If the drive is not connected then TM pauses until the drive becomes available. Yes, if the drive isn't connected then there are no backups.
A whole lot about Time Machine for help with TM problems. Also you can select Mac Help from the Finder's Help menu and search for "time machine" to locate articles on how to use TM. See also Mac 101- Time Machine.

I have a time machine backup file on a USB hard drive. I bought a time capsule / airport extreme, flat 3TB. I wish to transfer the backup file from the usb hard drive to the time capsule hard drive. 10.6.8

I have a time machine backup file on a USB hard drive. I bought a time capsule / airport extreme, flat 3TB. I wish to transfer the backup file from the usb hard drive to the time capsule hard drive. 10.6.8

Unfortunately, Time Machine backups that are stored on a drive that has been connected directly to a Mac are completely different than Time Machine backups that are stored on a Time Capsule.
Frankly, it is not worth the effort and trouble to try to transfer the old backups to the new Time Capsule.....my opinion....having done this in the past.
It is possible though, but I would not recommend it due to the complexity and downsides involved with this. To give you an idea of how to do this, check out this support article.
http://pondini.org/TM/18.html
Even if you transfer the "old" backups over to the Time Capsule successfully, Time Machine will not simply "add on" to the old backups.
Time Machine will make a new complete backup of your Mac and then add incremental backups from that point.
My advice.....start a new backup on the Time Capsule and move forward. Keep the USB hard drive around for a month, maybe 2 or 3 in case you need to go back to an old backup for some reason. At that time, you will not likely need the old backups at all since you will have a current 2-3 month history of new backups. At that point, you can erase the USB drive and use it for another purpose.

How Can I Migrate My Time Machine Backups To A New External Hard Drive?

I have a external hard drive that has 500 GBs left, but I want to buy a larger drive.

ivan wrote:
How Can I Migrate My Time Machine Backups To A New External Hard Drive?
I have a external hard drive that has 500 GBs left, but I want to buy a larger drive.
Hi iVain
Fire up *Disk Utility*, click the Restore tab, then drag your old and new TM drives into the Source and Destination fields. Click Restore, and a complete copy of your old TM files will be made on the new drive. Go to TM preferences and select the new drive, and it will continue backing up just as it left off.
Hope this answers your question. See:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2595485&tstart=0

Can Time Machine back up a second external hard drive that is attached via usb to a Time Capsule?

Can Time Machine back up a second external hard drive that is attached via usb to a Time Capsule?
I have a iMac with 10.7.4

I want to back up the data on the external Hard Drive that is attached to the Time Capsule to the Tim Capsule using Time Machine.
Thanks for the clarification. Unfortunately, that will not work. You will need to connect the drive directly to your Mac if you want Time Machine to backup the drive to the Time Capsule.

Time Machine backup? pictures and external hard drive

I know this question has been asked before but I just wanted to make sure of something. Does a basic Time Machine backup backup all photos? And also a real basic question-- Is a Apple Time Capsule the same as a external hard drive?

You can save the pictures in Time Machine backup.. that is not a problem and what the TC is designed for.
You cannot off load the pictures from the internal disk of the computer and use the Time Capsule as the drive for a running library.. that is when it will get corrupted.. if you need more space for a library use External drive that plugs in by USB or FW or Thunderbolt. And it must be formatted standard Mac OS extend journaled.. then Time Machine can backup the drive to the Time Capsule.
I should also use the language more carefully.. the TC is fine for files even of pictures.. but it is unsuitable for an iphoto library or aperture library. I am always assuming on a Mac when people talk about pictures then they mean a library.. but if you save raw pictures from the camera onto a TC directly that is fine. The only issue that then arises is no automated backups.. TC is not a NAS in the normal sense of the word.. Every NAS has a built automated backup.. TC does not. You also cannot backup files on the TC using TM.. it was designed as a Target for Time Machine backups Not as a source. There are other backup products that will work.. but then you will need to figure out where to back up file to.. and the worst possible place is the USB on the TC.

HT201250 Time Machine backup of internal AND external hard drive

I have an iMac with an internal hard drive for everything BUT photos and music and an external hard drive for only photos and music. If I hook up a second external hard drive will Time MAchine back up both my external (music/photos) hard drive AND my internal hard drive?

You will be able to back up the external drive, but you will have to modify settings. Time Machine only makes backups of your OS X partition by default.
Open System Preferences > Time Machine > Options, and remove the external drive from excluded items, so it will be backed up. I recommend ot have your external drive formatted in "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)"

Time machine accessing files on an external hard drive

I backed up my iMac desktop at work onto an external hard drive. I can see the files, but they are all locked. When I go to open, I receive the following message "The folder (whatever the name is) can't be opened because you don't have permission to see its contents." I understand that the system I want to transfer to is different, but is there -- shouldn't there be an override asking for the password.
Since I am the administrator to both systems, I would hope I could see the documents that I created.
Please advise
mudmannLA

TM backups are protected by very restrictive Access Control Lists, partly to protect them from being damaged by users changing things, and partly as a security measure.
Sounds like the user you're logged-on to isn't the same one as on the backups.
Are you trying to transfer a whole user account, or part of one? If so, see Using Migration Assistant on Lion.
If not, try another user account (create one if necessary).

Can't recover backup files off of external hard drive. HELP!!! :(

Recently I had to restore my laptop to its factory settings. Before doing this I made a backup on my "2TB WD My Book Essential External Hard Drive", using a suggested back up program simply titled "Back Up Files". The file it made on it is called "MINWINPC" and it has 2 folders in it that are titled "backup Files 2011-12-08-042146" and "Backup Files 2011-12-08-051659". The second one is the only one with anything in it an application titled "Backup.1.exe".
here are the details of "Backup.1.exe":
File description: RestoreWiz Application
Type: Application
File version: 8.0.92.0
Product name: RestorWiz
Product version: 8.0.92.0
Copyright: Solft Thinks Copyright (C) 2008
Size: 2.93 MB
Date modified: 12/8/2011 5:17AM
WhenIi click on the "Backup.1" application it opens up recovery manager. It asks me what files I want to restore and where I want to restore my backup.
I choose OS( C: ). It then tells me the location my files will be restored to, C:\System Recovery files.
Then it starts scanning for files to restore. This lasts a minute or 2 before an error message pops up.
"Runtime error! program: G:\MINWINPC\backup.1.exe
This application has requested the runtime to terminate it in an unusual .
Please contact the application's support team for more information."
I click ok to have another message from Microsoft windows pop up that says
"RestoreWiz Application has stopped working. A problem caused the program to stop working correctly. Windows will close the program and notify you if a solution is available."
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this problem? I would really like to get my backed up files back onto my computer
My System Information:
Manufacturer & Model: HP Pavilion dv7 Notebook PC/NM101UA#ABA
Type of Computer: Laptop
CPU: Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo T6400 @ 2.00GHz 73 °C Penryn 45nm Technology
Motherboard: Hewlett-Packard 3624 (CPU) 69 °C
Mem: 4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 398MHz (6-6-6-18)
HDD: 244GB Seagate ST9250320AS ATA Device (SATA) 33 °C 244GB Seagate ST9250320AS ATA Device (SATA) 38 °C Video: Generic PnP Monitor (1600x900@60Hz) 1024MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 (HP)
Sound: High Definition Audio Device IDT High Definition Audio CODEC Bluetooth Hands-free Audio Bluetooth St
OS: MS Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit SP1
Monitor: Generic PnP Monitor on ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 (1600x900 60Hz) ;work res(1600x870 60Hz)
ISP: Suddenlink
My System Information:
Manufacturer & Model: HP Pavilion dv7 Notebook PC/NM101UA#ABA
Type of Computer: Laptop
CPU: Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo T6400 @ 2.00GHz 73 °C Penryn 45nm Technology
Motherboard: Hewlett-Packard 3624 (CPU) 69 °C
Mem: 4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 398MHz (6-6-6-18)
HDD: 244GB Seagate ST9250320AS ATA Device (SATA) 33 °C 244GB Seagate ST9250320AS ATA Device (SATA) 38 °C Video: Generic PnP Monitor (1600x900@60Hz) 1024MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 (HP)
Sound: High Definition Audio Device IDT High Definition Audio CODEC Bluetooth Hands-free Audio Bluetooth St
OS: MS Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit SP1
Monitor: Generic PnP Monitor on ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 (1600x900 60Hz) ;work res(1600x870 60Hz)
ISP: Suddenlink

sooooo no one has any suggestions?
My System Information:
Manufacturer & Model: HP Pavilion dv7 Notebook PC/NM101UA#ABA
Type of Computer: Laptop
CPU: Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo T6400 @ 2.00GHz 73 °C Penryn 45nm Technology
Motherboard: Hewlett-Packard 3624 (CPU) 69 °C
Mem: 4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 398MHz (6-6-6-18)
HDD: 244GB Seagate ST9250320AS ATA Device (SATA) 33 °C 244GB Seagate ST9250320AS ATA Device (SATA) 38 °C Video: Generic PnP Monitor (1600x900@60Hz) 1024MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 (HP)
Sound: High Definition Audio Device IDT High Definition Audio CODEC Bluetooth Hands-free Audio Bluetooth St
OS: MS Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit SP1
Monitor: Generic PnP Monitor on ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 (1600x900 60Hz) ;work res(1600x870 60Hz)
ISP: Suddenlink

Can Time Machine Backup a Folder within my Hard Drive

Hi
Can you advise, when I go into Time Machine it only gives me the option to backup my internal drive, is there any way I can tell it to backup my Jobs Folder only, this folder is on my external which also has other folders on it I dont want backed up?
Many Thanks

If you mean you want Time Machine to back up that one folder and nothing else, then Thomas is correct; use another app.
But if you mean you want to back up your internal HD and that one folder, then yes, TM can do that, if the external is formatted properly.
In TM Preferences > Options, the list is of things not backed-up. If your external disk is listed there, in gray, then it's not formatted right and TM cannot back it up. You'd have to copy the data off somewhere temporarily, reformat it, and copy it back.
If it's listed in black, select it and click the minus sign at the bottom. Then click the plus sign and exclude everything on that drive that you don't want Time Machine to back up.

Time Machine Backup not possible (normal external Hard drive)

Hi,
has anyone else had the problem that after the Lion upgrade its not possible to even really access your external time machine?
i have a 1TB Samsung HD103SI Media and when it tries to boot up it wont show in finder, i can see it in the disk drive utility and try to repair it but it only gets me an error saying i have to reformat that drive?
i hope this can somehow be fixed otherwise all my backups are gone

Hi,
Sorry to hear about your Issue...
Was your Samsung Formatted to Mac OS Entended (journaled) when you first started using it with TM...?
If so see the Troubleshooting Section in this Link to Pondinis excellent Tips on Time Machine...
http://web.me.com/pondini/AppleTips/Index.html
Cheers,
You may also find the TM references in this Link of Interest...
http://web.me.com/pondini/AppleTips/LionChanges.html

Checking time machine backups with a new external hard drive

Is there a way to make sure that my backups are complete looking at time machine? All I see is the front page for each backup and dont see how to open it and look at the files that were backed up? I have a new LaCie ext hard drive that Im using and want to make sure it is working properly. Also, do I need to change my sleep settings to allow Time Machine to have adequate time to back up, or does it take care of everything?

Cumby wrote:
Is there a way to make sure that my backups are complete looking at time machine? All I see is the front page for each backup and dont see how to open it and look at the files that were backed up?
Are you going into Time Machine from your desktop? If so, TM will show only the desktop in your backups. Try starting from a Finder window of, say, your home folder, then go into Time Machine. You should be able to select a backup and navigate within it just as you would normally, and see the complete "snapshot" of everything that was there at the time of the backup you selected.
Separately, Click here to download the TimeTracker app. It shows most of the files actually saved by TM for each backup (excluding some hidden/system files, etc.).
I have a new LaCie ext hard drive that Im using and want to make sure it is working properly. Also, do I need to change my sleep settings to allow Time Machine to have adequate time to back up, or does it take care of everything?
TM will do all that for you. If your Mac falls asleep, TM will just do a backup when it awakens. If you manually put it to sleep (or power off) while it's doing a backup, it will just pick-up and continue when it's awake again.

HT201250 My time machine only sometimes recognises my external hard drive, and when it does, it freezes and does not transfer any data. What is going on?

I changed hard-drive. Time machine started hopefully and mid-way through the whole thing froze. Since then, back to the same problem

I bought a new one yesterday to check - it went to 15GB, then suddenly all collapsed again. Would that be sheer coincidence that two hard-drives blow up when trying to use time machine?

Can time machine be use like an external hard drive

like to put a windows partition on time machine use it for more espace

305Sebas wrote:
like to put a windows partition on time machine ..
Do not do this... TM works best on its Own Dedicated Hard Drive.
Would suggest another EHD for your windows usage.

Can I transfer a Time Machine backup to a new empty hard drive, without installing Mountain Lion again?

Can I transfer a Time Machine backup to a new empty hard drive, without installing Mountain Lion on that new hard drive?

Yes - I just did it the other night. Took five hours, but it finally finished and is working great.
I sort of followed the instructions found here -->> http://pondini.org/TM/18.html.
Also, if you want to have dual backups, see -->>
http://pondini.org/TM/27.html.
I say 'sort of' because I used Carbon Copy Cloner to do a block-level transfer. I just didn't want to get hung up with a Finder copy.
Give CCC a try - you have to enable the block copy in Preferences before using this method, but I was quite happy with it. I used it to move over 1TB of TM backups from a FireWire 800 drive to a 2TB Thunderbolt drive. 5 seconds short of taking 5 hours.
It should work well for you.
Clinton

HT201250 Can Time Machine backup files stored on external hard drive

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