HT3275 my time machine says the backup is too large but it should only be incremental

I have time machine trying to back up my mac (OSX10.6) to a time capsule but it gives the error:
"This backup is too large for the backup disk. The backup requires 240.66 GB but only 8.25 GB are available."
This time capsule is used for backups on multiple macs in our house and has previously performed a successful full backup for this mac. I thought it would just delete old backups to create space for new ones, but it doesn't seem to want to do this.
How can I fix this?

TM often seems unable to fix the old backups if the disk is used by several computers.. so this is not unusual.
You either need to delete the sparsebundle for your computer and start a fresh backup.. 240GB is a lot of stuff btw.. is it restarting or corrupted an old backup and needs to restart.
The alternative is to use a USB drive connected to the TC and use that as the TM target. A local external disk would do the same thing of course.

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Time Machine says the backup is too large but it is not

Time Machine says the backup is too large but it is not.
While it is true my hard drive is very full (150 Gb used of the available 160Gb), this is way less than 42 Pb!!!!
I have tried numerous time to reset it and still the same issue.
Here is the reoccurring message:
Advice?

PB.. what the heck is a PB.. I kind of thought TB are still in fairly low digits.
Do a disk verify.. something is seriously stupidly wrong.. Otherwise ring Apple support and give them an earful about nonsense popups.
http://pondini.org/TM/Troubleshooting.html A5

Time Machine Error - The backup is too large for the backup disk

I have been using Lion (currently 10.7.1) on my MacBook Pro (13" - early 2011) since it was released. I haven't had any serious problems with it.
All of a sudden, I am getting an error in Time Machine. When it tries to run a backup, the error "This backup is too large for the backup disk. The backup requires 7.51 GB but only 630.1 GB are available." What gives? That's plenty of room. I have installed Logic Studio and a few plug-ins, so the 7.51 GB is probably right. The free space is correct as well. I can't understand what the problem is.
The backup disk is an external USB 2.0 drive with no other Time Machine backups on it or any other files. The folder "Backups.backupdb" is the only thing on the root of the disk.
I am reluctant to reset the Time Machine and lose all of the backups, but I will if anyone recommends it.

Hi Linc,
It is not working at the moment, as I have restored the original Lion image again; it has all my work and apps on it.
Many thanks for the info on the log, though. It tells a strange story. Here's the log from the last backup that worked to the first one that failed: --
Sep 12 17:15:55 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Starting standard backup
Sep 12 17:15:55 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Backing up to: /Volumes/Backup/Backups.backupdb
Sep 12 17:15:55 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: 100.0 MB required (including padding), 633.72 GB available
Sep 12 17:15:55 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Waiting for index to be ready (100)
Sep 12 17:16:00 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Copied 793 files (601 KB) from volume System.
Sep 12 17:16:00 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: 100.0 MB required (including padding), 633.72 GB available
Sep 12 17:16:01 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Copied 89 files (93 bytes) from volume System.
Sep 12 17:16:01 Johns-MacBook-Pro mds[34]: (Error) Volume: Could not find requested backup type:2 for volume
Sep 12 17:16:01 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Starting post-backup thinning
Sep 12 17:16:01 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Deleted /Volumes/Backup/Backups.backupdb/John’s MacBook Pro/2011-09-11-154229 (1.1 MB)
Sep 12 17:16:01 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Post-back up thinning complete: 1 expired backups removed
Sep 12 17:16:01 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[674]: Backup completed successfully.
Sep 13 10:34:12 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[287]: Starting standard backup
Sep 13 10:34:12 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[287]: Backing up to: /Volumes/Backup/Backups.backupdb
Sep 13 10:34:52 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[287]: 7.51 GB required (including padding), 630.11 GB available
Sep 13 10:34:52 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[287]: No expired backups exist - deleting oldest backups to make room
Sep 13 10:34:52 Johns-MacBook-Pro mds[32]: (Error) Volume: Could not find requested backup type:2 for volume
Sep 13 10:35:03 Johns-MacBook-Pro com.apple.backupd[287]: Backup failed with error: Not enough available disk space on the target volume.
I don't understand. For starters, I think it's a little wasteful that 3.5 GB has been used to back up 601 KB. That's the difference in free space on the backup volume between the two backups. That can't be normal, surely.
The only error is that mds[32] error, and from what I've read on forums, that seems to appear on backups that work perfectly.
Too weird. It looks like I'll have to reinstall Lion and all my applications again to get Time Machine working, or find another backup solution.

Time machine says back up is too large but there is room in my HD

ok searched the forums but could not find the answer....time machine was working perfectly...then..suddenly stated that the back up was too big. TM says the back up is 255.5mb but when I do a get info on my HD here is what it says...capacity 232.76gb available 11.77gb....i thought TM overwrites older stuff...can anybody help. my external HD is 250 gb. the other odd thing is tm only shows two back ups now.
Message was edited by: Chris Harmount

Chris Harmount wrote:
my back up drive is supposed to be 250G total. It says it has 185G available.
My computer drive is also 250G total. It says that I have about 20G available.
Time machine says my current back up is 260G??? I thought that 1. time machine overwrites old backups as the hard drive fills up. 2. I no longer see the history of when I first started theTM back ups. I only see one back up now and I can no longer use TM due to the error message?
It sounds like you internal drive has about 230 GB of data and the entire TM drive is 250GB? that will never work. TM needs some head room to operate. I don't know how much exactly but I know that it does.
also, i suspect that 250Gb is the advertised decimal GB capacity. the actual binary capacity is smaller and is probably around 230GB or less.
You definitely need a bigger TM drive.

HT3275 time machine states: the backup is too large for the backup disk?? not sure what to do here,

does anyone know what to do here?? time machine will not complete any backups- every time it attempts it states the backup disk is not large enough

If you decide to erase the Time Capsule and start over with a new set of Time Machine backups.....
Open Macintosh HD > Applications > Utilities > AirPort Utility
Click on the Time Capsule icon, then click Edit
Click the Disks tab at the top of the window
Click Erase Disk
The Quick Erase option will only take a few minutes
Once the procedure is complete, close AirPort Utility
To start over with a new set of Time Machine backups.....
Click the Time Machine clock icon at the top of the Macs screen
Click Open Time Machine Preferences
Make sure Time Machine is On
Click Add or Remove Disks
Click your Time Capsule
Click Use Disk
A new backup should start in a few moments. Allow plenty of time for the first backup because the entire contents of your Mac will be copied over on this backup.
If you want to keep your current backup history and add a new Time Capsule, we'll need to understand how you have your Time Capsule set up in your network at the present time.
Is the Time Capsule now connected to a modem with a wired Ethernet cable?
What is the make and model number of the modem?
Does the Time Capsule provide your wireless network signal, or does another modem/router perform this service?

Time machine says back up is too large.

I am trying to back up my iMac with Time Machine and a connected G-Drive. I have deleted many old files and in Finder I have 320 GB available. Still, time machine says: "This backup is too large for the backup disk. The backup requires 210.66 GB but only 9.15 GB are available." What to do?

Try C4 in the 1st linked article.
Time Machine Troubleshooting
Time Machine Troubleshooting Problems

Time Machine Error This backup is too large for the backup disk

Hi, I have a 1TB Time Capsule which backs up my Mac. I was having some issues with my mac so I decided to perform an erase and install and then use Migration Assistant to transfer everything back to my Mac.
After I reinstalled Snow Leopard and restored my Mac using Migration Assistant, Time Machine says that the backup has failed. It says " Time Machine Error This backup is too large for the backup disk. The Backup requires 663 GB but only 255 GB are available.
What do I do? Is my only option to erase my Time Capsule and have it back everything up from scratch?

Hi, thanks for the help. I erased everything off of the Time Capsule and it's backing up my Mac from scratch. It's almost finished backing up my whole mac. It's now at 641.86gb of 646.54gb but it's now backing up very slowly. It's backing up .1 every few minutes. Is this normal?
Here's the log from Time Machine Buddy:
Starting standard backup
Attempting to mount network destination using URL: afp://Stuart%[email protected]/Time%20Capsule
Mounted network destination using URL: afp://Stuart%[email protected]/Time%20Capsule
Creating disk image /Volumes/Time Capsule/StuartsMacPro.sparsebundle
QUICKCHECK ONLY; FILESYSTEM CLEAN
Disk image /Volumes/Time Capsule/StuartsMacPro.sparsebundle mounted at: /Volumes/Time Machine Backups
Backing up to: /Volumes/Time Machine Backups/Backups.backupdb
Ownership is disabled on the backup destination volume. Enabling.
Detected system migration from: /Volumes/My Book
Backup content size: 850.0 GB excluded items size: 606.5 GB for volume Stuart's Drive
Backup content size: 425.9 GB excluded items size: 67.3 GB for volume Macintosh HD
No pre-backup thinning needed: 722.56 GB requested (including padding), 928.68 GB available
Waiting for index to be ready (101)
Copied 28.3 GB of 602.1 GB, 29340 of 1478089 items
Copied 55.0 GB of 602.1 GB, 41596 of 1478089 items
Copied 82.9 GB of 602.1 GB, 55899 of 1478089 items
Copied 110.7 GB of 602.1 GB, 63347 of 1478089 items
Copied 138.8 GB of 602.1 GB, 83831 of 1478089 items
Copied 166.8 GB of 602.1 GB, 94574 of 1478089 items
Copied 194.7 GB of 602.1 GB, 102854 of 1478089 items
Copied 222.8 GB of 602.1 GB, 114388 of 1478089 items
Copied 129159 files (242.5 GB) from volume Stuart's Drive.
Copied 248.4 GB of 602.1 GB, 130414 of 1478089 items
Copied 265.5 GB of 602.1 GB, 355699 of 1478089 items
Copied 293.6 GB of 602.1 GB, 382912 of 1478089 items
Copied 322.1 GB of 602.1 GB, 387974 of 1478089 items
Copied 349.8 GB of 602.1 GB, 399204 of 1478089 items
Copied 378.3 GB of 602.1 GB, 399358 of 1478089 items
Copied 406.9 GB of 602.1 GB, 399441 of 1478089 items
Copied 434.5 GB of 602.1 GB, 415817 of 1478089 items
Copied 461.5 GB of 602.1 GB, 471528 of 1478089 items
Copied 488.2 GB of 602.1 GB, 537277 of 1478089 items
Copied 515.1 GB of 602.1 GB, 580446 of 1478089 items
Copied 541.3 GB of 602.1 GB, 590386 of 1478089 items
Copied 566.8 GB of 602.1 GB, 602496 of 1478089 items
Copied 593.3 GB of 602.1 GB, 649575 of 1
Message was edited by: Stuart Lawrence
Message was edited by: Stuart Lawrence

Time Machine Error. Backup is too large for the backup disk. Backup requires 289.28 GB but only 177.01 GB are available.

My Mac has not been backing up for some time. Tried Apple Support, but couldn't figure out problem.
Receive the following error...
Time Machine Error
This backup is too large for the backup disk. The backup requires 289.28 GB but only 177.03 GB are available.

See #C4 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting.
If that doesn't clarify the situation, post back with:
How much data is on your internal HD (and any others being backed-up)?
How large is your Time Capsule?
Is there anything else on the TC besides these backups? If so, what and how large?

HT3275 Time Machine says the backup is full, how to create more space on my time machine?

When i attempt to backup, time machine says that it does nto have enough free space to backup, how can i create enough space so that it will continue to backup?

Time Machine automatically deletes old snapshots when necessary to make room for a new one. If you're getting that message, it means that all your old snapshots have been deleted, and there is still not enough room to back up all your data. Either you must make some drastic exclusions from your backups, or you must back up to a larger destination volume.

Time machine says the backup file is too big but...

Hi. My time machine back up stopped working. It tells me that the back up file is too large. I have a WD external 500GB Mybook. I am trying to back up my 500GB MacBook. "Get Info" on the MacBook indicates that there is 153GB on disk. "Get Info" on the Mybook indicates that there is 278.8 GB available. However, when I attempt to run backup in Time Machine I get the following message: "This backup is too large for the backup volume. The backup requires 378.4 GB but only 278.8 GB are avalable..."
Why is Time Machine telling me that the backup file is 378.4GB when my MacBook shows that I only have 153GB on disk? If I only have 153GB on disk, 278.8GB of free space in the backup volume should be sufficient for me to back up right? What am I missing here?

Same problem here, found any solution yet guys?

I have a 500 GB hard drive and a 1TB Time Capsule running on a MacBook Pro. It was all working well until the MacBook went in for a repair a week or so ago. Since then, TC will not perform a backup; instead, it says the backup is too large for the disk

Since having my MacBook Pro repaired (for a video problem) Time Capsule returns the following message: "This backup is too large for the backup disk. The backup requires 428.08 GB but only 192.14 GB are available."
I notice that there is also a new sparse bundle.
Since TC has my ONLY backup (going back about 4 years) I am reluctant to wipe it and start over fresh as I am afraid of losing files.
Is there a way of dealing with this?
I am using Snow Leopard 10.6.8

The repair shop likely replaced a major circuit board on your MacBook Pro, so Time Machine thinks that you have a "new" computer and it wants to make a new complete backup of your Mac.
You are going to have to make a decision to either add another new Time Capsule....or USB drive to your existing Time Capsule....and in effect start over with a new backup of your Mac and then move forward again.
For "most" users, I think this is probably the best plan because you preserve all your old backups in case you need them at some point, and you start over again with a new Time Capsule so you have plenty of room for years of new backups.
Or, as you have mentioned, you have the option of erasing the Time Capsule drive and starting all over again. The upside is that you start over and have plenty of room for new backups. The downside is that you lose years of backups.
Another option....trying to manually delete old backups individually....is tricky business....and very time consuming. To get an idea of what is involved here, study this FAQ by Pondini, our resident Time Capsule and Time Machine expert on the Community Support area. In particular, study the pink box.
http://web.me.com/pondini/Time_Machine/12.html
Once you look through this, I think you may agree that this type of surgery is not for the faint of heart. I would suggest that you consider this only if one of the other options just cannot work for you.

Time Machine says "The Backup Disk is Not Available"

Line 0: I have a 400 GB external Western Digital drive that I leave plugged into an Airport Extreme. Previously, this worked mostly without a problem. It took some massaging to get it to work at first (I had to create the backup with the drive directly connected to the computer, and then I moved the drive over to the Airport Extreme and it was fine after that), but after that, it worked forever. This was in the previous version of the OS that I was running (snow leopard?). I very recently upgraded to Lion and it seemed to be OK, but then suddenly it gave me an error that said it had not been able to do a backup for 10 days. I thought "wow, that means it hasn't backed up since I upgraded to Lion."
So I told it to do a backup right away. It failed with the error "The backup disk is not available."
I unplugged the drive and plugged it back in. No go.
I tried to reselect the drive from within Time Machine preferences. It would not appear and in fact it kept forcing me to go to the Airport Extreme software. I did this and there was no obvious way to set anything up from within that software. I left everything as it was ("Enable file sharing" checked, "Secure shared disks" was at "with device password," and it was remembering the password in my keychain).
Go back to Time Machine preferences and the disk still doesn't show up. Force a reboot on the router, it still doesn't show up.
I brought the drive over to the computer and plugged it in directly, and everything was fine. It did a backup on the spot, it read the backup that was there, the drive showed up, etc. I formatted it just for the heck of it and started over completely and it was happy. I did a disk check and everything was fine. After leaving it on all night to complete a new backup, I unmounted the disk, brought it over to the Airport Extreme, plugged it back in, and now we go back to line 0 and rinse repeat.
Can someone please tell me how to get my drive to start working with Time Machine again?

It should not have worked in the first place.. when you moved it from the PC to the airport extreme.. that is not correct.. I don't know how SL managed to work around it.. but Lion obviously cannot.
You will need to start all over again..
Also note.. the flakey nature of this setup.. according to well respected people here AEBS with USB drive does not give reliable TM backups.. I would pay close attention to what they are saying. Time Capsule is more than a AEBS with a hard drive inside.. although exactly the difference I don't know.
But you can expect the current setup to not work, because it never should have.

Time capsule says: This backup is too large for the backup volume.

What should I do. Has been working quite happily for a year or so. Now every time it tries to back up i get the error message "backup requires 66.4 gb but only 45.3 available."

Welcome to the discussions!
Your Time Capsule is almost full. You have a few options:
1) Add another Time Capsule to keep your current backups and continue future backups. This is a good solution, but it requires an additional purchase.
2) Erase the Time Capsule disk that you have now and start over with the backup process. If you don't really need all the backups to indicate how your computer looked months ago, this is an economical option.
The downside to this option is that you will be without backups at all during the period between the time you erase the disk and make master backups for each computer. In the unlikely event that one of your computers might fail at the wrong time, you would lose the data on that computer.

Time Machine Error - this backup is too large....;

My time capsule no longer backs-up. I get an error Time Machine Error....This back up is too large for the back up disk. I havent much to the HD to have it all of a sudden do this. I did install a new HD about a year ago and some posts seem to indicate that perhaps it keeps backup all files and therefore duplicating. Not sure.

See Pondini's TM FAQs, for starters.

HT3275 Time Machine Error: The backup disk image "Volumes/Data/My Macbook Pro.sparsebundle" is already in use. (How do I correct this issue?)

Time Machine did not back up:
Time Machine Error; ("The backup disk image "/Volumes/Data/My MacBook Pro.sparsebundle" is already in use.")
How do I correct this issue?
Thanks!

You need to be careful Bob.. people might take this literally.
Bob Timmons wrote:
How do I correct this issue?
Call the exterminator to get rid of the bugs in Lion and Mountain Lion.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5222487?tstart=0

HT3275 my time machine says the backup is too large but it should only be incremental

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