Portable Backup Instructions

Hello. I am presently using Time Machine on a Lacie 500GB HD and have 1 observation and 1 question:
1--When I go on vacation, I disconnect the Lacie and store it in another location, separate from the iMac, ie: at a neighbours home. When I return, I reconnect the Lacie to again be backing up the iMac via Time Machine.
2--I have another HD, iOmega, that I want to backup my iMac and always keep it in a separate location, periodically updating it. (this would be a backup to data when the iMac and Lacie are connected)
My question on this is how is the best way of getting the data from my iMac to the iOmega? Could I disconnect the main Lacie Backup HD, connect the iOmega so that Time Machine backs up onto it, then disconnect the iOmega and hook the Lacie back to the iMac?
Hope someone can give me some pointers on this. Thanks.

Swapping between two different drives with Time Machine is possible, but a pain in the butt for regular use, as you have to switch the drive in the TM preferences every time. Instead, use TM with the Lacie drive and use another tool, like [Carbon Copy Cloner|http://www.bombich.com> or SuperDuper, to clone your data to the iOmega drive. CCC can be configured to automatically run a backup when you connect the iOmega drive.

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SimpleSave portable backup drive--doesn't start automatically

I have the SimpleSave portable drive (Model sd320a) and have used it successfully. However, although when I first starting using it the drive automatically started when I plugged it into my computer, it no longer does. I must have changed some setting on my computer, but I can't figure out what I did. I now cannot get the device to start. I followed the instructions in the user manual (to start it through Vista Computer and clicking on the icon), but four file folders just come up and nothing I click on will start the application.
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Creating a portable backup drive that's encrypted

I've been considering an off-site backup solution like Carbonite to protect my files, particularly now almost all of my photos etc are digital and on my mac. I use Time Machine to an external desktop drive for day to day backups, but want to protect against loss from theft or fire.
I'm not keen on paying annually for something like Carbonite, and instead have been thinking of a small pocket-size portable hard drive that I can take with me regularly if I'm away from home. However, I'm also conscious of losing the hard drive and not wanting anyone finding it to have access to the files on there. Is there an easy way, without buying any new software, of making a portable external hard drive encrypted, so that I can regularly backup files to it, but if it gets lost, others can't access the files on there?
Cheers

Use Disk Utility to create an encrypted sparse bundle disk image. Store the .sparsebundle file on your external drive. Mount the disk image by double clicking it. Copy your data to the mounted virtual drive. Eject the virtual drive when done. You can also store the disk image password in your keychain so that you do not need to re-enter it when you mount the image on your own Mac.
If your drive is lost, the contents will only be retrievable be somebody who knows the disk image password.

Bootcamp Backup Instructions

Step by step instructions for the creation of an NTFS Bootcamp back-up image file using Apple OS X 10.8.4 software, (No additional software required). Must have an external back-up disk. I suggest the WD "Mypassport" for under a hundred at Apple stores. These same instructions apply for backup of the OS X partition on the same external hard drive. Both OS X and Bootcamp images can be restored onto a new hard drive or back on to the original source disk in the case of a needed write-over using the same utility software. Please make sure and give me feed back, especially during any sorts of testing, thank you.
Open Finder
Select Applications
Select Disk Utility
Select "Bootcamp"
Select "New Image" (create a disk image from disk or device).
Save as: Bootcamp
Where: My Passport Air
Image Format: read-only
Encryption: none
"Cats rule the Planet" kittyboy

I have not actually transfered the image file onto a new drive partition. I assume that the file would have to be installed onto a pre-formated NTSF partition? I do not have an experimental macbook. I am sure that if you follow the instructions I wrote, you will have created a very good image of your intire partition. I suggest the additional step of verification. Just double click the file after it is created, and it should automatically start the verification process. I have plugged in my air drive and sellected it as a start-up drive from the options list that is visible holding down the "option" key at power on. But I am not 100% sure if it actually started from the air drive even though I selected it? Please keep me posted, it is a question that I share with you. If it works, then we both have the easiest way to get this done and feel confident we have no surprises when we do not need one! When you create new back-ups in the future, the message will prompt you to write over the old file. The only problem with the bootcamp software is that once you partition your hard drive, you are unable to re-size it and alocate re-aocate the new space, I have tried this in the osx even though the windows will allow you to reduce and have free space available. Only second party software will allow you to change around drive partition space without a complete re-format of the entire hard drive. Let me know if you get this message.

Recommended Portable Backup Drives

I would like to purchase 2 types of drives.
1.) A 1TB+ drive that I can use as backup for my project and raw footage files, and would be able to transport back and forth from home to office.
2.) A smaller portable drive that I can use to dump raw footage on after my shoots on location, using the Canon 5D/CF cards/SD cards
Any reliable drives you can recommend? I know many that crap all over Lacie but the external drives ive been using have held up for a couple years.. Thanks in advance for your recommendations/advice

Hi,
Have a look at the Nexto Range, along with a Lacie Rugged.
depends on Budget.

NTFS Boot Camp Backup Instructions

Step by step instructions for the creation of an NTFS back-up image Bootcamp file using Apple (OEM) OS X 10.8.4 software, no additional software required. Must have an external back-up disk, I recommend the Western Digital My Passport Air for under a hundred dollars at the Apple store . Bootcamp image can be stored onto the same hard drive the OS X is imaged onto from Time Machine.
Following are instructions to create Bootcamp Backup Image file:
Open Finder
Select Applications
Select Disk Utility
Select "Bootcamp"
Select "New Image" (create a disk image from disk or device).
Save as: Bootcamp
Where: My Passport Air (destination drive)
Image Format: read-only
Encryption: none
"Cats rule" kittyboy

Hi Sakahara,
right now WinClone is indeed the best solution for Windows backup, at least for me.
According to this User Tip http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1964018 you can put the backup image file onto a Time Machine drive, but it is not recommended.
I myself put the image file onto my OSX partition and at the next usage of SuperDuper it is cloned as well.
Regards
Stefan

Creating a bootable backup - instructions?

I am looking to create a bootable back-up of my MBP so I can expirament with going from 10.4.6 to 10.4.10. (I am wary due to the processor whine issue.) I would like to be able to go back to 4.6 if I can't quiet the whine under 4.10.
Can anyone guide me to a step by step guide on how to do this? I plan to get an OWC Firewire drive.
Thanks!
Mitch

When you get the OWC drive - good choice - connect it to your computer and make sure that you use disk utility to partition the drive using GUID - it's in options under the partition tab.
Download SuperDuper. This is free for making a clone of your hard drive, twenty something if you want incremental backups (faster). For your purpose, free is fine.
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html
As long as your hd is partitioned using GUID (format Apple OS Extended (journaled) Super Duper will create a bootable clone.
Best of luck.

What is the best and most mac compatible portable backup hard drive?

What is best mac compatible portable hard drive. I need 1-2 TB

Owning a 100 HD, and looking at HD all the time, endless study of drives.....
THIS one is:
2.5" USB portable High quality BEST FOR THE COST, Toshiba "tiny giant" 2TB drive
(have several of them, LOT of storage in a SMALL package) ON SALE for $99 now
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Connect-Portable-HDTC720XK3C1/dp/B00CGUMS48 /ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1379182740&sr=1-4&keywords=2tb+toshiba
Buzzhead61
my dollar is on the Western Digital My Passport Studio
WD my passport series are the most unreliable drives out there
best options for the price, and high quality HD:
Quality 1TB drives are $50 per TB on 3.5" or $65 per TB on 2.5"
Perfect 1TB for $68
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-Hard-Drive/dp/B005J7YA3W/ref=sr_1_ 1?ie=UTF8&qid=1379452568&sr=8-1&keywords=1tb+toshiba
Nice 500gig for $50. ultraslim perfect for use with a notebook
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-External-Drive/dp/B009F1CXI2/ref=s r_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1377642728&sr=1-1&keywords=toshiba+slim+500gb
*This one is the BEST portable external HD available that money can buy:
HGST Touro Mobile 1TB USB 3.0 External Hard Drive $88
http://www.amazon.com/HGST-Mobile-Portable-External-0S03559/dp/B009GE6JI8/ref=sr _1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383238934&sr=8-1&keywords=HGST+Touro+Mobile+Pro+1TB+USB+3.0+72 00+RPM
Most storage experts agree on the Hitachi 2.5"

3 Different Backups; Which one is right?

Hello everyone,
I have a question about backup systems. I looked around the forums and saw a couple that were almost the same question but weren't, so I am going to ask mine. I am not sure if my questions make a difference with the answers though.
I just bought a Lenovo G560. As you know, it came with OneKey which is the button on the key board. It also has Windows Backup (Windows 7). But, I also went out and bought a portable backup hard drive (Hitachi) that came with its own backup software.
So my question is which one do I use??? I will explain what I want to do, then my thoughts on each option, and I am hoping someone here could give me solid advice. I already had a system crash once and lost everything, so I don't want to start over again.
(What I would like to do)
I would like to have two different types of back up completed to my external hard drive:
1. Would be a system image of everything as it is on my laptop. In case of a major failure, I can simply start fresh from the last backup image and (for the most part) not skip a beat. This backup would probably be done once every two weeks or maybe once a month.
2. I would also like to have a traditional backup of everything in my personal folder which would basically be just my files i.e. pictures, music, documents, etc. This way in case I delete 1 or 2 files by accident I can go into my external hard drive and pull those files back over. This backup would probably be done 1 to 2 times a week.
(My Thoughts)
OneKey: I like the idea of the OneKey software because that function is built into the laptop with a dedicated button. But from what I saw so far, this software can't be set up to do both types of backup at the same time. But, I might be wrong on this...
Windows: A part of me thinks I should let Windows conduct its own backup because Windows should know what Windows need to run in case of a major failure, and this would be the easiest for me. From what I have read, Windows can do two different types of backup at one time, but it is vvvvveeeeerrrrryyyy slow, and a lot of times the second scheduled backup will attempt to start before the first one is finished which causes major problems.
Hitachi: The external hard drive came with its own backup software installed that it uses to manage backups. This one requires you to install yet another program onto the laptop (which is on top of the 2 already there OneKey & Windows). It seems simple enough to use, but I am not sure if it can do two different types of backup.
A part of me thinks if I were to use OneKey or Windows I could basically format the external hard drive and then I will have a completely empty drive for backups since I would get rid of the pre installed software.
Or, I could be completely wrong on all three of these, and need to use some other backup software to do what I want.
I need to tell you that I am thinking of playing with a kernel of Linux that would be installed in a separate area on my laptop. I would like for the backup software to be able to include this in its backups (just the image type) since I am not planning on moving any personal information/files over to that OS just yet. Once I find a version of Linux I like, I would probably switch to that for full time use. So I think that would be important in the selection process of backup software.
I know this is a big question, but I am hoping someone here can point me in the right direction. I am not very familiar with backup software. I had another external hard drive once before, but that one only did the My Documents folder, and there was a couple times I had to start fresh with Windows because I didn't have a system image. So I am hoping to not go through that again.
Thanks for all of your thoughts.

gigrosser, welcome to the forum,
If I understand your intentions correctly I think your first priority is to create a set of recovery discs as suggested by yigit, a good reason for this will become clear later.
As you are going to be playing with Linux you will need an imaging software which is capable of creating a base image and incremental images of the complete hard drive including the boot sectors, I personally don't see either One Key or Windows Backup being the optimal tools for achieving this.
As I don't know which software came supplied with your Hitachi drive, I'm can't rule it out as being a suitable tool for the job which I would approach as follows;
Once you have created recovery discs and installed your suitable imaging software you also need to be sure you create rescue media for the imaging software in order to be able to access your image backups should they be required.
Assuming you have your hard drive configured with Linux et al you should then create a base image with the imaging software to your external hard drive. After it's completed add a "test folder" to your desktop and then shut the system down.
Now's the time to test your image and rescue media by simply restoring the image you have just created; if the "test folder" isn't there it's worked, if it's still there something hasn't worked and needs a re-think. Worst case and absolutely nothing works is the time to use the recovery discs you created to set your system back to factory and start reconsidering the whole concept again That's why the recovery discs are important.
Assuming that everything ran successfully it's time to add a few files, 500MB should suffice, in order to run an incremental image backup and of course to recover to that incremental backup. If everything works you have the first part of your problem solved.
Now to the second part; there's a windows tool which seems to have got a bit forgotten over the years, have you considered using windows Briefcase? Just search Windows help to find out all about how it could help you.
However the second part may be superfluous; - "in case I delete 1 or 2 files by accident" - I don't know how much data you're going to be adding / changing / deleting on a daily basis, but running incremental image backups shouldn't normally take very long, you'll find out the answer to this when running your tests. A good imaging software will allow you to extract single files from any backup you have made which in effect negates the requirement for a second solution.
Hope I've explained my thoughts clearly enough, if not let me know.
Edit; to answer "which one is right?" is maybe none, maybe all - the right one is the one that works even if it's the fifth choice
Regards
Andy ______________________________________
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Thunderbolt / USB3 questions about external backup drives for my new MacBook Pro

I have a new MacBook Pro retina 13". It has two USB3 and two Thunderbolt2 ports.
Until now on my iMac I've kept two backups on two WD USB2 drives. I have never had any problems with any of my WD Passport drives. One for Time Machine and one for CCC (a complete bootable clone incrementally created at 3:30 am every day).
I'd like to get new portable drives for my MBP for these backups going forward and have a few very basic questions, since this is the first time to have a device with a USB3 port, and the first time I even heard about Thunderbolt.
If I get a USB3 drive and need to use it to restore things on my older iMac, which just has USB2, will it generally connect and run with USB2 at a slower speed? Or would I have to get a drive with both USB2 and USB3 ports?
Is Thunderbolt just an Apple thing? Or is it a new standard widely used by peripherals now? I just never heard of it before. Is it faster than USB3?
Is it common for drives to have both Thunderbolt and USB2 connections?
Are there "hubs" for Thunderbolt like there are for USB? Considering the limited number of ports, I'm wondering the best way to connect 2 external drives. My iMac has 4 USB2 ports on the back, and I connect one drive separate to each of those ports, rather than going through a hub.
Is USB3 like USB2 in that if you have even 1 USB2 device (e.g. my Logitech headset) connected to a USB3 hub it will slow down everything on that hub to USB2?
Any recommendations for good, portable backup drives?
Thanks,
Doug

Hi Doug,
Lets see if we can address some of these:
If I get a USB3 drive and need to use it to restore things on my older iMac, which just has USB2, will it generally connect and run with USB2 at a slower speed? Or would I have to get a drive with both USB2 and USB3 ports?
USB3 is "backwards compatible" with USB2 so plugging a USB3 drive into a USB2 port should work, but at USB2 speeds.
Is it common for drives to have both Thunderbolt and USB2 connections?
Drives sold as Thunderbolt often (not always) have USB as well, drives sold as USB never (in my experience) have Thunderbolt connections.
Are there "hubs" for Thunderbolt like there are for USB? Considering the limited number of ports, I'm wondering the best way to connect 2 external drives. My iMac has 4 USB2 ports on the back, and I connect one drive separate to each of those ports, rather than going through a hub.
Yes there are (but don't expect them to be comparable in price to a USB hub) e.g. see here: http://www.belkin.com/uk/p/P-F4U055/
Is Thunderbolt just an Apple thing? Or is it a new standard widely used by peripherals now? I just never heard of it before. Is it faster than USB3?
I'ts an Apple technology (like firewire) and is far from widely used on peripherals. There ARE Thunderbolt drives etc by companies such as LaCie, WD etc but they are still very expensive (3 or 4x the price of an equivalent sized USB drive). For some this was a worthwhile expense since Thunderbolt is many times faster than USB2. But the arrival of USB3 has, in my opinion, changed the landscape. Yes, Thunderbolt is theoretically faster than USB3 (up to twice as fast) but benchmark tests have shown that in real world situations, the speed difference varies from no difference to Thunderbolt being 25 or 30% faster. When you take into account that USB3 drives are more common than Thunderbolt and are only a little more expensive than USB2 drives at present, then it's a "no brainer" as far as I am concerned.
Hope this helps.
Jon

Disk Utility:Restore backup option

Regarding Kappy's suggestion: (http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=1327363&#1327363)
To do just a full backup you can use the Restore option of Disk Utility:
1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
2. Select the startup volume from the left side list.
3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
4. Drag the startup volume to the Source entry field.
5. Select the backup volume from the leftside list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
6. Check the box to Erase Destination
7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Will this method create a bootable backup on my firewire drive?
Thanks,
Judy

Yes, it will create a bootable backup.
If your Firewire drive has not been formatted (in other words it's a new drive) then I recommend the following procedure for prepping the drive the first time:
1. Open Disk Utility in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder.
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the number of partitions from the dropdown menu (use 1 partition unless you wish to make more.) Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled, if supported.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the volume(s) mount on the Desktop.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled, if supported.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process will take 30 minutes to an hour or more depending upon the drive size.
If you prep the drive before doing your backup, you can skip Step 6 of the backup instructions.

Portable Hard Drive Needed

I seem to be out of the office more and more and I need to have my files with me. I have a Mac G4 and have been researching portable hard drives, the only thing is, not many of the reviewers consider the older macs.
PC Magazine did recommend a portable drive for "older mac users" but I thought that I would ask the experts before I make a purchase.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2349221,00.asp - Iomega
* Reviewer mentions that it works with older macs. * Firewire cable.
Click free portable back up drive (no firewire cable- excellent reviews)dual prong usb cable
http://reviews.cnet.com/laptop-hard-drives/clickfree-portable-backup-drive/4505- 9997_7-33497721.html?tag=contentMain;contentBody
Lacie Little Disk
http://reviews.cnet.com/laptop-hard-drives/clickfree-portable-backup-drive/4505- 9997_7-33497721.html?tag=contentMain;contentBody
If any of you have experience with a portable drive with a powerbook, I would greatly appreciate your advice. I'm getting a headache.
Thank you in advance for your help.
My Mac
Mac OSX 10.4.11
Memory: 2GB DDR SDRAM
Machine Name: PowerBook G4 17"
Machine Model: PowerBook5,7
CPU Type: PowerPC G4 (1.2)
Number Of CPUs: 1
CPU Speed: 1.67 GHz
L2 Cache (per CPU): 512 KB
Memory: 2 GB
Bus Speed: 167 MHz
Boot ROM Version: 4.9.1f1
Serial Number: W8507*RJ3
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State: Enabled
Version: 1.0

Is this the one that your son has? It looks like it gets good reviews and the fact that the company stands by their products is a big plus.
The OWC drive I pointed to is the same one my son uses. He's had it about a year with no issues. I like the fact that it's got a 3 year warranty, while others are sometimes 1 year. I have several desktop external drives that use the Oxford chipsets, and others would agree they interface very well to our macs.
The other benefit to firewire is if you either copy your system to the hard drive, to make a backup of your internal drive, or just install an operating system on it, you have the capability to boot and use your system if there is any problem with the internal hard drive. You can even partition the external drive into one partition with an operating system/backup and the second partition with business data. If you think this approach would be one you might use, take that into account when you decide what size external drive to get, ie, get a larger one than you might normally go with just for data.
Also, on an external hard drive whose purpose is primarily data storage, I probably wouldn't spend the extra on a 7200rpm drive, instead going with a 5400rpm drive (which is probably the speed of what's in your Powerbook). So ... if you have an 80GB internal hard drive today, round it to 100GB for backup, then add 300GB? for business data ... maybe a 400GB or even 500GB external hard drive would work for you. It would be a backup for your internal drive as well as hold your business data. Just a thought ....

Iphone 5 backup to cloud

I have an iphone 5, I want to back up to icloud. Do not use on any other devices for backup. Just want all the information saved on my phone, contacts, pcitures to go to icloud. I am having issues with the phone and have an appointment with apple , if they replace I do not want to loose this information. When I go to icloud.com after following backup instructions nothing is there. I do not get a warning that the backup failed.

iCloud Backup will provide helpful information and status messages related to backups at the bottom of the Settings > iCloud > Storage & Backup.
You can't view your iOS backups at iCloud.com.

USB Memory Sticks for TM Backups?

Has anybody ever tried using a large USB memory stick as a nicely-portable Time-Machine backup drive?
In high-level concept it seems like it would be possible, but I seem to recall that a TM backup drive needs to be formatted in a certain particular way (MacOS Extended Journaled, as I recall), so perhaps not.

Flash drives simply don't have the capacity to function as a TM backup drive. Of course you can certainly use one but they are slow and small. They are useful to carry some data about but they are not intended to replace a hard drive. TM is not intended to maintain portable backups. Though it can be used in that way, it's not really designed for such a purpose.
Reasonably priced flash drives are available in capacities up to 16 GBs, but going above that is impractical both because of cost and lack of size over 32 GBs.
A full system backup requires at least 8 GBs of space. Since an 8 GB flash drive only formats to slightly less than 7.5 GBs, you would need to start with a 16 GB flash drive as a minimum.

Backup Power for travel??

Does anyone know if there is a portable backup battery source for the iPhone. For instance, to use on international flights...

Well, other than the one middleamerican has been burned by (figuratively, that is)...
http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/ipod/review/apc-mobile-power-pack-upb10-recharg eable-battery/
The only other one is the BoxWave one:
http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/ipod/review/boxwave-battery-adapter-pro/
Oh, and there is a solar one... Let me know if you need me to dig up a link...

Portable Backup Instructions

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