Should Bootable Backup HD's Have Free Buffer Space?

Question: when creating the bootable backups, can each partition size be equal to the HD size it is going to backup or should there be some amount of free buffer space? If so, what percentage larger would you recommend the backup HD be than the one containing the OS?
Thanks
brae

Brae wrote:
when creating the bootable backups, can each partition size be equal to the HD size it is going to backup or should there be some amount of free buffer space?
The backup partition doesn't have to be any larger than the partition it's backing up.
You posted your question in the Airport/Time Capsule section. Is there a reason you considered that an appropriate place for it?

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I'm wondering about bootable backup strategies

I'm wondering what people use and recommend for backup strategies, and especially the utility of "bootable" backups.
I have an early-2011 15" MBPro, running fully updated Yosemite. My computer is apparently one of the "victims" of the recently publicized graphics system problems that has resulted in Apple's recent out-of-warranty repair offer for machines in this category. Over the past 10 months my machine has been in for repair 4 times, resulting in the replacement of my display, main logic board (x 3!!) and hard drive. These 4 repairs were the result of incidents that started with the screen graphics going crazy and ending, eventually, in an un-bootable state. Two of the 4 times I was returned a working machine with a clean new-install of OS 10. (all "free" I might add, thanks to still being on Apple Care when the whole process started!) Hopefully, my last repair will "do the trick" as it was AFTER Apple's announced repair offer for these machines. My Apple Store "genius" opined that this time my main logic board was probably an "improved" item, since the first two replacements didn't solve the problem.
So twice in the recent past I have had to completely restore my machine from my Time Machine (to Time Capsule) back-up. Both successful, thankfully! But this experience has focused my attention very sharply on my backup strategy, and made me wonder how "exposed" one still might be with "just" a Time Machine backup.
Talking informally with several more knowledgeable and experienced "Mac" people that I know, I discovered that many people don't rely on Time Machine, at least not solely. I was persuaded that the really most secure situation is to have a second back-up, preferably a bootable "disc image," stored on a separate device (and maybe preferably off site).
So, I've been looking into the options, services, etc.. There are MANY! I love the ease, automaticity and utility of having a Time Machine back-up. But I'm wondering, for those (probably few) out there that do something MORE than that: what back-up strategies do you use? Is is POSSIBLE to have a "bootable" backup on an online/cloud device (maybe not)? What systems work well and are complementary/supplementary to Time Machine?
I know, from my own experience, that HAVING a backup is fairly easy. But I've also learned that RESTORING a backup (mine's around 400 GB) is NOT "easy", at least very time consuming, and probably fraught with potential problems which won't appear until it's too late to do something else! So I'm particularly looking at the restoration features of backup software and services. Frankly, those are often largely ignored in the promotions, which mainly focus on how easy it is to DO the backup but never talk much about doing the restore!!
Any and all opinions are welcomed. I am definitely considering some redundancy in my backups after "dodging the bullet" twice in the last 3 months!

... how "exposed" one still might be with "just" a Time Machine backup.
Just one backup isn't enough. Two or more are preferable. Time Machine can back up to as many external devices as you wish. Purchase two or more inexpensive USB hard disk drives and store one of them offsite at all times. Time Machine will back up to each one "in rotation" when they're available. If the backup device it's expecting isn't available, it looks for the next one, etc.
If you want to augment Time Machine with another backup strategy, consider "clone" software such as Carbon Copy Cloner. It will create bootable copies of your existing installation if you consider that a valuable option.
"Bootable" is fine but not really necessary. Consider the possibility in which it's impossible to boot your Mac for whatever reason, or if should happen to be lost, stolen, or irreparably damaged. Consider the circumstances applicable to the way you use your Macs that might cause that event. If your disaster recovery plan addresses that contingency, it's a good plan. Recovering 400 GB is going to be time consuming no matter what method you use. An external HDD with a Thunderbolt interface would be fastest, followed by USB3, followed by USB2, followed by a directly connected (Ethernet cable) Time Capsule, followed by a wireless Time Capsule — for which a TM restoration might take an unacceptable amount of time (days).
Obviously I don't know the circumstances of the repairs you required, but I question the necessity to replace the hard disk. It's possible the same one could have been re-used, saving you the inconvenience of having to perform a restoration.

Bootable backup software

First of all, what's a bootable backup? I have a WD 320GB Mybook (fire wire/usb) backup drive. WD said that their included software doesn't create a bootable drive. I asked them because I told it to back up everything and it did except for 168 files. I guess I want a bootable drive because if I lost everything, I could restore everything? What do you recommend? Is WD backup software enough? If I need a bootable backup software, what free or low cost one would you recommend? Hope that all makes sense?

Hello! AS has been mentioned a "bootable backup" is a "clone" or "exact copy" of your main drive and one that will be bootable in an emergency. It can be on an external firewire drive or it can be on a separate "volume" of your main drive or reside on a secondary physical drive. SD and CCC have been mentioned but you can also use the Apple Disk Utility to produce one following Kappy's advice. Tom
Kappy's Steps to Produce a bootable clone
Prep external FW drive:
1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
2. Select the backup or destination volume from the left side list.
3. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (journaled, if available) and click on the Erase button. This step can be skipped if the destination has already been freshly erased.
4. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
5. Select the backup or destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
6. Select the startup or source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
8. Select the destination drive on the Desktop and press COMMAND-I to open the Get Info window. At the bottom in the Ownership and Permissions section be sure the box labeled "Ignore Permissions on this Volume" is unchecked. Verify the settings for Ownership and Permissions as follows: Owner=system with read/write; Group=admin with read/write; Other with read-only. If they are not correct then reset them.
For added precaution you can boot into safe mode before doing the clone.

Question re: Bootable backup disc / preparing for Leopard Install

Hello,
I've an iMac G5 :
Model: The one right before an isight camera was added CPU Type: PowerPC G5 (3.1), CPU Speed: 2 GHz, L2 Cache: 512 KB, Memory: 1.5 GB
I'm trying to figure out if I can make a bootable backup of my Tiger OS before installing Leopard. I have heard that Superduper requires a firewire drive to make a bootable backup, but I have a 500GB USB external drive. Is there a way for me to use my USB external drive to make the bootable backup?
I have already backed up copies of my Home folders on this iomega 500gb usb ext. drive. Maybe, this is all I need to worry about and I should just go ahead and install Leopard?
Any helpful advice greatly appreciated. Thank you for considering my post.
Michael
Message was edited by: Kailua

Can Disc Warrior help me make the backup for my USB external drive?
No. DiskWarrior isn't a backup tool.
or should I use the apple disc utility?
Yes.
(34562)

I have MBP 13 late 2011:Will it be able to support a 3tb hardisk?Secondly, if i delete a song from itunes,is that song removed from the mac and is the space freed up?If not then what should I do to free up space when i delete songs from itunes?

I have MBP 13 late 2011:
Will it be able to support a 3tb hardisk?
Secondly, if i delete a song from itunes,is that song removed from the mac and is the space freed up?If not then what should I do to free up space when i delete songs from itunes?

Your MBP will support a 3T HDD provided it is formatted correctly and has sufficient power. Most large HDDs require an outboard power source.
When you delete songs from iTunes you will get a message if you want to send it to trash. If you send it to trash, space will be freed up only when you empty trash. An individual song does not consume much space so if your HDD is becoming full, more drastic action s should be considered, such as moving an entire file to an external HDD.
Ciao.

I have to backup of Gmail with Thunderbird Portable, so I could free some space on server - but when I use IMAP (to keep labels) after deletin on server...

I have to backup of Gmail with Thunderbird Portable, so I could free some space on server - but when I use IMAP (to keep labels) after deletin on server...
...my post also deletes on Thunderbird. Please make an option to prevent it, so deleting on a server doesn't effect mail in the Thunderbird. I would be so happy to have it...
David

First Thunderbird portable is supported by its author at portableapps.com.
Secondly you are describing exactly how the IMAP email standard works and Thunderbird has no control over that.
Thunderbird has Local Folders to move messages that you want to keep locally. Maybe the portable version does too.

How much should i have free storsge on my ipad air 1

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IF you really want a number, keep about 5% of the storage free, so if you have 55 GB of storage available overall, make sure that you keep about 2-3 GB free. That is merely an estimate - or better yet - a guesstimate.

Do I have to or should I backup my iPad/iPod/iPhone before I install a software update

Do I have to or should I backup my iPad/iPod/iPhone before I install a software update

http://heresthethingblog.com/2012/09/19/4-installing-ios-6-iphone-ipad/
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TS3992 My IPad states I have 4.1 GB available out of 5, but my IPad will not backup, says there is not enough space. What should I so.

My IPad states I have 4.1 GB available out of 5, but my IPad will not backup, says there is not enough space. What should I do?

You are looking at the amount of storage that you have available on the actual iPad (Settings > General > About > Available) and not the amount that you have in the cloud (Settings > iCloud) ?

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http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/service-ccm.html ( http://adobe.ly/19llvMN )

Hello. I just bought a refurbished macbook pro and it did not come with any disks. Do I have to make my own bootable backup disk?

Hello. I just bought a refurbished macbook pro and it did not come with any disks. Do I have to make my own bootable backup disk?

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Open  > About this Mac > More Info. Macs with OS X Mountain Lion or Lion don't have discs, so you have to reinstall Mac OS X through Internet Recovery

I moved my iPhoto library to a external hard drive to free up space on my iMac per instructions, but the library is still on my iMac so I don't have much room left. How do I get rid of the all the contents of my library on my iMac so just on backup drive

As per Apple instructions, I moved my iPhoto library to an external hard drive so that I could free up space on my full iMac. However, I was not told the last step in the process -- How do I get the iPhoto library off my iMac so I free up that memory?

And after deleting the old Library, you should start up iPhoto while holding down the Option key in order to force iPhoto to let you select your iPhoto Library that is on your external hard drive. If you start up iPhoto the usual way, it will just create a new, blank iPhoto Library in your /users/yourusername/Pictures folder on your iMac's internal hard drive.

Do I need to partition my external hard drive for a bootable backup

Hi - First, I apologize for asking a question that's already been discussed so much. I did try to read everything I could, but I remain confused. Here is my precise situation:
I have an iMac, and I purchased a year's worth of Carbonite's online backup and breathed a sigh of relief. Then I read some people have problems with Carbonite, and the best advice was to buy an external hard drive, which I did. It just arrived, I plugged it in, and Time Machine backed up my computer on it...so I breathed another sigh of relief.
Then I read that my wonderful new 2T external hard drive isn't good enough, that I should partition it so as to have one backup, and one "bootable backup." Is this really necessary? And what is the difference between a backup, and a bootable backup? If it is necessary, how do I do it? Is it a problem that I've already used it to create a backup on Time Machine?
I use my computer for things like email, Facebook, pictures, eBay, stuff like that. I have no unusual needs. My computer is an iMac OS X 10.6.8.
Thank you in advance for any help you can offer!

I prefer a clone/bootable backup ovver Time Machine myself.
For TM you need a running OS, then time to restore, with a clone you can boot from that & keep working while doing the other when time is better. And you can test a clone before you need it.
Get carbon copy cloner to make an exact copy of your old HD to the New one...
http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html
Or SuperDuper...
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/
You would need to Partition your drive though.
How to format your disks...
http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/partitioning_tiger.html
(To Install OSX on an IntelMac the Drive it needs the GUID Partitioning scheme mentioned at the bottom.)
Thanks to Pondini, Formatting, Partitioning, Verifying, and Repairing Disks...
http://Pondini.org/OSX/DU.html

Can't reboot to my bootable backup.

Two days ago I received my new Mac Mini, which is replacing my five-year-old iMac. So far I'm very pleased, with two minor issues just barely dampening my enthusiasm:
1- The video has "blinked out" a few times. I'm running video via HDMI->HDMI, and I understand this is a fairly common problem generating a lot of user reports here in the forums. I've only seen it three or four times in the two days I've had my Mini, and the "out" time is very brief, about a second, so I can live with this until Apple issues the expected fix.
2- More serious issue: When I attempt to boot from the bootable backup I created on an external drive, I get the following:
"You can't change the startup disk to the selected disk. Building boot caches on boot helper partition failed."
I can't restart to my external drive using the preference pane. I can reboot while holding the option key and then choose the external drive, but the Mini never fully boots after that; it just keeps spinning away on the grey Apple screen forever until I shut it down.
Any help here would be appreciated, as I don't feel fully comfortable with my data hostage to a single physical device. I'm sure all my personal data is there, but I'd like to be able to get at it by booting from that external drive should the drive* inside my Mini fail.
Do I need to install Mountain Lion directly onto the external drive to create the "boot helper partition" and then use rsync to complete my bootable backup? Because all I did was format the drive and then use rsync, which is what I've been doing for years now to create bootable backups.
* = Technically it's two drives, as I have the Apple-installed Fusion Drive. But it is one volume.

D'oh!
The external I'm using is a new virgin drive. I had never installed any version of OS X on it before. So yes, it was missing the behind-the-scenes/under-the-carpet magic. I suppose I could have installed Mountain Lion over its contents, but I just did a Carbon Copy Cloner clone operation instead, which has done the trick. I should be able to rsync for my backups to it from here on out.
Thanks, BD and Linc. Sorry to have wasted your time. I should have known better than to have just partitioned, formatted, and started the rsync backups without first either doing a proper volume clone or an OS X install.
Best wishes,
John H

When I back up to my iomega external drive is this creating a bootable backup?

I recently noticed in disc utility that my HDD was in red and when I click on it I see the text that reads "this drive has a hard ware problem that can't be repaired". This is a replacement hard drive that I had installed just about a year ago. I guess I will be taking it in to get replaced. I am wondering though, are the backups I am doing on my iomega external hdd "bootable" backups? Will I and how will I be able to get this on to my new hard drive?

Your fear was wise! NEVER EVER use the same external HD for redundant backups. It is extremely wise to use both a Bootable Clone and TM backup however they should be on separate EHDs. The reason being is if the HD crashes you have lost all of your backup. EHD's are very cheap these days so just get yourself another and then use both TM and CCC. This is what I (and many many others) do.
Also here are some articles from MacWorld that discuss different backup strategies. One common thread you will see in each article is using redundant backups.
Backup Plan I
Backup Plan II
Backup Plan III

Should Bootable Backup HD's Have Free Buffer Space?

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