Simple Question: Can I rename old backup folders?

I've gone through a couple MacBooks (changed MAC addresses and such), so I have about 3 different "computers" in the Backups.backupdb folder. Two of the three folders are no longer "live" backup databases, and are effectively only around because I still want the data. I'd like to rename the folders to something more distinct when I'm "browsing other Time Machine backups". Can I simply change the name of the folder, or do I need to update some plist-files somewhere as well?

Link Dupont wrote:
I've gone through a couple MacBooks (changed MAC addresses and such), so I have about 3 different "computers" in the Backups.backupdb folder. Two of the three folders are no longer "live" backup databases, and are effectively only around because I still want the data. I'd like to rename the folders to something more distinct when I'm "browsing other Time Machine backups". Can I simply change the name of the folder, or do I need to update some plist-files somewhere as well?
Do NOT ever modify or change anything in the TM backup directory. You will probably lose everything if you do.
1. If you want to "rename" an old backup, run TM and in the TM window which is the only proper way to access TM files, find the old backup and restore it to your computer. This is the file you can rename.
2. Now, you can rename it and let it become backed up again with the new name.
3. Finally, once you are assured it is backed up again, then using the TM interface, you can safely delete the old backup.
For these operations you use the Action gear in the TM finder window.

Similar Messages

  • How can i restore old backup without deleting my existing data

    how can i restore old backup without deleting my existing data. unfortunately i have deleted few of my old photos and restored them from my old backup. i got the deleted photos but lost my recent data and photos. how can i get those too.

    You cannot. However, if your back up is through iTunes on your computer and you do an internet search for something like "iPhone BackUpExtractor", I believe there is software that will help you access the SQL database that is your back up. You may be able to pull out what you need.
    Once you restore from a back up, any data that was on the phone is gone.

  • I lost my iphone in the water I bought a new one 4S now I have 2 back ups in Icloud, the one for the new Iphne and the old Iphone where I have the most info I need. How I can download my old backup?

    I lost my iphone in the water I bought a new one 4S now I have 2 back ups in Icloud, the one for the new Iphne and the old Iphone where I have the most info I need. How I can download my old backup?

    Welcome to the Apple community.
    You cannot download a backup from iCloud, the only way to access it is to restore to the backup with your new phone, which you should have done when you first connected it. If you restore now, you will lose all the new information you have added to your new phone.

  • Can I save old mailbox folders from My Mac to other folders on desktop?

    Can I save old mailbox folders from My Mac to other folders on desktop, so that I can refer to them later if required?

    Yes you can

  • Can I delete old backups from other devices if my new iphone 6 has a current backup with everything on my new phone?

    Can I delete old backups from other devices if my new iphone 6 has a current backup with everything on my new phone?

    Hi there dyarrell,
    You can do this if you are confident that your current device has all of the data on it that you want to keep. The method for deleting the backup will be differnt depending on the backup method. Take a look at the articles below for more information. 
    Create and delete iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch backups in iTunes
    iCloud: Remove an iOS device backup from iCloud
    -Griff W. 

  • HT4847 How can I delete old backups on my iCloud so that I can just backup my latest things?

    How can i delete old backups on my iCloud so that I can jsut backup what is on my device now, and not from a year ago

    Welcome to the Apple Support Communities
    All backups made on iCloud overwrite the old one, so you have only the latest backup with your most recent files. If you have a backup of an old device, open Settings > iCloud > Storage and Backup > Manage Storage, select the backup and delete that backup

  • HT5262 I can see my old backups in icloud why can I not restore them to my phone they do not appear as an option when I click on restore

    I can see my old backups in icloud why can I not restore them to my phone they do not appear as an option when I click on restore

    Hi, Samanthacarol.
    If you are able to see the backup file in iCloud but unable to restore from the backup, then the article below will explain the solution. 
    iOS: Unable to restore from backup of a newer device
    http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3682
    Cheers,
    Jason H. 

  • Can't see old backups on Time Machine

    Originally, I noticed the issue when I went to do a backup and it failed because there was not enough space on the disk. Then I went to see if I could delete old backups.  In Time Machine it shows today and one other backup, 6 days ago.  It should be doing backups regularly.  I have had the iMac and my external drive for years.  I did update to Mavericks OS several months ago.  That is the only change I can think of.  I have seen older backups and used them before now.  Not sure why I can't see them anymore and why it says my disk is full.  Why isn't it deleting the old backups if it's full?
    So I guess I have three main questions:
    1 Why can't I see the old backups?
    2 Why aren't the old files being deleted if it's full?
    3 How can it be full if there is only one backup?
    Thanks

    These instructions must be carried out as an administrator. If you have only one user account, you are the administrator.
    Launch the Console application in any of the following ways:
    ☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
    ☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
    ☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Console in the icon grid.
    The title of the Console window should be All Messages. If it isn't, select
              SYSTEM LOG QUERIES ▹ All Messages
    from the log list on the left. If you don't see that list, select
              View ▹ Show Log List
    from the menu bar at the top of the screen.
    In the top right corner of the Console window, there's a search box labeled Filter. Initially the words "String Matching" are shown in that box. Enter the word "Starting" (without the quotes.) You should now see log messages with the words "Starting * backup," where * represents any of the words "automatic," "manual," or "standard."
    Each message in the log begins with the date and time when it was entered. Note the timestamp of the last "Starting" message that corresponds to the beginning of an an abnormal backup. Now
    CLEAR THE WORD "Starting" FROM THE TEXT FIELD
    so that all messages are showing, and scroll back in the log to the time you noted. Select the messages timestamped from then until the end of the backup, or the end of the log if that's not clear. Copy them to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Paste into a reply to this message by pressing command-V.
    ☞ If all you see are messages that contain the word "Starting," you didn't clear the text field.
    If there are runs of repeated messages, post only one example of each. Don't post many repetitions of the same message.
    ☞ The log contains a vast amount of information, almost all of which is irrelevant to solving any particular problem. When posting a log extract, be selective. Don't post more than is requested.
    Please don't indiscriminately dump thousands of lines from the log into this discussion.
    Please don't post screenshots of log messages—post the text.
    ☞ Some private information, such as your name, may appear in the log. Anonymize before posting.

  • Can't access old backups after disk move?

    I've moved my TM backup from a locally attached drive to a drive attached to the Airport Extreme. I followed the instructions in several fora on how to do this by using the Disk Utility to do a block copy restore. However, after pointing TM at the new drive, it seems to have created a complete new backup. When I view in the TM timeline, it won't let me navigate back in time beyond the 1st backup after the disk move (though it seems to know they are there as there are a stack of folders marching off into the far distance). However, if I navigate to the drive, all the daily and weekly folders for all the previous backups still appear to be present.
    Any ideas how to fix this?

    Unfortunately, you can't combine wired and wireless backups, as Time Machine stores them differently.
    It may not have been apparent, but the instructions for copying to a new disk are for wired-to-wired only.
    TM treats them as if they're for a different Mac.
    You may be able to view the old ones by holding down the Option key while selecting the TM icon in the menubar. +Enter Time Machine+ should change to +Browse Other Time Machine DIsks+ and let you see the old backups.
    When your TM disk gets full, TM will not delete any from the wired sequence, only the new one.
    Your best bet is to erase the disk and let TM start over.

  • Can't delete old backup - says it is in use

    I just replaced my iPhone 4 with a 6 (yay!).  I loaded the 4 iCloud backup onto the 6 (two days ago) and now the 6 is backing up as a separate phone backup on iCloud.  I want to delete the old backup.  However, when I try to delete the old 4 backup it says that it is currently in use restoring a phone and can't be deleted. 
    any ideas why it would still be "in use" even though my old 4 is powered off and my new 6 is running on it's own backup now? 

    Hi Aaron,
    Please wait for up to 72 hours and then try to delete the old backup again.
    With kind regards,
    David

  • Can't access old backups, but are still there!

    So i tried today to access some old backups, and lo and behold, when i open time machine, the only ones i could get to were the ones from today. I looked in sys.prefs. and it said that the oldest backup i had was, in fact what it should be, but i can't access anything older than today! How can I access my older archives?

    Confirm that an entirely new backup has not been created. If only one backup folder exists, perhaps the Time Machine interface view is slow in bringing up previous backups to view.

  • Can you remove Old Backup files from Time Machine sooner?

    So I'm aware that the default settings state that Time Machine will start to delete old backup files from your saved destination once that destination starts to approach full storage capacity. But what if you are not looking to fill up most of your storage capacity with Time Machine backups? Is there a way where you can cut the delete threshold in half and have Time Machine delete old backup files sooner rather than later?

    See Pondini's TM FAQs, for starters.

  • Motherboard Changed - Can't use old Backups

    Hi!
    I'm pretty sure a similar problem has already been posted but the motherboard of my MacBook Pro had to be replaced (the old one was damaged) and now Time Machine is not using my old backups anymore and instead tries to create a new backup named Dominic Spitalers Computer (2). Is it possible to tell Time Machine that it shall continue with my old backup? (I know enough about computers to use the terminal if this is necessary )
    I hope someone here can help. This is really important to me. (Sorry for my English)

    See: http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20080128003716101
    Good luck!

  • Can't access old user folders after archive and install

    I had a disc failure on my old iBook G4 (no wonder) and after repairing the disc and archiving and reinstalling Tiger 10.4.11, I can't open any of my old user folders. Mostly I need the iTunes library in one user folder. How do I get at it? Will setting it up as a target disc give me access to that music?

    These are the likely files that hold Network settings...
    /Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/ByHost/com.apple.networkConnect.<12 digit number>.plist
    /Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.internetconnect.plist
    /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/preferences.plist
    /Users/YourUserName/Library/Preferences/com.apple.systempreferences.plist
    /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.airport.preferences.plist
    /Library/Preferences/com.apple.sharing.firewall.plist
    /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/NetworkInterfaces.plist
    /Library/Preferences/com.apple.networkConfig.plist
    /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.nat.plist
    Reboot after replacing.

  • Can't rename or delete folders because thumbs.db is accessed / locked

    Hy techguys!
    I have a problem deleteing or renaming folders on a network share.
    When I look at the opened files on the Server I noticed that the Thumbs.db in the folder is opened by a user.
    But the User have already closed the folder.
    If i disconnect the Session on the Server the folder can be renamed or deleted.
    The other way is to wait and the Session will close automatically. This lasts between minutes to houres?
    Anyone an Idea why the connection to the thumbs.db were not closed?
    Thanks
    Stefan

    I suggest you to check the following threads:
    http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/w7itprogeneral/thread/ca2cbc1a-362f-4f01-a8f8-6f05112f1915/
    http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en/w7itprogeneral/thread/723b2ddb-d97c-4529-8ca3-420dc294c9e4
    http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-CA/w7itproui/thread/c0817162-3fcd-4823-bdf8-70b2936cd51b
    You can also Process Monitor tool at
    http://technet.microsoft.com/cs-cz/sysinternals/bb896645, filtr the thumbs.db and monitor who is accessing that file.

Maybe you are looking for