Time Capsule Backup Fails on one Mac, fine on second Mac

Old MBP backs up fine to TC.
Newish MBA was working, now fails. All other network functions OK. Setup includes second APE (for AirTunes only), doesn't seem relevant/troublesome. Active users are administrators and are variously sharing in/out to other machines, screensharing enabled, B2MM enabled. Both machines running OSX10.5.5 & updated frequently, connected to same WLAN / same TC. Interrupts have occured (shutdowns, crashes, sleeps, and WLAN-switch to 2nd Windows WLAN to exploit W-printer). None of foregoing bothers MBP.
Attempted backup of MBA: TC menu icon displays what looks like letter "A" inside the rotating clock logo. Re-setup of TC via network settings doesn't resolve matters.
Clicking "backup now" results in long delay displaying "preparing" then failure message: Disk Repair / The disk "Backup of MBA was not repairable by this computer + a warning to backup asap & an instruction to re-format TC. Yet - no problem with MBP backup. MBA times out if I attempt to "enter time machine".
Examining Console Logs, I see immediately following MBA bak failure:
0811/30 11:54:19 AM kernel AFP_VFS afpfs_DoReconnect: doing reconnect on /Volumes/Beluga-1
0811/30 11:54:19 AM kernel AFP_VFS afpfs_DoReconnect: connect to the server /Volumes/Beluga-1
0811/30 11:54:19 AM kernel AFP_VFS afpfs_DoReconnect: Logging in with uam 10 /Volumes/Beluga-1
0811/30 11:54:20 AM /usr/sbin/ocspd[481] starting
0811/30 11:54:25 AM kernel AFP_VFS afpfs_Reconnect: soft mounted and hidden volume so do not notify KEA for /Volumes/Beluga-1
0811/30 11:54:33 AM kernel AFP_VFS afpfs_DoReconnect: Restoring session /Volumes/Beluga-1
0811/30 12:09:21 PM /usr/sbin/ocspd[527] starting
0811/30 12:13:31 PM ntpd[25] time reset +0.238612 s
0811/30 12:16:22 PM [0x0-0x11011].com.skype.skype[197] Main starting
0811/30 12:16:22 PM [0x0-0x11011].com.skype.skype[197] Starting the process...
0811/30 12:16:22 PM [0x0-0x11011].com.skype.skype[197] Starting the process...
0811/30 12:16:22 PM [0x0-0x11011].com.skype.skype[197] Starting the process...
0811/30 12:21:43 PM diskarbitrationd[42] unable to repair /dev/disk1s2 (status code 0x00000008).
0811/30 12:21:43 PM hdiejectd[548] running
0811/30 12:21:45 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Backup requested due to disk attach
0811/30 12:21:46 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Disk image /Volumes/Beluga-1/SVETAMAC_001f5bd2a062.sparsebundle mounted at: /Volumes/Backup of MBA
0811/30 12:21:46 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Backing up to: /Volumes/Backup of MBA/Backups.backupdb
0811/30 12:21:46 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] The target volume is read-only.
0811/30 12:21:46 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Network volume mounted at: /Volumes/Beluga-1
0811/30 12:21:48 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Disk image /Volumes/Beluga-1/SVETAMAC_001f5bd2a062.sparsebundle mounted at: /Volumes/Backup of MBA
0811/30 12:21:56 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Backup failed with error: The target volume is read-only.
0811/30 12:21:56 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] 33 days since last backup
0811/30 12:21:56 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Ejected Time Machine disk image.
0811/30 12:21:56 PM kernel AFP_VFS afpfs_unmount: /Volumes/Beluga-1, flags 0, pid 563
0811/30 12:21:56 PM /System/Library/CoreServices/backupd[231] Ejected Time Machine network volume.
I find the above daunting, but can see that (1) it doesn't look much like the messages the MBP generates during successful bak, and (2) the target TC "beluga" seems to have been suffixed "-1" by the MBA and (3) seems to have declared itself read-only.
Now what?
Thanks,
SchoonerTMM

I am having a similar problem. I have my 'old' MacBook backed up on my time machine, since long, and it still backs up on a regular basis.
Every back I try for my 'new' MacBook fails.
I wonder if I need to change something in the set up of the time machine, to have two computers backed up on it?
Anyone can offer me some help?
Thanks

Similar Messages

HT1175 Can an Airport Time Capsule backup more then one MacBook Pro (one at a time ) ?

Can an Airport Time Capsule backup two different MacBooks at two differnet times?

The title and the text questions are different.
But you can backup multiple computers to the TC at the same time.. the only problem is wireless has limited bandwidth.. so the speed of the backup will be seriously affected as well as browsing or internet usage.
For a first backup use ethernet.. but if your TM is doing normal incremental backups which are fairly small it is no problem at all.

Time Machine (Time Capsule) INSANELY slow on one mac (millions of days to backup)

I have been experiencing impossibly slow speeds backing up to a Time Capsule from a MacBook Pro 2.2GHz i7 running 10.7.3 (and many previous versions of the OS). As you can see in the attached image, transfer speeds are slower than if I were to manually type out the data, with estimated completion times of over 80 million days.
The Time Capsule is "joining" my existing network.
Things I have tried:
     - Connecting Time Capsule directly to router (three different ones, different cables)
     - Tried three completely different networks
     - Changing each network's channels, etc. to eliminate interference (my Web speeds are blazing, so this wouldn't be it anyway)
     - Renaming Mac (Sharing prefs) and Time Capsule with short, alphanumeric-only names
     - Restarting/reformatting Time Capsule
     - Buying a NEW Time Capsule as a last resort (turned out not to be)
I discovered that my MacBook Air, which I hadn't previously been backing up, works just fine and completed a wireless backup of several hundred GB in under 48 hours.
I am hesitant to do a wipe and install of my OS as this is my production computer for all of my video work, and I rely on many software packages and add-ons (which of course should be considered suspects).
Has anyone else experienced such insanely not-great speeds with their Time Capsule?
I am about to try backing up to a Thunderbolt drive to see if it still suffers.

I forgot to mention that one. I scoured the "All about TIME MACHINE" info, including 'D2. Backup is slow or "hung"' to no avail. I have Time Machine Buddy (widget) installed as that page recommended, and I am not seeing any messages it says to look out for. The reports are all very clean w/ no alarm bells whatsoever.

Time Capsule backup fails with MobileMe synchronization

Update: this should have been posted to the Snow Leopard discussion area - was put here by accident. Posted as question to:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/16560106#16560106
After working flawlessly for some time, my Time Capsule has stopped completing backups (automatic or manual) whenever MobileMe syncing is enabled - Time Machine finds the Time Capsulse, scans my files for updates and starts the upload, but then it always hangs partway through. I've tried giving it as much as a day to see if it will continue to conclusion but it does not. I have to re-start my system just to clear the hangup, and I've had to disable automatic Time Machine backups to stop the issue happening all the time.
Curiously though, if I go into System Preferences --> MobileMe --> Sync and disable "Synchronize with MobileMe", reboot my computer and then still ensure the MobileMe icon in the top menu bar isn't swirling, I can then initiate a manual backup which runs all the way to conclusion without problem. I can then re-enable synchronization with MobileMe until I wish to do another Time Machine backup.
(If I disable Synchronize with MobileMe, but fail to reboot my computer, Time Machine still hangs. Also, sometimes after disabling synchronization and rebooting, the MobileMe sync icon in the menu bar may start showing activity - if I start a manual backup during that, or if it happens during a manual backup, the backup hangs and fails.)
After many repeated failures, Time Machine prompted me about an error and recommended wiping all the backups from the Time Capsule and starting with a fresh backup. I did that, but it did not resolve the issue.
Has anyone else seen this behaviour? Does anyone have any recommendations on how one can fix this?
Thanks very much!

Not much experience with either TM or MM, but...
At this point I think you should get Applejack...
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/15667/applejack
After installing, reboot holding down CMD+s, (+s), then when the DOS like prompt shows, type in...
applejack AUTO
Then let it do all 6 of it's things.
At least it'll eliminate some questions if it doesn't fix it.
The 6 things it does are...
Correct any Disk problems.
Repair Permissions.
Clear out Cache Files.
Repair/check several plist files.
Dump the VM files for a fresh start.
Trash old Log files.
First reboot will be slower, sometimes 2 or 3 restarts will be required for full benefit... my guess is files relying upon other files relying upon other files! :-)
Disconnect the USB cable from any Uninterruptible Power Supply so the system doesn't shut down in the middle of the process.

Time Capsule backup failed error -43?

Hi and Thanks to Anyone in Advance!
Below is the Time Capsule Error Log I get when doing a Time Machine Backup, wirelessly, on my 2T Time Capsule HD/Router.
Initial Setup and Backup done via ethernet, flawlessly, two months ago. Subsequent backups worked until about three days ago (Why, I have not a clue!)
Often, using Airport Utility, the Time Capsule does not appear. Turning off Computer Airport and on again, the disk becomes magically available for backup. Similar problem with wireless LAN printer...truly a pain. the printer needs to be deleted, and then added again in Print/Fax Preferences. (HP PhotoSmart C7250)
I used Disk Utility" on my Computer HD with a repair permissions, then performed a TC reset, physically, and reconfigured the TC on the LAN, trying a new name "gotyourback" for the backup. Backup begins every time, but keeps failing after about five minutes.
Hope this helps others with similar problem...
Again,
Thanks!
Starting standard backup
Attempting to mount network destination using URL: afp://Suz%20Tim%20Abri%20and%[email protected]/Data
Mounted network destination using URL: afp://Suz%20Tim%20Abri%20and%[email protected]/Data
QUICKCHECK ONLY; FILESYSTEM CLEAN
Disk image /Volumes/Data/Rogers Rocks Home.sparsebundle mounted at: /Volumes/Time Machine Backups
Backing up to: /Volumes/Time Machine Backups/Backups.backupdb
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x102f20b60 "The file “CM” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x1001c76a0 "The file “std” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x1001dfc50 "The file “js” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x1001e06c0 "The file “en” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x1001e11e0 "The file “disofactor.swf” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x1001e1320 "The file “diso.sol” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
Error (256): fetching properties: Error Domain=NSCocoaErrorDomain Code=256 UserInfo=0x100527ec0 "The file “Download” couldn’t be opened." Underlying Error=(Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=5 UserInfo=0x100194860 "The operation couldn’t be completed. Input/output error")
No pre-backup thinning needed: 1.19 GB requested (including padding), 1.38 TB available
Stopping backup.
Error: (-43) SrcErr:NO Copying /Applications/The Learning Company to /Volumes/Time Machine Backups/Backups.backupdb/Rogers Rocks Home/2011-09-08-114311.inProgress/A0EF34AF-A412-4268-B48E-1FD4BF77C8BA/ROGERS LOVE/Applications
Copied 177 files (33.0 MB) from volume ROGERS LOVE.
Copy stage failed with error:11
Backup failed with error: 11
Ejected Time Machine disk image.

Ok, if it is only 2months old it shouldn't be a problem..internally at least.
? (10.0.1.1) at b8:c7:5d:c6:3c:db on en1 ifscope [ethernet]
It doesn't have a name.. although it has registered the MAC address and IP .. that is the TC unless you changed it the ? indicates there is an issue with device name. All the entries should have a name.
ray-hs-mac-pro:~ Ray$ arp -a
tc2.bigpond (192.168.2.104) at 60:33:4b:2e:91:77 on en1 ifscope [ethernet]
andrew-gigabyte.bigpond (192.168.2.130) at 0:25:22:16:43:c7 on en1 ifscope [ethernet]
bigpond.bigpond (192.168.2.254) at 0:24:17:71:ad:6d on en1 ifscope [ethernet]
bigpond.bigpond (192.168.2.254) at 0:24:17:71:ad:6d on en0 ifscope [ethernet]
? (192.168.2.255) at ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff on en1 ifscope [ethernet]
I have the TC in bridge and it is picking up the domain from my router.. if your using the TC as the main router then you should have entries for gotbackup.local
You are running SL still?? Or lion?
I thought of simply restoring the computer's settings to what they were 4-5 days ago, via Time Machine.
The issue is network.. so restoring will not fix it.
But so is my overdue dentist appointment...really not looking forward to either!
My condolances to your dentist.
I think you need to dig a bit harder to get the cause.
Most importantly are you getting IP via dhcp from the TC?
Do you have ethernet and wireless connected at the same time?

Time Capsule works only on one Mac

Set up a Time Capsule:
www
->via DSL Modem-> Router with G-WLAN ->via Ethernet-> Time Capsule with N-WLAN
-> via G-WLAN-> AirportExpress for Airtunes
I have an iMac connected via g-speed with the main router and want to use TimeCapsule as a N-WLAN-Access point for my new MacBook Air. The main router provides the NAT for internet access.
The purpose of TC should be:
1. give N-speed wireless access to MBA
2. allow Time Machine to backup my MBA on TC
I configured the TC as a bridge using the Airport Admin Utility and connecting the WAN port of the TC with a LAN port on my router.
First problem:
- The Airport Utility shows TC only on the iMac not on my MBA. It does not matter whether I connect the MBA to the network using the main router (G-speed) or directly to the TimeCapsule in N-speed. It just does not show up.
Second problem:
Time Machine system preference does not show the TC drive on the MBA but on the iMac.
Third problem:
The finder does not show TC as a shared drive
Everything works on the iMac though. For some strange reason I don't get to mount my iMac's hard drive via File Sharing on the MBA too (or iPhoto library or iTunes for that matter).
Anyone out there who knows what's wrong? Everything seems to work fine on the iMac but nothing works on the MBA, except for internet access.
Thanks

I am having a similar problem. I have my 'old' MacBook backed up on my time machine, since long, and it still backs up on a regular basis.
Every back I try for my 'new' MacBook fails.
I wonder if I need to change something in the set up of the time machine, to have two computers backed up on it?
Anyone can offer me some help?
Thanks

Time Machine backup fails on new Mac

I used Migration Assistant to transfer data from my old Mac Pro G5 to my new Intel Mac Pro. I erased the backup disk (500 GB My Book) then attempted to use Time Macine to backup the new Mac Pro. It won't start on it's daily schedule. When I select "Back up now", the icon in the tool bar indicates it starts to backup but then quickly stops. When I open Time Machine, it says: Backup - Failed. There is no error message so I don't know what else to do. Have any of you had this problem? If so, what did you do to solve it?
Thanks for any help.

in DU, select the whole drive (model, not name) and click on the partition tab. set the number of partitions to 1 and click on "options". set the partition scheme to GUID there. set the format to mac os extended journaled and click "apply".
once the disk is reformatted go to TM system preferences and set up TM.

Time Capsule backup failed, volume read-only, can't delete

I've only been using Time Machine and Time Capsule for 2 months. This week it stopped working. First error message:
"Unable to complete backup. An error occurred while copying files to the backup volume."
Checking the Time Machine preferences, "Last backup" would read "backup failed"
When I got this error, all the wireless functions went offline, even thought the TC light was still green.
I would shut down, shut down the Time Capsule, shut off my modem reboot everything in order.
I would come back online, but after about 20 minutes to 1.5 hours into the next backup, same thing would happen again.
Next error message:
"Disk repair. The disk 'Backup of [my computer]' was not repairable by this computer. It is being made available to you with limited functionality. You must backup your data and reformat the drive."
Then: "Time Machine Error: The backup volume is read only. To select a different volume ... Time Machine preferences ... "
I spoke to someone at Apple, who sent me the Time Machine Troubleshooting page:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3275?viewlocale=en_US
Steps I went through:
1. updated my system software
2. updated the TC firmware to 7.4.1
3. dragged the sparsebundle to DiskUtility. It took a while (more than an hour?) but said the disk could not be repaired. When I tried again, the repair function wouldn't run.
4. tried to delete the sparsebundle, but it would choke at almost the end, sometimes it would just crash the finder, sometimes say "Sorry, an unexpected error occurred," sometimes "Operation cannot be completed because the item 'bands' is in use." I even tried to Stuff the bundle with 'delete original' checked, but the stuffing, after about 15 hours, jammed near the end (stuffed 20 gigs of 35 gigs).
5. tried to reselect the TC, and run backup anyways ... now it can't find the volume, back to the error messages and crashing Finder
6. checked password in Keychain, all ok.
Now what??
Do I use Airport Utility to erase it? At least TC is still showing up there. Or press the rest button on the back of the Time Capsule to reset to factory defaults?
I've resigned myself to losing my backups. Now I would just like to get it up and running again.
In hopes,
Linda

Now what??
Do I use Airport Utility to erase it? At least TC is still showing up there. Or press the rest button on the back of the Time Capsule to reset to factory defaults?
Yes, open Airport Utility and erase the drive. Once the sparsebundle is corrupted beyond repair there's little more you can do. However, do not reset the TC. Doing so will not erase the drive, but it will remove any custom configurations you may have setup for the router. Only if that part of the TC is also misbehaving should you use the reset button.

First Time Capsule Backup Failed - Time Machine Error

I bought my Time Capsule yesterday because I needed to backup my MacBook (which I bought 6 months ago). My plan was to backup the MacBook to the TC and then do an Erase and Install of my MacBook because of problems I'm having with the MacBook (it constantly hangs for a minute or more - sometimes up to 20 times a day). I thought an erase and install might fix the problem.
After setting up the Time Capsule and connecting it to the MacBook with a Cat 6 ethernet cable for the first backup I went to bed. I noticed that, when the backup started, it was taking approximately 5 minutes to backup the first Gb of data. As TC noted there was 80GB to backup I assumed this would take 6 or 7 hours to complete.
This morning when I checked the MacBook I discovered a message on the screen of my MacBook as follows -
Time Machine Error
Unable to complete bacup. An error occurred while copying files to the backup volume.
Nothing else! When I check the Time Machine in Finder, under Data there is the following -
Patricia Henwood’s MacBook_002332b6d076.sparsebundle and this is 50.82GB.
Can anyone suggest what I should do?
I bought the TC yesterday because all my other backup drives are Firewire and, of course, the MacBook doesn't have a Firewire port.
Should I just 'give up'? The MacBook is covered by Apple Care (and anyhow, even if it weren't it's only 6 months old so, presumably, it's still covered by Apple warranty). I understand from the salesman where I bought my TC that it, too, is covered by my Apple Care for the MacBook because I bought it to use with the MacBook.
Would the simplest solution be to make an appointment to take the MacBook and the TC to the genius bar and see if they can help?

Hi dealbata, happy to hear that yours is now up and running. My fourth TC backup attempt last night failed yet again (at 50.8GB) - I read in a previous thread (which I can no longer find but which was more than 5 pages long and went back to 2007) about many people who have had the message
Time Machine Error
Unable to complete backup. An error occurred while copying files to the backup volume.
From that thread, 'famouswolf' posted a solution which involved checking the system.log using Console.app (Utilities folder). In his case (and in mine) the problem was caused by corrupted files in iPhoto. The solution was to actually delete the files (all those that had an ERROR (-36) message next to them in the system.log. To delete them you have to locate them in your iPhoto Library file and delete them in the Finder. As you can imagine, this is a long and tedious process (I have over 8000 images in my iPhoto library) - frankly, I've already wasted two days on this - and the TC was bought so I could back up my MacBook and then discover what the REAL problem is with my MacBook (it hangs and/or crashes between 10 and 20 times a day :-((
So, I've bitten the bullet and re-partitioned my MacBook's hard drive and done a fresh install of OS X and the applications that came on the install DVD. I've then run Software Updater until everything is up to date and I am now in the course of doing a backup of the MacBook to the TC of the 'bare bones' of my system - it's only 14.3GB so I hoping it will work. Then I'll copy across what I need from my iMac and hope that tonight TC will backup everything.
Here's hoping!
Cheers
Tricia

Time capsule backups failing - backup disk not available

All of a sudden I’m getting:
Time Machine could not complete the backup.
The backup disk is not available.
Time machine buddy’s log gives me:
Starting standard backup
Attempting to mount network destination using URL: afp://*.local/Data
NetAuthConnectToServerSync failed with error: 89 for url: afp://*.local/Data
Backup failed with error: 19
I’m connected to the Time Capsule right now (it’s how I connect to the web). I can see it in the shared list in Finder, although connection fails when trying to access it from Finder. What can I do?

Solution - I had the same thing happen to me with a Backup failed with error: 19 and what I did was this.
Stop any time machine backup in Time Machine preferences.
Go into Keychain Access in Utilities.
Go to search field and type "Local"
Delete any files that are of the kind "Time Machine Password". They should end in something like afpovertcp._tcp.local
Now turn on Time Machine back up in Preferences.
Click Select Disk and choose the volume.
You will be requested to enter the password and then it will take some time to establish the link and mount the backup volume. From there it will do a full back up.
Hope it works for you as well as it did for me.
Message was edited by: gfilev

Time Capsule: backup failed old backups lost

I'm having serious problems with my Time Capsule.
It is the newest Time Capsule 2TB connected to my new iMac and new installed MacOSLion.
This update already gives me problems with Wi-fi and now my Time Capsule is not working properly either.
I just left my iMac on for 3 days so it could make a backup.. after two days back-uping very slowly the message : back-up delayed appears, followed by the message : back-up failed. Al my previous back-ups made with my Time-Capsule are completly gone and I cannot back-up anything.
Had the problem several times, turning the TC on and of, reset it, reset Airport settings etc does NOT help. I'm having this problem for 2 months now.
Called Apple-Support about my Wi-fi problems, but 1,5 hour later and €30 poor they did not solve my problem. So, I lost faith in the Apple Support.
Any other suggestions for recovering previous back-ups and solving my constant and slow back-up failure problem?
Thanks in advance!

What does this mean
It means Time Machine is confused, and does not know what it is doing.
how do I fix it?
Try power off the Time Capsule
Count to ten
Then power the Time Capsule back on
Wait a few minutes and try a backup

Time capsule backup fail

I have a brand new 4th generation time capsule which just doe not successfully backup. I tried auto-setup and then did not find India in the country of use list. So then I had to reset and do a manual setting after successful setup my time machine floating info window shows the progress of backup but somehow stops for no reason. Can anyone please help....

DecibelCraft.com wrote:
Thanks for your response Pondini. Well, I think I was a bit unclear. My backup does not hangup it is being "interrupted" And I get a message that reads, "The problem may be temporary. Try again later to back up. If the problem persists, use Disk Utility to repair your backup disk."
There should be more to that message. As posted, see #C2 inTime Machine - Troubleshooting. It will show you how to locate the message(s) that describe the problem, then help you fix it. If that doesn't help, post back with details, including all the messages, your setup, what you've done, and the results.
And unfortunately TC does NOT appear in Disk Utility to repair it.
That's correct, as far as it goes. Depending on what you find in #C2, it will lead you to #A5 in the same articlce, which shows how to use Disk Utility to repair your backups.

Time Machine Backup Failed - on three Macs. Used to work fine.

"*+Time Machine Error*+
+Unable to complete backup. An error occurred while copying files to the backup volume.+"
Last week all three machines were running fine. The Time Machine disk is hooked up to an Airport Extreme running 7.3.2 firmware. I updated it today to 7.4.1 in hopes of fixing the problem. All Macs are on 10.5.6 and have been for a month or more.
When "Backup now" is selected all machines stick on Preparing backup" for a few minutes and then fail.
I'm bummed that this is happening now. I used to use SilverKeeper (free from LaCie). It's faster and more comprehensive, but somehow I got sucked in by Apple's futuristic (historic?) interface. Now, in order to use SilverKeeper I need to erase the Time Machine drive - all 1.2TB.
I don't feel TM is ready for storage of important data. A commercial product would never make it to market if it continually had issues like this. Nearly 10,000 topics in this forum, and a good portion have just plain bad things to say.
I'm sure a lot of people have run into this on their own setups. Has anyone solved the issue? Please help.

Yes, perhaps we're missing something. But I'd rather stick with what works. Here's a software review that pretty much echo's my feelings:
*+I've tried to love Time Machine. I really have. It was one of the reasons I was in an all-fire hurry to upgrade to 10.5. I spent the cash, installed the OS, and immediately set up TM. Or at least I tried to. My new Airport Extreme wasn't allowed to access the USB disk for this purpose.+*
*+But I found a hack and things were good. For about a day. "To **** with it" I thought and went back to Carbon Copy Cloner. An excellent and free app that got me thru years of work with no loss of data. But wait! Now that I upgraded to 10.5 CCC no longer works.+*
*+So I played with it for a few weeks and eventually, I got it to work.... Until Apple released the official software upgrade that allowed Airport Extreme disks to work with TM and it broke again. Another 4 days of playing and reinstalling, and reformatting, and shuffling data. Still nothing.+*
*+****, you should have seen the look on their eyes when I showed up to the Apple store toting my G5 PowerMac Dual, AirPort Extreme, MacBook Pro, wife's MacBook, and two USB drives. AND my Apple ProCare card.+*
*+I took up half the Genius Bar for about 2 hours and still left with a backup scheme that would only partially work. Then, upon arriving home, the IP addresses had changed so I had to repeat half of the steps I barely remembered (and the Genius made up on the fly).+*
*+Finally all was good in the world. Until last week. My wife asked me to send her a picture I took of her with our new puppy at our new house about 6 months ago. I pulled up iPhoto and couldn't locate the picture. "No problem, I've got Time Machine" I thought.+*
*+The story is getting long and you can see where it's going. Not only was the picture missing, but 4 months of pictures were missing. 4 months starting when I stopped using CCC and, even though TM was running, it deleted the oldest files without any warning, any notification, or any reason. In fact the TM drive still had over 400GB free.+*
*+Yes, I had to replace a drive in that 4 month window and yes, I made sure I pulled the data off of Time Machine. HUGE pain in the @ss - it took nearly 4 days to copy the data from TM to the new drive, and apparently a big chunk was lost.+*
*+Finally, the end of my little story. I'm back using CCC. v3 is out and it works with 10.5 and reportedly, 10.6. Four years of using CCC and I've never lost so much as an email (much to the chagrin of my old landlord that emailed me that dogs were perfectly fine, only to try to sue me later).+*
*+For all of those who trust Time Machine, go ahead and try to find a file from a few months ago. It's not as easy as the interface makes it look, and it may not be there at all.+*
*+Time Machine - go sparse yourself. And thanks Bombich software for a superior product in Carbon Copy Cloner.+*

Time capsule backups fail because disks aren't recognised - how to fix?

Hi, all... I have a 500GB TC with a 2TB Western Digital drive attached, which I use for backing up three computers. My desktop iMac is connected to the TC by Ethernet cable, my laptop and my wife's laptop connect over wifi. The desktop and my wife's laptop back up to the WD drive. My laptop backs up to the TC internal drive.
Every few days (max, min is something like 1 day), I notice that the backups are all failing at the "Looking for backup disk" stage. That's both the iMac connected by Ethernet and the laptops on WiFi. The WiFi _signal_ is fine -- my laptops can see the network, browse to other destinations, download files at a good speed. The TC has a green light, and Airport Utility doesn't detect any issues.
But although the TC appears in the Finder Sidebar, it shows no disks. If I try to "Connect As" nothing happens.
I can resolve the issue by pulling the plug on the TC and re-powering it, and then doing the same with the WD disk. If I do that, both disks appear in the finder (with no need to "connect" to them) and backups proceed normally.
Backups can go on normally for anywhere between 8 hours and four days, but then I have to repeat the whole rigmarole to get them started again.
I'm beginning to suspect something to do with two backup processes over Ethernet and Wifi to two different backup disks "colliding" somehow and locking out the disks. I say this, because if I'm away for a week with my laptop, and my laptop does no backups to the TC in that week, then when I get back, the iMac is still backing up fine, even though five days is a long time compared to how often it seems to fail when all three machines are at home and backing up.
I don't want to have to keep pulling the plug, so does anyone have any ideas?
Many thanks!
bestest,
M.

Still not resolved this. However, I'm now absolutely SURE that it's something to do with colliding back-ups locking the TC up somehow.
I was at home for 3 weeks over Christmas, without using my work laptop. All through that time, the iMac continued backing up to the WD with no problems. Since then, though, I've been using my work laptop at home all day for a couple of weeks, and pretty much every afternoon, mid afternoon, the iMac alerts me that the backups could not be completed because the backup could not be found.
The TC shows up in the Finder sidebar still, and if I run Airport Utility I can access it and administer it. Once again, if you click on the TC in the Sidebar, it just says "Connecting" and shows no disks. However (and this is a new discovery), if I use the Airport Utility to "Disconnect All Users" from both the TCs internal disk and the WD external disk, the TC disk reappears in the Finder. The WD disk can only be made to reappear by power cycling it. But once that's done, backup can begin again as normal.
I therefore don't have to power cycle the TC to get the disks back.
So, it seems that something is happening that means that when two "users" are connected to the disks, having attepted a backup, they are locked, and can't be connected to.
Throughout all this, though, the laptop has continued to back-up normally to the TC internal drive, so IT can still see and connect to that drive. It's just the iMac that is somehow locked out of the TC and its external WD backup drive.
I do wish somebody would fix this!!!!
bestest,
M.

Time Capsule backup works on one, but not all computers.

We have a Macbook and an iMac, both on Snow Leopard. Set them up on TC for backup several months ago, and they worked for a while. Then it stopped working for no obvious reason, with the message:
The network backup disk could not be accessed because there was a problem with the network username or password. Open Time Machine preferences to select the network backup disck and re-enter the correct username and password.
Of course userame and password were correct, because, first of all, they had not been changed, and second, because I could put in the wrong pw and it immediately would reject it. As it is, it takes it, counts down for 120 seconds, and then gives the above message.
Bought a new Macbook Pro, using Lion, and it works with the TC, seemingly proving that all settings on the TC are still good. Tried resetting TC. Tried the Cmd-Alt-p-r reboot, but neither worked.

Confirm network connectivity (try mounting the TC disk from the client), then (if that fails) look through and clear out all of the keychain passwords for any TC-related passwords and re-enter the current passwords, and then (if that fails) reset the disk password on both the TC and on the clients to a new and different password. Failing all that, I'd archive the backup from the TC and restart the TM backup for the failing systems.

Time Capsule Backup Fails on one Mac, fine on second Mac

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