timemachine
Latest
Time Machine update will offer battery-saving feature
Time Machine is the backup software built into Mac OS X Leopard that people either love or hate. It already saved my backside on the night before a report was due, so I'm a hands-down fan.For now, the available options are limited. According to AppleInsider, that's going to change with the release of Mac OS 10.5.3. It seems that the latest OS build seeded to developers (9D29) features a version of Time Machine which lets laptop owners suspend backups while running on battery power.This is good for two reasons. It eliminates a power draw on the battery, and prevents incomplete backups (should your battery die before a backups session finished).Our only question is ... May we have 10.5.3 now?!?
Mac 101: Back it Up
If you're like me, you probably spend a great deal of time using your Mac. From checking email, working with photos, surfing the web and paying bills to writing posts just like this, my Mac serves me well in so many ways. Using it every day as I do, I tend to create a massive amount of files, photos, emails and all of the other items that go along with daily Mac use.The items that are created, modified and used every day are very important. So, to make sure I have access to them and that nothing bad happens to them, they need to be backed up so they're safe no matter what. But even though I know these files, folders and more need to be backed up, how do I do it in the most simple, effective and least time-consuming way? Fortunately, there are several solutions available to Mac users to help ensure that their precious data is preserved. Most are simple to use and all provide an automated backup solution that once set up, doesn't rely on the user to make sure it works -- it all happens automatically on a particular schedule.But which solution to choose? Here are the three simplest, cheapest and most reliable backup solutions for your consideration:
Time Machine via Airport Extreme not officially supported
As we noted when the latest Airport Extreme Base Station firmware shipped, Time Machine now seems to recognize USB hard drives connected to the AEBS as valid backup locations. Was this feature added deliberately? Well, Glenn Fleishman over at TidBITS took the trouble to ask Apple about this and he reports that they told him that this is an unsupported feature (and not much else). This is unsurprising given that Apple never made mention of the feature connected with the firmware update (though it was originally promised before Leopard shipped). Fleishman himself even speculates that it was turned on by accident.So what's the upshot? Apple is offering no support for using your AEBS this way, and so if you have a problem you're pretty much out of luck as far as they're concerned. Further, considering that there have been reports that the Airport Disk can be unreliable, it's probably not a good idea to depend on an Airport Disk and Time Machine for your only backup.
Apple says AirPort Disk use with Time Machine is unsupported
Okay, the Time Machine / AirPort Extreme situation is now officially ridiculous. TidBITS's Glenn Fleishmann says Apple's confirmed to him that the Extreme is unsupported for use with Time Machine, even though the latest batch of updates enable AirPort Disks to show up in the Time Machine disk-selection box. Fleishmann thinks a it's leftover developer testing glitch, but either way, Apple's will-they-won't-they routine means lots of people now have an unsupported backup solution that works "erratically." Seriously, if you thought AirPort Extreme owners were pissed off about Time Capsule, just wait until backups start failing. Not a lot of options left, Apple -- better get this feature up and running ASAP.
Time Machine now works with AirPort Extreme's AirDisk feature
Who knows why it took so long, but the latest AirPort Extreme firmware update (7.3.1, out today) finally brings Time Machine compatibility to AirDisk. In typical Apple fashion, there's no mention of it on the release notes, but the crew over at TUAW says it's working, and commenters are confirming. We're still holding out for Time Machine to work with any NAS we want, but for now, it looks like all you Airport Extreme owners who felt like you were getting played by the release of Time Capsule are finally in the game -- get those USB drives ready for some hot backup nights.
Is your Airport Extreme suddenly Time Machine-happy?
Update 9 pm ET: Our comrade David Chartier from Ars Technica points out that the 7.1.3 firmware itself may not be necessary for the new functionality to work; he says he tested a 7.1 AEBS with a machine running Time Capsule & Airport 1.0, and Time Machine was able to see the remote disk. Other readers have reminded us that the disk must be formatted as HFS+ with journaling, and you may have to mount it in the Finder before Time Machine sees it. The freeware TimeMachineScheduler is disabled by this update, comments note.Update 6:45 am Thursday: More comments point out that if you take a locally-connected Time Machine drive and attach it to an AEBS, you will be starting over with new backups (because the remote backups are stored on sparseimages, not as folders). Something to keep in mind if you already have a long backup history -- you might want to use a different drive.Sometimes the fixes are subtle and quiet. Once TUAW reader Peder downloaded today's Airport updates and ran the utility, he noticed a new version of the Airport Extreme firmware queued up and ready (v7.3.1). When he installed and rebooted his AEBS -- which happened to have a USB hard drive hanging off of it... well, let him tell you: After downloading the latest Airport-update I checked for updates for my AirPort Extreme. After upgrading to version 7.3.1, Time Machine recognised the attached USB-drive.If this is a reproducible result -- this means you, everyone, go ahead and start testing this firmware! -- that means that the now-you-see-it, now-you-don't Time Machine to AirDisk feature of Leopard has finally arrived. Sure, the Time Capsule is a one-piece solution and quite economical, but for all the AEBS owners out there who have been waiting patiently, this would be a very nice bit of March madness indeed. [Response to "just-a-guy" below: Remember, this is the Airport EXTREME only; the Express doesn't support AirDisk at all.]Seeing the same results as Peder? By all means let us know. He was kind enough to send us a few screenshots, see below.%Gallery-18775%
Time Machine and Airport Updates 1.0
Apple has released updates for Time Machine and Airport, giving us three update reboots in three days. The update improves Time Machine compatibility with Time Capsule and offers some fixes for AirPort drivers. I don't, at this point, see any indications of the rumored Airport-Extreme-as-Time-Capsule abilities, but I'm assuming that will require an Airport Extreme firmware update.The update is available through Software Update.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
Who's suing Apple today? Mirror Worlds takes aim at Time Machine and more
While it's not quite a daily occurrence, it must nearly seem that way for the folks in Apple's legal department, who are now facing yet another lawsuit alleging that the company has infringed on some slightly obscure patents. This latest one comes from Mirror Worlds Technologies, which claims that Apple's Time Machine violates no less than four of its patents that, as AppleInsider reports, describe a "highly visual system that displays a line of documents and other items dating back (or forward) in time along with the option of searching these items to retrieve and edit them." As if that wasn't enough, Mirror Worlds also claims that the iPhone and various iPods also infringe on all but one of the patents, apparently due to the way they sort podcasts and other information. As a result of all of that alleged infringement, Mirror Worlds is seeking the usual injunction against all Apple products in question, and "triple damages," which sure is step above and beyond most of these lawsuits that just seek plain old single damages.
How Time Machine can decrease inhibitions, encourage risky behavior
Let me tell you something about people from Brooklyn: we are, by nature and environment, edgy risk-takers who live life like we're driving a Maserati down the PCH. Or a Camry up the BQE. Anyway, you don't want to mess with us -- and specifically, you don't want to mess with Mike Solomon, a creative director who's apparently got cojones the size of Jonathan Ive's awards cabinet.What did Mike do that earns him the title of Mac Jock Extraordinare? Faced with a weekend on-site video editing project that would require 20 GB of space and only having 10 GB free on his laptop, he didn't bow to the conventional wisdom -- send a production assistant to Staples for a new 500GB drive, or weed out his Downloads folder. No, he decided the best way to free up the needed space was to out-and-out delete his 65 GB iTunes library, the media addict's equivalent of flushing your stash when the cops show up. Then, when he returned home later, he simply restored his library from Time Machine -- no muss, no fuss.Mike, we salute you and your outside-the-box approach to capacity management. Next time, though, might we suggest a portable drive?[via Macenstein]
Time Capsule: everything you wanted to know
So we spent the weekend playing with Time Capsule and we've discovered some interesting answers to all your questions, as well as a few accompanying annoyances. Our main takeaway? It's a solid product, but you shouldn't expect it to do anything more than back up your files -- and Apple really needs to step up and enable general NAS support for Time Machine. Read on!
Time Machine plays nice with USB HDDs on Time Capsule
Well, would you look at that. It seems as if Time Machine is all buddy-buddy with externally connected HDDs on Time Capsule after all. If you'll recall, many Apple users were miffed (to put it gently) by the disappearance of said feature from vanilla AirPort Extreme Base Stations just before Leopard hit the streets, but according to a hands-on report over at Macworld, "you can perform Time Machine backups to drives attached to the Time Capsule via USB." Granted, it wasn't exactly speedy or anything, but at least the functionality is tucked away in there -- hit up the read link if you're still spinning in disbelief.[Via TUAW]
Time Machine works with USB external HDs on Time Capsule
Over at Macworld, Glenn Fleishman has an initial hands-on report about Apple's new Time Capsule combination Airport Base Station and NAS, and he's confirmed something folks were wondering about: "you can also perform Time Machine backups to drives attached to the Time Capsule via USB." This is interesting, because Apple originally said that Time Machine backups would be possible to an AirDisk (that is, an USB external drive on the regular AirPort Extreme Base Station). Just before Leopard shipped, that feature quietly disappeared, leaving some early-adopters who had counted on that capability in the lurch. The obvious questions now are whether there's any technical reason why Time Machine to AirDisk wouldn't work on the AEBS, and whether Apple is holding the feature back just to promote the Time Capsule. In any case, it's good to know that if you get a Time Capsule you're not limited to the internal storage, perhaps making the smaller 500GB model that much more attractive.
Time Capsule first impressions
Okay, so we've got our Time Capsule up and running here -- we'll be back with a full review once our full 516GB backup is completed, but here are some quick first impressions: You can definitely hear the disks spin up and access. It also sounds like there's a fan in there, but there are no obvious vents for one and we can't feel any air coming out, so the drives might just be that loud. The top is getting quite warm during the backup -- we'll see if it cools down once we stop hitting the drive this hard, but if there really isn't a fan we're a little concerned. Hope those server-grade hard drives like being cooked. You can't transfer an existing Time Machine backup to Time Capsule. Sure, it's easy enough to switch back and get at your old data, but it's still a pain -- and now we have a 1TB drive sitting here with months of backups on it that we can't erase and reuse. Time Machine doesn't prioritize network activity on your machine, so it's slamming our network connection right now as it backs up. That's not a huge problem since we're backing up over Ethernet, but we'll see what happens when we try this over WiFi later. We tried to back up a second machine while the first was in progress, and not much happened -- it created the disk image and got to "Preparing..." and then did nothing. We're assuming these can only happen one at a time. The wireless side of things is basically the same as the Airport Extreme, nothing shocking there, although the setup assistant has been substantially revised to make things easier. The setup assistant now asks if you already have a 2.4GHz network and offers to create a 5GHz secondary network, which is interesting. That's about it for now -- there's not much we can try out while this backup is in progress. Anything else you guys want to know?
Opening the Time Capsule
Right at the buzzer, Apple shipped us a Time Capsule -- and just like we remember, it's a bit bigger than you'd expect. We're about to set it up in our WiFi torture chamber of an apartment building, we'll let you know how it goes -- unboxing in the gallery below. %Gallery-17223%
PSP super-hack hits the internet
Well you knew it was coming. That PSP hack we told you about a few weeks ago has hit the interblogs, and we predict all hell will be breaking loose any moment. Un-retired homebrew mastermind Dark_AleX has come up with a little number called Timemachine, which is capable of spinning your PSP back to all sorts of crazy firmwares at the touch of a button. We know you can hardly stand finishing this post due to excitement, so... get out of here and grab it![Thanks, Craig]
At long last, a Leopard-compatible SuperDuper!
Pity the plight of Leopard users, who have wandered in the backup wilderness for so long, with only the ghost of H.G Wells to show them the path forward. Sure, Carbon Copy Cloner 3 has been a friend in time of need, but for those who crave a bootable clone that updates automatically and has a support team standing behind it, the long wait is over. SuperDuper! 2.5 has landed.Dave Nanian has entertained us with the ongoing story of 2.5's road to release on the Shirt Pocket blog, including the pain and challenges of building compatibility with Time Machine's interesting new approaches to linking and storage. With backups now supporting both bootable clones to volumes shared with Time Machine (probably the perfect recovery option) and a free, works-forever trial still available (adding scheduling and smart copies costs $27.95), you owe it to yourself and your backups to give SD! a shot. We'll be testing out the Time Machine interoperability and will report back ASAP.Thanks Laurie + everyone who sent this in.
TimeMachineEditor 1.2
If you have been putting off using Time Machine to back up your Mac because of the lack of being able to time backups; you have no excuse now. As many of you already know, Time Machine does a complete system backup at first, then hourly backups of system changes. It does this until your Time Machine disk is completely full, then it erases the oldest backups and carries on. TimeMachineEditor allows you to change the times that TimeMachine backs your system up. You can change it to once a day, week, or month; and control the times it backs up at. On the developers website, they mention that this program doesn't run in place of TimeMachine, rather, it just changes the interval that the system backs up. TimeMachineEditor is available as freeware from the developer's website or from MacUpdate. As a word of caution, use this at your own risk, as the developer doesn't provide a way to reset the original settings of Time Machine. They also mention that the "Latest backup" time may be incorrect in the Time Machine System Preference pane.
Make your Time Machine drive more useful and more boot-iful
As we've mentioned recently, one of the conditions for a successful bare-metal restore of a Time Machine backup is a Leopard install DVD; you boot from the DVD, choose your backup as source material, wait some number of hours, and then you're back in business. Wouldn't it be good, wondered a tipster at Macosxhints.com, if you could combine the need for a DVD with all that lovely free space on your Time Machine drive and somehow accelerate this process?Enter the "you got your peanut butter in my chocolate" solution: before you set up your Time Machine backups, use Disk Copy Utility to clone your Leopard DVD onto the blank hard drive. Once Time Machine is running, it should leave the DVD clone alone and simply use the rest of the drive for data. If you ever need to recover from a catastrophic failure, you've got a bootable Time Machine restore drive that acts just like the Leopard DVD.My idle question (and one I plan to test when I can) is if you can actually install a lean system, perhaps with some key utilities and tools, alongside your Time Machine data; boot from that when you need to, and do repairs/recovery before moving on to the restore process. It would almost certainly be safer to carve off a small boot partition (20 GB would be ample) and set up a bare-bones boot environment, but it would be fun to try it all on the same volume and see what happens. Of course, when you hear "fun" and "backups" in the same sentence, turn tail and run.
Airport Extreme owners not happy to be left out of Time Capsule
It's no secret that most of you aren't exactly pleased with Apple's decision to charge $20 to add in Mail, Maps, Stocks, Weather, and Notes to the iPod touch, but there's another segment of Apple users feeling burned by last week's announcements: Airport Extreme owners. Seems like Apple's only enabled network support for Time Machine when used with Time Capsule, not for USB disks connected to the Airport Extreme -- even though early Leopard promo materials promised such support. Of course, it's an easy hack to enable NAS support (although it's probably pretty risky), and who knows what'll happen when 10.5.2. is released, but for now, it certainly seems like Airport Extreme owners just got a raw deal.
Apple introduces Time Capsule, a NAS companion to Time Machine
Apple announced a companion to Time Machine today, Time Capsule. Essentially a hard drive and Airport combined -- an NAS from your favorite Cupertino team. The wireless drive will come in 500GB and 1TB configurations, and will feature 802.11n, as well as server grade hard drives. They will clock in at $299 and $499, respectively (Steve says they're aggressively pricing them because they want everyone to backup). You'll be able to backup your notebook or desktop wirelessly from anywhere in your home. Available in February, pre-order now.%Gallery-13877%
