Backup solution for Mac

[xiaofan]

https://www.imore.com/best-backup-services-and-programs-your-mac

Just wondering how people backup the files from the Mac.

I assume Time Machine and iCloud are probably the more popular method. But I wonder if people here also use online backup solution like BackBlaze (US$6 per month for unlimited storage) or iDrive.

I intend to use the following method for my Mac Mini M1 8GB/256GB base version (used previously with my Mac Mini 2011). Take note I do not put photos and videos in the Mac Mini.

1) Time Machine, with external USB drive, probably buying a 4TB USB HDD
2) FreeFileSync, one direction file sync to external USB drive, probably another 4TB USB HDD.
3) Not yet decided, probably Google One paid tier for documents, as I need to backup photos and videos generated by iOS/Android phones using Google Photos, it will no longer be free after June 2021.

 

[xiaofan]

Previously I used a FireWire 800 based (also with USB 2.0) WD 1TB external drive as the main backup device for my Mac Mini 2011, using Time Machine. Then I also use FreeFileAync to backup essential documents to my USB drive and a personal NAS (old WD MyCloud 3TB).

 

[i-Movies]

In Big Sur, Time Machine backup on external drive is no longer bootable, that means TM only backup Data regardless of using external drive or NAS, in other words, Time Machine is pointless on Big Sur -- if only Data backup, the iCloud auto-sync on Documents and Desktop is good enough unless you want version control.

The iCloud Drive already provides redundancy, why do you still need local external drive and another 3rd party service?

I have been using Time Capsule for years, but TM backup often corrupted... threw away TM and switched a much simpler solution: get 200GB iCloud Drive for S$4/mo, enable Document Sync, iCloud Photo Library, then forget about the backup, everything is syncd automatically.

 

[xiaofan]

In Big Sur, Time Machine backup on external drive is no longer bootable, that means TM only backup Data regardless of using external drive or NAS, in other words, Time Machine is pointless on Big Sur -- if only Data backup, the iCloud auto-sync on Documents and Desktop is good enough unless you want version control.

The iCloud Drive already provides redundancy, why do you still need local external drive and another 3rd party service?

I have been using Time Capsule for years, but TM backup often corrupted... threw away TM and switched a much simpler solution: get 200GB iCloud Drive for S$4/mo, enable Document Sync, iCloud Photo Library, then forget about the backup, everything is syncd automatically.

Indeed paying for iCloud is a potential solution, and S$4 per month for 200GB is a very affordable option.

Still there is a workaround for now to create a bootable backup for Apple Silicon Mac.
https://bombich.com/blog/2020/11/03/yes-you-can-have-bootable-backups-on-macos-big-sur

***
If you would like to make your Apple Silicon Mac backup bootable, you can install Big Sur onto the CCC Data Volume backup.
***

 

[xiaofan]

Just finished my first ever use of the CCC (Carbon Copy Cloner) backup of my new Mac Mini M1. I chose to reformat an HP500 256GB SDD to APFS as a test.

I have 129.55 GB on the 256GB Mac Mini M1. It took about 35 minutes to create the first backup.

CCC has 30days trial version and works on M1 Macs. I will see if I need to pay for it after trial.

 

[yotoden]

iCloud Drive no versioning, so I use Dropbox also for document only. iCloud for photos.

 

[ForbiddenB]

Recently was shopping around and found WD My Cloud Home, it’s the cheapest no fuss network hard drive I can find. Can this be used for time machine backup and hosting 4K media files to be played through local network, is it fast enough to handle these?

 

[Parka]

I use Microsoft 365 Personal with 1TB online storage to store all my files. Transfer speed is really fast, faster than Google Drive, and it's easy and fast to download huge folders as a zip file.

There are many people selling those sealed Microsoft 365 Personal packs on Carousell from S$60 - $80. Which is less than $7 per month.

Microsoft OneDrive is also used for Samsung Android phone backups.

200GB iCloud
Used to backup iPhone and iPad.

Time Machine
- Used to retrieve accidentally deleted files

 

[szeli]

I backup via Time Machine over e network to an old Mac updated to High Sierra. Photos r on iCloud.

 

[xiaofan]

I backup via Time Machine over e network to an old Mac updated to High Sierra. Photos r on iCloud.

Interesting solution for the Time Machine.

It is said that quite some NAS is having issues with Time Machine due to the AFP and SMB v3 protocol in Big Sur.

Time Machine in Big Sur requires APFS for DAS storage but technically no need APFS for NAS. But still there are issues reported in many places. For example, it is said that WD My Cloud will not work with Time Machine now.
https://community.wd.com/t/timemachine-and-big-sur/258779

Synology users are reporting issues as well but some say okay.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252044567

And yes for people with lots of photos, cloud storage solutions like iCloud, Google One, MS OneDrive (as part of Office 365) are the way to go.

 

[westtraveller]

So is Time Machine to external HDD still recommended as backup? I'm about to buy external HDD Having only backup in iCloud seems a bit risky..would prefer to have a local copy also.

 

[xiaofan]

So is Time Machine to external HDD still recommended as backup? I'm about to buy external HDD Having only backup in iCloud seems a bit risky..would prefer to have a local copy also.

I just got a 2.5inch WD My Passport 4TB drive from Lazada 12.12 promotion and finished my first Time Machine backup in 1 hour and 3 minutes, for my new Mac Mini M1 8GB/256GB (about 90GB backed up on the WD drive).

I think it is good to have one local backup along with one on the cloud.

I actually like to have three backups for my stuff. Two local backups plus one on the cloud. For the Mac, one of the local backup will be using Time Machine. But now it seems many are not using Time Machine any more.

 

[TanKianW]

I will go with:

Mac ->TM -> TrueNAS Core Server 1-> Periodic Snapshot -> Replication Tasks -> TrueNAS Core Server 2 -> Cloud Sync Task -> S3

Locally accessible, duplicate locally, further backup to cloud.

Though I don't use Mac. This is how I back up my mission critical data. Never once failed me.

 

[xiaofan]

I will go with:

Mac ->TM -> TrueNAS Core Server 1-> periodic snapshot -> Replication to TrueNAS Core Server 2 -> Amazon S3

Locally accessible, duplicate locally, further backup to cloud.

Though I don't use TM. This is how I back up my mission critical data.

Wow, that is really nice.

Just wondering how much will the Amazon S3 storage cost per month for 1TB or 2TB.

 

[TanKianW]

Wow, that is really nice.

Just wondering how much will the Amazon S3 storage cost per month for 1TB or 2TB.

Mine's company paid. Not going to be cheap. And I only use for backing up work related snapshots with rolling 3 - 6 months of timespan.

For personal use, I trust ZFS. My personal self hosted cloud I only duplicate the snapshots locally to another TrueNAS core server. You can let the 2 servers auto sync the snapshots either using the "Resync" or "Replication" functions. I prefer "Replication" that auto backup on a schedule.

You should give TrueNAS Core a try if you are serious with backing up.

My trusty NAS on UPS:

Second NAS for backing up snapshots locally:

 

[karltansg]

I tried Seagate before but now, I just pay cloud. Less hassle.

 

[Halo green]

grateful for some advice here.

my apps were previously installed on Mac mini HDD. over the years, it started to shows lag and beachball , so I use an external SSD for boot drive and storing new data currently.
what is the recommended solution to transfer my exisitng apps and data to the new mba? thanks all

 

[szeli]

grateful for some advice here.

my apps were previously installed on Mac mini HDD. over the years, it started to shows lag and beachball , so I use an external SSD for boot drive and storing new data currently.
what is the recommended solution to transfer my exisitng apps and data to the new mba? thanks all

migration assistant