How can we start from scratch with Time Machine (new full 100% backup)?

Question

How can we start from scratch with Time Machine (new full 100% backup)?

This general question came up when I first started using TM today. I started the first backup. About 5 minutes into it, the backup failed due to a loose firewire connection. I assumed the backup was corrupted and erased the backup drive (dragged the 1 backup folder into the trash and emptied it).

Then I restarted the backup but to my surprise, I noticed that it was backing up less data than the first time. At that point, I concluded that TM thought it had already backed up some files and that meant it would never back them up again unless they all changed. So I erased that partiel backup too as it was useless. I had to find a way to start a fresh backup, but could not find anything that would accomplish this. So I called Apple and the tech was stumped.

Then it occurred to me that there could be many reasons why a fresh 100% backup would be necessary or useful. Like a crash of the backup drive? You'd have to buy a new backup drive and start a fresh 100% backup, right.

So then I tried changing the settings in TM like deselecting the backup drive, changing it to another drive, temproarily, then back to the now-erased original backup drive. But when I start TM, it says that there is even less GBs of files to backup than either of the previous attempts.

SO HOW DOES ONE ACHIEVE A 100% NEW BACKUP WHEN DESIRED?

Mac Pro, Mac OS X (10.5)

Posted on Jan 29, 2008 11:07 AM

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Answer 1

Kappy

Level 10

362,023 points

Jan 29, 2008 11:36 AM in response to Heart-Of-Music.com

In the TM preferences select No Drive for the backup device, then turn off TM. Open Disk Utility, select the desired backup volume, click on the Erase tab in the DU main window then click on the Erase button. Quit DU. Open the TM preferences, turn on TM and select the desired backup volume. TM preferences should indicate you are now doing a completely new backup (should see the 2 minute warning.)

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Answer 2

Jan 29, 2008 11:46 AM in response to Kappy

Thank you for this help!

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Answer 3

Jan 31, 2008 7:38 AM in response to Kappy

For others reading this post, I found that it wasn't quite as easy as the suggested instructions implied, although in general it was 100% the correct approach. Here's what I, and my Apple Care specialist, discovered:

---"None" vs "No Drive"
My computer says "None" as a choice (as opposed to "No Drive"), so this was the obvious choice. Just semantics. Cool so far.

---Automatic off vs manual
Clicking this automatically turned TM off (as opposed to having to manually turn it off per the above instructions). So this may depend on which TM release is on your machine.

---"Format Wars"
After selecting the backup drive in Disk Utility (per Apple you must select the indented icon for your backup disk, not the outer icon) and clicking the erase tab and erase button, I noticed there were several volume format choices (default was "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" and that the "Install Mac OS 9 Disk Drivers" was checked, which would have made me backup drive an OS 9 startup disk! No brainer to uncheck that box! However, now I didn't trust ANY defaults. Other volume formats listed were "MS-DOS (FAT)", "Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive", "Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled)", and plain "Mac OS Extended". I was stumped! So I called Apple Care and learned that "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" should be used unless the data is to be used with a Unix machine, in which case the case-sensitive option might be used (but isn't OS X Unix-based? I muttered). You should probably use the default, was the answer: "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)". Another source confirmed this was the best choice for most users.

---Which erase option?
With Apple still on the phone, we did the default erase (not using the "Security Options"), which erases all the links to the data (but not the data itself). This is quick. If you go into the security options you could chooses "Zero Out Data" to truly erase everything, which takes more time, obviously (note: approx 1 GB per minute in my setup). I experimented with both methods and the result was the same.

---TM failure!
In my case (either erase method), after Disk Utility ran and we tried running TM, we got a red "failed" message in the TM window. Clicking on the the little "i" info button, it said TM couldn't find the disk, even though it was there on the desktop and in the Disk Utility window and in the TM window. We tried dismounting, powering off the external drive, re-mounting and got the same error. Finally, we had choose TM disk set to "None" and then re-choose the backup drive. At last, TM was able to run without the failure!

Thanks Kappy, thanks Apple Care. I hope this post helps others!

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Answer 4

ryanka

Level 1

95 points

Feb 29, 2008 6:55 PM in response to Heart-Of-Music.com

I wanted to get back after reading your post and add perhaps helpful information to your post.
Following much of Heart's information I chose "none" for my drive and then turned off Time Machine. I then chose MAC OS Extended via disk utility (specifying my external drive) and started a full erase. _When the erase was done I was prompted by disk utility and asked if I wanted "backup" to be used by Time Machine. I said yes._
However when I check Time Machine preferences the external drive had not been designated so I chose my external drive. Then confirmed exclusions where still there and proceeded with a full back up Because I choose when my back ups run Time Machine preference window specifies "Next backup: When disk is connected".

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Answer 5

Strikan

Level 1

9 points

Mar 13, 2008 4:36 AM in response to ryanka

Hey guys I am trying to do the same here, but I have a small problem. I use Time Capsule which shows up in Finder as a shared device. The problem I have is that when I run disk utility it does not see the Time Capsule at all and so I am unable to erase it. I am very new to Macs and so I am sure I am doing something stupid. Any idea how I get Time Capsule to appear in the disk utility?

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Answer 6

Mar 14, 2008 4:20 AM in response to Heart-Of-Music.com

"Install Mac OS 9 Disk Drivers" was checked, which would have made me backup drive an OS 9 startup disk! No brainer to uncheck that box!

OS 9 drivers wouldn't cause a problem. They are only used when booting OS 9, which your computer can't do.

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