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Time Machine Error: Copy stage failed?

I get intermittent Time Machine errors when it attempts to backup. I l also have the Time Machine widget installed - this is the latest log reported during the failure:

*Starting standard backup*
*Backing up to: /Volumes/Backup HD/Backups.backupdb*
*No pre-backup thinning needed: 218.8 MB requested (including padding), 248.92 GB available*
*Stopping backup.*
*Error: (-43) copying /Users/evanemolo/Library/Application Support/Quicksilver/Actions.plist to /Volumes/Backup HD/Backups.backupdb/Emolo Mac Pro/2008-09-11-152922.inProgress/8D1F88F0-2169-4692-BB4E-66212BF8C335/Leopard HD/Users/evanemolo/Library/Application Support/Quicksilver*
*Copied 208 files (421 KB) from volume Leopard HD.*
*Copy stage failed with error:11*
*Backup failed with error: 11*

Can anyone give me any insight on how to resolve this? Thanks!

Mac Pro (Early 2008) 2.8 GHz Quad Core, Mac OS X (10.5.4)

Posted on Sep 11, 2008 12:36 PM

Reply
8 replies

Sep 11, 2008 1:07 PM in response to evan e

Here's an Apple Knowledge Base Article intended for Mac OS 9 users that gives the definition of a Type 11 Error: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2088. According to that document it's a miscellaneous hardware exception error. You might want to try zapping your Mac's PRAM by holding down Apple/Command Option+PR.

If the Mac experiencing this Type 11 Error is a older PowerPC Mac you might also want to try zapping the NV-RAM by holding down Apple/Command Option+NV. Make sure the Mac bongs one extra time while doing either procedure before allowing startup to continue normally.

Sep 19, 2008 9:21 PM in response to evan e

evan,

It seems to be choking of the file found here:

/Users/evanemolo/Library/Application Support/Quicksilver/Actions.plist

Navigate to that file (Actions.plist) move it to the Trash, but don't empty it. Now try backing up again. If it succeeds, you can launch Time Machine and go back 24-48 hours and restore a copy of Actions.plist and replace it.

Then empty trash.

Let us know if this helps.

Cheers!

Sep 20, 2008 2:03 PM in response to evan e

Evan,

Great! Glad to hear it.

One question, do you remember exactly what error message you initially got from Time Machine BEFORE you looked at the console logs. I can see above what the logs say and that was helpful. But the Time Machine error message would have been worded a little differently. It's important for future trobleshooting.

Thanks, glenn

Oct 8, 2008 9:53 PM in response to Glenn Carter

The Time Machine menu bar extra (the reverse-arrow sync icon) will have a black triangle exclamation mark in it. The extra's drop-down menu will have +"Latest Backup: Failed…"+ in the top line. Selecting that menu item takes the user to the System Prefs pane for Time Machine which then shows an "info" button in red next to the word "Failed" (also in red).

Clicking on the red "i" brings up a drop-down sheet declaring the following:

+"Time Machine Error+

+Unable to complete backup. An error occurred while copying files to the backup volume."+

To ascertain which is the offending file, one could use the Console -> All Messages option.

Now for the real question: What on Earth causes these error 11 issues to crop up in the first place? What is the user to do when the file is invisible in Finder? hmmm, are we supposed to send them to the Terminal? Yea, right!

Time Machine Error: Copy stage failed?

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