How can I hide files on an external drive?

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Level 4

1,416 points

How can I hide files on an external drive?

Hello.

I'm not sure if my subject line is even accurate for what I'm trying to do. Basically, I have 2 external hard drives connected to my MacBook Pro. On one drive, I have about 65 GB of audio files that I use for my music work. On the other drive, I would like to have those files backed up, but I don't want OS X to try to use the files from that drive. Is there a way I can lock them so they're there only as a backup?

Thanks you!

MacBook Pro late 2008, Mac OS X (10.5.7), iPhone 3g, Time Capsule

Posted on Jun 13, 2009 8:47 AM

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Answer 1

nerowolfe

Level 6

13,090 points

Jun 13, 2009 9:29 AM in response to ClayG

You can always append .bak to the file names.

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Answer 2

ClayG Author

Level 4

1,416 points

Jun 13, 2009 9:35 AM in response to nerowolfe

I'm not familiar with exactly how a .bak file works, and a google search didn't yield me a better understanding. If I simple add .bak to the end, what exactly happens to the file, and what will I need to do if I ever need to use the backup?

Thanks

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Answer 3

Király

Level 6

10,025 points

Jun 13, 2009 9:46 AM in response to ClayG

You could make a sparse bundle disk image on your external drive, and move your files inside of it. The .sparsebundle image can be backed up, even when the image is not mounted, but the files themselves will be inaccessible until you mount the disk image.

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Answer 4

LurchNC

Level 1

10 points

Jun 13, 2009 9:52 AM in response to ClayG

Hi,
The only easy way I have found to hide files on my Mac is to use a widget called "Abracadabra". It basically adds a "." to the front of a file or folder name to hide it.

That may not be what you are looking for.

What are you using to back up your audio files? Carbon Copy Cloner or similar? If you have your Volume name for the backup drive named accordingly, you shouldn't have any issues. I have a few folders I back up to a volume I call "Audio Backups". These are just VST's I really don't want to reinstall if I have a failure. I run CCC every time the VST's get an update. Logic always uses the original copy though.

I guess I don't understand why you feel you need to "hide" the back-up.

The other option is to use Time Machine I guess if you are on Leopard.

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Answer 5

nerowolfe

Level 6

13,090 points

Jun 13, 2009 10:11 AM in response to ClayG

If you append .bak to a file, the file does not change but the association is lost so while you can still see the file, it will not appear when you search for audio or other files.
It's not how a .bak works, it's simply that you have renamed the file in a non-destructive manner so that the original app no longer recognizes it. It's "hidden" from the original app, but not from sight.

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