Can a 'sparsebundle' (Sparse Disk Image Bundle) file that Time Machine created on an Airport Time Capsule be moved/converted to a Time Machine backup on a usb drive where Time Machine uses/creates a "Backups.backupdb" folder on a Mac OS Extended (Journaled) formatted disk ?
iMac, macOS 10.13
No, but if you copy the sparsebundle file to a USB drive, or use the "Archive" function in AirPort Utility to copy the sparsebundle file to a USB drive attached to the Time Capsule, and then open the sparsebundle file, you will see a disk named "Time Machine Backups". Open that drive and you will see the Backups.backupdb folder.
Another option would be go ahead and open the sparsebundle file on the Time Capsule, and wait for the "Time Machine Backups" disk to appear on the desktop. Open Time Machine Backups and you will see Backups.backupdb. Simply copy that file on the desktop to the USB drive using the Finder.
Now, if what you are really asking here is whether you will be able to continue to back up to the Backups.backupdb file on the USB drive, the answer is open to question. Does not work for me, but one of the other guys might know of a way.
If you want the Mac to back up to the USB drive, you will probably need to start over again with a new backup of the Mac and then move forward and keep the "old" Backups.backupdb file there in case you need to go back in and manually find an older file.
No, but if you copy the sparsebundle file to a USB drive, or use the "Archive" function in AirPort Utility to copy the sparsebundle file to a USB drive attached to the Time Capsule, and then open the sparsebundle file, you will see a disk named "Time Machine Backups". Open that drive and you will see the Backups.backupdb folder.
Another option would be go ahead and open the sparsebundle file on the Time Capsule, and wait for the "Time Machine Backups" disk to appear on the desktop. Open Time Machine Backups and you will see Backups.backupdb. Simply copy that file on the desktop to the USB drive using the Finder.
Now, if what you are really asking here is whether you will be able to continue to back up to the Backups.backupdb file on the USB drive, the answer is open to question. Does not work for me, but one of the other guys might know of a way.
If you want the Mac to back up to the USB drive, you will probably need to start over again with a new backup of the Mac and then move forward and keep the "old" Backups.backupdb file there in case you need to go back in and manually find an older file.
My Finder window was too short for me to notice when a disk named "Time Machine Backups" mounted and it does not appear on my desktop
Sorry, confused. if the disk named Time Machine Backups is mounted, then it is present on the desktop somewhere. You may need to close windows or shift things around a bit to see the disk.
This assumes that you have the option to "Display Connected Servers" selected in Finder Preferences, which should be the default setting.
You are well advised here to start a new backup to the USB drive. Stick with what Bob recommended.
Certainly you can store the Sparsebundle on USB drive. And you can recover files from it.. but don't continue to use it.
Just for interest I managed to get Time Machine to keep using the Sparsebundle even though it was located locally. But it tends to break. EASILY!!
Time Machine suffers major issues now with reliability. Permissions also keep getting tighter.. although you can fix permissions at some point, just moving the Sparsebundle from one TC to another will usually cause backup to not be recognised. Since Sierra things have tightened up loads.
Thanks for the info: I copied the sparsebundle to the usb drive but made the mistake of pitting it in the partition with the Backups.backupdb . That caused confusion on my part because Time Machine saw the two backup structures by the same name.
After putting the sparsebundle in a different partition, I can select each of the backups by the name of the partition they are in.
I have not found a good way to access the files in the sparsebundle : when I get it open in Finder , I see numbered band files ; to open it with Time Machine , I have to select it and let Time Machine write another backup before I can enter Time Machine and see the files in the history.
You should be able to access the files in the sparsebundle directly in Finder. If what you need is easy to get then I would just use it that way.
I am surprised Time Machine is writing a backup over the sparsebundle without problems.. I am not seeing that.
I would have thought the files on the sparsebundle would only be of historical interest.. do you mean you are accessing them all the time.. if that is the case you should recreate the Backups.backupdb on another disk.
You are correct that the files in the sparsebundle are only of historical interest!
Yeah, finally, understand where to look when. My Finder window was too short for me to notice when a disk named "Time Machine Backups" mounted and it does not appear on my desktop (even though the other mounted disks do appear on the desktop).
So, yes I will be using the sparsebundle that way ; and using a new Backups.backupdb folder in a different partition for my backups going forward.
moving Airport Time Capsule backup to a usb drive
