Are there any disadvantages to using a case-sensitive Time Machine disk with a case-insensitive Mac?

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Are there any disadvantages to using a case-sensitive Time Machine disk with a case-insensitive Mac?

My Mac is case-insensitive, but I recently noticed that the Time Machine drive I've been backing it up to is case-sensitive according to Disk Utility (see below).

In the Time Machine preferences, I see options for that same drive both as case-sensitive and case-insensitive, with the latter being selected as the one I'm using (also shown below).

From what I understand, this would mean that while my TM drive is case-sensitive, I'm using it as if it were not so that it matches my Mac. Will this cause any problems for me down the road, and should I reformat the TM drive to be case-insensitive like my Mac? Thanks!

MacBook Pro 15”, macOS 10.15

Posted on May 8, 2020 1:37 PM

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Answer 1

getamacnow Author

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May 8, 2020 2:05 PM in response to John Galt

I tried restoring a random file from the backup drive to my desktop and there were no issues. I'm not sure what this test would discover though, as I don't see what discrepancy would be caused.

Is it be possible to have a case-insensitive backup stored on a case-sensitive volume? This seems to be the case in the last photo in my original post, as the case-sensitive version of the TM isn't selected.

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Answer 2

John Galt

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May 8, 2020 3:36 PM in response to getamacnow

Volumes can be case sensitive or not. That choice is made when formatting the volume in Disk Utility.

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Answer 3

John Galt

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May 8, 2020 1:53 PM in response to getamacnow

If the source volume is case-sensitive, then its backups must be case-sensitive.
If the source is not case-sensitive, the backup volume may be case-sensitive.

Will this cause any problems for me down the road, and should I reformat the TM drive to be case-insensitive like my Mac?

In your specific case if you restore an item from a case-sensitive backup, TM may ask you to resolve a discrepancy in which you can decide whether to keep the original, restore the backup, or keep both. The last choice will automatically rename the one you're restoring. To eliminate all doubt try it with a sacrificial file.

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Are there any disadvantages to using a case-sensitive Time Machine disk with a case-insensitive Mac?

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