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User profile for user: snsok
snsok Author
User level: Level 1
29 points

incremental Time Machine backup going on for days and then no new backup file is produced

I am backing up a 1TB SSD on my iMac and a 3 TB external HDD to my 10TB external HDD which is configured as my Time Machine drive.


Usually I see a backup ion progress showing "backing up 4GB of 20GB" or something like that when I click on the Time Machine icon on the menu bar.


The current backup started yesterday and is still going. Now is just says "Backing up 2.08TB" but it doesn't say how much has yet to be backed up.


This happened once before when my Time Machine drive got corrupted and I had to reformat it. That isn't the case now. My Time Machine drive in Finder looks pretty ordinary.


It feels like Time Machine is doing a whole new complete backup. Then it suddenly stopped and now says my last backup was two days ago. No new file was created on the Time Machine drive.


What would cause it to look like it's doing a huge backup, especially when it's been doing incremental backups every day?


Screenshots attached.


iMac 2014 Big Sur MacOS 11.6.5

iMac Line (2012 and Later)

Posted on Apr 28, 2022 5:11 PM

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User profile for user: John Galt
John Galt
User level: Level 10
147,360 points

Posted on Apr 29, 2022 5:45 AM

It feels like Time Machine is doing a whole new complete backup.


I agree. Apple offers some suggestions in If you can't back up or restore your Mac using Time Machine - Apple Support.


Regarding its last bullet point (if no other solutions work) and given that backup drive's history of having suffered corruption at least once in the past, consider the fact it may have been operating in a state of failure. You can certainly erase a TM backup drive and start a new set as Apple suggests. Often that backup drive will continue to function for years, but those failures will eventually become more frequent. When it becomes intolerably so, just throw the drive away. That's one of several reasons you really need more than just one backup device.

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User profile for user: John Galt
John Galt
User level: Level 10
147,360 points

Apr 29, 2022 5:45 AM in response to snsok

It feels like Time Machine is doing a whole new complete backup.


I agree. Apple offers some suggestions in If you can't back up or restore your Mac using Time Machine - Apple Support.


Regarding its last bullet point (if no other solutions work) and given that backup drive's history of having suffered corruption at least once in the past, consider the fact it may have been operating in a state of failure. You can certainly erase a TM backup drive and start a new set as Apple suggests. Often that backup drive will continue to function for years, but those failures will eventually become more frequent. When it becomes intolerably so, just throw the drive away. That's one of several reasons you really need more than just one backup device.

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incremental Time Machine backup going on for days and then no new backup file is produced

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