Can someone better explain how Time Machine works? I am looking to set it up so it backs up my MacBook every so often (at least weekly would be ideal). Can this be done without backing it up to an external drive? If so, where exactly would it get backed up to then? Does it get backed up to the cloud or something? Or do you have to back it up using an external drive? Thank you
MacBook Pro Apple Silicon
No, it only backs up to external drive.
iCloud offers backing up that is automatic, however, is even slower than TIme Machine.
Both operate in automatic when on. Meaning you could be needing valuable processing time, and backing up your data at the same time. I find it is useful to put Time Machine in the menubar and turn it off from System Preferences, and only activated it via the menubar.
The cloud except for fiberoptic, large corporate networks, and school networks is inherently much slower sending data to the server on the cloud than bringing it down. Many are as many as 50-100 times slower. Add more devices on your WiFi, even slower. So if you want to use the cloud for backup, consider how much information is vitally important to you for doing so.
Apple's July 22, 2011 and later computers all have operating systems that can restore from the internet.
See this backup FAQ for further detail.s
No, it only backs up to external drive.
iCloud offers backing up that is automatic, however, is even slower than TIme Machine.
Both operate in automatic when on. Meaning you could be needing valuable processing time, and backing up your data at the same time. I find it is useful to put Time Machine in the menubar and turn it off from System Preferences, and only activated it via the menubar.
The cloud except for fiberoptic, large corporate networks, and school networks is inherently much slower sending data to the server on the cloud than bringing it down. Many are as many as 50-100 times slower. Add more devices on your WiFi, even slower. So if you want to use the cloud for backup, consider how much information is vitally important to you for doing so.
Apple's July 22, 2011 and later computers all have operating systems that can restore from the internet.
See this backup FAQ for further detail.s
applespackle wrote:
Can someone better explain how Time Machine works? I am looking to set it up so it backs up my MacBook every so often (at least weekly would be ideal). Can this be done without backing it up to an external drive? If so, where exactly would it get backed up to then? Does it get backed up to the cloud or something? Or do you have to back it up using an external drive? Thank you
Just plug it in when you want to execute a backup - simple as that.
I back up once a week.
Back up your Mac Back up your Mac with Time Machine - Apple Support
Leave automatic ** checked for local snapshots
About Time Machine local snapshots - Apple Support
In addition to the fie comments above, I offer the following. You need to understand that iCloud is not a backup service, although it does have some of those features. It is designed for cross platform sharing. If you rely on iCloud for backing up, at some point you will be experiencing data loss. (Yes, it does provide backup for iPhone and iPad, though.)
Help with Time Machine
