How long to keep back ups?

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Level 1

8 points

How long to keep back ups?

TimeMachine generates weekly back ups for me. How many do I need to keep? I have them now going back to January. Thanks for whatever insight you share.

iMac 27″, macOS 11.7

Posted on Sep 28, 2023 10:51 AM

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Answer 1

dialabrain

Level 10

136,583 points

Sep 28, 2023 10:55 AM in response to robyn-jay

Basically you need not worry about how many to keep. Let Time Machine handle the backups. You don't want to try to delete any.

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Answer 2

dialabrain

Level 10

136,583 points

Sep 28, 2023 11:33 AM in response to robyn-jay

You're welcome. Just to add, Time Machine saves files that are changed. A particular file may not have been saved since "January". And of course if you deleted the backups in January, you could no longer recover it.

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