Limiting Time Machine backup size onto external drive

F anyone like me who stumbles across this thread in the future looking to do the same on their WD MyCloud, it is possible with some digging.

1. Navigate to the web interface of your WD MyCloud on your home network.
2. Sign in
3. Go to settings. By default General is selected in the right hand side.
4. At the bottom Mac Backups - Time Machine should be set to on
5. Select configure
6. Then that thing in the middle is actually a slider, just drag that to set the size of you partition.

Why that cant be in the backups section I don't know...

Only by partitioning the drive; there's no facility in Time Machine to limit the size of backups.

I made a tutorial for time capsule but it works the same way for a directly connected/non-network drive. Hope it helps.

http://youtu.be/Nq7mSizqUSI

Thanks for your efforts, but sorry, but there are a few problems with that:

This thread is asking about backups to a directly-connected drive. Time Machine doesn't make a sparse bundle for those, but puts them in a Backups.backupdb folder at the top level of the drive. The only reliable way to limit backups made that way is by partitioning the drive. Some folks have let Time Machine make a sparse bundle on a network drive, then copy it to a local drive. Time Machine will back up to it, but it won't automatically mount such a sparse bundle when you Enter Time Machine. You must do that manually. Every time you want to look at your backups.

If you are backing-up over a network, it's much easier to let Time Machine create the sparse bundle, then simply change the maxium size, per #A8 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting.

I didn't quite catch your comment about encryption, but no, Time Machine backups are not encrypted.

I just got my imac 2TB today, but have been trying to understand this. It seems you have it figured out. I am not using a Time Capsule, but a 3TB WD MyBookLive Network Connected Personal Cloud Drive... much the same as the apple time capsule. It can be used to back up both PC (using windows back up or its own software) and Macs (using Time Machine) as well as serve as a shared file/media server for both.

I cannot see how the WB has any way to partion to limit the size of Time Machine backups. Am i to understand that "Time Machiine" will continue to make new back ups until the 3TB is full unless I find a way to limit things? Do you think your tutorial is the fix for me?

I back up my wifes pc to it now and it allows you to decide how many copies it will make and then start overwriting... I'm hoping your video is the solution for me.

Message was edited by: HDNIK

HDNIK wrote:

. . .

Am i to understand that "Time capsule" will continue to make new back ups until the thing is full? Unless I find a way to limit things?

Yes, Time Machine (the backup software) is designed to fill all the empty space available to it, then start deleting old backups to make room for new ones. In most cases, that's great. All automatic, users don't have to do anything.

Do you think your tutorial is the fix for me?

Possibly. As noted, you can't do that on some NAS drives. If not, see if you can make a different account or "share" on the NAS. Check WD's instructions or support site if necessary.

Yes it's easy to create a share but the WD does not aloow you to limit the size of the share.

Ugh. Tacky. 😟

Try #A8 and cross your fingers!

The MyBookLive from WD is connected through the router, not directly to the Mac/Pc via usb or Firewire or Thunderbolt... so it is simliar to a Time Capsule in that regard. I guess i'll hope that Time Machine Back up will create a sparsebundle that I can edit/manipulate as shown in the video... and of course cross my fingers and hold my tounge in the right way!😉

Ps as you can see i am new to the Mac World... what is #A8

HDNIK wrote:

The MyBookLive from WD is connected through the router, not directly to the Mac/Pc via usb or Firewire or Thunderbolt... so it is simliar to a Time Capsule in that regard. I guess i'll hope that Time Machine Back up will create a sparsebundle that I can edit/manipulate as shown in the video... and of course cross my fingers and hold my tounge in the right way!😉

On some NASs you can, on some you can't.

Ps as you can see i am new to the Mac World... what is #A8

The page expaining how to change the maximum size, in the post you responded to: #A8 in Time Machine - Troubleshooting.

Thank you Pondini. With your trouble shooting guide and the video, i have successfully got my WD MBL backing up to a limited 300gb Sparsbundle.

Great!

Glad it worked, and thanks for the feedback.

Try Use Terminal to limit Time Machine sparcebundle size on timecapsule,

should work to limit Time Machine backup size on any NAS or external disk (or not...)

sudo defaults write/Library/Preferences/com.apple.TimeMachineMaxSize500000

to return to ilimited

sudo defaults delete/Library/Preferences/com.apple.TimeMachineMaxSize

if you want to reclame deleted files space shrink it use

hdiutil resize -size 500g -shrinkonly /Volumes/TimeMachineYOURNAME/YOURNAME.sparsebundle/

Regards

hm.

Rep argument is not a dictionary

Defaults have not been changed.

I know, this is like from forever ago, but if someone runs into this again - the easiest solution is actually to set a quota for the Time Machine user you create with access to the Time Machine folder you have on your NAS. Works great on Synology for example.

Just in case someone, like me, runs into this today 🙂