Exclude question on Time Machine

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Level 1

80 points

Exclude question on Time Machine

Hi,

I have new iMac and have just setup an external drive as an encrypted backup of my iMan, I didnt exclude anything, I have just allowed it to backup everything.

I do not intend to leave the external drive connected as this is a risk, if one gets stolen they are both likely to get stolen, therefore my intention is to discoonect the drive and only reconnect weekly or when I've made significant changes to my iMac. I am assuming that Time Machine will simply catch-up each time I reconnect the drive.

I also have another external drive when is much smaller than the first but large enough for my most important files, therefore I was thinking of using it as a Time Machine for just a subset of the hard drive in my iMac.

So to my question,

Can I have one external drive that is backing up everything and a second eternal drive that has an exlclude list so it only backs up some of the drive?

Can I have two different exclude lists on one iMac to two different external drives?

Thank you for any help.

iMac (27-inch, Late 2012), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)

Posted on Mar 31, 2013 9:21 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Eric Root

Level 10

684,039 points

Mar 31, 2013 11:34 AM in response to iwaddo

Paragraph 2 - Yes, it will catch up.

I think you're going to have to redo the settings each time you switch drives. Try and see what happens.

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Answer 2

drdocument

Level 4

3,019 points

Mar 31, 2013 2:23 PM in response to iwaddo

I have a strategy which works for me.

I keep a separate "Archive" drive to which I move files which I no longer need on my startup drive and/or which are for "reference only," such as completed project files, manuals, installers, and the like. This Archive drive is regularly cloned (automatically) as a backup, but excluded from Time Machine.

Using this method, I can still get more than a year's worth of TM backups on my 500GB Time Capsule, which is only twice the capacity of the backed-up data from my startup drive, and TM Is available to restore whatever I may need.

Some variation of such a strategy might work for others.

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Answer 3

drdocument

Level 4

3,019 points

Mar 31, 2013 2:58 PM in response to drdocument

There is another circumstance in which it might be helpful for some users to think about a "special" strategy:

Remember that Time Machine stores every new version of a changed file, every hour. So if someone is working with large files such as videos or large publications, intermediate versions of such files can use up a lot of space in backups.

My strategy for working with large files is to keep the original (of course) in a directory that is backed up, and also, naturally, the "final" version, but to keep interim versions in a folder which is excluded from TM.

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Answer 4

iwaddo Author

Level 1

80 points

Apr 1, 2013 12:59 AM in response to Eric Root

You were right, it didnt work....

The second drive could either replace the first or work as an alternate pair with the first.

My next plan is to get a new drive which is larger enough to take all my files and try setting it up as the alternate pair thern leave one connected and only connect one weekly as I'm hoping this might give me the best of both worlds.

I want to use Time Machine to a drive connected to my iMac to give me near real-time protection then take a weekly copy to a drive that I lock away in my safe.

I will keep you posted.

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Answer 5

R C-R

Level 6

17,782 points

Apr 1, 2013 2:17 AM in response to iwaddo

FWIW, I use a two drive TM backup strategy with my iMac: one is always connected & the other I just connect about once a week; otherwise it lives at a different location. This works well -- whenever I connect the second drive, it is used for the next backup.

If I forget to connect the second drive for 10 days, I get a reminder popup about that, even though the always connected backup continues to make hourly backups.

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Answer 6

iwaddo Author

Level 1

80 points

Apr 1, 2013 2:19 AM in response to R C-R

Thank you, this is exactly what I want to achieve, off to buy another drive.

Much appreciated

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Answer 7

R C-R

Level 6

17,782 points

Apr 1, 2013 2:24 AM in response to iwaddo

I'm happy you found my reply useful. 🙂

BTW, if you are of the impatient sort like me, you can speed things up by connecting the second drive & then choosing "Backup now" from the TM menubar item. Once the backup to the second drive is complete, you can eject it & move it back to the safe or wherever.

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