Why won't my time machine backup allow me to restore my photos library?

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Level 1

8 points

Why won't my time machine backup allow me to restore my photos library?

So i recently upgraded to the latest OS X where they convert iPhoto to Photos. I then backed it up to time machine. I then erased my computer using disk utility (i didn't have any more space on my comp so i wanted to start fresh. my ultimate goal is to just restore my photos and music and eventually anything else i may need or want) then restored the OSX. i signed in with my apple ID and didn't restore right away. i then go to the main screen and tried to restore just the Photos library and it say that i don't have permission. How do i allow it permission so i can restore everything that i want? All the folders have a red circle on them (at least the important folders do).

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X Yosemite (10.10.3)

Posted on May 25, 2015 7:03 PM

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Answer 1

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,541 points

May 25, 2015 7:46 PM in response to mark339

This is an exception to the rule that you should never make any changes to backup data. I've tested this procedure in OS X 10.8 only. It should work with later versions, but I don't know whether it works in earlier versions. Use it only for files that were backed up from your home folder, or a folder on another volume created by you, and would normally be writable by you. Do not touch backups of system or application files.

In the Finder (not in the time-travel view), navigate to the backup volume, then to the folder named "Backups.backupdb", and then to the snapshot you want to restore from. The snapshots are folders labeled with the date when they were created. Inside each of those folders is a file hierarchy like the one on the volume that was backed up. Descend through the hierarchy until you come to a folder named "Users," and inside that, a folder with your user name. The procedure will be different if you're trying to restore files on another volume.

Select the folder and open the Info dialog (command-I). Click the padlock icon in the lower right corner of the window and authenticate. In the Sharing & Permissions section, give your account Read & Write access. You may have to close the dialog and repeat this step in order for the change to show up. Then click the gear icon and select

Apply to Enclosed Items

from the popup menu.

Try the restore operation again, in the time-travel interface.

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