Q: Can I keep Time Machine turned off
I have used a GoFlex 500 GB external hard drive for backups since I got my Mac in 2012. I never had to "set it up" to use Time Machine so guess it was working seamlessly. After I updated to El Capitain (I have latest 10.11.1) I plugged in my GoFlex to do a back up and now it required I reinstall its hardware . All of the old backups were in the folder in Finder but no option to Back up Now.
So, I searched for Time Machine in System Pref and found it and it was off. I turned it on and selected my GoFlex and it did a backup immediately.
When I finished, I wasn't sure after ejecting the Go Flex if I should leave on Time Machine. It had to have been running since 2012 doing automatic backups if it required me to now Turn it on. I don't really need to do that, but ...
Should I or can I just leave Time Machine turned off until I plug in my Go Flex which still has 358 GB left on it??
Also, when I right clicked on the Time Machine to see Preferences ( it is in my dock) and it said...Enter Time Machine, I got a whole tier of tiled desktops. Anyhow, now I see I can set preferences and I have turned it off.
Thanks for any input!
terri, a 73 year old Apple Geek!!
iMac, OS X Yosemite (10.10.5)
Posted on Nov 3, 2015 5:38 PM