CCC vs. Finder for copying large directories

The only advantages of using CCC is that it preserves all the privileges for each file transferred and it is faster than the Finder is. I use CCC as my primary backup tool. For cloning I recommend using Disk Utility whenever possible because it automatically clones any Recovery HD partition found on a bootable volume, unlike CCC. CCC can create a Recovery HD, but independently of the normal cloning.

What you outline is the one of the fastest methods. The registered version of SuperDuper! will also create incremental copies, but CCC has more options.

From the Finder, if you drag and drop a same named folder onto another, it should ask if you want to merge them as one of the options. It will then only copy new items to the target folder.

Or, you could have both folders open, highlight all of the items in the source folder and drag them over. One of the options to pop up will be to skip an existing file. You then turn on the check box to apply Skip to any other item existing item without asking for each one.

The advantage of CCC is that you can set it up to do more than just merge. You can tell it to make the folders match. So if you've removed something from the source folder, it will also remove that file/folder from the target folder. In that way, it copies new items, replaces same named items that don't have the same time stamp, and copies new items over all in one move.

CCC does provide what they call a Safe Mode in which they archive all the changes made during a backup. Sort of similar to Time Machine except they store the data on the volume backed up. In not time you find the disk is out of space, so I don't bother to use it. I think you can change some ways in which the archiving works, but I just don't use it.

I have used or tested a large number of backup utilities over the years. Today CCC is the best out there in my opinion for doing straight backups. What it does not do is syncing. For that you need to go to a different tool. I really haven't made up my mind which of the several syncing utilities out there I like best. Get Backup 3 is a pretty good utility that does both straight backups and syncs, but I'd prefer using just a basic syncing tool. For now I'm using SyncTwoFolders. It lets you see sync results before you sync, just so you don't screw it up. 😀

The problem with rsync is we don't have a real working version in OS X and cannot get a more recent version to install unless you are willing to download the source code and compile it on your system. I think programs like MacBackupGuru or CCC both use rsync, but a much newer version than in OS X.

I have tried applications like Transmit and other FTP programs, but find them unappealing for use in normal backup. I don't use FTP much because I'm not backing up to the cloud. My provider gives me unlimited space, but FTP backup is slower than molasses. Not particularly attractive. However, if you are into that try Immortal Files. One of the best I've come across.

Oh, forgot the link for SyncTwoFolders.