My LaCie external hard drive used for Time Machine back ups failed the other day (only after 3 years). I replaced it but lost all the backups. My question to the community is, should I replace an external hard drive after 3 or 4 years before it dies, or should I back up to 2 hard drives, or both?
I would love to hear what other people are doing for back ups.
iMac, macOS Sierra (10.12.6)
I keep both a Time Machine backup and clones(on separate drives). You can use a cloning software like SuperDuper! or CarbonCopy Cloner.
The advantage of the clone is that it is bootable. So, if your hard drive fails you can just boot from the backup and keep on working until you have the time to repair or replace the internal drive. You can also drag and drop files with the clone because it is the identical file structure on your primary drive.
The advantage of TM is that it creates recursive backups, so you can restore a file or the entire drive from a certain point in time.
I've also had problems with LaCie hard drives. I now use OWC Mercury Elite Pro drives and have never had a problem with them.
I keep both a Time Machine backup and clones(on separate drives). You can use a cloning software like SuperDuper! or CarbonCopy Cloner.
The advantage of the clone is that it is bootable. So, if your hard drive fails you can just boot from the backup and keep on working until you have the time to repair or replace the internal drive. You can also drag and drop files with the clone because it is the identical file structure on your primary drive.
The advantage of TM is that it creates recursive backups, so you can restore a file or the entire drive from a certain point in time.
I've also had problems with LaCie hard drives. I now use OWC Mercury Elite Pro drives and have never had a problem with them.
... or should I back up to 2 hard drives,
"Two is one and one is none." Therefore three, minimum.
If you use only two backup drives and one of them fails, you will be left with only one for at least some period of time. A minimum of three backup drives also allows for one of them to be kept geographically separate from the others at all time, precluding catastrophic data loss from natural and unnatural disasters. Time Machine can back up to any number of devices. With such a strategy you can safely use a backup drive to failure. When that happens, throw it out and buy a new one.
I would backup to 2 separate drives, whether using Time Machine or a clone. It helps prevent losing your backup if one drive fails.
How Often Should I Replace My Time Machine External Hard Drive
