Apologies in advance for the length of my questions but I've been searching unsuccessfully for answers and think there are others that may have the same questions. Also thanks in advance for your help.
I needed to move my Time Machine backups from a 3TB drive to a new 4TB drive. I referenced this article: Time Machine: How to transfer backups from a current backup drive to a new backup drive - Apple Support but instead of dragging the Backups.backupdb folder from the 3TB to the 4TB drive, I used Disk Utility Restore to do so. This was based on advice from Linc Davis in this article: Time Machine Moved Backup don't open in a new drive.
Select the Enter Time Machine option from the expanded menu. A new window with Time Machine backup will open. Browse through the available backup files and look for History.db under the Safari folder. Select it and click the Restore button at the bottom of the window. Time Machine will automatically restore the required file.
Apple's built-in Time Machine app makes it simple to back up Mac data — capturing them in their most recent state so you can recover them later. When the time comes when you have to restore individual files from a backup you can do so with ease by following these steps. Great backup drives. Our 2019 favorite: G-Technology G-Drive 1TB ($70). Here are instructions on how to accomplish this migration using a current Time Machine backup of your current Mac. I’m going to provide instructions for two different scenarios. If you’re just taking your new Mac out of it’s box and turning it on for the first time follow the instructions in Scenario 1 – Setup Assistant. Choose Enter Time Machine from the Time Machine menu. This example shows Time Machine for the Documents folder: Find the items to restore: Use the timeline on the edge of the screen to see the items in your Time Machine backup as they were at that date and time. The timeline might also include local snapshots. Restore mailboxes and their content in Mail on Mac. If you set up Time Machine to back up files on your Mac, you can use the backups to restore lost mailboxes and email messages. See Restore items backed up with Time Machine.
I restored 1.9TB which took about 31 hours (USB 2.0). It appears to have been successful because I have been able to restore files from the 4TB Time Machine backup, but I notice some things that don't seem quite right. I've noted the technical details of the drives at the end of this question.
I need to reuse the 3TB drive but before I erase it, I want to be certain I have a good backup on the 4TB drive. Mac zip no such file or directory. I'd also prefer to not have to redo the restore because it takes so long but will if necessary. I've tried to research my questions below but cannot seem to find a good answer.
1. The original 3TB Time Machine drive shows Owners Enabled: Yes. The new 4TB Time Machine drive shows Owners Enabled: No in Disk Utility. Before I started the Restore, I unchecked the 'Ignore ownership on this volume' per the 1st article above
- Should a Time Machine Backup drive be Owners Enabled: No or Yes?
- I can't seem to find a solid answer on what it should be or how to change it to Yes.
- If it should be Yes, how can I change it? I can 'unlock' the permissions in Get Info but the 'Ignore ownership on this volume' is no longer displayed.
2. The original 3TB Time Machine backups shows most permissions as: system = Read & Write, wheel = Read & Write, everyone = Read only. The new 4TB Time Machine backup shows most permissions as Dave(me) = Read & Write, staff = Read Only and everyone = Read Only. Pluraleyes 3 1 1.
- Which should it be for a Time Machine Backup? I would think the 3TB is correct.
- If it should system/wheel/everyone like the 3TB drive, how can I change it?
3. Using Disk Utility, the original 3TB Time Machine drive shows more files than the new 4TB Time Machine drive (see below). Using Get Info, I compared the most current Time Machine backup folders in the Backups.backupdb of each drive (i.e. the folders with the date/time stamp.). The backups of external drives were the same. However, I noticed that the backup of the internal hard drive (Crucial 512GB SSD) shows more 27,716 more items on the new 4TB backup than on the original 3TB backup. These additional items are in the Users folder (25,529), the Library folder (4) and the System folder (1,643)
- Does this make sense? I'm nervous that the original 3TB shows more files than the new 4TB. I would think with a Disk Utility Restore that they should be the same.
- Could Get Info show more items on the new 4TB than the original 3TB because the permissions are different?
4. I entered Time Machine's System Preferences and changed the backup disk from the 3TB to the new 4TB but did not run a backup. I noticed that Time Machine correctly shows the 4TB drive but shows Oldest Backup: None and Latest Backup: None. This seems very odd because the Backups.backupdb folder is on the 4TB drive.
Why would the new 4TB drive not show the oldest and latest backup dates?
5. I tried to use Time Machine to restore files from the new 4TB drive to the original 3TB drive. When I select the 4TB drive in Finder then go into Time Machine, the 4TB become greyed out, the display changes to the internal hard drive's folders and I need to use Shift-Command-C to see the 4TB drive. From there I can select a backup folder and successfully restore it. (Incidentally, I can see the original 3TB drive and it's not greyed out).
Is there a reason why the 4TB backup would be greyed out when I enter Time Machine?
TECHNICAL DETAILS
Seagate 3TB Time Machine Backup (Disk Utility Info)
Name : Time Machine Backups - Original
Type : Partition
Disk Identifier : disk2s1
Mount Point : /Volumes/Time Machine Backups - Original
File System : Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled)
Connection Bus : USB
Device Tree : IODeviceTree:/PCI0/EHC1@1D,7
Writable : Yes
Universal Unique Identifier : removed
Capacity : 3 TB (3,000,248,999,936 Bytes)
Free Space : 1.07 TB (1,069,524,795,392 Bytes)
Used : 1.93 TB (1,930,724,204,544 Bytes)
Number of Files : 1,028,384
Number of Folders : 145,935
Owners Enabled : Yes
Can Turn Owners Off : Yes
Can Repair Permissions : No
Can Be Verified : Yes
Can Be Repaired : Yes
Can Be Formatted : Yes
Bootable : Yes
Supports Journaling : Yes
Journaled : Yes
Disk Number : 2
Partition Number : 1
Western Digital 4TB Time Machine Backup (Disk Utility Info)
Name : Time Machine Backups
Type : Partition
Disk Identifier : disk1s2
Mount Point : /Volumes/Time Machine Backups
File System : Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled)
Connection Bus : USB
Device Tree : IODeviceTree:/PCI0/EHC2@1A,7
Writable : Yes
Universal Unique Identifier : removed
Restoring From Time Machine Backup
Capacity : 4 TB (4,000,408,625,152 Bytes)
Free Space : 2.07 TB (2,072,978,022,400 Bytes)
Used : 1.93 TB (1,927,430,602,752 Bytes)
Number of Files : 1,028,330
Number of Folders : 145,738
Owners Enabled : No
Can Turn Owners Off : Yes
Can Be Formatted : Yes
Bootable : Yes
Supports Journaling : Yes
Journaled : Yes
Weather guru accurate weather forecasts 2 3 6. Disk Number : 1
Partition Number : 2
![Restoring from time machine backup Restoring from time machine backup](https://support.apple.com/library/content/dam/edam/applecare/images/en_US/macos/highsierra/macos-high-sierra-time-machine-documents.jpg)
iMac, OS X Yosemite (10.10.5), iMac 2007, 4GB RAM
Posted on
May 12,2020 • Filed to: Mac Recovery • Proven solutions
You must have heard of a Time Machine, whether in the movies or read about it in novels. It sounds like a futuristic concept of how people can travel into the past, but that is fiction in play.
In reality, though, a Time Machine does exist.
For Mac users, Time Machine is a beautiful software to restore data from Time Machine backup. It is helpful in all the scenarios like:
- If you accidentally delete data,
- Need to find an old version of a document,
- Recover your Mac OS from a backup file, or
- Transfer the original settings, files, and folders to another or new Mac OS.
You can restore all that you lost from Time Machine. In this article today, we will share with you how to restore from time machine, and more.
Here is what we shall be looking at in the article:
Part 1. Method to Restore Mac from Time Machine
A Time Machine backup also allows you to transfer files, settings, and preferences from an old Mac to a new one, using a tool available in your new Mac called Migration Assistant.
To begin restoring from Time Machine backup, one must ensure a Time Machine backup is present.
Here we’ll deal with just restoring the Mac that you already have from a backup.
Step 1 Start your Mac and simultaneously hold down Command + R.
Step 2 Hold down until either the Apple logo or a spinning globe appears.
Step 3 Your Mac will boot into Mac OS utilities. Choose to restore from Time Machine Backup and click continue.
Step 4 Click on Continue again.
Step 5 Choose a Time Machine backup file available from before whatever issues arose and click Continue.
Your Mac will restore the files and settings from the Time Machine backup and then restart once finished.
Part 2. Restore Mac data without Time Machine
To restore iMac from Time Machine, you need to have an external Hard Drive to create the backup. In case you have not, you can use a recovery program like;
2.1 Disk Drill
Disk Drill is a fantastic data recovery tool for Mac OS X. The basic version has capabilities of previewing recovered files, contains a recovery vault, lost partition restoration, etc.
2.2 PhotoRec
It is not as powerful but has the advantage of being an open source data recovery program. It can recover standard file formats such as JPEG images, MP3 audio files, MS office files, PDFs and Zip files.
2.3 EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard
It’s also an excellent data recovery software with the capacity to also access data from external storage devices. Compatible file formats include those commonly used in images, videos, audio and document files.
2.4 Recoverit (IS) for Mac [Recommended]
iSkysoft offers an all-round solution for recovery of data such as photos, videos, document files, audio files and other formats in Mac OS. The iSkysoft toolbox can recover data from any storage device on Mac including memory cards (SD, CF & XD cards), digital devices like iPods and cameras, external disks and SSDs, removable drives such as USBs and Zip drives and other drives.
Recoverit (IS) for Mac
Powerful Mac Data Recovery Software!
- A quick and deep scan to find original files that are not overwritten.
- It allows for a preview of lost files.
- Safe recovery of lost, deleted, invalid, and damaged files.
3,015,629 people have downloaded it
Now, let us look at the steps involved in the recovering Mac data with the Recoverit (IS)y tool:
Step 1 Select the Recovery Mode
After downloading and installing the iSkysoft toolbox, move on to select any one of the recovery options on the interface. If you are confused from which drive you lost data, then the all-around recovery option is your best bet as it is designed to find and recover available files from all possible locations.
Step 2 Select the Start button and Preview the Recoverable Files
At this point, you will be able to see various files according to location, time and also the kind of data you had. You can choose the files you want to preview before the final selection.
Step 3 Select Files and Recover
At last, post your file selection and preview, tab on the Recover button to restore all the lost/deleted data from your Mac OS.
Part 3. How to Use Time Machine, Local Backup, or Cloud Backup to Prevent Data Loss
3.1 Using Time Machine
The Time Machine software lets you easily create and maintain current backups of all critical data, to allow easy recovery of lost files. It usually requires a drive, preferably an external Hard Disk which should be mounted before launching the program.
Once you launch your Time Machine for the first time, you must select your disk by clicking on the ‘select disk’ button. Highlight the one to be used and click on ‘Use for Backup’ button.
Constant backing up of files on an external drive ensures the safety of your files. However, for internal drives, it might not be safe as using a partition for backup might lead to loss of data should the drive fail.
The above is an essential requirement to restore from Time Machine.
Apple Time Machine Restore
3.2 Using a Local Backup
Using a local backup involves situations where you clone your Mac using a cloning program such as SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner. You can then restore iMac from backup and even create a bootable installer with the hard drive.
Process involved includes;
- Start your Mac and simultaneously hold down the command + R button.
- Hold them down until the Apple logo appears or a spinning globe.
- It will boot into the disk utility menu. Click on “restore from Time Machine Backup” and click Continue to move ahead.
- Click on Continue again.
- Select your hard drive of choice and click the restore tab at the top of the Disk Utility window.
- Select the external hard drive having the cloned backup next to ‘restore from.’
- Click Restore.
Your Mac will restore the cloned backup and then restart once finished.
3.3 Using a Cloud Backup
Cloud-based backups are efficient where there is Internet connectivity because you can constantly do backups. Cloud-based backup services include Blackblaze and CrashPlan from which you can download missing data to your Mac.
Cloud-based backup services are different. One common thing is that they’ll want you to get a remote server on your Mac unless an external drive is sent, as does the Blackblaze. Most programs will have a Restore files tool in the User interface.
You can use either the remote app or access your files from their website then select files and folders you want to restore from the backup menu.
Conclusion
For Mac users that have encountered issues with the crashing of operating systems or loss of data through any other means, there is still a chance for you to get back on your feet. The Mac OS Time Machine allows you to restore Mac from backup usually on a hard drive.
Those without external storage are not forgotten. Software programs such as Recoverit (IS) for Mac are always there to come to the rescue. There are also the cloud-based services that allows constant backups. These are very efficient, and I believe everyone using a Mac should know about it.
Therefore, I would recommend that you share the article on how to restore from Time Machine with all Mac users around you.