Eventually, I also fell victim to TimeMachine’s reliability issues

[VitoBotta]

I've been using TimeMachine for years without any problems. I used to defend it all the time whenever people complained about it thinking it was garbage...

Well, I changed my mind

In the past, I successfully restored a few times, but this time when I needed something urgent, I couldn't restore anything. I kept getting random errors for backups stored on an AsuStor NAS, despite having a healthy RAID 1 volume and TimeMachine verifying its backup files correctly.

Luckily, I had other backups (I’m a bit paranoid about backups, so I have different destinations for them both onsite and offsite).

After that incident, I got rid of TimeMachine, formatted the NAS, and set up restic instead. It’s very fast and reliable—not just for me, it has a great reputation—and it hasn't failed me in years when used on servers for critical data.

I used to like TimeMachine because you could use its backups with Setup Assistant to switch Macs, but I have a license for Carbon Copy Cloner which serves the same purpose. So that’s another option available now for restoring from backup files.

Right now, my backup strategy looks like this:

1) Onsite
- Clone to USB hard drive using Carbon Copy Cloner 7.
- Restic to AsuStor NAS

2) Offsite
- Restic to Storj and iDrive e2.
- My most important data is also stored on my Nextcloud instance (managed by Hetzner), with everything synced across two Macs.

Have you had issues with TimeMachine too, and what's your current backup strategy?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I mostly use TM but also Chonosync for Desktop to/from laptop syncs. No problems with TM for many years. Occasionally I get the "you have to rebuild" but that doesn't mean the backup files are lost, just the "back in time" capability is no longer available. I generally click OK to let it create a fresh backup and then it will increasingly pile up "back in time" capability over time again.

I backup to a Synology NAS and an attached DAS (each get a fresh TM update every other hour). I also have a DAS drive recently backed up stored offsite (bank deposit box) with that one and the local one in regular rotation (monthly for me). Current files I'm working on right now are generally stored in the free iCloud or Dropbox spaces between DAS drive rotations... then purged right AFTER such rotations (when I then know they are also backed up offsite).

Lastly, I have a number of mostly retired drives that sit in storage doing nothing. I occasionally break them out, do a big backup to them and then put them back in storage. They are doing nothing anyway- might as well have one more dose of redundancy.

 

[BrianBaughn]

I have a TM drive (for backing up only the internal SSD stuff …and it only runs once a day), use CCC to backup the same thing as well as three external drives and I'm currently in the process of getting all of it online with iDrive.

I think I've accessed a backup twice in the last year. I've never relied on TM for a migration.

 

[Fishrrman]

CarbonCopyCloner
or
SuperDuper.

Enough said about that...

 

[svenmany]

I use TM so that I can quickly grab a file or two from the recent past - one that I might have deleted or changed. I don't trust it for anything more serious.

I do nightly, rotating clones and a weekly clone using Carbon Copy Cloner. I use Arq Backup to back up to OneDrive, Dropbox, and AWS.

I had never heard of restic. I took a look. It seems like it would be fun if backups were my hobby.

 

[MBAir2010]

Can we still use Time machine as a reinstall like we did in the osx or feline era?
Case in point, i could not recover or revert from Sonoma to Monterey in aug 2024.

Thanks!

 

[gregmac19]

Current files I'm working on right now are generally stored in the free iCloud or Dropbox spaces between DAS drive rotations... then purged right AFTER such rotations (when I then know they are also backed up offsite).

This appears to be much tedious management of files. Why not use a offsite backup solution like iDrive instead?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

It doesn't feel tedious to me and I'd much prefer to retain full control of my files vs. trusting total strangers in any cloud. Clouds are very desirable targets for all hackers while any average Joe's local backups are not much of a prize at all. Hack into a cloud and gain access to thousands to millions of peoples information/data/records. Hack into average Joe's system and gain access to just one person's information/data/records.

The way I do it mostly "just works" in the background. My one task is to swap the two local drives monthly, but I'm going to the bank anyway so that"s just another thing to do while I'm there. Even if I had no backup strategy, I would be synching latest work files between desktop & laptop anyway just so that whichever Mac I'm using will have latest files. It may look like a lot but it doesn't take much time or effort to have a good amount of redundancy in place... without any dependencies on strangers in some cloud. I do put some current files in iCloud Drive or Dropbox as part of sharing Mac to Mac or PC but nothing I consider sensitive (like say tax records this time of year). And I'm quick to purge those as soon as I rotate drives from onsite to offsite (so they exist in both places).

 

[gregmac19]

It doesn't feel tedious to me and I'd much prefer to retain full control of my files vs. trusting total strangers in any cloud. Clouds are very desirable targets for all hackers while any average Joe's local backups are not much of a prize at all. Hack into a cloud and gain access to thousands to millions of peoples information/data/records. Hack into average Joe's system and gain access to just one person's information/data/records.

The way I do it mostly "just works" in the background. My one task is to swap the two local drives monthly, but I'm going to the bank anyway so that"s just another thing to do while I'm there. Even if I had no backup strategy, I would be synching latest work files between desktop & laptop anyway just so that whichever Mac I'm using will have latest files. It may look like a lot but it doesn't take much time or effort to have a good amount of redundancy in place... without any dependencies on strangers in some cloud. I do put some current files in iCloud Drive or Dropbox as part of sharing Mac to Mac or PC but nothing I consider sensitive (like say tax records this time of year). And I'm quick to purge those as soon as I rotate drives from onsite to offsite (so they exist in both places).

Having read many of your posts, I knew your thoughts on storing things in the cloud. Thus, I was surprised that you put “current” files on iCloud and Dropbox.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Yes, just nothing that would cause any pain if it happened to get hijacked while there. Most files are locally synched via Choronsync runs Mac to Mac.

iCloud, Dropbox, etc have their place. There is quite a bit of convenience in shared storage across devices. Some clients just want to use some of them and sometimes send quite sensitive files to me that way.

I just don't trust anything sensitive myself to any cloud. That's total strangers managing these "hard drives in the sky"... people we likely will never meet... nor even know if they are trustworthy or criminal groups. Apple people tend to revolve around "security this" and "security that" when making cases for "why Apple?" but then grab hold of various "cheapest cloud" offers from non-Apple players and then trust complete strangers running such sites. Who are those people? How do we know they aren't mining our data for all they can get? How do we know they are maximizing their security to keep the hackers out? Etc.

I know others feel differently about cloud storage- particularly iCloud- but all of them- holding countless files (including sensitive pictures/documents/tax records/etc)- are very attractive targets for hackers. Crack one and gain access to MUCH information on MANY people. Control your own backups and it's probably not worth the effort for about any hacker to even try to gain access to just your data.

To each his own of course, but that's just how I think about the topic. For backups, the burden of going to the bank once a month to swap drives I 100% control is worth that 100% control. The bank is also where I trust others to safeguard money... that trust earned over dozens of years of reputation building. There is a nearby physical location. The names of the people there are prominently available. They live locally. And even if they accidentally hire a crook who runs off with cash on hand, the cash is backed by the FDIC.

Some of the cloud services popped up in the last few years. Often you can't even get the names of the people running them to do any kind of background checks. Is our data stored at the address shown on the cloud service's website... or somewhere else? Where exactly? Cheapest price businesses generally try to keep their own costs as cheap as possible, so where are they turning for cheapest online storage? Writing online lies is easy. I could put up a website claiming data is quantum encrypted by 26th century technology and stored inside Fort Knox under guard of all of the best of the military, surrounded by moats filled with hungry gators, protected by armed nukes and a radiation cloud lethal in .8 seconds of exposure, etc. Someone can read that in an FAQ and believe it (or not).

Anyone so quick to trust such strangers, feel free to send your personal data and/or all your money to HobeSoundDarryl c/o this website. I'll take great care of it all for half the price of whatever some cloud service offers. Trust me.

 

[Jumpthesnark]

For me, TM is a part of my backup strategy. It's been very reliable for me so far (knock on wood), and it has been easy for migration and peace of mind on a daily level. We each need to have a few different methods & locations for our backups, and TM's part of that for me.

I don't want to back up to an online/cloud business. TOSes change, subscription prices go up, being hacked is a worry as long as it's not a physical drive sitting on my desk.

Beyond TM, I also use CCC on a local HD. The recent issue with Super Duper and making bootable backups is a bit alarming, so unless something crazy happens with CCC, I'll stick with them.

That said, I hadn't heard about Restic, so thanks @VitoBotta for mentioning them, I'll look into them.

 

[cjsuk]

I was using rdiff-backup and switched to TM. Considering switching back now.

 

[Sippincider]

Can we still use Time machine as a reinstall like we did in the osx or feline era?
Case in point, i could not recover or revert from Sonoma to Monterey in aug 2024.

Had that here as well.

Relative's Mac had a Time Machine backup that had been started multiple major OS versions prior. Well things went sour one day, and the then-current MacOS was not compatible with the full TM backup and couldn't do a restore! Thank you sirs may we have another!

Since then we only semi-trust TM, and anything important gets backed up manually. Like we did in the Apple II days...

 

[MacBH928]

Why do you pick Storj and iDrive over the usual storage options (BackBlaze , OneDrive, Proton, iCloud, Dropbox)

 

[MacBH928]

Had that here as well.

Relative's Mac had a Time Machine backup that had been started multiple major OS versions prior. Well things went sour one day, and the then-current MacOS was not compatible with the full TM backup and couldn't do a restore! Thank you sirs may we have another!

Since then we only semi-trust TM, and anything important gets backed up manually. Like we did in the Apple II days...

I once relied on TM backup and it failed me the first time I had to use it. Never Again. CCC for me now. Never failed me. Decent price, reliable performance. Can't believe a 3rd party write better software than Apple for their own system.

 

[Howard2k]

I always keep multiple TM volumes. One goes to NAS, another to an eternal HDD.

 

[NoBoMac]

For me, TM is a part of my backup strategy. It's been very reliable for me so far (knock on wood), and it has been easy for migration and peace of mind on a daily level. We each need to have a few different methods & locations for our backups, and TM's part of that for me.

I don't want to back up to an online/cloud business. TOSes change, subscription prices go up, being hacked is a worry as long as it's not a physical drive sitting on my desk.

This. And cloud company can go out of business.

Something most everyone does not do: how often does one verify their backups? Seen industrial strength backup solutions fail for one reason or another and find they are out of luck recovering something.

In a data center that is run competently, correctly will have verification process in place to make sure everything is working, media is not corrupt, etc. Spot check the backups.

Many data centers and definitely Average Joe/Jane will not do this (eg. saw a large financial institution use out of support backup software with out of support hardware, some hardware failed, corrupted backups, vendor said "wow, bummer" even when offered a blank check).

Stuff happens, no matter the solution.

 

[MBAir2010]

Something most everyone does not do: how often does one verify their backups?

Using several ssd drives of my work saved me some headaches and insecurities.
After a small TM failure in 2017, i dont back anything up anymore, just save the file of what i value.

when i worked as a writer in Manhattan NYC, i only used their encrypted thumb drives and their software
on my laptop or else i would be terminated.

 

[AlixSPQR]

I use CCC, but only my User files. Restoring a complete install isn't reliable, IMO.

 

[Mike Boreham]

I have found Time Machine full restores and migration to new machines completely reliable since it was completely rewritten and overhauled to APFS, BUT I only use direct connected drives, no network or RAID.

I also use CCC and Backblaze.

 

[Big Bad D]

I use TM so that I can quickly grab a file or two from the recent past - one that I might have deleted or changed. I don't trust it for anything more serious.

I do nightly, rotating clones and a weekly clone using Carbon Copy Cloner. I use Arq Backup to back up to OneDrive, Dropbox, and AWS.

I had never heard of restic. I took a look. It seems like it would be fun if backups were my hobby.

Snap - both for way of working and choice of apps. Works well and reliably for me.

 

[WU27f1xcCs]

I like your setup. It is sad I have no data that is worth backing up

 

[progx]

I’ve used TM for years and never had an issue with it. Also, CarbonCopyCloner is another one I use for copying my scratch drives to bigger sized hard drives. I did try to backup my TM to my Unraid box, but there seems to be an issue with it; I didn’t lose anything important so I went back to using a USB drive.

I’m taking note of your solutions. Wouldn’t hurt to have an offsite backup, especially for my Unraid NAS too.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I like your setup. It is sad I have no data that is worth backing up

No photos?
No home movies?
No recordings?
No video?
No documents?
No music collection?
No records (taxes, deeds, will, etc)?
Etc?

 

[motorazr]

Have you had issues with TimeMachine too, and what's your current backup strategy?

Former Apple folk chiming in - I always felt like time machine died around macOS X 10.10 — or 10.11. Somewhere in there. A structural change of macOS changed how time machine behaved and it more frequently became stuck. Intro 10.13 and APFS, things just didn’t improve. First backup for a Mac with little data shouldn’t take hours to process, but alas, whatever index issues Time Machine was working though frequently did take hours to process the backup (not copy!) for as little as 30gb used…

Then there are restore issues. Maybe similar to what you encountered, where a non-corrupt backup won’t restore for silly reasons that look insurmountable to a user, but in actuality are things a disk first aid could fix or restore with a slightly different method works etc.

Time Machine and migration assistant are the step children macOS doesn’t want to attend to but has to; and it shows in how infrequently they work as expected when migrating or restarting tens or hundreds of mac user’s data.