Issue Trying to Restore from Time Machine Backup!! Please help!!

[alexxk]

Hello Everyone,

I erased my iMac 2 days ago since someone wanted to buy... anyway, they decided to cancel and I wanted to restore from a time machine backup. However when I start the computer in recovery Mode Time machine does not see any backups to restore...

I started up my computer and my time machine looks weird... I don't see that normal the backup folder... that is what I see bellow...

I also tried using Migration Assistance, which finds one of these backups, it stats restoring but after 5 min I get a message saying, "Computer is trying to reconnect to the source, make sure both systems are connected to the same network" but this does not make sense, since I'm not connected to another computer only trying to recover from a backup.

What is wrong here and how do I recover my computer?

 

[gilby101]

The looks normal except that there should not be two Macintosh HD - Data volumes. That suggests you didn't properly erase the drive before installing for your prospective purchaser. You should be able to restore from the 2022-01-16 backup snapshot. Does it contain all your old data in the Users folder? Does Disk Utility show two Macintosh HD - Data volumes? Or the output from terminal command 'diskutil list'.

Don't erase anything until you are sure that your user data is in one of the backup snapshots.

 

[alexxk]

The looks normal except that there should not be two Macintosh HD - Data volumes. That suggests you didn't properly erase the drive before installing for your prospective purchaser. You should be able to restore from the 2022-01-16 backup snapshot. Does it contain all your old data in the Users folder? Does Disk Utility show two Macintosh HD - Data volumes? Or the output from terminal command 'diskutil list'.

Don't erase anything until you are sure that your user data is in one of the backup snapshots.

It’s strange. I’ve done this many times in the past but it’s the first time I encounter this issue. Today there are newer backups but they still don’t show when I start from system Recovery as seen

 

[alexxk]

This is a screenshot taken from my MacBook Pro... you see how the backup looks different in comparison to there backup taken on my iMac? The iMac version does not look right... I have never seen it like that..

Macbook Pro

imac

 

[gilby101]

Your MBP is using an HFS formatted disk for TM, your iMac is using APFS. APFS is the default for new TM backups for Big Sur and Monterey.

With APFS format, each TM backup is an APFS snapshot (with its own TM icon). It is less liable to corruption than HFS format, because HFS uses directory (and file) hard links to avoid duplicating files.

 

[alexxk]

Ok bottom line is I can’t restore from Time Machine backup. I tried tonight several ways. Formatting in Extenlded Journaled, APFS, from a bootable Flash Drive, from Recovery…. Everything. When trying to restore from backup “I get a message that I must use Migration Assistance after install the OS to recover my data” When I try to use migration assistance I get an error message to reconnect my source and it creates an additional Volume called “Macintosh HD Data” and it gets my computer all messed up!!!

I really don’t know what the heck happened!!!

 

[gilby101]

Your boot disk should have one APFS container with multiple volumes, the main ones being a) Macintosh HD which is a read only encryptically signed volume (so it can't be changed) containing just the operation system files, and b) Macintosh HD - Data which contains everything else. The presence Macintosh HD - Data 1 as well is an indication that something has been messed up in the recovery - most likely that the disk was not erased fully.

TM does not backup Macintosh HD. When recovering, it expects this to be either be present already or downloads it as part of the installation.

You can always boot to Internet Recovery (hold Command+Option+R when powering on). This will download recovery from Apple. You can then erase the disk (not just volumes), install macOS and as a final step restore from one of your Time Machine backups. The last step will restore the read-write parts of macOS, Applications, settings and user data.

 

[alexxk]

You can always boot to Internet Recovery (hold Command+Option+R when powering on). This will download recovery from Apple. You can then erase the disk (not just volumes), install macOS and as a final step restore from one of your Time Machine backups. The last step will restore the read-write parts of macOS, Applications, settings and user data.

Yesterday I erased the disc again, the whole thing and not only individual volumes. Then I have done exactly like that in terms of recovery but again when restoring from Time Machine I got the same error I got from recovering from migration assistance. It says it’s trying to reconnect to source and make sure it’s on both network. ?!?!?!?

 

[alexxk]

Ok so it seems I found a painful solution

I’m using Migration Assistance. Every time that messages prompts about iMac looking for Source bla bla bla. I have to disconnect the USB cable from external HD to the computer and reconnect. The restore then continues for about 3 min or about 20.000 files transfer and I repeat the process. Sucks

 

[alexxk]

This process only worked until like 10 %.

I give up now.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

You are but one more user who demonstrates why time machine should NOT be "trusted" in a moment of need.

Go forth, from this day, and learn -- sadder, but wiser.

NEXT TIME, use either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper to backup your drives.
If you had used them previously, you would not be in the predicament you're in now.

Both are FREE to download and try for 30 days.

 

[Mike Boreham]

OP:

You are but one more user who demonstrates why time machine should NOT be "trusted" in a moment of need.

Go forth, from this day, and learn -- sadder, but wiser.

NEXT TIME, use either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper to backup your drives.
If you had used them previously, you would not be in the predicament you're in now.

Both are FREE to download and try for 30 days.

For many, many years I would have agreed with this 100%. But my experience of whole drive test restores (and one real) from Time Machine since it changed to APFS in Big Sur has been rock solid. As the OP has discovered, TM only backs up the Data volume not the System volume, so it has to be by erase/install/migrate from the Data volume, but it has always worked.

After a rocky year or so, CCC and Superduper! now seem to be OK again, even for bootable clones of Silicon Macs running Monterey.

I have CCC, SD, and TM backups of my boot drives. TM would be my first go-to in case of need.