Time Machine can't complete backup

[Venderious]

Hello.

Recently, after updating to MacOS Mojave, time machine backups have started to act strange. Everytime I try to backup, it copies about 60 GB of the 70 GB, and then I get a message 'Time Machine can't complete backup'. I've tried to erase the entire disk, delete all partitions and even change the format. Nothing is however working. Does anyone know the solution to this issue?

I have attached the message I am getting down below. It tells me that there is a problem when copying files and that I need to try to use First-Aid on the disk. I've tried doing that, but it has also amounted to nothing.

 

[Venderious]

Issue fixed. Found a corrupted file using the console.

 

[hobowankenobi]

FWIW, TM should be more robust, and skip files that can't be read...and mark em in a log or report. One of the last essentials it lacks.

Good on you for digging and finding the issue.

 

[RobDotInfo]

Thanks for this... Looks like I had at least two issues...

• Firstly DropBox seemed to be causing a conflict.
• Then there was an issue with AppCleaner - there were two identical names in ../Library/Containers/com.nektony.App-Cleaner/Data/Library/Application Support - both called "App Cleaner & Unistaller". I deleted one of them and the backup has at least got further than it did before...

So now I'm crossing fingers and hoping for the best.

 

[ElaineIFloridaUS]

Thanks for this... Looks like I had at least two issues...

• Firstly DropBox seemed to be causing a conflict.
• Then there was an issue with AppCleaner - there were two identical names in ../Library/Containers/com.nektony.App-Cleaner/Data/Library/Application Support - both called "App Cleaner & Unistaller". I deleted one of them and the backup has at least got further than it did before...

So now I'm crossing fingers and hoping for the best.

[doublepost=1549561807][/doublepost]Thanks! I've been banging my head against the wall since Jan 14 when I upgraded to Adobe InDesign 19. Never occurred to me that it wasn't my backup drive. Thought it had gone bad and ordered a new one. The new one didn't work either.

I don't know that DropBox was your issue, but I found the same thing in the Containers/com.nektony.App-Cleaner... I deleted the oldest one and started looking in the containers for other things that looked out of the ordinary since January 14. I found one item that was duplicated and looked as if it had crashed. I deleted that one, and proceeded to delete anything that was any kind of app cleaner other than the new one I had just purchased with the uninstaller on that app cleaner (CleanMyMac X). Then I went into the preference files and deleted anything associated with those apps. I started a new Time Machine backup. This time I didn't reformat the drive as I had every other time.

SUCCESS! The backup picked up from where it previously stopped and I got my first backup to my new drive! Well, I did a least score a new 4T backup drive for my troubles...