Time Machine - "reset" the hard drive?

[jz0309]

I have been using a 8TB WD easy store external drive for the last almost 4 years for TM backup, has been working fine, occasionally I have restored some files, so it works. I've replaced 1 external 1TB SSD with a new 2 TB SSD and also this week upgraded to Big Sur.

I had paused TM for a day or 2 and this morning enabled it again, primarily to backup the new 2TB SSD (~ 740GB of phots that I moved from the old one). It started rather quick and backed up ~ 350GB in the first hour or so but is now "stuck" on "freeing space" for almost 2 hours. I do know that it deletes the oldest backups etc ... but, here is my question:
Should I go and erase the backup drive and start from scratch? Like a clean start? I do not care about versions of files at the time, just the last ones are important for me.
Replacing the 8TB drive is on my list for later the year (probably before Monterey upgrade) but not right now.

 

[chscag]

Should I go and erase the backup drive and start from scratch? Like a clean start? I do not care about versions of files at the time, just the last ones are important for me.

You could certainly do that but I suspect it will take just as long. Personally, when it comes to photos and other important data I recommend using cloning software instead. Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper work real well and you can always move data from one drive to another much faster.

You can of course also continue to use Time Machine. You can never have too many backups.......

 

[jz0309]

You could certainly do that but I suspect it will take just as long. Personally, when it comes to photos and other important data I recommend using cloning software instead. Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper work real well and you can always move data from one drive to another much faster.

You can of course also continue to use Time Machine. You can never have too many backups.......

Thanks, I did use CCC to clone my old 1TB SSD to the new 2TB SSD, both external and the 740GB were done in about 45 min…
I could use the old SSD for the time being (while it can still hold the data) as an addl backup/clone for my photos… I have no other use for it, other than a clone of my internal 1TB SSD.
But I want to continue with TM to the 8GB hard drive, not sure I want to rely solely on CCC.
Decisions to make…

 

[Fishrrman]

So long as your source drive is fine, I'd erase the tm drive and "start over fresh from the beginning"...

 

[HDFan]

Make sure you have a 3-2-1 backup strategy in place. TM does not count.

 

[jz0309]

Make sure you have a 3-2-1 backup strategy in place. TM does not count.

Because? I realize that some people have issues but for me the past almost 4 years of using it have been smooth sailing. The few times I needed to restore some files it performed just fine. I did not have to use it to restore an entire disk or such…

 

[HDFan]

Because? I realize that some people have issues but for me the past almost 4 years of using it have been smooth sailing

1. Because you are lucky. There are a lot of reports of TM corruption because of its complex structure. I have had multiple failures where the TM backup was corrupted when I was trying to do a restore.

2. A 3-2-1 backup strategy requires 3 backups with at least one in a remote location. The backups should ideally be on different media types.

3. Other backup strategies are rock solid, such as CCC. The only time I have ever had a failure is when a hardware failure occurred.

So it is a question of risk. Do you want to risk the loss of your data?

 

[jz0309]

1. Because you are lucky. There are a lot of reports of TM corruption because of its complex structure. I have had multiple failures where the TM backup was corrupted when I was trying to do a restore.

2. A 3-2-1 backup strategy requires 3 backups with at least one in a remote location. The backups should ideally be on different media types.

3. Other backup strategies are rock solid, such as CCC. The only time I have ever had a failure is when a hardware failure occurred.

So it is a question of risk. Do you want to risk the loss of your data?

Thanks for your response ... I understand the risk which is why I have been backing up my data, maybe not as exhaustive as you're describing ...
I have seen user reports re TM issues here - are you telling me that there are zero reports/experiences of issues with CCC? I'm genuinely asking, not being sarcastic. I've used the trial version of CCC when upgrading my iMac and I like what I could do with it, and it seems simple enough.
I am still in the process of re-organizing my data and am re-thinking how to manage backups going forward. As I have now a "spare" 1 TB SSD I'm thinking of using it to clone my internal SSD via CCC, and I think my preference is not to mix backup solutions/SW ...

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

If you've never used either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper, I suggest you try one (or BOTH).
They're both free to download and use for 30 days.
See for yourself how they work and what they offer you.

My prediction is that once you try CCC or SD, you'll like it...

 

[jz0309]

OP:

If you've never used either CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper, I suggest you try one (or BOTH).
They're both free to download and use for 30 days.
See for yourself how they work and what they offer you.

My prediction is that once you try CCC or SD, you'll like it...

Thanks, as I mentioned in the post above yours, I have tried CCC and am liking it ... still working through my data cleanup at this point, but will most likely go the CCC route, just need to read up on its capabilities bit more, there are some good threads here ...