Please note this information is for general purposes only. At this time, ITCS highly recommends data to be stored on the protected PirateDrive.

What is it?
• New software included in Leopard (/Applications/Utilities or Apple>System Preferences>Time Machine) that allows you to back up your entire system on a regular basis:
• After the initial back up, Time Machine only backs up files that have changed.
• Backups are stored by date.
• You can restore the whole system or certain files and folders.
• Time Machine is a great temporary backup solution. Its great for recovering unexpectedly deleted or lost files. Always consider multiple backups solutions including the PirateDrive which is also protected.

What do you need?
• A separate hard disk like an external or internal hard drive big enough to backup the drive its assigned to.
• Its recommended to use this disk ONLY for backups. Do not use it for any other purposes as it needs to stay in touch with the main system at all times.
• Both FireWire and USB disks can be used but FireWire is preferred. USB drives tend to disconnect if you put your machine to sleep.
• These disks must be formatted as Mac OS Extended (journaled) and have ACLs (Access Control Lists) enabled. If the disk doesn't meet Time Machine's specs, it will format it for you.
• PirateDrive cannot be used in conjunction with Time Machine.

How to set up Time Machine
• Install an extra internal disk or connect an external hard disk. Note: When you attach an empty external hard disk, Time Machine will usually ask if you want to use this disk for backup.
• Go to Apple>System Preferences>Time Machine.
• Click on the "Choose Backup Disk..." button. Select your drive in the list.
• Once the disk has been assigned, Time Machine will automatically turn itself on.
• Click the Options button if you wish to designate items to be excluded from the backups. Use the "+" or "-" symbols to add or remove items from that list. Click "Done" when completed.
• Time Machine will make an initial backup that will include everything on your computer (except for what is listed in the Options list). This can take some time, depending on what you have on your drive. Expect some performance slowness while this is happening.

Troubleshooting
• Backup failure? If Time Machine says the latest backup has failed, click the red info button (i) to see why.
• If the disk is too small, click the "Change Disk..." button and select another connected disk.
• If Time Machine says the new disk must be erased, click "Erase". Be aware EVERYTHING on that disk will be gone! If you don't want to lose that information, connect another hard drive and click "Choose Another Disk".

How to find and restore a file
• On your Desktop, click on the file or folder you need restored.
• Click on the Time Machine icon in the Dock.
• The Time Machine universe will appear. It will show the current Finder window in the foreground with earlier versions receding back behind it.
• To go back in time to and find the previous version of the selected item, click the back-in-time arrow. The star field will zoom back in time to the next previous version of that item it finds.
• The bar at the bottom will display the version's time and date.
• If this is the wrong version, click the back-in-time arrow again or drag your pointer over the timeline on the right edge of the screen.
• Once you've found the right version, select it once to highlight it, then click "Restore" at the right side of the screen.
• Select the correct option: "Keep Original", "Keep Both" or "Replace" the original with the backup version. If you select Keep Both, the restored copy will be placed in its original location with the word "original" added to its name.

How to restore your entire disk
• Connect your Time Machine backup disk to your computer.
• Boot from a Leopard DVD.
• While in the installer, go to the Utilities menu and select "Restore System from Backup".
• In the Restore Your System dialog, click Continue;.
• Select your Time Machine backup volume.
• Select the backup you want to use.
• Follow the rest of the onscreen instructions.
• When you reboot, your machine will look exactly like the backup you selected.

How to setup a Network drive as a backup device with Time Machine
• This is for expert/advanced users.
• The PirateDrive is not recommended for this purpose as the size allotments per account are smaller than most hard drives and the KeyChain Application does not want to update the Pirate password despite several attempts.
• An ethernet connection, not wireless, is highly recommended.

First, tell Time Machine to see the network server:

• Open Macintosh HD/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.
• Type in this command: defaults write com.apple.systempreferences TMShowUnsupportedNetworkVolumes 1
• Hit Return.
• Exit Terminal.

 

Second, get an empty image especially created for this purpose:

• Log onto smb://itssapps and go to MacFiles/Public folder.
• Copy "ShareName_MacAddress.sparsebundle" to your desktop. It is an empty image.
• Rename the sparsebundle with your Computer's sharing name and its ethernet mac address as shown above. Ex: MyComputer_0817f83g991c.sparsebundle
• Log into your network server
• Copy the newly named sparsebundle to that server.

 

Third, set up Time Machine:

• Open Apple>System Preferences>Time Machine.
• Click on Change Disk and select your network server.
• If you have limited space on the network server, click on Options and add everything to that list that you DON'T want backed up. Try to leave just your Desktop or your Documents folder or assign just one folder that will be backed up on a regular basis.
• Close system preferences and monitor the first backup.