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User profile for user: Raiden_084
Raiden_084 Author
User level: Level 1
8 points

Mac Os Monterey time machine back up

I am new to Mac OS. My brand new Mac mini does not have any files (literally) other than some newly installed apps (word, excel etc.) However, the back up size (when trying to back up to external USB) being shown as 37 ish GB. Is this taking a snapshot of the entire system as in if system malfunctions we can restore to the back up or merely copies files (the apps, photos, documents and downloads) generated by me? If it is not backing up system files where are these MB’s coming from?? Also when I attach thenUSB it shows Ex FAT file format. Do I have to convert to APFS or time machine will do this automatically?

Mac mini, macOS 12.1

Posted on Dec 19, 2021 5:13 PM

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User profile for user: Tesserax
Tesserax
User level: Level 10
152,278 points

Posted on Dec 19, 2021 6:54 PM

Raiden_084 wrote:

Thanks. Just to clarify entire drive= system files, OS, apps?

Yes. But understand that this is not a clone copy. That is, the TM backup will not be bootable. However, it is one of the methods to restore a Mac. This is similar to Windows system restore process. TM also allows you to restore individual files from past backups.


How to do this overnight with monitor switched off as it takes a long time.

The support article I referenced covers most of this. Please be sure to review it. After the initial backup, incremental backups will occur in a timely fashion. This is where it will behoove you to have a dedicated destination drive for these backups. How long each backup takes will depend on how many files have changes since the previous backup. These will run in the background, whether or not, you are actively accessing the Mac.

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User profile for user: Tesserax
Tesserax
User level: Level 10
152,278 points

Dec 19, 2021 6:54 PM in response to Raiden_084

Raiden_084 wrote:

Thanks. Just to clarify entire drive= system files, OS, apps?

Yes. But understand that this is not a clone copy. That is, the TM backup will not be bootable. However, it is one of the methods to restore a Mac. This is similar to Windows system restore process. TM also allows you to restore individual files from past backups.


How to do this overnight with monitor switched off as it takes a long time.

The support article I referenced covers most of this. Please be sure to review it. After the initial backup, incremental backups will occur in a timely fashion. This is where it will behoove you to have a dedicated destination drive for these backups. How long each backup takes will depend on how many files have changes since the previous backup. These will run in the background, whether or not, you are actively accessing the Mac.

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User profile for user: Tesserax
Tesserax
User level: Level 10
152,278 points

Dec 19, 2021 5:25 PM in response to Raiden_084

Time Machine's "first" backup is designed to back up your Mac's entire drive. Any subsequent backups will be incremental. As such, a good "rule of thumb" is that the back up destination drive should be 2-3x the capacity of the source drive.


With macOS Monterey, Time Machine should automatically reformat the external drive to APFS.


Ref: Back up your Mac with Time Machine - Apple Support

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Mac Os Monterey time machine back up

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