Configuring Time Machine Backups
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The most important thing you can do is to protect the data on your Mac. Much of the data you have would be time-intensive or expensive to re-create (for example, if you lose movies that you’ve downloaded from the iTunes Store, you would need to pay to download them again). However, some of the data on your Mac can’t be replaced in any way (such as the photos in your iPhoto Library). It is critically important that you keep your data backed up, and to ensure that your data is backed up, the system you use must be as automated as possible.
NOTE: Connecting a Hard Drive
The first time you connect a hard drive to your Mac, you are prompted to use it for Time Machine. If you allow this, you don’t need to select the drive as described in the next section because it is selected for you automatically. You can still configure the Time Machine as described in that section.
To configure Time Machine, perform the following steps:
1. Open the Time Machine pane of the System Preferences application.
2. Drag the slider to the ON position. Time Machine activates and the selected drive sheet appears
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3. Select the drive on which you want to store the backed-up information.
4. Click Use Backup Disk.
5. If you selected a Time Capsule or another location that is protected by a password, type the password and click Connect; if not, you don’t need to do anything for this step. The sheet closes
and you return to the Time Machine page. The drive you selected is shown at the top of the pane, and the timer starts the backup process, which you see next to the text Next Backup.
CAUTION: FileVault and Backups
If you use FileVault to encrypt your data, you also need to encrypt your backups; otherwise, someone who gets access to your backup disk might be able to recover its data. If you want the backed-up data to be encrypted, check the Encrypt backup disk check box. This prevents the data from being used without the encryption passcode. If you check this, make sure you never lose the password.
6. Click the Stop button next to the text Next Backup. This stops the backup process so that you can configure it more specifically.
7. Click Options. The Do not back up sheet appears. This sheet enables you to exclude files from the backup process. For example, you can exclude the System Files and Applications if you have those files stored elsewhere, such as on a DVD.
8. Click the Add (+) button. The select sheet appears.
9. Move to and select the folders or files you want to exclude from the backup; then click Exclude.
10. If you selected system files, click Exclude System Folder Only to exclude only files in the System folder or Exclude All System Files to exclude system files no matter where they are stored.
11. If you are using a mobile Mac and don’t want the backup process to run when you are operating on battery power, deselect the Back up while on battery power check box.
12. If you want to be warned as old backups are removed from the backup drive, check the Warn after old backups are deleted check box. This is a good idea because it lets you know when your backup drive fills up.
13. To prevent versions of documents that you have backed up from being overwritten by changes that are automatically saved (explained later in this chapter), check the Lock document check box and select the amount of time after which the versions are locked and won’t be changed by later versions created with Auto Save.
14. Click Save. You return to the Time Machine pane, which displays information about your backup as shown in Figure.
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The timer starts and, when it expires, the first backup is created. From then on, Time Machine automatically backs up your data to the selected hard drive. New backups are created every hour.
15. Select the Show Time Machine status in menu bar check box.
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