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Time Machine - OS backup?

Z

Zephyras

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 23, 2008
17
0
Hello there

I'm having a new HD installed in my my 2010 iMac due to http://www.apple.com/uk/support/imac-harddrive/

I'm going through an authorised service provider as I'm nowhere near an Apple Store and apparently Apple don’t pay them to copy the data over so unless I pay them 25 quid, the new HD will be a system default of Snow Leopard.

Would anyone happen to know if I back up my HD now using Time Machine, it’ll back up the actual OS so when I restore from backup, it restores it to Lion along with all my data?

Thanks
 
T

Thessman

macrumors regular
Dec 8, 2005
189
48
GR
Zephyras said:
Hello there

I'm having a new HD installed in my my 2010 iMac due to http://www.apple.com/uk/support/imac-harddrive/

I'm going through an authorised service provider as I'm nowhere near an Apple Store and apparently Apple don’t pay them to copy the data over so unless I pay them 25 quid, the new HD will be a system default of Snow Leopard.

Would anyone happen to know if I back up my HD now using Time Machine, it’ll back up the actual OS so when I restore from backup, it restores it to Lion along with all my data?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Do you have a second HD? Either external or internal will do. You need to have a partition with enough space to accommodate all your data from the drive to be replaced. Given that you can then use this link
http://www.bombich.com/download.html
and get the free version by clicking on "Download Version 3.4.7".
CCC can duplicate your startup disk live to the empty partition, so that when you get your mac back, you can boot from your new copy and restore all your data back to the internal drive.
I hope all that is clear enough.
Good luck
 
Mal

Mal

macrumors 603
Jan 6, 2002
6,252
18
Orlando
DoctorCrap said:
Try getting an external hard drive. Seems much easier then using a Time Machine, personal experience.
Click to expand...

I don't think that means what you think it means.

Perhaps you're thinking of the Time Capsule, but Time Machine backs up to an external hard drive as well. I'm assuming that's what the OP meant, since there was no mention of a Time Capsule.

OP, to actually answer your question, Time Machine does back up the OS. I don't remember if this was introduced in Lion or Mountain Lion, but currently it also places a recovery partition on there so you can boot from it and restore your files. If not, you'll have to use another bootable source.

jW
 
F

FlatlinerG

Cancelled
Dec 21, 2011
711
5
Did your computer come preinstalled with Lion or did you buy the upgrade? If you paid for it, just use Time Machine to backup your data, get the replacement, upgrade to Lion, then get your data back onto it.

Time Machine won't backup your complete OS so if the above option doesn't work for you, I would just look into making a Lion boot disc/USB and do it that way. Info is here: https://www.macrumors.com/2012/07/25/create-a-bootable-mountain-lion-usb-key-installer/
 
Weaselboy

Weaselboy

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 23, 2005
34,132
15,595
California
FlatlinerG said:
Did your computer come preinstalled with Lion or did you buy the upgrade? If you paid for it, just use Time Machine to backup your data, get the replacement, upgrade to Lion, then get your data back onto it.

Time Machine won't backup your complete OS so if the above option doesn't work for you, I would just look into making a Lion boot disc/USB and do it that way. Info is here: https://www.macrumors.com/2012/07/25/create-a-bootable-mountain-lion-usb-key-installer/
Click to expand...

There is no need to go through all this. As Mal mentioned in the above post, since 10.7.2 (Lion) a USB or firewire local Time Machine backup backs up the entire OS along with a copy of the Recovery HD partition on the backup disk. Just option key boot and select the Recovery HD from the backup disk. You can read more about it here.
 
F

FlatlinerG

Cancelled
Dec 21, 2011
711
5
Weaselboy said:
There is no need to go through all this. As Mal mentioned in the above post, since 10.7.2 (Lion) a USB or firewire local Time Machine backup backs up the entire OS along with a copy of the Recovery HD partition on the backup disk. Just option key boot and select the Recovery HD from the backup disk. You can read more about it here.
Click to expand...

This is good to know. I thank you very much for your post :D
 
Z

Zephyras

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 23, 2008
17
0
Mal said:
I don't think that means what you think it means.

Perhaps you're thinking of the Time Capsule, but Time Machine backs up to an external hard drive as well. I'm assuming that's what the OP meant, since there was no mention of a Time Capsule.

OP, to actually answer your question, Time Machine does back up the OS. I don't remember if this was introduced in Lion or Mountain Lion, but currently it also places a recovery partition on there so you can boot from it and restore your files. If not, you'll have to use another bootable source.

jW
Click to expand...

Thanks for this - cleared it right up.

Backing up now :)
 
Mal

Mal

macrumors 603
Jan 6, 2002
6,252
18
Orlando
FlatlinerG said:
Time Machine won't backup your complete OS
Click to expand...

As stated, this is not and has never been true. You needed to use an install disk prior to 10.7.2 in order to access the Restore from Time Machine program, but it has always backed up the OS unless you specifically excluded it (which I personally have always done in order to save space).

jW
 
DoctorCrap

DoctorCrap

macrumors regular
Oct 6, 2012
144
0
Penang, Malaysia
Mal said:
I don't think that means what you think it means.

Perhaps you're thinking of the Time Capsule, but Time Machine backs up to an external hard drive as well. I'm assuming that's what the OP meant, since there was no mention of a Time Capsule.

OP, to actually answer your question, Time Machine does back up the OS. I don't remember if this was introduced in Lion or Mountain Lion, but currently it also places a recovery partition on there so you can boot from it and restore your files. If not, you'll have to use another bootable source.

jW
Click to expand...

Oh yeah! Sorry.
 
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