Time machine files?

The sparsebundle is how Time Machine backs up using the network method. The Backups.backupdb method is how it backs up when the drive is hooked up locally. Did you do a local backup before you connected it to the Airport? If so, it ignored that backup and created an entirely new one (the sparsebundle one) so that's why there's double the data there. You should be safe to delete the Backup.backupdb folder with no problems.

Unless I have this backwards. Someone else want to confirm?

I believe that Backups.db that you can see is the mounted sparsebundle. I.e. the sparsebundle is the actual data on the disk and the Backups.db is the data 'inside' the sparsebundle. Hence why you see it taking up twice the disk space.

Could be wrong tho I don't have a AEBS myself.

i can confirm:

I backup my MAC PRO locally using a Firewire disk and Time Machine creates a Backups.backupdb directory on the backup disk

I backup my MACBOOK via a disk connected to my Airport Extreme and it creates a sparsebundle file on the backup disk

You should use one or the other.

Ohhhhh! Wait, so the OP is mounting the sparsebundle?

acrafton: Is the Backups.backupdb INSIDE the sparsebundle? i.e. You double-click the sparsebundle and then it puts a disk icon on your Desktop, inside which is the Backups.backupdb folder? Or are the sparsebundle and Backups.backupdb items together, side-by-side, in the root of the drive in question? The distinction here is important.

acrafton said:

that is it. To save time I direct connected the drive and did a time machine backup. I then put it on the network thinking it would just update the existing one but it created a new one. . .

Thanks!

Click to expand...

To speed up the initial creation of the backup over a network, let Time Machine start the backup over the network i.e. create the sparsebundle file and mount on the desktop. Then immediately stop the backup and eject the hard drive from the network. Connect the hard drive directly to the computer you are backing up. When the USB hard drive is connected double click on the sparsebundle so that it mounts on the desktop. Now continue the backup (right click on the Time Machine icon in the dock and choose Backup Now). It will now write to the sparsebundle When its finished disconnect the drive from the computer and reconnect it to the network.

This worked for me on my Macbook and saved me hours doing the initial backup.

TARDIS scenario!

Hi all

How about this: my MacBook hard drive has about 70GB of data on it but the corresponding Backups.backupdb folder on my firewire-connected hard drive only shows up as 1.15GB. Has my computer backed up properly or am I having serious problems?

Thanks for your advice...