Best way to store bootable machine copies on a NAS: Sparse bundle, sparse image or fixed disk image

[halloleo]

I bought a shiny new Synology NASwith plenty of space. I also have quit a few old pysical external hard drives with bootable macOS system copies: I always make a copy of my system which I store away when I upgrade my macOS version. So I have Leopard, Lion, Mavericks and El Capitan drives...

Now I want to declutter, but still keep the data "just in case". So I though I create disk images on the NAS and copy the mirrored systems over (with Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper). - And in case I really need them again I restore them back to a drive and can hopefully boot them up again. Here my two questions:

1. Is this a feasible and reliable approach? ( I know that the Carbon Copy Cloner floks strongley advise agisnt the use of images.)

2. What is the best type of disk image to use: sparse bundle, sparse image, or fixed disk image? I want as much reliability as possible and I'm not planning to write to the images after copying.

Many thanks for any pointers

 

[dimme]

On older mac OS systems High Sierra and older I never had a problem restoring from a Superduper sparse bundle. I have not had the need to try a restore on a newer mac system, and yes I have seen the warning with the newer systems.

 

[bradbomb]

Well, with newer systems, what you could do if you were restoring is install a fresh copy of macOS and once installed, you mount the disk image (whichever format) and use Migration Assistant to move your data.

 

[satcomer]

Congratulations on your purchase . There are many videos on YouTube on version on SM your device is running, so search on that!

 

[halloleo]

On older mac OS systems High Sierra and older I never had a problem restoring from a Superduper sparse bundle. I have not had the need to try a restore on a newer mac system, and yes I have seen the warning with the newer systems.

Thanks @dimme. Good to know.

What do you think is most reliable image type: Sparse bundle, sparse image, or fixed disk image?

 

[dimme]

Sparse bundle has always worked the best for me, and from my research I found it's the best way to go.