How to copy time machine backups to another drive

I upgraded my os to 10.9.5 and now can't see my external drives. After reading just about everything online and having no solution, I erased one of my USB drives and reformatted it and it is now visible in Finder. But here's my question: I want to be able to copy my Time Machine backups (which are on an external ssd drive) to this drive so I can restore my iMac to a previous day. Since I can't see my original TM backups I wan't to be able to copy some to this USB drive and then use it to do a restore. I tried copying them using my MacBook but couldn't get them over to the USB drive. I hope this is clear. Thanks.


Tom

iMac 21.5″, macOS 11.6

Posted on Jul 26, 2023 06:34 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jul 26, 2023 06:41 PM

Before we begin, make sure both your old drive (the one with your Time Machine backups) and your new drive are connected to your Mac.

Here are the general steps to do so:

  • Format the new drive:
    • Open Disk Utility (found in Applications > Utilities).
    • In the sidebar, select the new drive you want to use for Time Machine. Please make sure you select the main drive itself, not any partitions under it.
    • Click the "Erase" button. Choose "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" format and the "GUID Partition Map" scheme. You may give your drive any name you wish.
    • Click "Erase" to begin the format process. All existing data on this new drive will be wiped out so please ensure you have any necessary files backed up elsewhere.
  • Turn off Time Machine on your Mac:
    • Go to System Preferences.
    • Select Time Machine.
    • Toggle the switch to the OFF position.
  • Copy the backup:
    • Open a new Finder window and navigate to your current Time Machine drive.
    • You will find a folder called "Backups.backupdb". This is the folder containing all your Time Machine backups.
    • Drag this folder to your new drive. Alternatively, you can use the "cp" command in Terminal to copy the folder, which could provide more stable results for large transfers.


sudo cp -a /Volumes/{Old-Time-Machine-Drive}/Backups.backupdb /Volumes/{New-Time-Machine-Drive}


Replace {Old-Time-Machine-Drive} and {New-Time-Machine-Drive} with the names of your drives. This may take a while, depending on the size of your backups.

  • Re-enable Time Machine:
    • Go back to Time Machine preferences (System Preferences > Time Machine).
    • Click "Select Disk..."
    • Choose your new drive and click "Use Disk". Your future backups will now be stored on your new drive.


That's it! You should now have successfully copied your Time Machine backups to your new drive. The first backup after this might take a while, as Time Machine will need to do some housekeeping to get everything in order.


Remember that it is very important that you don't interrupt the copy process, as this could lead to corrupted backups. You might also want to consider keeping your old drive as a secondary backup until you're sure everything has been transferred correctly.


Please note: Any backups you already have on the new drive will be deleted when you follow these instructions.


Thanks!

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11 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jul 26, 2023 06:41 PM in response to TAD1111

Before we begin, make sure both your old drive (the one with your Time Machine backups) and your new drive are connected to your Mac.

Here are the general steps to do so:

  • Format the new drive:
    • Open Disk Utility (found in Applications > Utilities).
    • In the sidebar, select the new drive you want to use for Time Machine. Please make sure you select the main drive itself, not any partitions under it.
    • Click the "Erase" button. Choose "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" format and the "GUID Partition Map" scheme. You may give your drive any name you wish.
    • Click "Erase" to begin the format process. All existing data on this new drive will be wiped out so please ensure you have any necessary files backed up elsewhere.
  • Turn off Time Machine on your Mac:
    • Go to System Preferences.
    • Select Time Machine.
    • Toggle the switch to the OFF position.
  • Copy the backup:
    • Open a new Finder window and navigate to your current Time Machine drive.
    • You will find a folder called "Backups.backupdb". This is the folder containing all your Time Machine backups.
    • Drag this folder to your new drive. Alternatively, you can use the "cp" command in Terminal to copy the folder, which could provide more stable results for large transfers.


sudo cp -a /Volumes/{Old-Time-Machine-Drive}/Backups.backupdb /Volumes/{New-Time-Machine-Drive}


Replace {Old-Time-Machine-Drive} and {New-Time-Machine-Drive} with the names of your drives. This may take a while, depending on the size of your backups.

  • Re-enable Time Machine:
    • Go back to Time Machine preferences (System Preferences > Time Machine).
    • Click "Select Disk..."
    • Choose your new drive and click "Use Disk". Your future backups will now be stored on your new drive.


That's it! You should now have successfully copied your Time Machine backups to your new drive. The first backup after this might take a while, as Time Machine will need to do some housekeeping to get everything in order.


Remember that it is very important that you don't interrupt the copy process, as this could lead to corrupted backups. You might also want to consider keeping your old drive as a secondary backup until you're sure everything has been transferred correctly.


Please note: Any backups you already have on the new drive will be deleted when you follow these instructions.


Thanks!

Jul 27, 2023 10:08 AM in response to TAD1111

I don't doubt it. The Safari version incorporated in Mavericks will be too old for most websites. Upgrade that Mac to whatever the latest macOS version for it might be: How to download and install macOS - Apple Support. Try Yosemite or anything later (and Yosemite will still be too old).


It would help if you were to identify your model iMac: Identify your iMac model - Apple Support


As for Time Machine backup disks, forget about "cloning" them unless they are formatted for a commensurately old macOS version and commensurately old Time Machine versions. If the Mavericks version of Disk Utility can recognize those disks, use its Restore function to do that: Restore a disk using Disk Utility on Mac - Apple Support.


That Support document is written for Ventura but the instructions have not changed since Mavericks. We just can't do that with recent Time Machine backups though — "recent" meaning several macOS versions ago by now.

Jul 27, 2023 05:38 PM in response to John Galt

Ok, thanks for your help and quick reply. Well, I finally got it fixed. I upgraded to Big Sur (which I was running before I tried to do a restore from TM. don't know why it installed Mavericks but that was crap. After upgrading to Big Sur, I could then see my TM disk and did a successful restore. I want to thank all who helped this semi-technical novice. Thanks again.


Tom

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How to copy time machine backups to another drive

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