My Time Machine failed with the following message “/private/var/db/analyticsd/state.sqlite” could not be backed up.
Can anyone explain this please
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: Time Machine backups
Mac mini, macOS 15.5
Thanks, I have a separate backup disc that I use as a “offsite” copy. So I backed up to that, which was successful and then deleted the Time Machine backup and started again. This has worked fine. Thanks for the response.
The file /private/var/db/analyticsd/state.sqlite is a SQLite database used by the analyticsd process of macOS. It stores data related to system diagnostics and usage, which is used for Apple's internal analysis and troubleshooting. This file is not intended for user interaction and is managed by the operating system.
To be honest, I'm not sure why it is showing or blocking Time Machine...?
Do you see a Skip or a way Continue the TM backups in the error message box..?
For more info, have a look at > If a Time Machine backup fails on Mac - Apple Support
Time Machine doesn’t like doing infrequent backups. Instead of using Time Machine, I recommend using CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper for those infrequent offsite backups.
I am having the exact same problem. I have tried to exclude /private/var/db/analyticsd/state.sqlite
, but that never comes up when I search for what to exclude. This has just started recently. The last successful backup was 7/11/25.
Time Machine backup error '/private/var/db/analyticsd/state.sqlite' could not be backed up
