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Is there a good Backup utility for the Mac like Second Copy for Window


GeoEng51

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Hello everyone,I'm looking for a good backup utility that operates in a similar manner to Second Copy (one of the best backup utilities for Windows, in my opinion; and yes, I already checked - they don't make it for the Mac).My backup strategy consists of using a program that will efficiently copy selected files and folders to specified locations on a variety of media at pre-determined times, and I'd like that done automatically and in a variety of ways, depending on where I'm working and time of day.First, let me say that I've tried:* SuperDuper, which works fine if what you want is a backup of your entire disk (but that's not really what I'm looking for).* MacBackup - sort of fits my needs, but it hung up the first time I tried to use it (don't have any patience for such behaviour, after years of suffering as a Windows user).* The backup utility that came with my WD external hard drive (a "My Book"). It was again too simple.Here's what Second Copy could do, that I found really useful - you could set up a number of "profiles", each containing a set of specifications for a certain type of backup or copy activity. Those specifications included:* What location to copy from - any specified folder, with or without sub-folders.* What files to copy - all files and folders, or only selected files and folders (with specifications either for inclusions and/or exclusion).* What location to copy to - any destination folder accessible from your computer - internal hard drive, external hard drive, network drive, etc.* When to copy - manual, at startup, at shut down, every few minutes, hours, or days (interval specified), once a day (time specified; certain days could be excluded), whenever files change.* How to copy - simple copy, exact copy, move, compress, synchronize.* How to archive deleted files - where to store, how many versions to store.* Advanced options - ignore files older than or younger than a certain date/time, plus a variety of secondary checks; whether or not and how to compress when backing up; run some other program before or after the backup operation.I set up a variety of profiles to back up certain types of files to several different locations (i.e., frequent backup of important files to an external drive every several hours during the working day; backup of all changed files to an external drive once a day [at night], and backup of selected personal files to my home computer [my work computer is a laptop]). Setting up the profiles took about 15 minutes with a beautifully simple and intuitive user interface; after that, I could entirely ignore the process and reliably have the backups done.But the main point is that I wanted to have copies of important files stored in a variety of places, that I could access directly if need be. I don't like my backups residing in files with proprietary formats or where I need separate software to access the information - I just want to go to the alternate storage location and browse through the files.So, after all that long-winded explanation - does anyone have any good suggestions?Thanks for reading and offering your comments.Cheers.....GeoEng51

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Back again - this time to reply to my own question, at least in part. While surfing around looking for Mac stuff, I came across the following web site:http://www.pure-mac.com/You Mac old-timers are probably familiar with the site, but for relatively new Mac users (such as me), it is a good reference to find out what software is out there for the Mac.Anyway, I looked under the Backup software category and found a long list of products. Three that seemed to have the right set of capabilities for me were "AAsync", "ChronoSync", and "Folders Synchronizer X".I'm trying out ChronoSync right now, and will write up a quick review here once I am done.Cheers....GeoEng51

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I've tried out ChronoSync for a week or 2 now - I found it very easy to understand, set up and use, but also very powerful. Rating 4 1/2 stars (out of 5); highly recommended.Here are some features that I like:* The user interface is simple and intuitive; well-designed. For simple backups, you can set up the options and run with about 3 mouse clicks.* There are several buttons down the left side of the main program window that let you set options, define rules, and analyze the backup process.* Options include the ability to define how reporting and error handling is done, toggle verification on and off, define how files and folders are handled (interpreted) by the program, set up archiving, define what types of file changes trigger a synchronization, set up e-mail notification when the backup is finished, and run pre- or post- synchronization Scripts.* Rules allow you to include or exclude certain files (defined by file name or file extension, using various Boolean Logic), and filter on file size or date/time of last modification.* One nice backup analysis tool is called "trial sync" - it goes through and analyzes what files the program will backup, where, etc., and then lists them all for you, without actually doing anything. So, if the effect isn't what you wanted, you can go back and change your options or rules, and try again.The program lets you save various backup profiles, and also includes a very flexible and capable scheduling routine that works with those profiles.There are a number of backup "operations", i.e., ways in which the program will carry out its backup duties, including "one way backup", "Di-directional sync", "Blind Backup", and "Mirroring". Between these, the program seems to have a very comprehensive approach to how it carries out the backup process.

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  • 4 years later...
I've tried out ChronoSync for a week or 2 now - I found it very easy to understand, set up and use, but also very powerful. Rating 4 1/2 stars (out of 5); highly recommended.

 

Here are some features that I like:

 

* The user interface is simple and intuitive; well-designed. For simple backups, you can set up the options and run with about 3 mouse clicks.

* There are several buttons down the left side of the main program window that let you set options, define rules, and analyze the backup process.

* Options include the ability to define how reporting and error handling is done, toggle verification on and off, define how files and folders are handled (interpreted) by the program, set up archiving, define what types of file changes trigger a synchronization, set up e-mail notification when the backup is finished, and run pre- or post- synchronization Scripts.

* Rules allow you to include or exclude certain files (defined by file name or file extension, using various Boolean Logic), and filter on file size or date/time of last modification.

* One nice backup analysis tool is called "trial sync" - it goes through and analyzes what files the program will backup, where, etc., and then lists them all for you, without actually doing anything. So, if the effect isn't what you wanted, you can go back and change your options or rules, and try again.

 

The program lets you save various backup profiles, and also includes a very flexible and capable scheduling routine that works with those profiles.

 

There are a number of backup "operations", i.e., ways in which the program will carry out its backup duties, including "one way backup", "Di-directional sync", "Blind Backup", and "Mirroring". Between these, the program seems to have a very comprehensive approach to how it carries out the backup process.

 

Man, what a useful review. I was a PC user user for a long time and have been using Second Copy to make my backups to an external disk for about a year, when I switched to Mac. I'm a photographer and got amazed at the performance of my new Mac, so I gradually stopped using PC for most of my activities, except backup. I networked the PC and Mac to the only purpose of running Second Backup and let it retreive the new files and store them in the external device. I did some research but couldn't find an application to perform the same task directly from my Mac, so I got stuck to the PC-Mac setup. The main reason is that I wanted to preserve file organization and accesibility, so in case of disaster I could connect my external drive to any Mac or PC and continue working. I didn't want programs with propietary backup files, so none of the most common backup solution was the right one for me.

I just installed the free version of ChronoSync for some testing, but I'm sure it will fulfill my expectations.

 

Thank you GeoEng51! I will post my experience after using this program for a little while.

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