Here is my contribution for all to have a happier New Year. It is the procedure I have used to ensure management of decent back up of an active master file.
I'm using a DP 533 MHz G4 DA with 1.5 MB RAM and currently with a 40 GB internal HD installed as a boot drive. I am a retired IBM Main Frame programmer/systems analyst from 1960 to 1991. During that time I was responsible for data base creation and maintenance, data and software management, development and design for many systems. It was axiomatic that we seldom used the word "if" but used the word "when" hard drives would crash or tapes would fail. Part of every production cycle included performance backups on a daily or multi-daily schedule. This what I have done and do to keep myself in an even keel as regards to losing data and software on an online Mac using OS 10.4.11. Processing in one's home is certainly less stringent as hard drives have long since replaced tapes and the quality and longevity of hard drives today is like the improvement of a superbly running four cylinder engine in a 2009 car as compared to the four cylinder installed in a Model A Ford circa 1929. Nevertheless, the word "if" should never replace the word "when" when contemplating the possibility of a hard drive failure when that hard drive is one's master hard drive. Accordingly this is what I do: 1- I have several external HDs mounted in external cases with their own power supply. They are connected via One of those HDs is partitioned while the others are not 2- At least once a week I use the 'backing up everything' option in CCC to back up my internal master HD to the external HD. 3- After CCC completes, I use the disk utility to repair the external HD and then Repair Disk Permissions on the external HD. 4- Then I use "System Preference" to select the external HD as the start up HD and restart. 5- After a successful boot using the back up external hard drive, I use the disk utility to repair the internal HD and then Repair Disk Permissions in the internal HD. 6- Then I date stamp the external hard drive with the date of the back up. 7- I then move the external HD icon to trash and shut it down. I do these chores while doing other things such as mail or making input to an ancient IIci which I've used off line since late 1989 or early 1990. [Note: I use similar procedures for backing up the internal hard drive on the IIci to one or more external hard drives. I also use SMART utility to monitor my internal master hard drive. Once every quarter, I rotate my external hard drive with another mounted in its own external case and replace it. Once a year (or sooner) I replace my master internal HD with another and date stamp the replaced hard drive. The above might sound like a lot of extra work but it is like a scheduled brushing and flossing of one's electronic teeth, in the one instance tending to preserve one's teeth and in the other instance actually preserving ones data and software and thereafter resting more easily. Mel --- On Fri, 1/1/10, Dana Collins <[email protected]> wrote: From: Dana Collins <[email protected]> Subject: Re: Happy New Year! To: [email protected] Date: Friday, January 1, 2010, 10:00 AM On 1/1/10 11:26 AM, Dan of [email protected] sent > Happy New Year, etc etc ! ! ! ! > > Now get a move on! Suck down that hangover cure then > > BACK UP YOUR DATA !!!! > > Do it TODAY. > Don't Delay! > JUST DO IT. > > CarbonCopyCloner > <http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html> > > SuperDuper! > <http://www.shirt-pocket.com/> > > The preceding has been brought to you by the brain cramps caused by > watching too much Twilight Zone. Time to switch to Dr Who. Or maybe > Buffy. Or maybe .... > > - Dan. Dr. Who, Season 3 highly recommended - avoid Buffy (after all, one wants two steps forward without the one step back ;-) esp. today. Happy New Year, Dana -- You received this message because you are a member of G-Group, a group for those using G3, G4, and G5 desktop Macs - with a particular focus on Power Macs. The list FAQ is at http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-list.shtml and our netiquette guide is at http://www.lowendmac.com/lists/netiquette.shtml To post to this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/g3-5-list -- You received this message because you are a member of G-Group, a group for those using G3, G4, and G5 desktop Macs - with a particular focus on Power Macs. The list FAQ is at http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-list.shtml and our netiquette guide is at http://www.lowendmac.com/lists/netiquette.shtml To post to this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/g3-5-list
