How safe is Time Machine?

[ptram]

Hi,

I've read some horror stories about Time Machine used with Scrivener files. To summarize what I understood: freezing of journaling during backup might prevent Scrivener from actually saving, therefore damaging the original documents.

Since I'm going to replace my old backup strategy (based, under Tiger, on LaCie's SilverKeeper), and am tempted by Time Machine, I would like to ask of other people's experience, to see if going this way is the right thing to do.

Paolo

[juh]

I only started some days ago to backup with TM. But I use FileVault in my home directory, so TM only saves this directory after I log out. That should be safe, but it sucks, because when I switch off my machine, I'll have to wait 20 minutes, after I heavily reduced my home folder in size, until saving is finished.

[reinard]

I do not have any bad experience. I put my scrivener files in a folder backed up by dropbox and this folder is also backed up by TM. If you worry about TM's behaviour: Just switch it off while working. When you have finished switch it on again

[Jaysen]

A solution I find easier is to simply not connect the TM drive until you are done working (exited scrivener). This eliminates almost all the technical issues with TM and scriv file.

[ptram]

I'm tempted by Reindard's suggestion. I could keep the backup disk connected all the time, but at the same time the backup would only happen when I want it to. It would be like the old practice, when I had to run the backup application manually - only with the dynamic numer of versions allowed by TM.

EDIT: I found another hint, somewhere else. To do manual backups with TM, one must keep TM turned off all the time. When it is time to backup, either go to the menubar TM icon, or ctrl-click on the backup target drive, and choose "Backup now". The backup will start.

Paolo

[Aisling13]

I use time machine, but only plug it in to save, every two days.