If the drive is not formatted to be compatible with macOS, you’ll be prompted to erase and reformat it before you can back up with Time Machine. [1] X Research source Time Machine backs up everything that’s stored on your Mac, including personal files, preferences, installed apps, and photos. You can easily restore files from Time Machine if you accidentally delete them, or if you experience a system-wide crash.
If you don’t see this icon, click the Apple menu and go to System Preferences > Time Machine. Then, you can check the box next to “Show Time Machine in menu bar” at the bottom so the icon is readily available in the future.
Time Machine will keep hourly backups for the past 24 hours, daily backups for a month, and weekly backups for all previous months. Older backups are removed automatically when the backup disk is full.
To remove an item from the Excluded list, click that item, and then click the minus sign - to remove it. If you’re using a MacBook, you can choose whether Time Machine can make backups when your Mac isn’t plugged in to a power source. Check the box next to “Back up while on battery power” if you want Time Machine to create hourly backups on battery power.
To remove an item from the Excluded list, click that item, and then click the minus sign - to remove it. If you’re using a MacBook, you can choose whether Time Machine can make backups when your Mac isn’t plugged in to a power source. Check the box next to “Back up while on battery power” if you want Time Machine to create hourly backups on battery power.
To remove an item from the Excluded list, click that item, and then click the minus sign - to remove it. If you’re using a MacBook, you can choose whether Time Machine can make backups when your Mac isn’t plugged in to a power source. Check the box next to “Back up while on battery power” if you want Time Machine to create hourly backups on battery power.
Click the Time Machine clock icon in the menu bar. Click Back Up Now. The time and date of the last backup appears at the top of the menu. If a backup is in progress, you’ll see its progress at the top of the menu instead.
Unlike backing up with Time Machine, backup up files with iCloud only backs up the files you specify, such as documents and the files on your desktop. This is a good solution if you just want to back up personal files to keep another copy in the cloud. If you delete a backed-up file from iCloud, you won’t be able to recover it. If it’s important that you have files you can easily restore if you accidentally delete them, make a Time Machine backup instead.
If you’re using macOS Mojave or earlier, click the iCloud icon instead. [3] X Research source
To see how much storage you have in your plan, as well as how much you’re currently using, look at the “iCloud Storage” area at the bottom of the screen. All iCloud users get 5 GB of storage automatically. [4] X Research source If you want to get more storage, you can upgrade to iCloud+. Click the Manage button and select either Change Storage Plan or Buy More Storage to view and select a plan.
The Desktop and Documents folders will now be backed up to iCloud Drive each time you connect to the internet. The files will also be available on your other devices, as will all new files you add to those folders. You’ll find your Desktop and Documents folders in the left panel of Finder under “iCloud. "
If there are other files you want to back up to iCloud, you can always add them to a folder on your desktop or in your Documents folder, which will now be backed up to iCloud.
