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Back up using MobileMe's Backup utility

23.02.2011
When it comes to Mac backup, most Mac users think of Time Machine. But as part of a , it's a good idea to supplement Time Machine with another backup method, such as disk cloning, using an online service, or running a third-party backup program. Apple actually has another backup application called Backup that's available to users. This program is short on features and lacks the flexibility found in other third-party backup programs, which is why you wouldn't want to use it as your primary backup strategy. Backup saves only data that's in your home folder--it will not save system files (thus you can't make a bootable backup). .

In this article, I'll show how to use Backup to save your home folder. You need a MobileMe account to download the disk image of Backup. You can also from Apple's Website, but if you use the software on a Mac that's not connected to your MobileMe account, the application imposes a backup limit of 100MB. Backup requires Mac OS X 10.5.8 or later, or 10.6.2 or later; and a PowerPC G4 or later processor, or an Intel Core or later processor.

(The rumor mill has recently been churning furiously with speculation including and a . I don't have any information regarding MobileMe's future, but if MobileMe is changing, the future availablity of Backup is in question. Whether Apple will continue to support Backup remains to be seen.)

Step 1: Download and install Backup

Log in to your MobileMe iDisk account, either through the Finder (select Go -> iDisk -> My iDisk, or press Shift-Command-I) or through the me.com Website. In iDisk is a folder called Software; when you open this folder, you'll find a folder called Backup, which contains a disk image for Backup (the current version is 3.2 and takes up 7.1MB). Copy/download the Backup disk image to your hard drive.

After downloading the disk image, double-click it to mount it to the desktop. (You can mount the disk image to your desktop without downloading it first, but this can significantly slow down the installation.) Open the Backup 3 icon on your desktop, and peruse the Read Before You Install Backup 3.2 file. When you're ready, you can install Backup by double-clicking the Backup.pkg file. The Backup software will take up about 21MB of storage space.