[X4U] SuperDupper question

[Neil Laubenthal]

On Mar 29, 2009, at 10:59 AM, Jim Robertson wrote:

> Having considered Synchronize! Pro X a single-purpose application  
> because it
> works so well for my main use of it, I never considered that it  
> could fill
> my need for creating bootable clones. My question is, can it do both?
> Specifically, I'm wondering whether one can SCHEDULE cloning to  
> occur at
> times I wouldn't likely be doing my desktop <-> laptop  
> synchronization, then
> just leave that file open or create a script to launch it at the  
> appropriate
> times? Can it wipe the target volume before creating the clone, as
> SuperDuper! does? I just played with the preferences a bit, and it  
> appears
> that Synchronize! Pro X doesn't like having more than one file open  
> at a
> time (probably for obvious reasons).


Synchronize Pro lets you schedule multiple backups of various  
types . . .and they can be set to run in sequence so that you only  
need to actually schedule the first one . . .that way you don't have  
to worry about time for backup as the first job runs the second when  
the first one completes.

I don't see any reason you couldn't schedule both clones and  
computer<-->computer syncs at differing times . . .it's not entirely  
clear how your setup works . . .and you may need 2 licenses for  
Synchronize Pro (one for the laptop and one for the desktop) depending  
on which one (or both) you want to clone and which one (or both) you  
want to drive the synchronization.

I'm not sure I understand your question about keeping documents  
open . . . once you enable AutoSync in the prefs the background app  
runs and neither Synchronize Pro or the document needs to be open.  
AutoSync launches the app at the appropriate time and depending on how  
the various options for wake up, auto-connect, start, completion, etc  
are set it does it's thing and then launches another settings document  
or quits or remains running as you've set.

What I'm thinking you intend to do is . . . have a setting file on  
your laptop (or your desktop) that syncs either automatically at time  
x or manually when you double click it . . this setting file syncs the  
user folders on the laptop and desktop. Then . . .separately . . . you  
want to have another settings file that clones the laptop (or maybe  
the desktop) to a second drive.

Both of these are easily do-able . . .and you don't have to worry  
about having the app running or settings file opens. From your  
description . . .it sounds like you want a sync of the user folders on  
demand . . . and an auto clone of the desktop drive at some other time.

If my supposition is correct . . . install Synchronize on the desktop  
and create the settings file to do the sync. Set this for no auto-run  
but to automatically sync and quit on launch. Set up the laptop to  
share the correct directory so that the desktop can connect . . .set  
the settings file on the desktop to autoconnect and auto disconnect  
the share when complete. Double click the settings file when  
desired . . . app launches on desktop, laptop drive share is connected  
to, sync is done, laptop drive share disconnected, and app quits.

Set up a second settings file with auto run to do the clone and  
schedule it for 3AM or something like that . . .again setting it for  
automatic run on document launch and exit app when done.

I don't see a way to have the clone erase the drive first . . .but  
then that's mostly not necessary anyway for your clone and an  
incremental clone is good enough most of the time.

Having multiple settings files open simultaeously is a no-no . . .but  
AutoSync gets around that just fine . . . the only time the individual  
settings files are open is when you're working on setting them up or  
while they're running.

>
> I have a Time Machine backup. I'm trying to decide which cloning  
> tool to
> use. Let's say that my Boot drive fails, and that after I switch  
> over to my
> clone of that drive, I discover that I'd inadvertently done  
> something akin
> to the woman who tossed the record from a key database, sometime  
> BEFORE
> creating the most recent clone. That file exists in my Time Machine  
> Backup
> (I assume). Can I find that file in my Time Machine backup of my  
> original
> boot volume and restore it to my CLONED boot volume?


I'll add a response here to your second post about booting from the  
clone and then restoring a file from the Time Machine backup of the  
original boot drive . . . I think that the clone and the original boot  
drive are the same as far as Time Machine is concerned . . .Time  
Machine bases it's uniqueness on the MAC address of the computer which  
is the same for the clone. At worst . . . you would have to go into TM  
preferences after booting the clone and reselect the destination . . .  
but the contents of the backup are still there and the TM restore  
function should find them nicely. One can also just dive into the TM  
backup using Finder instead of the TM restore interface and find the  
file you need to restore then bring it back with a drag and drop.