BEWARE-SuperDuper backups AND AppleMail

[ruisu]

Jeez, no wonder I'm paranoid.

Asked at the meeting yesterday about an AppleMail problem and backing up to a hard drive with SuperDuper, but the solution was not clear.  I think I've clarified the problem today. The steps as the problem evolved:

- organizing some overly full Mail folders into smaller folders: renamed a folder, but then couldn't find it.
- Was surprised but after searching unsuccessfully, I had to conclude I must have Deleted it rather than Renamed it.
- went to my SuperDuper backup on my external hard drive, but when I tried to open the Mail app, I saw that it was opening on my computer and was taking me back to the incorrect Mail app. Rebooted onto my hard drive. NOT!  Could not boot onto the SuperDuper backup [See on that below.]
- today I navigated via folders into the backed up (external drive) Mail to retrieve the deleted Mail folder and email in it.  I noticed that on my computer - in the same initial folder I been trying to reorganize previously - there was an empty folder with only a "/" as a name.  Strange. So I deleted it.  Not only did it delete but all the other folders that were in the same folder  WITH it (_not_ "in" it - it was empty) were deleted. I saw another folder name with a "/".  Weird.  Apparently some kind of rogue folder. I renamed the entire folder it is contained in as "Do not delete" and imported that folder afresh from the backup mail on the hard drive. My AppleMail program might be wonky because it has some other weird problems that I've reported here with no one (including, e.g., Ian Shortreed) ever having seen the problem before BUT this is a relatively recently installed  program on a new, cleanly installed, system.  So it warrants warning others. (Seems I can't reinstall just AppleMail, right?)

About the SuperDuper backup:

- although system preferences system startup  "saw" the external harddrive as blessed and I could select it as a startup, each time I booted I ended up back booted on computer's harddrive.  Tony said that he suspects the installation process and that even though I might have formatted the external drive correctly according the the process - that in fact one needs to [ details on this anyone?] select some "option" key and do more in order to get a bootable system for SuperDuper backups.

[Denny Crane]

Jeez, no wonder I'm paranoid.

Asked at the meeting yesterday about an AppleMail problem and backing up to a hard drive with SuperDuper, but the solution was not clear.  I think I've clarified the problem today. The steps as the problem evolved:

- organizing some overly full Mail folders into smaller folders: renamed a folder, but then couldn't find it.
- Was surprised but after searching unsuccessfully, I had to conclude I must have Deleted it rather than Renamed it.
- went to my SuperDuper backup on my external hard drive, but when I tried to open the Mail app, I saw that it was opening on my computer and was taking me back to the incorrect Mail app. Rebooted onto my hard drive. NOT!  Could not boot onto the SuperDuper backup [See on that below.]

I am not exactly clear on whether you got your mail back. Did you?
I've never booted from my external copy per SuperDuper, myself. Every time that i have needed something, I just went  to my backup copy (e.g., a prior draft of a contract or memo) and dragged it over from the external HD to the proper file. (My needs are simple. Knock on wood.)

Norm

[tonyinosaka]

ru:

this was the voodoo i was recalling. seems it only applies to intel macs.

http://www.macobserver.com/tip/2006/08/16.1.shtml

[tonyinosaka]

Also...I assume this is a Firewire (not USB) drive?

Just checking.

From the SuperDuper site:

Note also that USB drives do not allow booting Power PC based Macintoshes under any version of Mac OS X: this is not a SuperDuper! limitation, but one of the OS. If you would like to boot from a backup stored on an external drive, and have a Power PC based Mac, please purchase a Mac compatible FireWire drive. Intel Mac users can boot from either USB or FireWire drives.

[ruisu]

Yes (that was buried in my post as "retrieved"), but the primary value of using SuperDuper relative to other programs is that it makes a bootable drive.  Very, very dandy if my system crashes.   (Nemesis has taught me repeatedly: Do not tempt him.)

Anyone else have this happen?

louise

*************
I am not exactly clear on whether you got your mail back. Did you?
I've never booted from my external copy per SuperDuper, myself. Every time that i have needed something, I just went  to my backup copy (e.g., a prior draft of a contract or memo) and dragged it over from the external HD to the proper file. (My needs are simple. Knock on wood.)

Norm
[/quote]

Jeez, no wonder I'm paranoid.

Asked at the meeting yesterday about an AppleMail problem and backing up to a hard drive with SuperDuper, but the solution was not clear.  I think I've clarified the problem today. The steps as the problem evolved:

- organizing some overly full Mail folders into smaller folders: renamed a folder, but then couldn't find it.
- Was surprised but after searching unsuccessfully, I had to conclude I must have Deleted it rather than Renamed it.
- went to my SuperDuper backup on my external hard drive, but when I tried to open the Mail app, I saw that it was opening on my computer and was taking me back to the incorrect Mail app. Rebooted onto my hard drive. NOT!  Could not boot onto the SuperDuper backup [See on that below.]

[ruisu]

=== Thanks - yes. Well it's either but I use it with the Firewire option. Thanks for the info about the Intel Mac issue for bootable drives - will surely need it in the future. It's a LaCie 120 GB mobile drive.  Maybe there's an issue with hard drives that do not have their own power source. But these are what Colin uses a lot.  Hmmm... how to get Colin's attention.  No way to cc while we make a posting?

thanks! louise

Also...I assume this is a Firewire (not USB) drive?

Just checking.

From the SuperDuper site:

Note also that USB drives do not allow booting Power PC based Macintoshes under any version of Mac OS X: this is not a SuperDuper! limitation, but one of the OS. If you would like to boot from a backup stored on an external drive, and have a Power PC based Mac, please purchase a Mac compatible FireWire drive. Intel Mac users can boot from either USB or FireWire drives.