Carbon Copy Cloner 6.0

Originally published at: Carbon Copy Cloner 6.0 - TidBITS

Major update for the drive-cloning and backup utility with faster backups and a redesigned interface. ($39.99 new, free update, 19.4 MB, macOS 10.15+)

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Looks like I saw the announcement before TidBITS was able to write an article. :slight_smile:

CCC 6 is here! Faster backups, better accountability, Dark Mode, and so much more

As I wrote in my blog, this looks like a great release. I will probably wait until there have been 2-3 bug-fix releases because I never trust any version x.0 release of any product, but I will definitely be upgrading to it.

Of particular interest (at least to me) is faster file-copy and the use of Apple’s FSEvents API so it doesn’t need to scan every file on the computer in order to determine what needs to be backed up.

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I installed it, CCC is faster then ever, very very fast.

CCC now offers kind of file versioning on your machine’s HD, you can do that via the CCC interface.

What I would wish is to see versioning on Finder basis, as we know it from e.g. SharePoint or TimeMachine (which I do not have in use): right-click on a file in Finder on discover earlier versions of that file. That would be my dream.

Anyhow, I like CCC.

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Before we were able to edit and publish, not write, thanks to @agen’s speed. I’m editing now. :-)

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I generally agree with this policy when it comes to Apple software updates, but Bombich tends to be pretty reliable, in my experience.

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I’ve had nothing but good experiences with CCC and have always received great support, so will upgrade to 6.0 and continue to support the developer.

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What I would wish is to see versioning on Finder basis, as we know it from e.g. SharePoint or TimeMachine (which I do not have in use): right-click on a file in Finder on discover earlier versions of that file. That would be my dream.

There is a kind of versioning via hourly snapshots created by Macs with APFS drives. They only go back 24 hours (or until the last Time Machine backup) and they are accessed via Time Machine (using the TM icon in the Finder Menu Bar is quick and easy). You don’t need to use TM to backup to an external drive; this is a separate function.

I assume that you would prefer being able to access files beyond the 24 hour limit but this is a handy feature if you are working on a project. . .

Thank you, «GV mojo», I tried, that did not work here.

So I wait for that versioning feature from Carbon Copy in my Finder :wink:

Sorry to hear that. . . It works on my 2018 Mac Mini (APFS internal drive) and Mojave. I enter Time Machine and the recent local files are accessible at the bottom of the TM grid under “Today.” Anything later than that is not visible. (It may display differently when using a newer Mac OS versions.)

If you are using a Mac OS Extended (HFS+) formatted internal drive, it only works on laptops and when you have Time Machine enabled.

CCC 6 works on Mojave? According to the Bombich web site, minimum requirement is Catalina. Or do you mean Time Machine?

Not CCC, the internal snapshots feature that I described in my replies to Walter. . .

I completely agree, let us support independent and clever developers like Mike, very appreciated!

Since I’m limited to MacOS 10.13.6, I’m SOL on CCC from now on.

You should be fine. From the CCC download page (directly below a button for downloading CCC 5):

Carbon Copy Cloner 5 is compatible with Yosemite (10.10), El Capitan(10.11), Sierra (10.12), High Sierra (10.13), Mojave (10.14), Catalina (10.15) and Big Sur (11.*). Note that while this version of CCC may work on OSes newer than Big Sur, we recommend that Big Sur+ users upgrade to CCC 6. We offer technical support for CCC 5, but we are no longer actively developing it. If you are having trouble downloading CCC from the link above, try this alternate download location.:

Sorry for the delay in replying as I just moved. Yes I have CCC 5 already; I meant I’m SOL regarding CCC 6.

But is this really a problem? If you’re running 10.13, then CCC version 5 has no problem making bootable backups.

Yes, version 6 has changes that make it a bit faster, but I don’t think you’re missing that much by sticking with version 5.

I love how the developer devotes hundreds of words on his website dancing around the loss of essential functionality of his software on Big Sur & M1 Macs. He actually says he was “stoked” at no longer needing to support the “logistical idiosyncrasies” of bootable backups.

Yes, bootable backups are a discussion point for sure.

I haven’t gotten around to reading it yet (I’ll likely upgrade my older version when the second round of M-series chip’d machines arrive!), but Joe Kissell’s new book “Take Control of
Backing Up Your Mac, 4th Edition (2021)” does some explaining here:

Also see/listen here, where he talks about it:
https://www.takecontrolbooks.com/blog/joe-kissell-talks-mac-backups-on-macvoices

;-)

EDIT: And this article/forum page:

I’m now at 6.0.2, and no problems - major speed improvements are very welcome.

Many thanks to Bombich - their deep knowledge of the OS is apparent, and massively reassuring.

I really hate the direction that Apple are taking with this. We’ve run Mac servers at our publishing company for over 25 years and our standard procedure was to have data on attached drives and our servers all have clones. In the event of a server failure we simply boot another Mac from the clone, plug the data drives in and we’re up and running again within a couple of minutes.

I’m not sure where the OS Sharing information is stored on Big Sur but if it’s inside the fenced System it’s going to be impossible for us to keep a copy of our User permissions and Shares. Bootable clones have saved us many times in the past, I’ll be disappointed to see them go.

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