we've seen many users ask about the best backup solution for their CustoMac. Doing regular system backups of important files and documents can help ensure that you can recover from an unforeseen disaster. Aside from Apple's iCloud based cloud storage, some still like to do regular backups locally; either to an external USB drive or a local hard disk. I want to highlight a few of the 3rd party backup solutions as well as Apple's own solution that many of our members have stated as working solutions.

Let's start with Apple's own built-in back-up solution, Time Machine.


"Time Machine is the built-in backup that works with your Mac and an external drive (sold separately) or Time Capsule. Connect the drive, assign it to Time Machine, and start enjoying some peace of mind. Time Machine automatically backs up your entire Mac, including system files, applications, accounts, preferences, music, photos, movies, and documents. But what makes Time Machine different from other backup applications is that it not only keeps a spare copy of every file, it remembers how your system looked on any given day—so you can revisit your Mac as it appeared in the past."

Time Machine is pretty simple to configure and use. Instructions on how to configure Time Machine can be found here.




Next is Carbon Copy Cloner, otherwise known as "CCC" that is very popular for it's ability to do full bootable clones of your system drive. It used to be free but sadly, the developer Bombich Software Inc. has now made it a commercial product and currently it costs $39.99. It has been updated recently to support OS X 10.8 in version 3.5.1. CCC provides additional enhancements that Time Machine doesn't.

Check out CCC here.
Lastly, there is Shirt Pocket's Super Duper which has also been updated to support 10.8. Super Duper is shareware which means that is free to download and run, however in order to unlock additional features such as scheduling and smart updates, you'd have to buy it for $27.95.

"The latest version of SuperDuper! is faster, better, compatible with Mountain Lion (in fact, it's compatible with OS X 10.4.11 and later), and improves many parts of the user experience. Of course, it still includes great features likeBackup on Connect, Eject after Copy, Sparse Bundle support, lets you store a bootable backup alongside Time Machine backups, copy Time Machine backups to other drives, and run scheduled copies on demand. As with every update, we've polished and improved many other aspects as well."

Super Duper can be found here.

Please note that if you make a full clone backup using Carbon Copy Cloner or Super Duper, you'll still need to additionally install the bootloader to make the drive bootable on a CustoMac. Simply choose the Chimera option from MultiBeast and target the cloned drive.

Whichever the option, backups are extremely important, and these tools can help you recover from a sticky situation.