Setting up your backupList+ preferences

There are several options that affect your use of backupList+. These are "Global" and affect all backup sets.

Basic Settings for each backup set

  1. Entering your password... backupList+ often needs an administrator password to back up System files or other files which you don't have permission to copy. The System will prompt you for the password and backupList+ can then run a special helper tool as root which in turn runs rsync with root permissions. You could, for example, backup your entire home folder without needing administrator privileges. If you wish to make a Clone of your System however, you will need an administrator password to copy the System files correctly and to be able to restore your computer from that clone later. To use the archive option, delete files and other tasks, backupList+ will usually need root access.
  2. Check for updates... backupList+ will check for updates daily. Important to keep things up to date!
  3. Slow down rsync... rsync uses a lot of CPU and while you can do other work, it is best to let it run when you are not working on your computer and especially not on large files since their transfer could be affected or even corrupted. This will run rsync a little "slower" which may make a difference in the performanc eof other tasks during backup.
  4. Use File list... this will cause rsync to first make a list of all source files to be copied which will give an exact file total count for more accurate progress. It will add from a few seconds up to a few minutes (for very large backups) to backup time.
  5. Use name only... backupList+ will use just the name, and not the disk UUID, to identify a volume as destination. This is good if you make backups to alternate volumes with the same name as they will have different UUID's and backupList+ will just use the name to identify the volume. By default, backupList+ now uses a unique identifier (called UUID) to identify the backup volume or disk. This means that if you have disks with the same name it uses the one that you originally selected for the backup task. Besides duplicate name issues there can sometimes be "ghost" volumes (often due to ejecting a disk the wrong way) which cause the backup to go to a hidden folder instead of the intended volume. Using the default UUID solves these problems. Note: if left unchecked, when you erase a volume or disk, it gives it a new UUID so backupList will tell you you must re-enter the destination for that backup task in the main window
  6. Run backups in background... this can be a bit confusing. Backups usually will run with the progress window open. Checking this box means that if you run a backup from the scheduler app (in menu bar) and the main window is closed, the backup will proceed without visible progress, in the background. Also, scheduled backups will run without a visible progress window. The menu bar icon spins when backups are running so there always is a visual clue.
  7. Use alternate rsync... backupList+ uses the latest build (version 3.1.1) of rsync. Checking this box, backupList+ will use version 3.0.9 instead. Sometimes one version works better than the other if rsync problems arise and if you report a problem I may ask you to try this option to see if it changes behavior.
  8. Animate progress window... shrinks the main window so you just see the progress bar updating while backup runs.