What third-party apps would you install on a clean Mac to restore your preferred working environment? Adam Engst recently had the opportunity to learn just what apps he really uses—here’s the list.
Venerable backup utility resolves crashes and early backup termination. ($27.95 new, free update, 9.2 MB, macOS 10.10+)
Fixed a few bugs in the backup utility. ($27.95 new, free update, 9.2 MB, macOS 10.10+)
Adds full compatibility for macOS 13 Ventura. ($27.95 new, free update, 9.6 MB, macOS 10.10+)
Adds compatibility with macOS 12.3 Monterey and works around issues with asr (Apple Software Restore) replication. ($27.95 new, free update, 9.2 MB, macOS 10.10+)
Backup app updated for macOS 12 Monterey. ($27.95 new, free update, 9.5 MB)
macOS 11 Big Sur has thrown a cryptographically signed monkey wrench into the inner workings of backup apps that make bootable duplicates. There are now workarounds, and Apple promises to fix the necessary underlying tool, but Adam Engst suggests that we need to rethink the role bootable duplicates play in a modern backup strategy.
When you buy a new Mac and migrate your old Mac’s files to it during setup, Setup Assistant moves over numerous settings and configurations. But don’t assume you’ll just be able to pick up exactly where you left off, since there are quite a few apps and services that require additional post-migration attention.
After working through the failure of his iMac’s SSD, Adam Engst shares the lessons he learned with regard to backing up, restoring, and eking out the most life from old hardware. Hint: waiting to upgrade hardware and software can make troubleshooting and recovery more difficult.
Brings full support for backing up and restoring macOS 10.15 Catalina as well as several improvements. ($27.95 new, free update, 7.0 MB)
If you’ve had your head in the sand about the impending discontinuation of CrashPlan for Home, today is the day your backups will stop working and all your CrashPlan Central data will be deleted.
Brings support for macOS 10.14 Mojave, including full disk access and automation prompting. ($27.95 new, free update, 17.1 MB)
Maintenance release for the drive-cloning and backup app brings improvements and bug fixes. ($27.95 new, free update, 5.8 MB)
Major new release adds compatibility with macOS 10.13 High Sierra, plus HFS+ and APFS volumes. (Free, $27.95 for additional features, free update, 5.0 MB)
Add compatibility with the Mac OS Extended (HFS+) drive format in macOS 10.13 High Sierra. (Free, $27.95 for additional features, free update, 2.9 MB)