what size disk needed for backup?

[jed]

Hi All,

I'm a license owner but rarely pop in, hoping to change that & actually use this software! :D

I have two mac mini's which I want to back up on regular basis.
I will refer to them as MM1 and MM2 ...

MM1 has a 500GB disk of which 160GB is used, MM2 has a 160GB disk of which only 13GB is being used.
With MM2, of the 160GB used, at least 55GB is crap and I wouldn't care if I lost it....

What size hard disk would I need to back these two up properly?

I'm hoping I can get away with using MM2's internal hdd as the backup volume.
So that I can use an external fw800 enclosure as the boot volume for MM2.

Cheers

[dnanian]

I really don't think you should use a mini's internal drive as a backup volume, because then you'd lose MM1's backup if MM2 failed.

I'd get two externals. 500GB drives are quite inexpensive these days, so that would be what I'd get (since over the life of the drive you're likely to obtain more data). My suggestion would be the LaCie d2 Quadra 500GB (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001KFH6JC?ie=UTF8&tag=shirtpocket-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B001KFH6JC) which is a very good drive at a very good price point.

[jed]

The main idea is to improve the performance of the main boot volume of MM2.
Another possibility I guess is to install a 7.2kdrive in MM2 take the current one out and put it in a enclosure.
I can't afford 2 enclosures right now

[jed]

Actually I just remembered MM1 has in internal with 50GB that can be used for BU (other 30GB for windows partition). The boot volume for MM1 is a 500GB hd of which 155 is being used. 55GB (at least) of that is crap that doesn't need to be backed up, so really only 104GB is being used.

Allowing for 50% expansion over time that would mean I need 150GB space. Maybe I can use 50GB of MM1 internal for backup, and another 100 can be used on MM2's internal?

ATM MM2 is only using 13GB of 160GB, and even allowing for 100% growth it only needs 26GB. But I could round that up to 60GB and leave the remaining 100GB for MM1.

So on MM1 I could have 50GB & 30GB partitions on the internal. One for backups the other for Windows. On MM2 I could have 100GB and 60GB partitions. One for the 2nd part of MM1 backups, the other for MM2 backups.

Too complicated?

[dnanian]

Up to you, Jed. I'm just trying to provide a solution I can stand behind...

[jed]

Right... thanks.

[jed]

Maybe it'd be cheaper if I got one raid 1 (mirrored) enclosure instead of two separate enclosures & connected it up via usb2.0 to MM2 (fw800 would be used by system volume). MM1 would backup via 802.11N to it...

[jed]

Actually I think I agree with your approach of more than one BU disk for the 2 Mini's....
I was planning to back-up MM1 via Wifi to a central storage point on MM2 but I imagine this will be painful...
I recall that I have an old enclosure (not used much over the years) that has a hardly used 80GB hd!

I'll connect this enclosure to MM1 via USB2 (FW400 is used by boot disk) & use it's 80GB for part of the 150GB required.
The remaining 70GB will come from the 80 internal on MM1.
I will move the Windows partition currently on the internal of MM1 to MM1's external (500GB) boot volume.
(LT I'll prolly buy a 320GB or 500GB disk for this external enclosure!)

I will proceed with purchasing an external FW800 enclosure + disk for MM2.
This will become the boot volume for MM2...
Then I will allocate 80GB of MM2's 160GB internal towards a backup volume for MM2!

That's a bit better inst it?!

[dnanian]

I don't think BootCamp supports storing its volume on an external drive...

[jed]

Gah i think you're right! ...
I was wondering why i never put it on the external in the 1st place!

Sigh...

Well maybe I'll just have to stump up the cash for a 300GB HD.
Then for MM2 I'll prolly get a 500GB or 1TB + FW800 enclosure.

[jed]

yeah some quick research reveal it is possible to boot Windows off USB external but no FW400 :-(