Backup User folder to volume containing other files?

[DavidCB]

I have been using SD for many years now to create clones of my hard drive.

Now I would like to copy only the User folder to a volume that also contains other files. Can I do this without erasing the files on that volume?

Also, what if the volume contained other User folders?

Thank you,

David

[dnanian]

Well, you could use "Backup - user files" with Copy Newer or Copy Different, or use an image as the destination. But if there are file or folder location conflicts, and you don't use an image, you can end up overwriting data. (See "Storing a backup alongside other data on a destination drive" in the User's Guide.)

In general, it's best to ensure you're using separate destination volumes or images.

[DavidCB]

Thank you--I thought that was probably the case.

David

[DavidCB]

I reread the section you mentioned int he User's Guide, which refreshed my memory of this. (I have been making regular clones to dedicated volumes for so long I had forgotten about disk images.)

The instructions say, "Make sure the pop-up at the bottom is set to Read/Write 'Sparse' Image."

I assume that "Read/Write 'Sparse Bundle'" is of course also okay?

David

[dnanian]

Yes, if you're running 10.5 or later.

[DavidCB]

Sounds great--I'm on 10.6.7.

One more thing: This is for weekly archiving of my Users folder, which will not be updated once copied. I don't anticipate needing to restore the entire thing (at least not on a regular basis), only occasionally selected files.

Would a Read Only Disk Image with high compression save me a lot of space? (I have about 45 GB in the folder.)
How much more time-consuming might it be?

David