SD and the unlocking the account

[has55]

I have search many of the apple support posting and noticed time machine is used with one EXT. HD and super duper ( outweighing CCC ) seem to be the favorite for the other ext. disks. After reading the literature online about SD, it seems that it can only backup if your computer is awake, you're are signed into your account and the screen is unlock. This would mean you have disable your password to your account, so SD could launch. Is this really what the mac user are doing? Are do most user of SD don't use passwords for their account? Would appreciate some advice.

Austin

[dnanian]

You don't have to disable your password, no: you can run it when you're at the Mac, and then lock your screen, if you'd like.

[has55]

thank you for your reply.

Basically, I would need to run it manually, If I keep my password on, is this correct?

When you wrote "and then lock your screen, if you'd like. " What does that mean? Is this the same as preventing someone from using my desktop by using a password?

Last question: When you say, you can schedule energy saver to wake up your computer 1 min before SD launches and your account must be in front. I have 3 accounts ( admin, my personal account, my wife's account ), is there a way for my account to come to the front if I disable fast switching and remove my password, so SD will work, after the energy panel wakes up my computer?

Austin

[dnanian]

No, you just have to ensure you don't log out and don't lock the screen with a password protected wake if you put the Mac to sleep. Using a password for your Mac isn't a problem: password protecting a "wake" is.

So, you can use a password protected screen saver to protect your Mac, but just ensure that your Mac doesn't go to sleep.

And, no: there's no way to "force" an account to the front if you have three accounts and only one is scheduled... sorry.

[fjordaan]

Hi Dave,

Can I suggest you add this to your FAQs? Namely: you cannot use scheduled backups with Apple's "Require password to wake computer from sleep or screen saver" system preference. (Which as far as I know is a very common setting.) Scheduled backups almost by definition take place when you're not at the computer to unlock it.

When you refer to a "password protected screen saver" above, I assume you mean a 3rd party screen saver rather than a built-in Apple one. Because making them password protected requires the above system preference.

Do you agree?

francois

[dnanian]

I believe this is in the User's Guide in the Scheduling section.

[fjordaan]

Nope, the Scheduling section doesn't once mention the word "password".

I came to the forum here after reading the User's Guide and not knowing what to do, since my computer is configured to password-protect when the screen saver comes on.

In order to use SuperDuper, it looks like I'll have to give up this security measure.

This thread is also relevant -- http://www.shirtpocket.com/forums/sh...ighlight=saver -- but from post #7 onwards it veers away from the issue without resolving it.

[dnanian]

What I said was:

SuperDuper! does not have to be running for a schedule backup to
take place, but the user who scheduled it does have to be logged in,
with their account in front (if Fast User Switching is active), and the
screen must be unlocked.

I'll try to clarify this a bit, but mentioning the exact text in the preference is tempting the Apple Gods' arbitrary-rename policy...

[fjordaan]

I take your point about that.

Is my original assertion correct, though: that you cannot use scheduled backups and still leave your computer password-protected? Seems to be worth an FAQ to me.

[dnanian]

You can actually use scheduled backups and leave your computer password protected: mine is. You just can't allow it to sleep.

[fjordaan]

OK, you'll have to be patient with me here, because I'm still not getting it.

The Security preference says, "Require password to wake this computer from sleep or screen saver". It does not have separate options for Sleep or Screen Saver.

If I want my computer to be password-protected after 15 mins of inactivity, what do I do, if I still want to schedule a SuperDuper backup at 3am?

[dnanian]

Set your Mac to not sleep. I purposefully overgeneralized the warning because it gets complicated here. If your Mac doesn't sleep, it'll back up even though the screen is locked (assuming you're logged in).

[fjordaan]

Ah, right, I finally get it. This is in fact the default setting for Macs on mains power, I think. In Energy Saver: computer never sleeps, display sleeps after 20mins. (And display sleep is not the same thing as screen saver.)

I won't need to change any preferences after all, and the only habit I'll need to change is closing the lid of the MacBook overnight.

Thanks for your patience

[dnanian]

That should do it!

[adriandb]

Originally Posted by dnanian

That should do it!

I'm still having an issue with this. My mac mini is set to never sleep and the screen is set to never sleep. There is a password to get back in from the screen saver which comes on after 5 mins and I have "unlocked" the pad lock in SD!. I've never had a successful scheduled backup.

In the past I did allow both the mac and the screen to sleep and was also unable to have SD! backup on a schedule.

Is it possible to have SD! scheduled to run while the screen is locked?