"Pull" a backup from a remotely mounted disk?

[DrDan in MA]

From P. 18 of the user's guide:

• Backing up over a network
  
  Backing up to a network volume with SuperDuper! is as easy as backing up to a local volume, with a few special considerations. First, SuperDuper! cannot write directly to the network volume itself. Instead, you must store your backup in an image – preferably a Read/Write “Sparse” Image.

To me, this implies that the scenario is that SD! is running on the machine-to-be-backed-up, and that the disk-to-be-backed-up is visible over the network. Thus, the backup will be "pushed" over the network to the receiving partition... or so I'm thinking.

The scenario I'm trying to grok is where SD! is running on my laptop, and the other's disk (a Mac Mini) is visible over the network. I want to get a backup of all the files on the Mini. The machine is my wife's; her acct doesn't have Admin privs whereas mine does. So I opened a server connection between the SD!-bearing machine (my Ti-PBg4) and the Mini, logging into my account so that I can "see" all the files and dirs on it (I don't know about the invisible files of course).

Next I picked an available target partition on an ext FireWire HD that's hardwired to my SD!-bearing laptop. No problem thus far.

Now I wanted to designate the networked disk as the source, but SD! will not display it usably in its list of source disks. What I see is Disk Image at the bottom of the COPY list; and when I click on that, I'm shown the network-mounted volume but cannot actually confirm that (the OPEN button is grayed out, and I can only back out via CANCEL).

I "suspect" that the only way to backup that network-mounted disk is to install SD! on it and then to follow the instructions on p. 18 of the guide, again PUSHing a backup to a partition on my remotely-mounted ext HD. (and I've verified that I can mount partitions and have them visible. I just haven't installed SD! on the remote machine and tried to push a backup to my ext HD.)

Is my "suspicion" true? That SD! does "push" backups and not "pulls?"

And, assuming that it's true, and a partition on an ext HD attached to MY machine has a bootable version of the disk on HER machine -- and assuming further that her machine fails -- how can I actually USE the backed-up image that's on my ext HD? (Especially because the "sparse image" format recommended seems a tad different from the "normal" format of all the files needed to boot up a machine?)

I can imagine taking the formatted HD with the Mini backup over to the sick Mini, hooking it in via FireWire, booting while holding the "appropriate key" so that one can choose the boot disk (DAMNed if I can remember which one it is?) and then selecting the right partition holding the last successful Mini backup. Is this correct? If so, will it work if the backup in question is a "sparse image?"

Clearly in need of some clarification or pointer to where in the User Guide this sort of thing is already answered... TIA