Backup Solutions For Your Mac or CustoMac

[Nodarkthings]

Trying the following with Disk Utility as part of my new backup plan but I have question about it.

I booted from the Unibeast USB stick to the installer.

Then with Disk Utility I created an .dmg image from the whole SSD to another drive.

Now I wonder, does this .dmg file contain the boot sectors and Clover?

Disk Utility only clones the partition you selected, so: if you installed Clover on it, it's ok (but you'll probably have to "activate" the bootloader with Multibeast on restore) but if you installed Clover on the EFI partition, you have to back it up separately (actually, you only have to copy the files and folders in it).
As an example, I use an OS partition which I clone and use on different machines, only changing the content of the EFI partition — in this case, it generally requires a first reboot in safe mode or without caches.

 

[Dr.Hofmann]

Well hello tonymac community!
In the case of CCC(Carbon Cloner) - it's ok and there is no question. But TM (Time machine) - no option found after booting from flash drive, only clean installation as for the new HDD/SDD. Yet once "Restoring from Time Machine backup" didn't show in the list and no list in general only new installation. Maybe cos no "Apple_Boot Recovery" partition?
Why is it occured? and how to enable this option?

 

[GJJR]

Well, you guys may be great at talking to each other, but not so great at expanding the community to include those of us who don't want to spend all our time tinkering with our computers. Please, either tell us we don't belong, or provide tools to get us started with some basic information.

I just ruined a working build. Not at Step 1, but BEFORE STEP ONE!!

Someone built me a computer with two boot SSD's and an HDD shared for data a few years ago. As he built it, I asked him to explain what he was doing, but he never did. We had the machine running beautifully in either mode, Windows 10 or El Capitan. Then I was having problems clearing an iCloud issue, and after having to shut down multiple times in a row with the power button, it wouldn't reboot.

Tried to find someone to help, but nobody was nearby. Tried to ask for help on this forum, and twice got a reply, which still left me unclear, and my follow-up questions were never replied to.

Finally found someone 200 miles away who tried to work on it, unsuccessfully, but in the process, my previous build somehow magically reappeared. He still wanted me to add a graphics card, and move to Mojave from El Capitan.

At this point, I thought, maybe I could do it myself. I have now spent hundreds of hours searching thru your materials, trying to understand them, reading page after page of comments.

THESE INSTRUCTIONS on this thread are not just INCOMPLETE for a competent newbie, but DANGEROUS!! They refer to so many things that no longer apply. At least, say, "these instructions apply to these conditions. For other conditions read post xx and xx." "Complete the instructions on post yy through where it says, ____, then do the following..."

I tried your instructions to load Mojave onto a bootable jump drive, and got stuck at STEP ONE, because it didn't download the full OS, just an installer. I then found a whole thread about that, where a proposed solution no longer works, and then somebody found something else that works, and other people say no it doesn't, and all of it in lingo that we outsiders (and many insiders) don't have any way to understand. And then, no conclusion at the end: "Here's what we've figured out." So I asked, got one reply, still incomplete, asked again, "Is this what you mean?" and didn't get a reply. Decided maybe I was guessing correctly and I'd try it.

Your instructions say, "Before you begin:

• Do a full backup of your system. We strongly recommend performing a full backup of your existing system using Carbon Copy Cloner. By doing this, you can always go back to your working installation." Made sense to me!

I found many people who seemed to say SuperDuper! worked as well, so I ran that, and tried to clone my MacOS SSD. Took about 10 hours to clone ~80GB to a USB3.0 thumb drive. Not bootable.

Your instructions said, "Please note that if you make a full clone backup using Carbon Copy Cloner or Super Duper, you'll still need to additionally install the bootloader to make the drive bootable on a CustoMac. Simply choose the Chimera option from MultiBeast and target the cloned drive."

Well, for a newbie, I didn't know what "choose the Chimera option from MultiBeast and target the cloned drive" meant either. So, I found a download for Chimera on your website, ran the file, and seemingly nothing happened. It turned out, I realized too late, I had just put Chimera as the bootloader for the MacOS SSD, not the USB drive, and now it won't boot from either one. Disconnected the MacOS SSD inside the case, and at least got the Windows side running again. I have no working Mac, and I have no idea how to get back to where I was. No source to get a jump drive to put the OS onto to install fresh. I'd borrow one from a friend, but I'm afraid I'll ruin his computer too! All while I was just trying to make sure I had a way to get back where I was when I started if something went wrong. Which it did. And I couldn't get back.

I also think I've discovered that Chimera hasn't been the tool of choice for about 5 years! But the instructions have never been updated.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE... update the instructions for any part of the process that someone who isn't a full-time Hackintosh person might be tempted to use. Go a few extra steps to explain where to find the tools you need, and how to get them and where to put them. Please spell it out more than you think you need to.

Here's two guides I know for sure need updating:
Backup Solutions For Your Mac or CustoMac, and
UniBeast: Install macOS Mojave on Any Supported Intel-based PC

Sorry to call you out on this, but your implication that we could do this ourselves is really misleading people. It's hard enough dealing with being part in and part out of the Apple world, and hard enough that Apple doesn't seem willing to create the computers we want, but if we help each other out a little more, we can get thru it together.

 

[pbrandao]

Well, you guys may be great at talking to each other, but not so great at expanding the community to include those of us who don't want to spend all our time tinkering with our computers. Please, either tell us we don't belong, or provide tools to get us started with some basic information.
...

YOU JUST READ MY MIND ... I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL!!!

 

[Nodarkthings]

To all the ones who complain: you're not guaranteed to get answers on any website you ask a question but, while I posted threads here that had no answer at all, I've found this community generally very supportive, unlike another site whose name starts with "insanely" where my recent posts have simply been deleted on the basis that I was citing one of my posts here on tonymacx86.com... How supportive and friendly, is that, eh? — and the most absurd part is that I've been sent to that site by one of the most active and renowned member of the Hackintosh scene that is also an important member of theirs!
So, patience my dear fellows, nothing is perfect in this world, there are lots of things to learn, nobody said it was easy.
About "backup-solutions-for-your-mac, etc.", sure enough, you should be cautious with information that date from 2012, but in this particular case, the backup solutions you find on the original post are still valid and not specific to Hackintosh, CCC and Super Duper are still the best on real Macs too.
The only thing that changed since 2012 is the introduction of APFS, which is not a bed of roses... I'm still using HFS+ and not the most recent MacOS, which I consider a safe path.
A final note of caution: when you have a working hack, clone it to another drive and assure yourself that you can boot from it before upgrading your main MacOS.
A few links of interest:

Everything you need to know about Carbon Copy Cloner and APFS | Carbon Copy Cloner | Bombich Software

bombich.com

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Shirt Pocket Watch - Practices Make Perfect (Backups)

www.shirt-pocket.com

 

[Humanate]

They refer to so many things that no longer apply

You resurrected a thread that had its last post in Oct 2018. The thread was started in 2012. Spoiler - You may find some information in the thread that is out of date

I found many people who seemed to say SuperDuper! worked as well, so I ran that, and tried to clone my MacOS SSD. Took about 10 hours to clone ~80GB to a USB3.0 thumb drive. Not bootable.

This alone confirms you should purchase a real Mac and get the support you need.

I also think I've discovered that Chimera hasn't been the tool of choice for about 5 years! But the instructions have never been updated.

Reading any of the easy to find Sticky installation guides will tell you this. If you are struggling to glean this information, again, buy a Mac

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE... update the instructions for any part of the process that someone who isn't a full-time Hackintosh person might be tempted to use. Go a few extra steps to explain where to find the tools you need, and how to get them and where to put them. Please spell it out more than you think you need to.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE realise that you need some basic common sense before building a Hackintosh and may need to spend significant time experimenting and learning. The countless helpful volunteers who dedicate their own time free of charge on this site have no obligation to you.

Summed up perfectly above

Why are you hacking an OS onto unsupported hardware and berating a free community for not hand hold supporting you in your efforts when you don't even know how to work computers obviously?

If you are not willing to learn through breaking stuff, buy a Mac

 

[wstrohm]

@GJJR,

Starting as a total newbie here in 2014, I feel your pain. Unfortunately IMHO even though building the hardware for a Hackintosh is surprisingly easy, getting all the software working properly is really tough if you can't see the pitfalls before you step in them. FWIW, here are a few vague, general comments that may shed a very little bit of light on what can be a long, arduous process for a novice.

1. Every (and I mean EVERY) type of motherboard is unique. You have the same one I used for my "Mini ITX 2" Hackintosh (below) which worked fine for me. It is classified as a "Series 100" board (see Multibeast.) The audio codec is a Realtek ALC1150. (You would check that box during a post-installation with Multibeast.)

2. So much depends on the BIOS setup for a Hackintosh that you almost need a step-by-step for just that part. Starting with "Load Optimized Defaults," you would need to set up all parameters properly and then "Save and Exit." (I haven't listed them, but they are critical to make the UEFI interface with MacOS play properly, and have been covered here in various articles on tonymac.)

3. Which version of MacOS you want to install affects what you do. For instance, you have a GTX 750 Ti graphics card, which is a Maxwell architecture card requiring an nVidia Web Driver of the exact version that matches the corresponding version of MacOS. And not just the version, but the MacOS build number. See here? Also be aware that you will have no graphics acceleration from that graphics card if you choose a later version of MacOS than High Sierra (10.13.6) such as Mojave (10.14.x) or Catalina (10.15.x). Apple and nVidia have parted ways, and no nVidia Web Drivers are available for any MacOS beyond High Sierra. If you want a later version of MacOS and a discrete graphics card, you would have to install an AMD graphics card such as an RX 560. MacOS has drivers for AMD graphics cards built in. Also, If you want MacOS Catalina, be aware that 32-bit applications will not run (they will in Mojave or earlier). And Catalina is more tedious to set up, since Apple made the System volume separate from the Data volume, and much of a Clover installation has to be installed after mounting the system volume using a Terminal command. This is covered in various write-ups in this forum, but you can spend a lot of time looking up such essential process requirements.

4. I have found that the Clover EFI bootloader and the GUI application "Clover Configurator" work well together as long as one is careful about the versions. IMHO the latest download of Clover Configurator (5.16.0.0) works fine with Clover version r5119 (0f5da727e). There are later versions of Clover (5125 to date) but up to and including Catalina, these work fine.

There will be a lot of pitfalls... be careful.