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Time Machine is a great way to keep a backup of your Mac in case of unexpected data loss. But when your Mac’s content grows, you may find that your Time Machine backup disk is full, and the backup cannot complete due to a lack of space. In this article, we’ll provide a comprehensive guide on what you can do if your Time Machine backup has failed due to insufficient space, including tips on reducing the size of your backup and which backups you can delete.
What to Do If Your Time Machine Backup Has Failed
If you see a message saying “Time Machine was unable to complete the backup. This backup is too large for the backup disk. Backup requires X GB, but only Y GB is available”, it’s time to take action. Before you purchase a new hard drive, consider deleting older backups from your Time Machine and changing the data you’re backing up so that it doesn’t require as much space.
How to Delete Old Time Machine Backups
Delete older backups manually by connecting your backup hard drive to your Mac, opening the Finder, and browsing through the folders in your backup disk in chronological order. Select the older folders to delete, move them to the Trash, and then empty the Trash to remove them permanently. Alternatively, you can access Time Machine from the menu bar, select the gear icon, and choose “Delete All Backups” to delete a particular backup all at once.
How to Exclude Items from Your Backup
To reduce backup size, you can exclude certain files and folders from the backup process. To do this, click on the Time Machine icon on your menu, open Time Machine preferences, select “Options,” and choose the file or folder you want to exclude from the backup.
Tips to Keep Your Backup Small
- Don’t back up a large music library, instead, use iTunes Match and back it up to Apple’s iCloud at a lower cost.
- Use iCloud Photo Library to back up your photos to the cloud instead of Time Machine to save space.
- Exclude large virtualization software or email folders from the backup.
With these helpful tips, you can free up space on your Time Machine backup disk and complete successful backups in the future.
FAQs
1. How often should I delete old backups from my Time Machine?
You don’t need to delete old backups frequently, as Time Machine automatically deletes older backups when your disk fills up. However, if you’re running low on backup disk space and need to delete older backups manually, consider doing so every few months.
2. How do I know if Time Machine is backing up my Mac?
You can check if Time Machine is backing up your Mac by clicking on the Time Machine icon in the menu bar, and you’ll see the time and date of your latest backup. You can also open Time Machine preferences to check the status and settings of your backups.