

Furthermore, all clones must be done one-to-one, which makes deploying more than a few computers at a time cumbersome and time consuming. The CCC solution is ideal for one-to-one scenarios but misses the mark when it comes to mass deployment, as there isn't server functionality to multicast images over the LAN. Once the failed drive has been replaced, simply initiate a clone process from the external drive to the internal unit, and you'll be synchronized in no time. It even allows one to boot directly from the external drive in the event that your internal drive fails.

Carbon Copy Cloner by Bombich Softwareĭeveloped by a former Apple employee, Carbon Copy Cloner (CCC) creates a clone of your computer quickly and even optimizes the data on the drive by enabling incremental data backup and removing (or archiving) previously deleted data.ĬCC is a completely native OS X application that handles cloning perfectly. Let's take a look at four cloning solutions for OS X to further diversify your disaster recovery plan. While images tend to be rather large in size, hence the "thick" prefix, they more than make up for the storage size in both their efficiency and ability to get a desktop fully operational in as little as 20 minutes. If needed, the contents of the image file can then be read and copied back to the node (or several nodes at once in a process called multicasting), which restores the device back to the point in time when the image was first taken.

The resulting image file is then stored as a backup in the event of a complete system failure. In essence, a base node is created with all of the required software applications, settings, and system patches installed and configured prior to the snapshot being made. More commonly referred to as cloning, this process involves taking a "snapshot" of the desktop at a specific point in time. The solution for this is called thick imaging. When considering data backups, there are documents that can take some time to restore, but how about a desktop? How about an entire office full of desktops? Getting these online with an OS, applications, patches, and settings can range from a matter of hours to a few days, depending on the scope of the project. Moreover, know this: One size does not fit all! At the risk of sounding overly dramatic, I cannot stress enough just how important a regularly scheduled backup solution is to the lifecycle of your data.
