Requesting "Ultra-smart" TM-based backup feature

[JoBoy]

Originally Posted by avramd

Ok, that is a valid point... So let me paint the picture a little differently: ...in thinking it through, I realized that I can not think of a single situation in which I would take option 1 (well except for if I had an HD crash at 3am that I knew for sure happened after my SD! backup had completed, but before I had done any other work that TM! caught).

Unfortunately, I've had failures of my system twice in the recent past from a graphics card defect. The first time, I, too, took option 1 for the same reason, but I took option 2 the second time because I was aware of what data would be missing if I took option 2. There is nothing like real-life failures to stimulate thinking along the lines of this thread. However, I agree with the view that tying TM to SD! poses practical problems. There may even be proprietary issues with Apple.

Although it isn't true, it seems like TM is constantly trying to back up data. I've learned to ignore it and continue on with my work despite the constant background noise of the nearby Time Capsule. (I network TC via GbEthernet rather than using an external Firewire drive.)

My wish list includes a Super Duper! that runs simultaneously with my work flow and provides an updated, hourly backup, but not the versioning that is TM's stock in trade. That way, there is room for both apps in the market. TM would continue in its slow, versioning way and SD! would provide a quicker and reasonably current restoration that I would nearly always prefer because it restores a bootable system to my main drive in a very simple, very quick manner. I would use TM to restore an individual file or folder that I had previously deleted.

I have a concern about restoring from any copy that was made immediately prior to a system failure. Can such a copy perpetuate early file corruption that later leads to a system failure? This may be more of a worry than a valid concern, but I'd prefer something not quite so current for that reason. Losing up to 1 hour's work doesn't bother me, but concern over perpetuating corrupted files does bother me. Again, is that a valid concern? Could a really recent backup be programmed to quarantine the files copied during the last few minutes before a crash so that a person could elect to use them or not depending upon the cause of the crash?