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1.1. Backup Tools

It is important to choose and maintain a regular backup strategy for your MacBook.

— It is very helpful to first take note of what software you have installed on your computer so you can remember to reinstall them if your computer is "wiped" in the process of running your OS update (this is very unlikely, but it always good to be prepared):

— Software like Microsoft Office, Pages, Numbers, iMovie, etc are available to reinstall by using the Self Service app on your computer.

— You will need to re-install other software that you previously downloaded and installed yourself

— If you had any specialty software (like Geometer's Sketchpad) installed by the school, please let the Technology department know when you come to pick up your laptop and they will facilitate re-installing that software (most likely by using the Self Service tool on your computer)

— To check what software is installed on your computer, go to the Applications folder found under the Finder's Go Menu.

Below are some of the common tools used for backing up the information on your computer:

 

  1. Time Machine: Apple's builtin backup tool is called Time Machine. To use this magical tool, you will need an external hard drive that is at least 1 TB (terabyte) in size. That way you won't have to worry about running out of room on your backup drive for awhile.

    • Plug in your Mac compatible external hard drive and follow the instructions provided here.

    • If you have never run Time Machine on your computer before, it can take up to 12 hours for the first backup.

    • You can also specify which folders to backup if you would like a quicker backup

    • The nice thing about Time Machine is it will run automatically every time you connect the external hard drive to your computer and it is very easy to retrieve old folders or files.

  2. Cloud-based backup services:

    • Carbonite

    • Crashplan

    • The above services start at about $59 per year and run automatically every time your computer is connected to the Internet.

    • Like Time Machine, the first time you backup your machine it can take as much as 24 hours, but you can also specify specific folders to backup if you would like it to go faster.

  3. Google Drive for Desktop (BWS Technology Recommended)

    • Google Suite for Education allows unlimited storage space for educators. That means you can either upload as many files and folders as you like to your school Google Drive and/or install Google Drive onto your computer and drag the files and folders into it.

    • Click here to download Google Drive for Desktop for installation on your computer. Click here to view a step by step guide on how to use Google Drive for Desktop.

    • You will not be able to backup your entire computer to Google Drive like the products above, but you can copy all folders and files from different locations on your computer into Google Drive and have them available to you anytime you log into your school Google account.

  4. Your BWS Network Folder

    • If you are on campus, you can connect to your BWS Network Home Directory (formerly P drive) to drag folders and files from your computer's hard drive to the school's network

    • If you are at home, you can connect to your BWS Network Home Directory by going to bwscampus.com/myfiles and uploading files or folders using this interface. (This method may take longer since you are connecting to the school's network from your home.)

 

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