Setting the copy method

There are now seven options for the copying algorithm, including the new "alternate rsync" (checkbox in settings panel) which will use the Samba pre-release version of rsync instead of the one that ships with Tiger and Leopard. See below for more info. These all have different qualities but achieve the same end result of making a direct copy of your files and folders to another location. I included all these choices because they have different qualities and some preserve different aspects of file metadata better than others.. Which may, or may not, matter to you.

Basically for Tiger users, cp is the best choice for straight copies and rsync is best for incremental backups (see notes for rsyncx) and sequential backups (backups to the same folder instead of full new backups)..

For Panther users, ditto or applescript is a good choice for simple backups and rsyncx for incremental backups, or sequential backups.

For all users, applescript is a good choice for simple backups of your own files. It will not backup any files you don't have permission for (like system files, other users files etc.)

Table of the different copy methods available in Backuplist+


The new psync option is good for whole system backups (clones) as well as normal backups of folders (will only copy folders) and is very fast at synchronizing backups with the source data. Very fast too. It is available to both Panther and Tiger users.

Applescript

Available for OS 10.3X (Panther) and above.
FAsked
Works in the foreground (copying process visible)
Can not use password (won't copy files with closed permissions)
Goes one level deep and replaces anything that has been modified.
Incremental backups are full copies

Unix ditto

Available for OS 10.3X (Panther) and above.
Works in the background (copying process invisible)
Can use password (will copy files with closed permissions)
Goes one level deep and replaces anything that has been modified.
Ditto merges folders so it will not delete any files on the backup that have been deleted on the source.

Unix rsync

Available only for OS 10.4X (Tiger) and above.
Works in the background (copying process invisible)
Can use password (will copy files with closed permissions)
Compares every byte of data and replaces only those that have changed (deep.)
Good for large folders and backups to the same folder (non incremental)
Excellent for incremental backups that are snapshots (not copies) occupying very little disk space. The incremental backup is also very fast since it is not copying (just creating hard links to the files).
Note: rsync has a glitch with incremental backups. It will not make hard links of picture files (and others that use resource forks) so the backup may occupy more disk space than a true "snapshor" style backup would.

Unix rsync "alternate version"

Same as Rsync but uses another version (from Samba website) that is currently a beta version but already is far superior to the regular rsync that comes with Tiger and Leopard. It is excellent for incremental backups as well as regular or sync backups. It preserves almost all the important metadata (unlike regular rsync) and is faster and more accurate. To use this version select rsync for copy method and check the box "alternate rsync" in the settings panel.

Unix rsyncx

Available for OS 10.3X (Panther) and above.
Works in the background (copying process invisible)
Can use password (will copy files with closed permissions)
Compares every byte of data and replaces only those that have changed (deep.)
Good for large folders and backups to the same folder (non incremental)
Excellent for incremental backups that are snapshots (not copies) occupying very little disk space. The incremental backup is also very fast since it is not copying (just creating hard links to the files).
Note: rsyncx can be buggy when encountering locked folders. do not use if you have locked folders, and do a test to see that it copies everything.

Unix cp

Available only for OS 10.4X (Tiger) and above.
Works in the background (copying process invisible)
Can use password (will copy files with closed permissions)
Makes full copies and goes one level deep to see if files have changed.
cp preserves almost all of the files metadata except creation date.

Psync

Available for OS 10.3X (Panther) and above.
Only copies whole folders, not individual files.
Works in the background (copying process invisible.)
Can use password (will copy files with closed permissions)
Excellent for system clones (bootable.)
Preserves creation dates (unlike rsync or ditto or cp)
Very fast at synchronizing source files with backups.


Rsync delete option

Checking this box will cause rsync to delete any files on the backup that don't exist in the source folder.

Recreate full folder paths

Usually the backup files and folders are copied directly to the backup folder. This option will place them in their full folder paths as they appear on your computer. Some people prefer this to help them remember where they came from. Others think it is troublesome going through all those folders to find your files...


See also

Choose a backup destination
Choose a backup folder