This applescript was written to address the following situations:
1) Copies OS X folders and files from one location to another
2) Makes a bootable copy of an OS X volume
3) Preserves all privileges and recreates necessary symbolic links
4) Deletes selected visible and invisible OS X files and folders
5) Can copy to another volume, another partition or another folder of same drive
6) Creates a log on the destination to report outcome of copy
7) Overcomes 4GB limitation of Apple Software Restore for making a backup
WARNING 1
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An extremely IMPORTANT POINT when copying to another drive in OS X whether you're using this script or using the terminal:
1) Get info on the secondary drive (destination for the copy)
2) Go to the Privileges section of the Get Info dialog
3) Uncheck the box labeled "Ignore privileges on this volume"
If you don't uncheck this setting then everything copied to the secondary drive will have the privileges:
Owner: current user
Group: unknown
You might be able to boot with the wrong privileges but many system level services will be broken.
WARNING 2
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To make sure that the data copied onto the destination is consistent with the source of the copy, OSXCOPY DELETES the same named folder at the destination before beginning the copy sequence (e.g. If you choose to copy the Library folder from the source disk to a destination which also contains a Library folder OSXCOPY will delete the Library folder on the destination before starting the copy). OSXCOPY is not an incremental backup program like Dantz Retrospect. It copies selected items wholesale.
This script was written to make my life working with OS X easier. I don't need it often but in those emergency situations when copies are required then it has turned out to be quite useful. I'm planning on constructing a more user friendly interface in Applescript Studio. Stay tuned for the improved version.
Use at your own risk. Not responsible for data loss. Think carefully before deleting.
Please send any feedback or questions to jeff@softwiredsys.com.