CCC 7.2 — This is a FREE update for CCC 7 license holders
What's new in this update
We made a logistical change for Bootable Backup tasks
Previously, once a task was configured to create a bootable copy of the source, every future run of that task would erase the destination and reclone the entire source. That behavior was intentional, it produces the most reliably-bootable copy of the system. The full erase is really only necessary when macOS is updated on the source, though, so we've come up with a hybrid approach that will allow incremental updates to a bootable backup as long as the source and destination OS versions match. If the OS versions don't match, the destination (and all backup versions) must be erased and recloned; again, to offer the most reliably-bootable copy. By default, CCC will ask for your approval before erasing the destination (i.e. so you can retain the option of downgrading the source volume's macOS).
This new policy will make many of the CCC-specific features available for bootable backup tasks, e.g. backup versioning, Quick Update, insight into what changes were made to the source between events. There are still caveats to this approach to backups, and for most people, a "Standard Backup" is still the most appropriate strategy. If you want to create bootable backups, click on CCC's Destination selector and choose Backup Volume Setup Assistant….
Policy changes for the "When files are modified on the source" scheduling setting
The "When files are modified on the source" scheduling setting now allows the destination volume to remain unmounted while monitoring the source. When the FSEvents threshold is met, CCC will mount and validate the destination, if necessary, then proceed with the file copying portion of the task. Likewise, the postflight option to unmount the destination is now available to tasks scheduled with this setting.
The "When files are modified on the source" scheduling setting is also now allowed with network volume destinations. If the NAS volume is not mounted when the task initializes monitoring, CCC will not actively mount it until the FSEvents thresholds are met. This assuages our previous concerns about the NAS volume being "sleepy" when it comes time to actually write files. Now we mount it on-demand at the moment that we need it, and keep it unmounted otherwise.
Modernized the UI in CCC's Settings window
We did a little bit of reorganizing in this window, but largely everything is where it was before. One notable addition: we added a couple options to the Advanced pane around error handling for files that can't be opened when you're not logged in. More on that below.
Better handling of files that can't be opened when the screen is locked
A handful of files can't be opened when the screen is locked because some application flagged them for special data protection. During our latest beta testing cycle, we went through several iterations on the handling of these files. With a lot of feedback, we concluded that a) people generally do not want these raised as errors; that was a nuisance, b) people wanted to be able to see which files were affected, and sometimes decide on a file-by-file basis if the error should be ignored for that file, or if the file should be excluded, and c) people wanted to know "what is that file even for?" We addressed all of those concerns, and hopefully found just the right balance between transparency, efficacy, and annoyance.
By default, CCC flags these files to be copied the next time the task runs after you've logged in or unlocked the screen. For greater transparency, CCC will add a "Backup Coach" notice for the selected task when these incidents have occurred, which will show the identity of the affected files. When available and enabled, on-device Apple Intelligence will offer some insight into what the purpose of each file might be. For most people, no action is required to get these files on the backup; it happens when the task next runs while you're logged in and the screen is unlocked. For people that have tasks that never run when the screen is unlocked, or simply want to tackle these more proactively, we added options to Settings > Advanced to present these as errors and to automatically repeat a task on login/screen unlock. When they're presented as errors, you can decide to ignore individual errors or exclude an affected file on a case-by-case basis. If you have any feedback on these changes, choose "Ask a question" from CCC's Help menu and let us know what you think.
Other improvements
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Improved
We made some adjustments to the collection of snapshots when a volume is selected in CCC's sidebar. The "Collecting snapshots" modal dialog has been laid to rest, and we resolved some queue blockages that could be caused by a single unresponsive volume.
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Fixed
Addressed a Golden Gate-specific issue with making bootable copies of volumes that contain an older OS than the current startup disk (e.g. Tahoe). Addressed another Golden Gate-specific issue in which bootable copies of the system were not appearing in the Starutp Disk application or Startup Manager.
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Improved
Made a small adjustment to accommodate a SAMBA configuration that hides certain files by default. When that policy is applied, the server ignores changes to the "hidden" file flag, and the absence of that flag was causing some files (e.g. "Icon\r") to reappear in CCC's Task audit every time the task runs (i.e. because CCC was repeatedly trying to reapply the flag).
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Improved
Added a global exclusion for the /.streams folder that contains QNAP-proprietary storage of NTFS filesystem metadata.
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Improved
Added support for OAUTH authentication via "Sign in with Microsoft" for sending email notifications.
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Improved
Improved the way the ccc command-line utility presents active task progress indication when using the --watch argument.
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Improved
Removed TouchBar support.