Eventually my Mac has slow down and it shows me a message -your startup disk is full. I checked Storage and found that "Others" is occupying lots of my drive space. I am looking forward to run free Mac cleaner software so that I can remove junk files from my startup drive. I would appreciate you opinion on the best free tool.
What are best free Mac Speed up applications?
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It would help if you tell us 1) the exact Mac model you have, 2) which OS are you using, 3) the brand, size, and specs of your internal drive, and 4) how old your machine is. There is the possibility that the drive itself could be getting bad.
Next, you are dealing with two issues here: 1) cleaning off unnecessary/unneeded stuff from your hard drive, and 2) speeding up the hard drive. For #1, Oynx can help (I use it every week as part of my maintenance/backup procedure for both of my machines), but it still is going to take effort on your part to remove other stuff. For example, if you do not use Apple's Mail or Safari, Oynx only cleans out junk associated with those two programs, so you would need to clean junk out from whatever such programs you are using by yourself.
One possible huge source of junk could be your downloads folder. Another one is your documents folder. Then, of course, you could remove any applications (and all of each one's associated files) that you either no longer need, or can do without.
For #2, you need to first determine how "healthy" your drive is. Disk Utility can help with this, but you could need a more robust program, like Disk Warrior or TechTool Pro. I have both of them, and I use TechTool Pro once a week. They are not free, but well worth the $$$.
Once you clean off as much junk as you can, and assuming the drive is OK (or has been repaired by Disk Utility, Disk Warrior, and/or TechTool Pro), you then need to optimize the drive. Here is where you'll need a tool like TechTool Pro or Disk Warrior. TechTool Pro has Volume and File Optimization routines that work real well (If you have an SSD, then you only run the File Optimization routine).
Next, you are dealing with two issues here: 1) cleaning off unnecessary/unneeded stuff from your hard drive, and 2) speeding up the hard drive. For #1, Oynx can help (I use it every week as part of my maintenance/backup procedure for both of my machines), but it still is going to take effort on your part to remove other stuff. For example, if you do not use Apple's Mail or Safari, Oynx only cleans out junk associated with those two programs, so you would need to clean junk out from whatever such programs you are using by yourself.
One possible huge source of junk could be your downloads folder. Another one is your documents folder. Then, of course, you could remove any applications (and all of each one's associated files) that you either no longer need, or can do without.
For #2, you need to first determine how "healthy" your drive is. Disk Utility can help with this, but you could need a more robust program, like Disk Warrior or TechTool Pro. I have both of them, and I use TechTool Pro once a week. They are not free, but well worth the $$$.
Once you clean off as much junk as you can, and assuming the drive is OK (or has been repaired by Disk Utility, Disk Warrior, and/or TechTool Pro), you then need to optimize the drive. Here is where you'll need a tool like TechTool Pro or Disk Warrior. TechTool Pro has Volume and File Optimization routines that work real well (If you have an SSD, then you only run the File Optimization routine).
@honestone
Apple Mac Mini 2.5GHZ 4GB RAM 500GB Internal drive
OS X 10.9.2
Ran disk utility and drive is OK. I downloaded what Tompatrick suggested. Stellar Speed up Mac cleaned 1.5 gb of space for free.
I ran Onyx too and it also suggested my drive is fine.
Apple Mac Mini 2.5GHZ 4GB RAM 500GB Internal drive
OS X 10.9.2
Ran disk utility and drive is OK. I downloaded what Tompatrick suggested. Stellar Speed up Mac cleaned 1.5 gb of space for free.
I ran Onyx too and it also suggested my drive is fine.
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Oynx can only do 2 checks of a drive: one is to check the SMART status of the drive, and the other to check if the Volume Structure is OK. It does, though, have a number of cleaning routines.
While Stellar Speed did clean up 1.5 gig of space (would be good to know what it cleaned up), did your Mac Mini speed up that much? Also, how much space on the 500 gig drive is being used?
I also have a Mac Mini (i7 processor, late 2012 model, 4 gig of RAM), and I replaced the slow 1 TB 5400 rpm internal drive (subsequently went inside a thin external case) with a 256 gig Samsung 840 Pro SSD, and I am not even using half of that 256 gig of space (I am running OS 10.9.5). Do you know the speed of the 500 gig drive? If it's 5400 rpm, it's still going to be rather slow. The difference in using an SSD, at least for me, is amazing!
Also, if need be, I can store large data files on the external 1 TB drive. You might want to consider doing that, especially if you are still having issues with space.
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I tried a couple of products like Tweak and Tuneup, Stellar Speed Up Mac, Clean My Mac to remove junk from my mac. The latter two showed no hope as they were highly complicated. The former one worked luckily.
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In reading the description of Tweak and Tuneup, it looks like the clean up routines it does are a subset of the ones Onyx does. The program, however, does offer Optimization Routines. Note, though, that if one has an SSD, so-called Volume Optimization is not recommended on an SSD. Still looks like a good product, especially if one has a "normal" hard drive, and one can do a Volume and File Optimization with the program on such a drive.
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Hello Mac Helpers,
I've dowloaded and run Stellar Speed Up Mac and it identified 40GB+ including duplicate files.
I have many files downloaded which have the same name (e.g. 0001.jpg) but are quite different files - i.e. different sizes, date created, creator, etc. Will Stellar Speed Up Mac check more than just file name before deciding two files are duplicates of each other, please?
Sincerely, Ranger1.
I've dowloaded and run Stellar Speed Up Mac and it identified 40GB+ including duplicate files.
I have many files downloaded which have the same name (e.g. 0001.jpg) but are quite different files - i.e. different sizes, date created, creator, etc. Will Stellar Speed Up Mac check more than just file name before deciding two files are duplicates of each other, please?
Sincerely, Ranger1.
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Hank, my experience over the years has taught me that most apps which claim to accelerate your Mac are shams. Your machine cannot run any faster than the processors which are in it, no matter what anyone tells you to the contrary.
Going by what you have stated above, your main problem seems to be that your hard drive is jam packed with data; in fact, way too much data. Everything that I have read over the years suggests that in order to maintain optimal speed and performance, your hard drive should be no more than 50% full.
Once you past that suggested mark, what happens is that your machine begins to slow down more and more, as you continue to fill up your hard drive space. This means that the head on your hard drive has to take more time to seek and find empty blocks in order to write new data to the hard drive, and more time to find the bits and pieces of programs which have become fragmented all over your hard drive, due to your constantly writing new things to it, and deleting old and unused things from it.
I have used a variety of the products which are mentioned above, including TechTool Pro, Onyx, Disk Warrior and a few others. They all certainly help in different ways, and you will definitely notice an improvement in performance after using each one of them.
However, my key point is this: There is no magic bullet app which will fully resolve the issues which you are currently experiencing. In fact, if any of them are used the wrong way, you can totally fry your hard drive, or at the very least, lose a lot of files which you cherish, because many of them have the same name, such as your multitudes of image files.
The bottom line is this: To really resolve your issue, you need to apply some elbow grease, and invest your time in manually deleting the programs and files which you no longer use. Some of the biggest offenders will be audio and video files. Collectively, they can gobble up hard drive space in no time at all.
One app which I use on a regular basis is CleanApp. Whenever you add a new app to your hard drive, CleanApp will take note of it, along with any other files which are associated with that program. Then, if at some later date, you decide to trash that app, CleanApp will activate and show you all of the files which are associated with that app, and give you the option to delete them. It will also suggest other files which may possibly be candidates for deletion as well.
However, as with other apps which perform similar functions, you need to be very careful that you don't delete files which your system needs, or which are used by other programs as well.
All in all, programs such as Onyx, Cocktail, Deeper, etc., will run certain built-in maintenance scripts and perform other cleaning functions. CleanApp does this as well. However, given the overall size of most modern hard drives, running them will regain you very little hard drive space by comparison.
Similarly, running programs such as TechTool Pro, Disk Warrior, Drive Genius and Disk First Aid will repair file directories and block issues if they are not too severe. Some will also optimize your hard drive by eliminating file fragmentation, although the advantage of doing the latter has been a source of debate with some people.
But again, what it really comes down to, even after using all of the above programs, is that as long as your hard drive is overly full of data, your machine will remain sluggish, because it is like a drowning man trying to grab a last gulp of air. You need to free up more hard drive space by manually deleting a lot of the junk on your hard drive.
Going by what you have stated above, your main problem seems to be that your hard drive is jam packed with data; in fact, way too much data. Everything that I have read over the years suggests that in order to maintain optimal speed and performance, your hard drive should be no more than 50% full.
Once you past that suggested mark, what happens is that your machine begins to slow down more and more, as you continue to fill up your hard drive space. This means that the head on your hard drive has to take more time to seek and find empty blocks in order to write new data to the hard drive, and more time to find the bits and pieces of programs which have become fragmented all over your hard drive, due to your constantly writing new things to it, and deleting old and unused things from it.
I have used a variety of the products which are mentioned above, including TechTool Pro, Onyx, Disk Warrior and a few others. They all certainly help in different ways, and you will definitely notice an improvement in performance after using each one of them.
However, my key point is this: There is no magic bullet app which will fully resolve the issues which you are currently experiencing. In fact, if any of them are used the wrong way, you can totally fry your hard drive, or at the very least, lose a lot of files which you cherish, because many of them have the same name, such as your multitudes of image files.
The bottom line is this: To really resolve your issue, you need to apply some elbow grease, and invest your time in manually deleting the programs and files which you no longer use. Some of the biggest offenders will be audio and video files. Collectively, they can gobble up hard drive space in no time at all.
One app which I use on a regular basis is CleanApp. Whenever you add a new app to your hard drive, CleanApp will take note of it, along with any other files which are associated with that program. Then, if at some later date, you decide to trash that app, CleanApp will activate and show you all of the files which are associated with that app, and give you the option to delete them. It will also suggest other files which may possibly be candidates for deletion as well.
However, as with other apps which perform similar functions, you need to be very careful that you don't delete files which your system needs, or which are used by other programs as well.
All in all, programs such as Onyx, Cocktail, Deeper, etc., will run certain built-in maintenance scripts and perform other cleaning functions. CleanApp does this as well. However, given the overall size of most modern hard drives, running them will regain you very little hard drive space by comparison.
Similarly, running programs such as TechTool Pro, Disk Warrior, Drive Genius and Disk First Aid will repair file directories and block issues if they are not too severe. Some will also optimize your hard drive by eliminating file fragmentation, although the advantage of doing the latter has been a source of debate with some people.
But again, what it really comes down to, even after using all of the above programs, is that as long as your hard drive is overly full of data, your machine will remain sluggish, because it is like a drowning man trying to grab a last gulp of air. You need to free up more hard drive space by manually deleting a lot of the junk on your hard drive.
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Hermes makes quite a few excellent points, and the 50% threshold is definitely accurate. Myself, I've never approached that amount of space used on any internal hard disk/SSD, preferring to run "mean and clean". And, this is especially true for slower, 5400 rpm drives. They are slow enough as it is, and keeping them less than half full, and cleaning off unneeded stuff, is definitely a benefit.
What I have always practiced is a combination of what Hermes is stating. That is, I am constantly cleaning off unneeded files (apps, data files, EMails, etc.) from my internal drive, and along with that, I perform my once a week disk maintenance/repair/backup processing. That includes the following tasks:
1. Permanently remove deleted EMails from Outlook by rebuilding its database (a Microsoft-supplied routine to do that).
2. Run Onyx to perform mainly cleanup activities, and also repair permissions.
3. Run TechTool Pro for disk maintenance/repair. Very, very rarely does it do much repairs, but when I need it, it does come in handy. (I also once in a while run Disk Warrior). The newest version of TechTool Pro also tests internal fans, checks internal sensors results, and for laptops, checks the health of internal batteries. Yeah, there are probably some free products that do those last 3 tasks separately, but I like having all of it within one reputable application.
4. Run SuperDuper! to make a bootable backup of my system.
I don't have many large photo files/folders, and my music collection is not that large. But, I do have all the photo files on a couple of external drives. I do collect movies and TV series, and those can be large. But, once again, I have them on external devices.
As for optimizing a hard drive/SSD to eliminate file fragmentation, when I used to have internal hard disks and used TechTool Pro to perform both Volume and File Optimization, I did see a somewhat noticeable difference in performance. But, with SSDs, only File Optimization is needed (Volume Optimization is not recommended on SSDs).
In summary, it comes down to how much "elbow grease" one wants to use for performing clean up tasks. From my experience, more and often are better, along with the weekly tasks I mentioned above.
What I have always practiced is a combination of what Hermes is stating. That is, I am constantly cleaning off unneeded files (apps, data files, EMails, etc.) from my internal drive, and along with that, I perform my once a week disk maintenance/repair/backup processing. That includes the following tasks:
1. Permanently remove deleted EMails from Outlook by rebuilding its database (a Microsoft-supplied routine to do that).
2. Run Onyx to perform mainly cleanup activities, and also repair permissions.
3. Run TechTool Pro for disk maintenance/repair. Very, very rarely does it do much repairs, but when I need it, it does come in handy. (I also once in a while run Disk Warrior). The newest version of TechTool Pro also tests internal fans, checks internal sensors results, and for laptops, checks the health of internal batteries. Yeah, there are probably some free products that do those last 3 tasks separately, but I like having all of it within one reputable application.
4. Run SuperDuper! to make a bootable backup of my system.
I don't have many large photo files/folders, and my music collection is not that large. But, I do have all the photo files on a couple of external drives. I do collect movies and TV series, and those can be large. But, once again, I have them on external devices.
As for optimizing a hard drive/SSD to eliminate file fragmentation, when I used to have internal hard disks and used TechTool Pro to perform both Volume and File Optimization, I did see a somewhat noticeable difference in performance. But, with SSDs, only File Optimization is needed (Volume Optimization is not recommended on SSDs).
In summary, it comes down to how much "elbow grease" one wants to use for performing clean up tasks. From my experience, more and often are better, along with the weekly tasks I mentioned above.
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First, a slight correction on my previous comment. I see no way to edit previous comments here -- possibly because I am still considered a new member? -- so where I wrote "Once you past that suggested mark", it is supposed to say "Once you pass that suggested mark".
My maintenance routine is not as strict as honestone's, the reason being that barring power outages, my iMac runs 365/24/7 because I operate my own web server, BBS, and Hotline server, and folks always need to have access to them.
As a result of my machine always being on, the important maintenance routines that Onyx and similar programs run, are the very same routines that your Mac will automatically run at intervals specified by Apple, that is, daily, weekly and monthly. Onyx and other apps simply provide a user-friendly, front end for them.
I normally only use disk repair apps -- I currently use Drive Genius, but used TechTool Pro in the past -- when there is a noticeable sluggishness to my machine, and it becomes apparent that there is something wrong somewhere. The same holds true with repairing permissions.
BTW, in case you are not aware of it, Disk Utility only repairs permissions on files that were installed by Apple. Third party apps and files are not touched. One app which I use frequently to adjust permissions on certain files is BatChmod. It is free, and it works great.
Now, where I am a real fanatic is with backups. That is one thing that I am really "religious" about. I have invested too much time and energy in setting up my various domains on my web server, as well as in setting up my Hermes II BBS, and my Hotline server. Add to that my life's work in writing, and I stand a lot to lose due to an unanticipated hard drive failure.
Thus, I have two external drives connected to my iMac. Every single day I have Carbon Copy Cloner back up my entire internal hard drive to each of the external drives at different hours of the day. Of course, it is set to only back up files which are new, or which have been changed.
Trust me; the day that you lose important data, you will realize the importance of owning a program such as Carbon Copy Cloner, SuperDuper!, or similar backup utility which can create bootable backups.
My maintenance routine is not as strict as honestone's, the reason being that barring power outages, my iMac runs 365/24/7 because I operate my own web server, BBS, and Hotline server, and folks always need to have access to them.
As a result of my machine always being on, the important maintenance routines that Onyx and similar programs run, are the very same routines that your Mac will automatically run at intervals specified by Apple, that is, daily, weekly and monthly. Onyx and other apps simply provide a user-friendly, front end for them.
I normally only use disk repair apps -- I currently use Drive Genius, but used TechTool Pro in the past -- when there is a noticeable sluggishness to my machine, and it becomes apparent that there is something wrong somewhere. The same holds true with repairing permissions.
BTW, in case you are not aware of it, Disk Utility only repairs permissions on files that were installed by Apple. Third party apps and files are not touched. One app which I use frequently to adjust permissions on certain files is BatChmod. It is free, and it works great.
Now, where I am a real fanatic is with backups. That is one thing that I am really "religious" about. I have invested too much time and energy in setting up my various domains on my web server, as well as in setting up my Hermes II BBS, and my Hotline server. Add to that my life's work in writing, and I stand a lot to lose due to an unanticipated hard drive failure.
Thus, I have two external drives connected to my iMac. Every single day I have Carbon Copy Cloner back up my entire internal hard drive to each of the external drives at different hours of the day. Of course, it is set to only back up files which are new, or which have been changed.
Trust me; the day that you lose important data, you will realize the importance of owning a program such as Carbon Copy Cloner, SuperDuper!, or similar backup utility which can create bootable backups.
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Great post, Hermes! Yes, my machine is not always on like yours. In fact, except for my Saturday disk maintenance/repair/backup processing (which takes about 2 to 3 hours for each of my machines), I am only on my machine for maybe 2 to 3 hours a day (unless I am watching a video). So, I truly understand why you are not as strict as I am with my maintenance practices.
I did not know that about Disk Utility and Repair Permissions. Glad I use Onyx instead. TechTool Pro can also repair permissions, but I have never used it. By the way, whenever I use Onyx, I usually have to run it twice to repair permissions on all the applicable files. Not sure why, but that's OK.
By the way, are Onyx and BatChmod about "equal" in terms of repairing permissions?
Yes, you are ABSOLUTELY correct about backups! I am really amazed how many folks do not make backups. And, from my perspective, a backup/cloning program like SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner is an excellent choice, as such backups are bootable, and thus are invaluable in restoring one's system. Like you, I perform the backups for both of my machines on two external drives, and for my purposes, weekly backups are sufficient. I can attest to this helping me out, as on two separate occasions, I have some strange issues on my Mac Mini, and decided to just restore from the most recent backup. As I'm sure you know, when one boots from that backup, all the applications one uses/needs are available, and in my case, I first used Disk Utility on the backup to Erase and Format the drive (SSD in my case, and I did not need to partition it), did the restore, and booted my Mac Mini successfully.
The one drawback about SuperDuper! is that it cannot backup the Recovery HD partition. Given that I use TechTool Pro (also have Disk Warrior) for disk maintenance/repairs, I actually do not need it. But, I use a third party product (free) called Recovery Partition Creator for re-creating the Recovery HD partition. It works flawlessly!
So folks, please take the advice Hermes and I are offering: do backups, and do them as frequently as needed. Time Machine is "OK", but I do not believe one can do a full restore from it, and I also believe it is not a bootable backup. Additionally, there is a "free" version of SuperDuper! available. I used it for a while (before purchasing it), and it runs somewhat slower, and does not offer some additional (and possibly useful) features like in the paid version. SuperDuper! costs $27.95 US, and Carbon Copy Cloner costs $39.99 US. Either of them are definitely worth the investment!
I did not know that about Disk Utility and Repair Permissions. Glad I use Onyx instead. TechTool Pro can also repair permissions, but I have never used it. By the way, whenever I use Onyx, I usually have to run it twice to repair permissions on all the applicable files. Not sure why, but that's OK.
By the way, are Onyx and BatChmod about "equal" in terms of repairing permissions?
Yes, you are ABSOLUTELY correct about backups! I am really amazed how many folks do not make backups. And, from my perspective, a backup/cloning program like SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner is an excellent choice, as such backups are bootable, and thus are invaluable in restoring one's system. Like you, I perform the backups for both of my machines on two external drives, and for my purposes, weekly backups are sufficient. I can attest to this helping me out, as on two separate occasions, I have some strange issues on my Mac Mini, and decided to just restore from the most recent backup. As I'm sure you know, when one boots from that backup, all the applications one uses/needs are available, and in my case, I first used Disk Utility on the backup to Erase and Format the drive (SSD in my case, and I did not need to partition it), did the restore, and booted my Mac Mini successfully.
The one drawback about SuperDuper! is that it cannot backup the Recovery HD partition. Given that I use TechTool Pro (also have Disk Warrior) for disk maintenance/repairs, I actually do not need it. But, I use a third party product (free) called Recovery Partition Creator for re-creating the Recovery HD partition. It works flawlessly!
So folks, please take the advice Hermes and I are offering: do backups, and do them as frequently as needed. Time Machine is "OK", but I do not believe one can do a full restore from it, and I also believe it is not a bootable backup. Additionally, there is a "free" version of SuperDuper! available. I used it for a while (before purchasing it), and it runs somewhat slower, and does not offer some additional (and possibly useful) features like in the paid version. SuperDuper! costs $27.95 US, and Carbon Copy Cloner costs $39.99 US. Either of them are definitely worth the investment!
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Hello honestone,
>> By the way, whenever I use Onyx, I usually have to run it twice to repair permissions on all the applicable files. Not sure why, but that's OK.
My understanding is this, and it may be flawed. As a Unix-based system, Mac OS X is a multi-layered system with many thousands of tiny files. As a result, sometimes when you repair permissions, or run a disk maintenance app such as TechTool Pro, Drive Genius, etc., they will fix certain problems, or repair certain permissions, only to reveal additional problems which are lurking beneath the original problems that were discovered by the app. Thus, sometimes it may be necessary to run such a program several times in order to really fix everything.
>> By the way, are Onyx and BatChmod about "equal" in terms of repairing permissions?
BatChmod does NOT repair file permissions; it only allows you to change permissions on files, folders and subfolders.
I will most often use BatChmod when I have to update my WordPress installation; particularly when there is an update for WordPress itself. Being as I have my WordPress permissions set very strict -- for obvious reasons -- WordPress will always complain about file permissions whenever I attempt an update. In other words, it will complain that it cannot install the update, or a particular plugin update.
So, I will use BatChod to chmod the entire WordPress base directory to 777 while I perform the update, and then return everything to its stricter permissions settings when I am done.
This can become rather tedious if there are frequent plugin updates. Thus, I have found it easier to simply download plugin updates to my computer, and then simply copy the updates into the WordPress plugins folder. That way I don't have to worry about permissions errors, being as I am the Admin on this machine.
As I said, I primarily use BatChmod when I have to update WordPress itself, and not plugins.
>> The one drawback about SuperDuper! is that it cannot backup the Recovery HD partition.
Carbon Copy Cloner does have this option; however, I never use it. With two identical bootable backups for my iMac being created everyday, I just don't see the necessity of using it.
There is one drawback here though. Being as I run a SheepShaver setup, which relies upon a disk image to create the virtual Mac Classic environment, that means that because there are changes made to my BBS files, as well as to my Hotline server files -- such as log files for example -- on a daily basis, the image file has to be backed up every single day, twice a day.
In other words, backup utilities cannot just selectively backup parts of an image file, such as a DMG file, for example. If there are any changes made to the image file, the entire image has to be backed up.
Well, in my case, I now use a 128 GB image file for my SheepShaver setup, because it contains a lot of downloadable files for my BBS and Hotline users. That means that twice a day while CCC is backing up 128+ GB worth of data, it places a noticeable drag on my machine.
>> Time Machine is "OK", but I do not believe one can do a full restore from it, and I also believe it is not a bootable backup.
I am not sure about Time Machine, because I have never used it, and I am not too familiar with its inner workings. From the start, I have never liked how it creates multiple copies of incremental backups, and then deletes the oldest one when the backup drive is full. I much prefer the way I have Carbon Copy Cloner doing it: the same backup performed twice a day, with only the latest copies of all files, to two external USB drives.
>> By the way, whenever I use Onyx, I usually have to run it twice to repair permissions on all the applicable files. Not sure why, but that's OK.
My understanding is this, and it may be flawed. As a Unix-based system, Mac OS X is a multi-layered system with many thousands of tiny files. As a result, sometimes when you repair permissions, or run a disk maintenance app such as TechTool Pro, Drive Genius, etc., they will fix certain problems, or repair certain permissions, only to reveal additional problems which are lurking beneath the original problems that were discovered by the app. Thus, sometimes it may be necessary to run such a program several times in order to really fix everything.
>> By the way, are Onyx and BatChmod about "equal" in terms of repairing permissions?
BatChmod does NOT repair file permissions; it only allows you to change permissions on files, folders and subfolders.
I will most often use BatChmod when I have to update my WordPress installation; particularly when there is an update for WordPress itself. Being as I have my WordPress permissions set very strict -- for obvious reasons -- WordPress will always complain about file permissions whenever I attempt an update. In other words, it will complain that it cannot install the update, or a particular plugin update.
So, I will use BatChod to chmod the entire WordPress base directory to 777 while I perform the update, and then return everything to its stricter permissions settings when I am done.
This can become rather tedious if there are frequent plugin updates. Thus, I have found it easier to simply download plugin updates to my computer, and then simply copy the updates into the WordPress plugins folder. That way I don't have to worry about permissions errors, being as I am the Admin on this machine.
As I said, I primarily use BatChmod when I have to update WordPress itself, and not plugins.
>> The one drawback about SuperDuper! is that it cannot backup the Recovery HD partition.
Carbon Copy Cloner does have this option; however, I never use it. With two identical bootable backups for my iMac being created everyday, I just don't see the necessity of using it.
There is one drawback here though. Being as I run a SheepShaver setup, which relies upon a disk image to create the virtual Mac Classic environment, that means that because there are changes made to my BBS files, as well as to my Hotline server files -- such as log files for example -- on a daily basis, the image file has to be backed up every single day, twice a day.
In other words, backup utilities cannot just selectively backup parts of an image file, such as a DMG file, for example. If there are any changes made to the image file, the entire image has to be backed up.
Well, in my case, I now use a 128 GB image file for my SheepShaver setup, because it contains a lot of downloadable files for my BBS and Hotline users. That means that twice a day while CCC is backing up 128+ GB worth of data, it places a noticeable drag on my machine.
>> Time Machine is "OK", but I do not believe one can do a full restore from it, and I also believe it is not a bootable backup.
I am not sure about Time Machine, because I have never used it, and I am not too familiar with its inner workings. From the start, I have never liked how it creates multiple copies of incremental backups, and then deletes the oldest one when the backup drive is full. I much prefer the way I have Carbon Copy Cloner doing it: the same backup performed twice a day, with only the latest copies of all files, to two external USB drives.
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Once again, Hermes, great post! Quite a bit of it contains processing I am not at all familiar with, but your explanation makes sense.
Regarding the Recovery HD partition, I guess there could be a rare situation where I would need it. But, again since I use TechTool Pro for disk maintenance/repairs, the tools on the Recovery HD partition are not as robust. And, of course, the eDrive feature of TechTool Pro is so, so convenient.
As I mentioned, I recently paid for SuperDuper!. It does run faster, but other than that, I am not using any of the additional features. I believe one of them is to just replace changed files, but my purpose in using SuperDuper! is to have a bootable exact backup of my system as of Saturday morning. So, when I run the program, I let it first erase the previous backup, and then let it "clone" everything on my source partition. Again, that is more than sufficient for my processing needs. About the only things I would "lose" by having to do a restore from my backup are new EMails and any software updates (both manual and automatic).
Regarding the Recovery HD partition, I guess there could be a rare situation where I would need it. But, again since I use TechTool Pro for disk maintenance/repairs, the tools on the Recovery HD partition are not as robust. And, of course, the eDrive feature of TechTool Pro is so, so convenient.
As I mentioned, I recently paid for SuperDuper!. It does run faster, but other than that, I am not using any of the additional features. I believe one of them is to just replace changed files, but my purpose in using SuperDuper! is to have a bootable exact backup of my system as of Saturday morning. So, when I run the program, I let it first erase the previous backup, and then let it "clone" everything on my source partition. Again, that is more than sufficient for my processing needs. About the only things I would "lose" by having to do a restore from my backup are new EMails and any software updates (both manual and automatic).
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Sorry if I rattled on with too much info! 
Well, to be honest, IMHO, Apple-supplied disk utilities have always seemed light and flaky, compared to other alternatives. Perhaps that is by design.
Then again, maybe you need to be a real Unix geek to use Apple's hidden power tools, which I am not. I'll go for a front end any time.
Regarding SuperDuper!, it sounds very much to me like SuperDuper! functions quite similar to Carbon Copy Cloner.
If that is the case -- and it seems like it is going by your comments -- then it appears that you are taking a needless step -- and wasting a bit of time -- by first erasing your destination backup drive, before cloning your source drive to it.
In other words, your destination backup drive is already an exact bootable copy of your source drive. As such, there is no need to erase everything first.
If you choose to replace just changed files -- as I do with CCC -- you will still have your bootable backup drive. The only thing that will be different on it each time that you conduct a scheduled backup, is that any newer files on your source drive will replace any older files on your backup drive. In short, even without erasing everything first, you will still have the latest version of everything on your bootable backup drive. You simply will save a bit of time by not erasing everything first, which, if I understand how SuperDuper! works, is really redundant.
Of course, how you proceed is entirely up to you. If you feel more comfortable and secure erasing everything first, so be it, and I perfectly understand. I just wanted to point out that there is really no need to erase first.
Regarding losing things, yes, that is why I have my two daily backup spaced eight hours apart. That way I lose as little as possible insofar as new data is concerned, in between those hours.
Well, to be honest, IMHO, Apple-supplied disk utilities have always seemed light and flaky, compared to other alternatives. Perhaps that is by design.
Then again, maybe you need to be a real Unix geek to use Apple's hidden power tools, which I am not. I'll go for a front end any time.
Regarding SuperDuper!, it sounds very much to me like SuperDuper! functions quite similar to Carbon Copy Cloner.
If that is the case -- and it seems like it is going by your comments -- then it appears that you are taking a needless step -- and wasting a bit of time -- by first erasing your destination backup drive, before cloning your source drive to it.
In other words, your destination backup drive is already an exact bootable copy of your source drive. As such, there is no need to erase everything first.
If you choose to replace just changed files -- as I do with CCC -- you will still have your bootable backup drive. The only thing that will be different on it each time that you conduct a scheduled backup, is that any newer files on your source drive will replace any older files on your backup drive. In short, even without erasing everything first, you will still have the latest version of everything on your bootable backup drive. You simply will save a bit of time by not erasing everything first, which, if I understand how SuperDuper! works, is really redundant.
Of course, how you proceed is entirely up to you. If you feel more comfortable and secure erasing everything first, so be it, and I perfectly understand. I just wanted to point out that there is really no need to erase first.
Regarding losing things, yes, that is why I have my two daily backup spaced eight hours apart. That way I lose as little as possible insofar as new data is concerned, in between those hours.
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I also have always regarded Apple's Disk Utility as lacking in functionality, especially compared to TechTool Pro and Disk Warrior. Additionally, with TechTool Pro's eDrive feature, there is no need to boot my machine from an external device, which can be slow, even from a SuperDuper! backup. Of course, if the external device was an SSD, and the connection was via either Firewire 800 or Thunderbolt, then it would be faster. But, the eDrive feature is excellent.
Now, regarding the way I use SuperDuper! to first erase the external partition, I am actually doing other things while the backup is running. When I first do it for my Mac Mini, I am also doing associated maintenance on my MacBook Air. Additionally, I much prefer to have a clean backup, as the order of my tasks is 1) permanently remove deleted EMails from Outlook, 2) run Onyx, and 3) run TechTool Pro. It is at that point when I run SuperDuper!. So, I want an EXACT backup/clone of my system at that point. Additionally, while some of the more time consuming activities are going on, I am also cleaning our town home, thus making optimum usage of my time. It all works out very well. Finally, the erasing of the partition is quick. The time consuming part of the backup is due to the devices being external. One of my external drives is connected via Firewire 800 to my Mac Mini (for the MacBook Air, I have a Thunderbolt-to-Firewire 800 connector), and it is somewhat "fast". The other device, though is connected via USB 2.0, and that one takes time. But again, I am doing other things, especially when the second, slower backup via the USB 2.0 connection, is running.
If I was doing scheduled, daily backups like you are doing, then just having files/folders replaced with changed/updated ones on the prior backup is, of course, reasonable. But, for my processing needs, weekly backups are more than enough, and thus a complete erase and replace makes sense.
Regarding the similarities and differences between SuperDuper! and Carbon Copy Cloner, there have been some recent reviews of both products, and from my experience using SuperDuper!, what is stated in the reviews is accurate.
Now, regarding the way I use SuperDuper! to first erase the external partition, I am actually doing other things while the backup is running. When I first do it for my Mac Mini, I am also doing associated maintenance on my MacBook Air. Additionally, I much prefer to have a clean backup, as the order of my tasks is 1) permanently remove deleted EMails from Outlook, 2) run Onyx, and 3) run TechTool Pro. It is at that point when I run SuperDuper!. So, I want an EXACT backup/clone of my system at that point. Additionally, while some of the more time consuming activities are going on, I am also cleaning our town home, thus making optimum usage of my time. It all works out very well. Finally, the erasing of the partition is quick. The time consuming part of the backup is due to the devices being external. One of my external drives is connected via Firewire 800 to my Mac Mini (for the MacBook Air, I have a Thunderbolt-to-Firewire 800 connector), and it is somewhat "fast". The other device, though is connected via USB 2.0, and that one takes time. But again, I am doing other things, especially when the second, slower backup via the USB 2.0 connection, is running.
If I was doing scheduled, daily backups like you are doing, then just having files/folders replaced with changed/updated ones on the prior backup is, of course, reasonable. But, for my processing needs, weekly backups are more than enough, and thus a complete erase and replace makes sense.
Regarding the similarities and differences between SuperDuper! and Carbon Copy Cloner, there have been some recent reviews of both products, and from my experience using SuperDuper!, what is stated in the reviews is accurate.
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