Computers can break, get lost or be stolen. A backup means your photos and files are safe no matter what happens. Every Mac comes with a free backup tool called Time Machine. You set it up once, and it does the rest automatically.
What you’ll need
- Your Mac
- An external hard drive (a small box that plugs into your Mac with a cable)
Tip: Choose a drive with at least twice the storage of your Mac. A 1 TB or 2 TB drive works well for most people and is not expensive.
Careful: Time Machine will erase the drive the first time you use it. Use a new, empty drive, or move anything important off it first.
Step 1: Plug in the drive
Connect the external drive to your Mac. Your Mac may ask if you want to use it for Time Machine. If it does, click Use as Backup Disk and skip to Step 4.
Step 2: Open Time Machine settings
- Click the Apple menu (the Apple logo) in the top-left corner of the screen.
- Click System Settings.
- Click General in the sidebar, then click Time Machine.
On an older Mac? If you see System Preferences instead of System Settings, click it, then click Time Machine.
Step 3: Choose your backup disk
- Click Add Backup Disk (or the + button).
- Select your external drive from the list.
- Click Set Up Disk.
Step 4: Encrypt your backup (recommended)
Your Mac will offer to encrypt the backup. This means nobody can read your files without a password, even if the drive is lost.
- Turn on Encrypt Backup.
- Create a password and write it down somewhere safe. If you forget it, you can’t get your files back.
- Click Done.
Step 5: Let the first backup finish
The first backup copies everything, so it can take a few hours. You can keep using your Mac while it works. After that, backups are quick.
How Time Machine works
As long as the drive is plugged in, Time Machine automatically saves:
- Hourly backups for the past 24 hours
- Daily backups for the past month
- Weekly backups for all previous months
When the drive gets full, the oldest backups are deleted to make room.
Tip: If you use a laptop and don’t keep the drive plugged in, connect it at least once a week so Time Machine can catch up.
How to get a file back
Deleted something by mistake? Here’s how to bring it back.
- Open the folder where the file used to be (for example, Documents).
- Click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar at the top of the screen (it looks like a clock with an arrow) and choose Browse Time Machine Backups.
- Use the arrows or timeline on the right to go back in time.
- Select the file and click Restore.
You’re protected!
That’s all there is to it. Your Mac is now backing itself up, and your memories are safe.
