Our Verdict
OS X ’s build up - in Time Machine feature bring in game up your authoritative data a comparatively painless cognitive process : You just connect a drive to your Mac , differentiate the osmium to use that drive for Time Machine , and then , to cite a renowned Apple ad , “ There is no Step 3 . ” As long as Time Machine does n’t run into any problem , it lick great .
But when Time Machinedoesexperience a glitch , it ’s not always clear what live wrong . The Time Machine back breaker of System Preferences provides a red Info ( i ) push that can sometimes fill you in on the details , but not always , and if Time Machine should confront multiple issues , that button ply only the former misplay message .
The information youreallywant is buried in OS X ’s system log … along with thousands of production line of information that has nothing to do with Time Machine . You could expend the Console utility ( in /Applications / Utilities ) to seek to reveal the relevant info , but Ron van Rens ’s $ 2LogViewer for Time Machine(Mac App Store link ) is a better approach .
This simply utility does one thing : It parse OS X ’s system logs to discover just the info relating to your Time Machine backups ; formats that information for easy reading ; and lay out the data to you in a browsable interface . Any errors are display in red-faced eccentric , making them easy to spot .
When you launch LogViewer for Time Machine , it displays details about the most - late patronage . Clicking the Back and Forward ( bequeath and right pointer , severally ) push button allow you browse any other backup - related entries in your Time Machine log . The information you see is still in logarithm - file language , but most Time Machine lines are well-situated enough to interpret .
One significant complaint I have is that LogViewer for Time Machine does n’t automatically refresh its display when the Time Machine logarithm file is update . You must manually snap the Refresh button to see the latest info — multiple times if you ’re monitoring a fill-in that ’s in progress . Here ’s hop such a feature finds its elbow room into a future update . Until then , LogViewer for Time Machine is still an wanton way to keep an eye on your Time Machine computer backup .
This reappraisal is part of Macworld’sGemFest 2014 . Every weekday from July until September , the Macworld stave will apply the Mac Gems blog to briefly cut through a standout gratuitous , low - monetary value , or great - value program . you could view a tilt of this yr ’s apps , update daily , on our handy GemFest chart , and you could visit the Mac Gems homepage for retiring Mac Gems review .
