Help understanding instructions in "Alternative Method of Keeping Projects Synced"

Scrivener Scrivener for macOS
1

I am more closely scrutinizing my Scrivener backups now because I think my hard drive is failing. I currently use a Macbook Air and I’m also planning on getting an iPad and plan to use Scrivener with it.

On the page referenced above, what does the following sentence mean?

Set the backup location to the same folder on each machine, all pointing to a folder that is synced by your preferred service.

Perhaps this is due to my lack of familiarity with the iPad, but how can there be the same backup location on each machine?

If I’m using Dropbox now as my sync folder, does that satisfy this first requirement? (I’m not sure what “pointing to a folder that is synced” means.)

2

Yes, the sentence you quoted describes, for instance, sharing a Dropbox folder between devices.

iOS Scrivener is a special case because it does not support automatic backups and cannot directly read or decompress ZIP files. The “Alternative Method” is not really applicable to iOS devices. More information about backups for iOS Scrivener can be found here: Guide to Keeping iOS Projects Backed Up / iOS / Knowledge Base - Literature and Latte Support

Information about synchronizing projects with iOS Scrivener can be found here:
https://scrivener.tenderapp.com/help/kb/ios/dropbox-syncing-with-ios

If you use a Mac and believe your hard drive is failing, you should – TODAY – buy an external drive and configure a Time Machine backup. Dropbox is useful, but it is not a good alternative to a reliable full-disk backup solution.

1 Like
3

Thanks, @kewms – I know you are not MacOS tech support but since you mention it, I do have an external HD that I used to regularly back up to. It appears that the specific failure of the HD is preventing the creation of new backups (or at least that’s what SuperDuper! tech support told me when backing up with the app also failed).

4

Also, are my Scrivener backups safe at least by syncing to Dropbox for backup? Honestly out of everything on my HD, I care about these the most. They are my life’s work.

5

Not really.

You should:
Have Scrivener zip and timestamp a backup of your projects.
(Zip and timestamp are settings in the options.)

If you don’t have an account with a cloud service like Google Drive to upload those backups to, worst case scenario - the minimum -, email them to yourself, then archive the email.

Sync folders are not a safe way to backup a project, as the folder is “live”, and perpetually vulnerable to user error/accidents. – The very opposite of what a backup location should be.

(P.S. I am not a Mac user, but if your damaged hard drive refuses a complete disk backup, perhaps you still can copy bits and folders ? If so, do it – copy your projects to that second drive or large USB key or anything that you can copy stuff to, heck, your phone – before it turns out to be too late.)

1 Like
6

Thanks for the note about backup vulnerability. I believe that I have chosen the “zip and timestamp” options after following the instructions in that link.

And yes, thankfully with the exception of certain files, I can still manually copy most of my stuff, so I have gone into Scrivener’s Application Support folder and copied all of those bak#.zip files to my external HD. Since I don’t understand how HD’s function (or how they fail), I am just worried that whatever failure is on my machine will “infect” those copied files as well. I hope not!

7

It would have to be a virus for that to happen.
But I strongly doubt that this is your present issue.
And even then, viruses don’t last long before a solution to them becomes available. So, even if you copy it elsewhere (your second drive), a fix for it will likely be available by the time you need (if ever) to use that second copy of your files.
(I am here assuming that you actually have an anti-virus installed, and that it found no virus to report. If you don’t have an AV installed, getting one would somewhat be a good idea.)

But in your case, I’d rather think that you have damaged sectors if your drive is HDD.

8

Set up a Time Machine volume.

Super Duper is kind of an all or nothing solution. If it can’t back up the whole disk, it will throw an (often obscure) error. (Super Duper also has some known issues of its own with Mac OS Monterey and newer.)

Time Machine is designed to work in background, one file at a time. Even if there are some files that it can’t copy, everything else should be safe.

If your drive is so far gone that Time Machine won’t work either, the best solution is to move all your data elsewhere and replace it. Your data is living on borrowed time.

2 Likes
9

@kewms’ advice(s) should here prime on any of mine.

10

Supplementing sage advice from @kewms, setup TimeMachine. Abandon super Duper, and do not rely on any file syncing service as “backup”.

Start with Apple’s instructions on TimeMachine at Back up your Mac with Time Machine – Apple Support (UK)

Use TimeMachine routinely. Let it run in the background whenever you are using it and/or the machine is turned on.