It looks like the macOS Sequoia 15.2 update is breaking third-party bootable backups – and that worries me
- macOS Sequoia 15.2 impacts third-party apps, complicating full drive backups and bootable recovery options
- Apple pushes Time Machine and limits third-party backup tools, citing privacy and security concerns, but leaving users frustrated
- SuperDuper! The developer is hoping for a resolution, but delays indicate that Apple’s control strategy may remain
It appears that the latest publicly available version of macOS 15.2 has introduced changes that prevent certain third-party apps (apps not developed by Apple or a company directly affiliated with Apple), such as SuperDuper!of creating bootable backups.
A bootable backup is a complete copy of your system’s hard drive on a separate, external hard drive, which can be used to load the operating system if the main hard drive becomes damaged. Essentially, it’s a way to ensure that you can boot your computer and have your files and data available in the event of an internal PC failure or system damage.
SuperDuper! is a macOS backup and disk copy app developed by Shirt Pocket Software that lets you create (generally) bootable backups of your Mac’s hard drive. The developer, Dave Nanian, described in a recent blog post that Apple’s release of macOS Sequoia 15.2 changed a feature called Replicator (which Apple controls and SuperDuper relies on), leading to unwanted consequences for the SuperDuper! App. Alas, SuperDuper! now fails during the final stages when trying to backup a Mac.
In an understandably frustrated and disappointed tone, Nanian writes: “This new bug means there is no fix on most systems. It just fails.”
While it looks like you can still back up your files and data, like photos and documents, with SuperDuper!, if you want to copy the entire macOS drive yourself, you’ll likely run the command yourself so you can quickly can boot from an external drive. in trouble with Sequoia 15.2.
What this means for Mac users in the future
Apple has notoriously made it more difficult to create bootable backups in recent years, due to privacy and security concerns. With macOS Sequoia 15.2, this may not just be a bug, but a conscious move to phase out third-party tools for this purpose altogether. This would be quite characteristic of Apple, which has a habit of keeping a close eye on how macOS is installed and configured on its devices.
This means that if you want to backup your Mac (which I recommend from personal experience before your internal drive fails), you’ll need to use Time Machine. Time Machine is Apple’s own built-in backup feature that backs up your files, including apps, music, photos, email, and documents, so you can restore your Mac to a previous state if necessary.
However, Nanian does reference the founder of another popular third-party Mac backup tool, Carbon Copy clonerwho warned that newer Apple Silicon Macs have a security feature called Signed System Volume (SSV) that could make it more difficult to reliably back up macOS installations. If the SSV becomes corrupted, your Mac will not boot even if you have an external bootable drive ready, limiting users’ ability to quickly restore their Macs.
Hope for the Future (If Apple Will Listen)
Nanian expresses hope that Apple will fix this Replicator-related issue in a future update, but since it’s the holidays and almost the end of the year, that will likely be after that. However, AppleInsider speculates that this is Apple’s way of exerting control and permanently closing the door on third-party bootable backups. This is disappointing to me because I’ve personally made multiple Time Machine backups of a macOS drive in the past, but none of them worked, and I had to rely on a third-party app to restore my files.
Backing up your data is very important, and if you rely on external hard drives as a safety net, you may need to seriously reconsider your backup strategy. Apple itself does not recommend using a bootable drive as a general backup method.
I understand that privacy and security are priorities for people, but not losing all your data and files is also a pretty big concern for many. I hope Apple makes Time Machine a consistently reliable backup feature, or allows third-party apps to create bootable drives again. Apple may not like it, but it’s the right thing to do for its customers.