Issues with Time Machine - new backup must be created

[mybookW2]

I seem to suffer this issue too

[Tronster]

Im having the same with tim Machine backups

Mac 10.7.2

MyBookLive 02.10.09-124 : Core F/W

Had no problems on the version befor this update then now every 2-3 days fails the backup and wants to start again.

WD you need to fix this , as the update befre 20.10.09 was 100% ok for me, what have you broke@!!!

[KC5MZR]

I'm having these issues also,  a backuo seems to last a week or two.   Then it shows as corrupted and I have to do a full backup and loose all the history.

Mac OS X 10.7.2  MyBookLive 02.10.09-124 : Core F/W

The TM backups have been very unreliabe since the upgrade to lion.

[RichardLive]

I have another clue to the theory that it is the FW 02.10.09-124 to blame:

Time Machine backup used to work perfectly for months with my MBA with Snow-Leopard and a previous MBL FW version. The I purchased a second Mac, now an iMac with Lion. Due to this I had to upgrade to FW 02.10.09-124. From that moment on, both Macs, even the MBA with Lion report this verification error message.

So from the MBA point of view there was no change but the FW version of the MBL.

WD should be able to narrow down this problem as it is quite obvious, and reproducible.

Does anybody know wheter WD is working on this?

Does anybody observe a slow down of the backup for large initial backups, starting fast, but getting slower and slower?

[sbeattie2]

Richard - this thread was reporting the problem well prior to the 02.10.09-124 firmware upgrade.  I am not sure at what firmware version this thread started.

All of my Macs are on Lion 10.7.2 - and I have not ever had this particular problem, but I do notice the following behavior with the time Machine backups (and I have several MyBook Live drives - and the behavior is identical on all.

Basically - the Time Machine hourly backups will complete normally - if they run at least once daily.  The TimeMachine backup seems to take an unusally long time to mount the drive when the backup start - well beyond the 15 or so seconds it normally takes for the drive to spin up fully from sleep.  However, if I add a lot of files to the mac such as installing new software or copying a huge folder of files onto the Mac - after about 10 minutes into the backup - the backup starts to slow to a crawl - almost appearing to come to a complete stop - and then seems to keep moving - but at a very slow pace.  On some occasions the backup simply stops and gets hung up.

The slowdown/stalling of the backup occurs mostly with a wireless connection - but also happens on a wired connection on occasion.  I have never been able to complete a full backup of any of my Macs - wirelessly - regardless of which of my three access points I choose to connect to - the behavior is the same.  I have Wireless N 5Ghz, Wireless N 2.4Ghz, and two 54G access points at 2.4GHz.

I do not see this behavior when I back up wirelessly to an Apple TimeCapsule.  There should not be a need to do a full backup via a wired vs wireless connection.  Depending on the type of wireless connection - the backup may complete much slower than via an ethernet cable - however - it should move along at a pace consistent with the type of wireless connection in use - and this does not appear to be happening.

I am sure that WD is working on this.

~Scott

[TimeRider]

If WD is working on it, they should announce it instead of wasting our time in a hard attempt in resolving the problem.  

I have a MacBook Pro and a MacBook Air.  

MBP can create a new Time Machine backup in 26 hours over WiFi (too long) or 8 hours over Gigabit Ethernet.  So I can start at evening then grab and go the next morning.

MBA has WiFi and a USB Ethernet.  Creation of a new backup is so painfully slow!  I'm considering to do a new back up of the MBA onto a USB harddrive and connect the USB harddrive to the router which connects the MBL.  Disastrous and still impractical, because the new backup must be created EVERY OTHER DAY!

[TimeRider]

Tony, you said " It may have something to do with your wireless connection causing the issue. "  I cannot agree.

I moved from My Book World Edition (White Light) to My Book Live 3TB.  Other things being the same!  No such problem on MBW, but this problem happen on the third day after migration.  It happens on both MacBook Pro and MacBook Air.

Three issues I suspect:

1.  The MBL energy saving.  Time Machine does backup every hour, but MBL sleeps only after a few minutes of no activity.  When TM starts backup, TM just return no available.

2.  Router.  In MacWorld UK (http://www.macworld.co.uk/digitallifestyle/reviews/?reviewid=3316285&sw) the backup speed is summit at 28 MB/s.  Mine was only 5 MB/s on Gigabit Ethernet.  I'm using Belkin Play Max.  Any settings problem, I can't be sure.

3. OS X 10.7.2 Time Machine software problem.  Initial backup was created successfully but later failed in the verification process after a day or two.  During the day or two, there were hourly backups.  If they failed, I would be notified.  

I tried Wireless N 2.8 GHz and 5 GHz, 20/40 MHz on channels with +/- two without interference.  

Is WD working on the fix?

[revans]

I am getting the same problem weekly with Lion using MBW Firnware 01.02.12 with MioNet 4.3.1.13. This is rendering the backups entirely useless. Is WD working on this? Do you need further information - log extracts for example - to help resolve? 

[Sombrero]

I'm having the same problems with my iMac and Lion. I suppose this is a bug in the Netatalk open-source implementation of the AppleTalk protocol. WD relies on this library and in the past often WD firmware updates were published when a new version of Netatalk has been released that fixed several TimeMachine-related issues (such as the general MacOSX Lion TimeMachine compatibility with your device).

@WD Staff: Do you use the most recent version of Netatalk for the current WD Live etc. firmwares? Or should we issue a bug in the Netatalk bug tracker for that? Or have you located the bug by yourself ? Many users are reporting this issue. Thanks, Sombrero

[Giray]

This thread is now 4 months old. I don't know about the rest of you, but I find four months to be of geological proportions when it comes to modern day debugging. Clearly, we are not a priority or we are being considered marginal or even maybe irrational. The point is that there are evidently many expert users who are suffering the same issue. What is most lame is that many of us, perhaps most of us, bought this unit precisely because of its Time Machine claims. I for one would gladly accept a refund for the unit. It is sitting on the shelf, green light flashing, awaiting that fateful day when WD deems it useful to communicate their finding or, as an alternate, their inability to find the problem. Speak up WD, we're listening.

Respectfully,

A mere client.