Securely Create A Bootable Backup for Mac Using DoYourClone

Time Machine can help in doing basic backups and Disk Utility can clone disk using Restore To/Restore From function. However, both of them can not create bootable backups.

There are many reasons for wanting to boot from an external hard drive. For example, when you send an old Mac to repair and you want to continue your work, you can boot all your data from the external hard drive and continue your work.

How to create a bootable clone backup for Mac? Just try disk cloning application - the easiest method to create a bootable backup for Mac. In this article, we will show you to create a bootable backup using DoYourClone for Mac - a powerful and easy-to-use disk cloning application.

Steps to Create Bootable Backup with DoYourClone for Mac

To clone macOS or OS X to an external hard drive, just download and install DoYourClone for Mac on your computer. Then open it and connect the external hard drive to your Mac.

Step 1. Open DoYourClone for Mac, select disk clone mode - Clone OS and select the external hard drive as the destination drive.

Step 2. Click on Clone Now button to securely clone Mac startup disk to the destination drive.

Once the process gets finished, you will get a bootable external disk and can use it on any Mac.

How to set Mac startup disk?

Just connect the external hard drive to your Mac, then you can set it as the startup disk. It means you can boot macOS from the external hard drive backup. Follow the guide below to set startup disk on Mac.

For Intel-chip Mac:

Step 1. Just restart your Mac or press Power button to start your Mac.

Step 2. Immediately press and hold the Option (Alt) key until you see the Apple logo.

Step 3. Use the Left and Right arrow keys (or the trackpad or mouse if you can move the cursor around) to select the drive you want to boot from. Then, press Enter or select the Up icon.

(If your Intel Mac uses an Apple T2 Security Chip, you won’t be able to boot from an external drive unless you modify your security settings via macOS Recovery.)

For Apple Silicon chip Mac:

Step 1. Turn off your Mac.

Step 2. Press and hold the Power button.

Step 3. Keep holding until you see Loading startup options.

Step 4. Wait for the Startup Options screen to appear.

Step 5. Use the Left and Right arrow keys (or the trackpad or mouse if you can move the cursor around) to select a drive. Then, press Enter or select Continue to boot from it.

Just set the external hard drive as the startup disk. Then you will boot macOS from the external hard drive, then you can continue your work or restore lost documents.

You also can enter macOS Recovery mode to restore OS using the external hard drive backup.