Set up CloudBak

Updated

The first time you open CloudBak, setup walks you through six steps. Nothing is copied until you click Finish Setup.

The steps

  1. Welcome. Click Get Started.
  2. iCloud Drive Access. Click Choose iCloud Drive…. In the window that opens, make sure iCloud Drive is selected in the sidebar, then click Grant Access. CloudBak starts counting the files in iCloud Drive. If you keep Desktop and Documents in iCloud, or use apps like Pages, grant those folders here too. See Give CloudBak access to your folders.
  3. Destination. Choose where backups go. Use Connect to Server for a NAS, or Choose a Folder for a drive connected to your Mac or a share already connected in Finder. CloudBak tests the folder before you can continue. See Connect to your NAS or Back up to a drive or a share connected in Finder.
  4. Space on This Mac. Choose how much space a backup may use on your Mac for files it downloads from iCloud. See Disk space on your Mac during a backup.
  5. What to Back Up. Everything in iCloud Drive is included. Turn off any folder you don't need, and add names to Always skip for files and folders that should never be backed up.
  6. Schedule & Review. Choose when backups run and whether to keep an archive of deleted and changed files. Check the Summary, then click Finish Setup.

The Summary includes an estimate of how long the first backup takes. The first backup takes the longest. After that, only new and changed files are copied.

If iCloud Drive isn't turned on

Setup says so in step 2. Turn on iCloud Drive in System Settings › Apple Account › iCloud, or click Open iCloud Settings, then come back to CloudBak.

Changing your choices later

You don't need to run setup again to change something:

  • Settings › iCloud Drive for Desktop, Documents and app folders.
  • Settings › Storage for the space backups use on your Mac.
  • Settings › Schedule for when backups run.
  • Selection in the sidebar for what's backed up.
  • Destination in the sidebar for where backups go, and for the archive.

To go through every step again, choose Settings › General, then Run Setup Again…. Your current choices are kept as a starting point. The button is dimmed while a backup is running.