Time Machine - does it REALLY restore your Apps?

[jpmason]

Considering updating my 24inch iMac and looking at all of the Apps I have and wondering.....will Time Machine really restore all my Apps (data isn't the issue here) like Apple claim?...and will this include all of the associated passwords / authorisation codes etc...or...as feels more likely, will I have to restore all my Apps from DVDs, software downloads etc?

DP and MachFive etc aren't too much of a problem, but BFD and the likes can be a right pain, and it does take a little of the shine off getting a new piece of kit!

Has anybody actually FULLY restored Apps from Time Machine or have you all been CarbonCloning etc. to dodge this potential issue?

Thanks in advance

[rodger1811]

Yep! It FULLY restored everything for me. I've used it to perform a total restore when I've changed out my main HD to a larger one. Worked flawlessly!

[Dan Walsh]

+1. Never had any probs with TM at all.

[leigh]

It really does. It restored every app to my reformatted laptop disk and with DP, all I had to do is insert the installer disk and re-enter my name and keycode and I was back in business.

And it's saved me many times when I've accidentally deleted some important file, including system files in /etc and /usr.

**Leigh

[FMiguelez]

.

Time Machine works beautifully.
But if the machine I need to restore were my main production computer, I'd rather use my latest CCC clone instead (sector-by-sector).

iLok-protected stuff gets restored transparently. These apps will be recognized instantly, ready to use.

Challenge/response, or other methods will most likely require you to reenter your key codes, etc., just like DP will. But that's easy enough to do.

[jpmason]

Thanks guys...I can sleep more peacefully now and FULLY enjoy my trip to the Mac store.

To be fair, I have been using Time Machine to back up regularly ever since it arrived, but apart from rescuing the odd file, I have never had to use it "in anger"....thank goodness...and long may it remain so.....

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Well, here's the deal... it WILL restore you apps and it WILL restore your OS when starting from an OS INSTALL disc after a complete system failure or migration.

DO NOT use that method to restore or migrate (via Migrate Assistant) if your system may have had some problems - especially permission and directory issues. Doing so will copy the errant permissions and possibly other issues and simply restore the problem. This is from the upper level Apple tech guys after I suffered such a catastrophe about 16 months ago. Dragging stuff from Time Machine after installing a clean OS is the way to go every time in such a scenario.

Otherwise, I use Time Machine at least once every week or two to recover something from either a few months, a day or two, or a year or more past the files absence. Brilliant software!

[mikehalloran]

To be clear, the apps will be restored but some apps, such as DP, will need to be re-authorized via the internet or with the original install disk (DP).

iLOK protected applications will not require additional authorization.