Error -61 (writing denied) when trying to create backup set

[angianny]

I KNOW I screwed up & named the external drive as location for the backup set. Tried to re-format external drive, but continue to get same error message. PLEEEEEEEEEZE help me!

[twickland]

An external drive can make a perfectly serviceable destination for a backup set. However, your post may win the record for containing the least amount of information about your problem.

 

If we're to be able to help you, please tell us:

 

• What version of Retrospect you're using and any driver updates (RDUs) you've installed.
• What hardware you're using and what OS version you're running.
• What type of backup set you were trying to create (File, Removable Disk, etc.).
• Whether you have had any success creating and writing to any other backup sets.

 

[angianny]

LOL Ya mean you can't read my mind? (I thot the error # would tell you that you couldn't help me.) Ok: Retrospect 6.1, no driver updates -not sure what that is. Running on a Mac Mini, OS 10.3.9.

 

Pretty sure I listed an Removable Disk, i.e.: Iomega 1 TeraByte Prestige USB 2.0 Desktop hard drive. I partitioned it with one section with 22GB, remainder as Untitled 2. Trying to back up entire hard drive (40GB capacity, 22 used), so I can go get a new Mini. This one needs a tech doctor, but I wanted to back it up before I take it to the Mac Hospital. I thot I read in the Retrosp. online manual that you CAN'T list the destination hard drive as the backup set, which is what I did. It HAD begun to back up the hard drive, but ran out of space- said it had 12GB more to back up. By then I'd read (silly notion) the manual, so I ERASED the external drive again, & partitioned it with 2 parts: 1st with 65GB -named that a HardDrive backup, & left the rest as Untitled 2. THEN, I started all over, & tried to create a backup set, using the Retrospect Folder as the location. That's when I get the error -61. I read this is an OS error, not a Retrosp. error. Can you still solve this problem??? Enuff info now? ha

Edited April 19, 2010 by Guest

[rhwalker]

Well, you've got at least several problems that I can identify.

 

(1) You still haven't told us what version of Retrospect 6.1 you are running. There were many updates provided over the years, and yes, they did fix bugs. The point of this inquiry (to get you to provide the exact version, Retrospect 6.1.x) is to find out whether you are running an older version that has a known bug that was fixed by a subsequent update. Can't help you if you don't provide that information.

 

(2) You indicate that you aren't running any Retrospect Driver Updates ("RDU") or the version of RDU (again, x.x.x.x). That information is printed out in the Retrospect log every time Retrospect is started. The reason for this inquiry is that bug fixes are often distributed through the RDU, rather than through a new Retrospect version.

 

FYI, the updates (Retrospect and RDU) are available here:

Retrospect 6.1 for Macintosh updates

 

And older RDU versions are available here:

RDU version history

 

(3) You indicate that the whole purpose of this exercise (making a copy of your hard drive) is so that you can get a "new Mini". Any "new Mini" that you purchase now will have Mac OS 10.6.x (Snow Leopard), and Retrospect 6.1.x is incompatible with Snow Leopard. See the Snow Leopard Compatibility Statement.

 

So, you will not be able to use Retrospect 6.1.x (which you have, some unknown version) to retrieve your hard drive data onto the "new Mini".

 

(4) And you won't be able to purchase the updated version of Retrospect (Retrospect 8.1.626, at last check), which does work with Snow Leopard, to restore your backup data made with whatever version of Retrospect 6.1 that you have, because Retrospect 8.1.x cannot read backup sets made by any earlier version of Retrospect. See the Retrospect 8.1 Read Me:

 

Known issues with this release

 

Retrospect 8.1 cannot import configurations or read Backup Sets from versions 6.x or earlier.

I'm just trying to save you some time and frustration.

 

For what you are trying to do, namely, make a clone of your current Mini so that you can move necessary files to your "new" Mini, rather than do a backup, I would suggest, instead, that you use the freeware/shareware SuperDuper! program:

SuperDuper!, which works with 10.3.9 and with Snow Leopard (10.6.x).

 

Then, after you have a clone of your old drive, use Apple's Migration Assistant to move the necessary stuff over to your new computer.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Russ