If you store large video files on your Mac, Time Machine will need to work really hard to back up and encrypt all that data. Click on File, select Get Info, and go to the Format section. ⇒ Tip: To check your disk format, launch Finder, and then select your backup disk.

To speed up Time Machine in general, you can run the following Terminal command: sudo sysctl debug.lowpri_throttle_enabled=0 Keep in mind that the first backup usually takes longer to complete. Then, set up Time Machine to use that backup disk again. Of course, this means deleting all the data stored on that disk. Don’t forget to check if your machine is compatible with Big Sur before hitting the Update button.īy the way, if you’re backing up your data to the same disk but you’re not using the APFS format, you need to erase your backup disk first. Unfortunately, Big Sur is not supported on all macOS devices. If you’re not running Big Sur yet on your MacBook, go to System Preferences, click on Software Update, and check for updates. How to Fix Extremely Slow Backup Encryption on Time Machine Install the Latest macOS VersionĪs Apple explains, installing Big Sur can help you improve Time Machine performance on APFS-formatted backup disks. If you want to speed it up, follow the steps below. Well, if you’re using an external HDD, the encryption process is going to take weeks to complete. For example, encrypting a 4TB drive can take days. Unfortunately, many macOS users complained about Time Machine taking an awful lot of time to encrypt backup data. The good news is that subsequent backups should complete much faster. Time Machine needs quite a lot of time to encrypt your first backup.

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