Recovering disks and volumes by using bootable media

For information about how to create bootable media, refer to Creating bootable media.

To recover disks or volumes by using bootable media

  1. Boot the target machine by using bootable media.

  2. [For macOS only] If you are recovering APFS-formatted volumes to a non-original machine or to bare metal, re-create the original disk configuration manually:

    1. Click Disk Utility.
    2. Re-create the original disk configuration. For instructions, refer to https://support.apple.com/guide/disk-utility/welcome.
    3. Click Disk Utility > Quit Disk Utility.

    Starting with macOS 11 Big Sur, the System volume cannot be backed up and recovered. To recover a bootable macOS system, you need to recover the Data volume, and then to install macOS on it.

  3. Click Manage this machine locally or click Rescue Bootable Media twice, depending on the media type you are using.
  4. If a proxy server is enabled in your network, click Tools > Proxy server, and then specify the proxy server host name/IP address and port. Otherwise, skip this step.
  5. On the welcome screen, click Recover.
  6. Click Select data, and then click Browse.

  1. Specify the backup location:

    • To recover from cloud storage, select Cloud storage. Enter the credentials of the account to which the backed up machine is assigned.
    • To recover from a local or a network folder, browse to the folder under Local folders or Network folders.

    Click OK to confirm your selection.

  1. Select the backup from which you want to recover the data. If prompted, type the password for the backup.

  2. In Backup contents, select Disks or Volumes, and then select the items that you want to recover. Click OK to confirm your selection.

    If the backed-up machine has dynamic disks or logical volumes (LVM), select Volumes.

  3. Under Where to recover, the software automatically maps the selected disks to the target disks.

    If the mapping is not successful or if you are unsatisfied with the mapping result, you can re-map disks manually.

    Changing disk layout may affect the operating system bootability. Please use the original machine's disk layout unless you feel fully confident of success.

  4. [For macOS only] To recover an APFS-formatted Data volume as a bootable macOS system, in the macOS Installation section, keep the check box Install macOS on the recovered macOS Data volume selected.

    After the recovery, the system reboots and the macOS installation starts automatically. You need an Internet connection for the installer to download the necessary files.

    If you do not need to recover the APFS-formatted Data volume as a bootable system, clear the Install macOS on the recovered macOS Data volume check box. You can still make this volume bootable later, by installing macOS on it manually.

  5. [For Linux only] If the backed-up machine has logical volumes (LVM) and you want to reproduce the original LVM structure:

    1. Ensure that the number of the target machine disks and each disk capacity are equal to or exceed those of the original machine, and then click Apply RAID/LVM.
    2. Review the volume structure, and then click Apply RAID/LVM to create it.
    3. Confirm your choice.
  6. [Optional] Click Recovery options to specify additional settings.
  7. Click OK to start the recovery.