The thing that makes cloning different is that you can create a bootable copy of your entire hard drive, which means you can access everything on one Mac through another simply by exporting it to an external drive, connecting the drive to the other Mac, and then selecting it from the Startup menu. Local backups through Time Machine, cloud-based backups, and clones all serve a great purpose to keep your data safe in case of an unfortunate even that renders your Mac useless (even temporarily). The difference between cloning and using Time Machine Here, we're going to explain how to clone your Mac using a program like SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner. Another is by backing up your data via a cloud-based service, like Backblaze or CrashPlan.

One of the easiest methods is locally, using Time Machine. There is nothing more important than backing up your computer in case an unfortunate event happens so you don't lose your precious data. Whether you do so locally using Time Machine, sending it to a cloud service, or installing a duplicate creation program (or all three). It is vitally important that you back up your Mac.