CopyCatX 4.0 (Universal Binary)

Create exact duplicates of your hard drive, Apple iPod, or Mac OS X startup drive. CopyCatX is the fastest way to duplicate devices in most formats on your Apple Macintosh computer.

The fastest software duplication system for Mac OS X. CopyCatX is extremely fast. It works on drives that other systems cannot recover by using our proprietary resumable/fault tolerant algorithms.

Backups include every single detail of the original including permissions, icons, placement, and content.

Free e-Mail Technical Support


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Duplicate your boot drive.

Lightning fast backup and restore.

Automatic block matching for damaged media (such as scratched data CDs or physically damaged hard drives).

Blessed is the pessimist - for they have a backup

Use CopyCatX to create backups of all your disks.

Unlike most backup programs which copy file-by-file, CopyCatX utilizes a method called device copying. Device copying enables you to retain every detail of the original volume. It's a lot faster than the traditional method of backing up file-by-file. When duplicating a volume, CopyCatX is smart enough to skip all the blank space of a drive during the copying process to further improve the speed.

 

Built to be tough - CopyCatX can create disk images from damaged media using a proprietary algorithm to work around media faults. Even when the drive is so sick it can't all be done in one pass. Use the resume function to carry on when the drive has cooled.

Built for speed - Our tests show CopyCatX to be the fastest software drive duplication system for Mac OS X.

Built for simplicity - CopyCatX is designed to get you doing what you want to as easily as possible. Most functions can be started with just a few clicks of the mouse.

Built for Mac OS X - Designed specifically for Apple Mac OS X 10.3 or higher.

CopyCatX can copy all the contents of your old iPod to a newer larger iPod

CopyCatX is intended to be used on random access devices such as hard drives, CDs, DVDs, iPods, and flash media.

Easy-to-use interface simplifies the duplication process to a few clicks.

Extremely fast duplication using low level copying.

Perfect clone of device retains every detail of the original drive or volume.

Duplicate volume or device to disk image.

Cross Platform Device Copy allows Microsoft Windows, Tivo, and Linux drives to be cloned using a Mac.

Proprietary resizing technology to regain lost space after a volume copy.

1: Introduction - About CopyCatX

What is CopyCatX?

CopyCatX is an extremely powerful Macintosh application for data backup, recovery and restoration in Mac OS X.  The software is designed to be able to:

• Backup and restore a volume.
• Duplicate a device or volume to a disk image or other devices.
• Recover to an image the contents of a faulty device or media.

CopyCatX is device and file system independent application, which means that the user can create disk images from any normal Mac OS hard drive, Windows or Linux device. It can also recover data from a faulty device or scratched CD, and almost any other media or file system that can be recognized in Mac OS X.

Despite its advanced features and high-performance, CopyCatX is very straightforward to handle. The easy-to-use interface is designed with any level of OS X user in mind and is highly accessible to all with, at its core, the entire application being designed to be able to complete any task within just a few clicks.

 

CopyCatX Features

Written specifically for Mac OS X, CopyCatX includes powerful features that give the user greater control and flexibility in backup, restore, recovery and the duplication of data:

Safety first - CopyCatX will never write to the device being duplicated. This makes the software “risk-free”. Instead it simply reads the device, block-by-block, using the fastest means possible to copy the data to any given destination.

Backup and restore – CopyCatX can be used to backup or restore a device, to or from any readable.  With just a few clicks a device can be backed up or restored, making the task of securing data an easy one.

Multi-volume output - CopyCatX can output to up to 15 devices at a time.  This is useful for lab deployment of a single system, allowing the user to make multiple copies of either a single device or volume.

Duplicate Windows – CopyCatX has the ability to duplicate a single Windows volume, which can then be mounted and restored back at a later date.  This is exceedingly useful for BootCamp users on Intel-based Macintosh systems.

Faulty hardware - CopyCatX also has the ability to recover data from mechanically unsound devices or scratched media. The software uses proprietary methods to securely read the data, automatically skipping areas of the file system that are unreadable. As a result, by employing these methods, CopyCatX is able to recover data from sources that other software would be completely unable.

Optimized for Intel – The latest version of CopyCatX not only has been optimized to run with Intel-based Apple Macs but now comes with a dual boot CD, making the entire process of backup, recovery and duplication a much simpler one.

 

 Contacting SubRosaSoft, Inc.

Comments & Questions

If you have comments, problems, or questions about this product, or if you are interested in a site license, please contact us via email: info@subrosasoft.com. For information regarding technical help, please refer to “Finding Help…” at the end of Chapter 3.

 

2: Using CopyCatX - Understanding the Core Functions

System Requirements

CopyCatX is programmed to run on the following minimum specification:

• Apple Macintosh CPU (Intel or PowerPC), that is capable of running
• Mac OS X (version 10.3 or above), with at least
• 256MB of RAM
• Hard Disk
• CD/DVD-ROM Drive (for CD Installation or Boot CD)
  

The Main Window – An Overview

Immediately after start-up, the user will be presented with the CopyCatX splash screen. Once this has disappeared, he or she will then be taken to the ‘Main Window’.

The Main Window is the starting point for performing any task and provides the user with access to the 3 core areas of functionality: ‘Backup/Restore; ‘Duplicate; and ‘Recover’.

The Layout

The layout of the window is effectively divided into 3 sections:

The first part is the ‘Welcome Message’ message that includes the Show Help … button providing the user with access to the relevant help pages online at http://www.subrosasoft.com/. The second is the ‘Tasks’ section that is grouped into the three core areas of functionality mentioned above, each with large icon, description, device/volume drop down list and function access button.

The third and final part is simply the progress bar at the bottom of the window, which is invoked when performing such tasks as rescanning the hardware bus.

Rescanning for a Device

If a device has been attached to the host computer after CopyCatX has been started and the Main Window reached, it may or may not appear automatically in the available drop down menus alongside each task in the Main Window. If this is the case, then simply select “Rescan” from the File drop menu and CopyCatX will be forced to search for all available Devices and Volumes, including Devices that cannot be mounted; alternatively use the keyboard shortcut: [apple key] + [r]. 

Bus rescanning can be performed at any moment whilst using CopyCatX.  Whether a user is looking at the Main Window, Backup/Restore window, Duplicate window or Recover window, this option is always available in the File drop menu.

Attaching a Disk Image to Restore

When restoring from a disk image, it is possible to use CopyCatX to mount the image rather than to have to use another application or to return to the Finder. The added benefit of this is that CopyCatX also provides the user with a wider array of compatibility with disk image types rather than relying on the underlying ability of Mac OS X. 

To attach an image, select “Attach Disk Image” from the File drop menu and an “Open” dialog box will come forward. Having found the image, select it and click Open, CopyCatX will then read and mount the volume on the computer’s Desktop and make it available within the application itself.

Alternatively the user can attach an image with the keyboard shortcut: [apple key] + [t], which brings up the “Open” dialog box.

 

Using Backup/Restore

Backup/Restore is a quick and easy way by which to make a disk image of a working volume to a backup device, which then can be used at a later date to make a full restore from the image on the backup device to the working volume, or an equivalent replacement.

The ‘Backup’ process copies all of the information from the source volume to a disk image for archival purpose, retaining every detail of the original volume. During the backup, CopyCatX skips all the blank space of a drive to improve the copying speed and to save on required storage space for the disk image.

Starting Backup/Restore

To start the ‘Backup/Restore’ process, the user must select the desired volume from the drop list within the ‘Backup or restore a volume’ section of the Main Window and then press Backup/Restore.  This will bring the ‘Backup/Restore’ task window to the fore, allowing the user to make the necessary changes to settings prior to performing the task.

Performing a Backup

When accessing the ‘Backup/Restore’ window, the presets default to that which is required for a backup to a disk image.  In order to start the backup of the volume selected prior to opening the task window, the user simply needs to click Start.  This will bring forward a save dialog box, into which the user can rename the backup file and provide a location to which to save the backup disk image.

Performing a Restore

Having accessed the ‘Backup/Restore’ window, the user will have to change the function settings so that rather than having the Device icon as the backup option, the respective icon should be represented on the right hand-side of the green arrow, above the word “Restore”.  By simply selecting the alternate radio button below the green arrow the function will change and the icons swap.  Once this is done, clicking Start will bring an ‘Open’ dialog box to the fore, with which the user should select a source disk image to restore the volume/device from.

 

Using Duplicate

‘Duplicate’ is useful for making individual or multiple clones of a device, and is the fastest way to make a direct copy of a device, to a single disk image or multiple devices.

CopyCatX’s duplication function copies all of the information from the source volume or disk to the destination.  Unlike most backup programs, which copy file-by-file, CopyCatX utilizes a method called ‘Sector Copying’, which enables the user to retain every detail of the original volume. ‘Sector Copying’ is also a lot faster than the traditional method of backing up. CopyCatX also benefits vastly from its ability to skip unused data blocks.

For the duplication of a volume, CopyCatX first creates an identical copy of the original volume on the destination device and then applies a proprietary resizing technology to expand the partition’s size to the maximum available, so no space is wasted on the new larger device.

Starting Duplicate

To start the ‘Duplicate’ function, the user must select the desired volume or device for cloning from the drop list from within the ‘Duplicate a volume or device’ section of the Main Window and then press Duplicate.  This will bring the ‘Duplicate’ task window to the fore and allow the user to select the target location(s) to which to clone the selected volume or device.

Making a Single or Multiple Clones

Once at the ‘Duplicate’ task window, the user will be provided with a list of available locations into and onto which to duplicate the selected device or volume.  To make a single disk image clone, select “New Disk Image” from the available list items and click Start. Otherwise, to clone the previously selected item to a single or multiple devices, the user must check each destination off in turn on the device list, marking with a tick, the check box to the right hand side of each available device. Once ready, the user should simply click Start.

 

Using Recover

The ‘Recover’ function is designed for use with faulty devices.  It should be used to recover data to a single disk image of the respective device.  The recovery process uses fault-tolerant and proprietary means by which to complete its task and should the process of recovery not be completed in a single pass, for whatever reason, it is possible to restart the process, without having to start over from scratch.

Starting Recover

To start ‘Recover’, the user must select the faulty device/volume from the drop list from within the ‘Recover faulty media’ section of the Main Window and then press Recover.  This will bring the ‘Recover’ window to the fore.

Recovering Data

Once at the ‘Recover’ window, the user is given 2 options regarding the recovery process:

The first pertains to the segment size.  This allows the user to break the data into small bits for easier storage (e.g. for writing to CD-R or DVD-R), available sizes include, but are not limited to:

• 74 min CD-R
• 80 min CD-R
• DVD-/+R
• DVD+R DL
• Full Size

The second is the option to resume a previously failed recovery. Checking the box will cause CopyCatX to bring up an ‘Open’ dialog box rather than a ‘Save’ dialog box when the user clicks Start.

As CopyCatX processes the device, recovering data as it goes, the user is provided with progress stats, followed by a final confirmation once the process is completed.

 

3: Getting Started - The Basics of CopyCatX

Registration Number

Each user is required to have a registration number, otherwise known as a serial number, in order to complete the full version installation of the software properly.  Whether the software has been purchased online or through a third party retail channel, the user needs the registration number to hand when preparing for installation of the software.

Online Purchase

When purchasing the software online at: http://www.subrosasoft.com/ the registration number is automatically emailed as part of the purchase confirmation.  If a confirmation email is not received, please ensure that it has not mistakenly been placed in the email client’s junk folder before requesting technical support.  Having received the email, please make a print out and store this in a safe and secure place for future reference.

Retail Purchase

If the software was purchased through a retail channel, the registration number should be inside the case right next to the CD (or attached to the upper right hand corner of the jewel case).  Please be sure to keep these details in a safe and secure place.

No Registration Number - Demo Mode

Without a registration number it is only possible to start using a version of CopyCatX with limited functionality. In Demo Mode the user will be able perform only limited functionality. To register the software from demo mode, purchase a the software online or via a retail channel, and then simply select “Register” from the CopyCatX drop menu and enter a valid registration number in the dialog screen.

Updates and Upgrades

A single registration number is valid for incremental updates to the purchased version of CopyCatX.  When upgrading between versions the purchase of a new registration number will be required. For information on upgrades, please email sales@subrosasoft.com.

Lost Registration Numbers

Please ensure that you keep your registration number in a safe and secure place. Print off confirmation emails, or back them up. Store CD/CD jewel cases in a secure place. SubRosaSoft Inc. cannot guarantee the ability to re-issue serial numbers for our users.

Site Licenses

Site Licences can be purchased online via http://www.subrosasoft.com/. For volume discounts please contact us directly via email: sales@subrosasoft.com.

Obtaining the Latest Version

Downloading from the Web Site

It is a must for any user to ensure that they have the latest version of the CopyCatX software. The latest version is always freely available for download on our web site at: http://www.subrosasoft.com/

A download link, alongside version information, is accessible on the product page of the site.  Simply click the respective link and a compressed archive file will automatically begin to download to the desktop, or another specified download location.

CopyCatX versions are distributed in a ZIP archive format and can be decompressed in the Mac OS Finder with a simple double-click of file icon.  This will place the decompressed application file in the same location as the original ZIP archive, most likely the desktop.

Having decompressed the application, we strongly recommend that this copy of CopyCatX then be moved to Applications folder and the original ZIP archive file be placed in the Trash for deletion.

Using WebCheck

CopyCatX has an in-built web-enabled version checker.  This is invoked at application start-up and will make a single web request for a text file, stored on SubRosaSoft’s servers, that contains the most up-to-date version number of the software.  This is solely for the purpose of comparison with the version on CopyCatX’s host computer.  At no point does SubRosaSoft collect any identifying information and the request to our servers is no different from making a similar request in your web browser, and browsing our web site. 

When CopyCatX determines the version of the software to be out-of-date, the user will be prompted to download a newer version of the software by a dialog box that will come to the fore. Of course, should the user not wish to update at that point in time he or she can cancel the prompt, and review the update again next time CopyCatX is started.

If the user prefers to disable this functionality, and ignore update requests, he or she should simply select “Disable WebCheck” from the File drop menu.

 

 Installing & Updating CopyCatX

Prior to starting installation or updates and upgrades to CopyCatX, the user should ensure that he or she has logged into OSX with administrative capabilities.  When preparing to install the necessary files, CopyCatX will prompt the user for the admin password. If a valid password is not entered, the installation will be unable to proceed and CopyCatX will quit when Cancel is clicked.

Installing From the CD-ROM

Once the CD has mounted on the user’s desktop and the CD volume has been opened into a window, the user should see a folder named “Applications”.  To install CopyCatX to the host computer, open the said folder and drag & drop CopyCatX to any desired location on the new host computer, though we strongly recommend placing it in the host computer’s “Applications” folder. Having done this the user is ready for the initial setup.

Installing or Updating via Download

Once the software has been downloaded from the site and decompressed, the user should simply drag & drop CopyCatX into the Applications folder, or to the previously selected desired location.  If prompted to replace the existing version of the file, click Replace. When updating to the latest version, the user may be prompted with an install dialog window after application start-up. If so, click the Install button and proceed as usual.

Initial Setup

The first time the application is launched the user will be asked accept the End User License Agreement (EULA – see Appendix C) and then to enter his or her email address (optional) along with a valid registration number. 

Having done this the user will be asked once more if they wish to accept the installation of files to the host computer. Simply click Yes to accept and finalize the process, at which point the admin user password will be requested. Once correctly entered, a progress bar will run marking the progress of the installation of files. When the necessary files have been added to the system, the user will then be taken to the ‘Main Window’.

 

Uninstalling CopyCatX

Removing CopyCatX from a system is an easy 2-step process. Once CopyCatX is up and running, select ‘Uninstall’ from the “CopyCatX” drop menu.  This will initiate an uninstall procedure and the necessary files will be deleted from the file system.  Having done this CopyCatX will quit and all that is left to be done is for the user to locate the CopyCatX application in the Applications folder, or other desired location, and drag & drop it into the Trash, ready for eventual deletion.

 

Using the Boot CD

Using the CopyCatX boot CD can be extremely useful when trying to backup, restore, duplicate and recover data from a computer system with only one hard drive.  The boot CD is a quick and effective way to get the Mac system running without having to run through the entire Mac OS installation procedure on an external boot drive just to perform the desired procedures on the internal drive.

Via System Preferences

To get the process started the user has to insert the CopyCatX Boot CD and wait for the CD volume to mount in the Finder. Once it has appeared, he or she should go to System Preferences > Start-up Disk, using “System Preferences…” from the Apple menu.  When the window has loaded, the user must select the Boot CD as the desired Start-up Disk and then simply close System Preferences window and restart OSX.

Holding down the C key

When starting up the Mac system, hold down the C key on the keyboard immediately after the start-up chime has been sounded. The user must continue to hold down the C key until the computer has begun to boot into OSX.  The C key at start-up essentially forces the Mac to search for a valid System Folder on the CD before looking to boot from any internal disk drives.

Finding Help & Technical Support

Should the user need assistance whilst working with CopyCatX, there are a number of sources through which to get help:

Help within CopyCatX

The user can find help in 3 different possible places. The first is from the Help drop menu, which offers the options of “Showing Help” or taking the user other relevant web pages on the SubRosaSoft web site. Secondly, the user may click the Show Help … button from the Main or other Task Windows.

Finally, the user may also use the arrow cursor to hover over elements within each window of CopyCatX. This will invoke Help Tips and provide the user with a brief description or other information regarding what that element of the window represents.

Technical Support

Our technical support is free via email and can be accessed at the following address: support@subrosasoft.com.  The support hours are 9am to 5pm Pacific Standard Time Monday to Friday (GMT -8). 

In addition to any support question(s), the user must include ALL of the following pieces of information:

• Valid registration number.
• System configuration(s) – hard drive make, model etc.
• System OS version.

System related information can be found by using the “System Profiler” application in the /Applications/Utilities folder.

 

4: Appendices

A - Questions and Answers

Can I get CopyCatX on a bootable CD?

Yes, please visit our web site http://www.subrosasoft.com/ or email sales@subrosasoft.com for more information.

I already own CopyCatX, but I need the bootable CD. How do I go about I purchasing the bootable CD?

If you already own a download version of CopyCatX, please contact sales@subrosasoft.com for information.

Can CopyCatX work on the same physical disk from which the system has booted?

No. Unless you are duplicating to an image, CopyCatX needs to unmount both the source and destination drive before proceeding with the duplication process. When duplicating to an image, CopyCatX will need the source device or volume to be unmounted.

Can CopyCatX copy the active startup volume/device to another hard drive?

No, CopyCatX requires the source and the target volumes to be unmounted before proceeding with the duplication.

Can I make my own bootable CD?

You may be able to use a third party utility to create bootable CD. However, we have not tested it in-house and there were reports indicating that the bootable CD created via third party utilities may not work properly with CopyCatX. Our CD is made with the official Apple developers’ kit.

Can you clone a partition without the data folders?

CopyCatX doesn’t allow selection of files and folders for backup. You can back up a volume or a complete device.

I currently have the previous version on CD. How much would it cost to purchase the Version 3.5 Upgrade for Tiger on CD?

Please contact sales@subrosasoft.com for the pricing information.

I do not have a bootable CD, what can I do to duplicate my internal drive to an external drive?

You will need a third drive, or boot from another Mac in FireWire target mode.

By installing CopyCatX, what exactly gets installed and where?

We install two folders named “SubRosaSoft” into your Application Support folders and a file named “CopyCatX Prefs” in your Preferences folder.

Does the target volume have to be the same size (or larger) as the source volume?

Yes, the target has to be the same size or bigger than the source volume.

Can I use CopyCatX to back up a UFS Volume?

Yes, but only in duplicate mode.

What is the best way to back up a Boot Camp drive?

Duplicate the drive or volume to a disk image.

I am trying to duplicate a volume on the startup disk, and CopyCatX gives an error with the message “Unable to unmount”. What gives?

In order to back up a volume on the startup disk, you will need to startup from another disk and run CopyCatX there. Alternatively, you can purchase a bootable CD from us.

What is a sector-by-sector copy?

A sector-by-sector copy copies every sector of the drive, regardless of whether that sector contains data, to the destination. CopyCatX’s device copy mode uses a sector-by-sector copy. The volume copy mode will only copy sectors with data on them.

My backup archive is a lot smaller than the volume I want to restore to. But CopyCatX keeps complaining about  “Insufficient space on this volume”, what gives?

CopyCatX requires the volume to restore to at least the same or bigger than the original source volume’s capacity.  The size of the archive has no indication of how big the target volume needs to be.

Will CopyCatX work with software RAID?

No. The current version of CopyCatX will not be able to duplicate any software RAID arrays but will work with many hardware controlled RAID setups. Contact sales@subroosasoft.com for more information about your RAID system.

My SCSI drive was formatted with a 3rd party driver and has 4096 byte/sector, will CopyCatX be able to duplicate it to another SCSI drive?

No, CopyCatX only works with the standard 512 byte per sector (used by most systems).

When performing a device duplication, the target drive remounts as soon as it unmounted, what should I do?

You may want to quit CopyCatX, and use Apple’s Disk Utility to erase the target drive. You should be able to perform a device copy after that.

Where is the documentation for CopyCatX?

You are reading it now. If you need help while you are using the software, you can access the help file from the Help menu.

Is there a demo version of CopyCatX?

Yes. The demo version is limited to backing up volumes to proprietary CopyCatX images. You will need a full version of CopyCatX to restore the images back to the origin volumes.

I need support help, what should I do?

Our technical support is free and can be accessed by e-mail (Our email support hours are 9am to 5pm, Pacific time).  You must include in the email your serial number, system configurations, and the system software version.

B - Menu Shortcuts Reference

The following shortcuts are specific to the

Key Combination	Description
Apple Key + Comma	Open ‘Registration’ Window
Apple Key + R	Rescan available hardware buses
Apple Key + T	Attach Disk Image
Apple Key + ?	Show Help

Apple Key is also called key.