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-   -   Another sneak peek: Backup Notification with Growl! (https://www.shirt-pocket.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1335)

dnanian 06-02-2006 01:36 PM

Another sneak peek: Backup Notification with Growl!
 
1 Attachment(s)
Attached is a small preview from the next version of SuperDuper: a public beta of the new "schedule driver" that contains support for Growl.

With this, you'll be able to be notified on two events: Scheduled Copy Succeeds and Scheduled Copy Fails. Any normal Growl notification type will work, including across-network and email.

If Growl is not installed, nothing untoward should happen.

A small ZIP of the script is attached to this message. Unzip it, and then place the file inside SuperDuper!'s Resources folder, in the application bundle, replacing the one that's already there.

To get there, control-click on SuperDuper!, and choose "Show Package Contents". Then, navigate to Contents, then Resources, and there you'll find the existing "Copy Job Script.template".

Replace that with this one, and then (this is important) re-create your scheduled copies.

Once the script has run once, you should see SuperDuper in the list of applications available in the Growl preference pane. Select that, and you will see the two notification types.

Let me know what you think!

Pendragon 06-02-2006 05:59 PM

"If Growl is not installed, nothing untoward should happen."

But does that mean nothing will happen if Growl is not installed? That is, for this new capability to work, must Growl (first) be installed?

dnanian 06-02-2006 06:00 PM

That's right: you have to install Growl, or nothing will happen. (But nothing bad will happen -- you just won't get notifications.)

Pendragon 06-03-2006 08:11 AM

Thanks Dave!

dnanian 06-03-2006 08:12 AM

No problem. Growl's an easy install (just double-click the preference pane in its disk image), and quite unobtrusive: I think you'll find it helpful.

DarkskyZ 06-05-2006 12:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dnanian
Once the script has run once, you should see SuperDuper in the list of applications available in the Growl preference pane. Select that, and you will see the two notification types.

The script must run scheduled and not manually so that Super Duper! registers in Growl.

DarkskyZ

dnanian 06-05-2006 12:57 PM

That's right (for the sneak peek)...

DarkskyZ 06-05-2006 01:58 PM

I had a hard time figuring it so it probably worth the notice (for the sneak peek ;)).

edoates 06-14-2006 12:55 PM

Now that it is in 2.1.2 (Thanks!), I've used it for email notifications. GREAT. With auto-mounting of backup drives and with email notifications, I no longer need my (maybe not so) cleverly written scripts. Hooray!

Question: for the "copy failed" notifications, will I get that for ANY failure which a scheduled SD detects: repair permissions fail, I/O error, can't mount, etc.?

I really want this to be kind of mindless, so that don't have to scan a log everyday, but just if I get an error notification.

Ed

dnanian 06-14-2006 01:02 PM

Yes, you should get a notification for any kind of failure.

msadesign 07-13-2006 08:24 AM

Geez, Dave, all I want is a simple, abbreviated log…

Everytime I start the app I have to wonder what ran, and when. Growl is fine, I suppose. But why not just a damn log without listing every copied file?

Something like 'ran Script A at 900 AM and all is well'?

Michael

dnanian 07-13-2006 09:09 AM

But that's exactly what Growl will give you. Various kinds of flexible notifications, sticky and not...

msadesign 07-13-2006 12:56 PM

no it won't.

It flashes a notification then goes away [at least that is how it works with CyberDuck, Mail, etc]. Growl is a fine little app, to be sure. But we depend on your software and do not want to guess about when the backups are made, period, and need a robust and simple log.

I want to open the application and see a log window.

Michael

dnanian 07-13-2006 01:05 PM

Michael --

Just select the "Sticky" checkbox in the Growl preferences for the SuperDuper! notification(s) you want. Then, they won't go away.

Alternatively, you can change the notification type to mail.

We'll consider additional log improvements for the future. But I think you can get what you want out of the Growl support by simply changing the options a bit.

msadesign 07-13-2006 06:30 PM

David,

No, I won't get what I need, or what anybody serious about backing up needs, and here is why:

This product is one of two, really, that give you a clone-backup. As such, the product has a natural home in the front line of data management, and I think depending on a third party for a simple logging function is second-rate, at best.

SuperDuper is a very robust application. It has a clever interface that has made some of the maddening choices involving backups really very simple.

It has a few seriou rough edges, mostly, in my view, from apparent developer-desire to make the thing friendlier, but sometimes an experienced manager will be left wondering exactly what it is doing.

An example of this is the default window, from which one can select the source and target, but from which cannot select scripts. Another example is the fact that you can tell SD to do something that is exactly the same thing as a pre-defined script, but you are not alerted to this fact. Taken together, these two user experiences mean that every time I use the app I have to re-read What's Going to Happen, making sure I am running my script; and I also have to re-confirm the choices. This is a waste of time and more significantly it introduces a possiblity of error. Error is not allowed.

Additionally, every time I start the app I wonder to myself: has the most recent script run? have all of the scripts run? And there is no way to tell. The default Log is far too verbose for this simple and essential function. It needs a summary of each thing that SD is doing.

And now, with the Growl solution, I need more window clutter to tell me- what? " SD Copy Succeeded- Copy of A to B was successful" is what Growl says. What does this mean in a serious environment where scripts are thoughtfully crafted? nothing.

What is needed is: 'Script A was completed at 5 PM today'. This must be in the SD Log window. It needs to identify the script that I made because then I know it did what I need: it backed up my data.

And I definately do not want Growl windows cluttering things, with the chance of an errant click dismissing an important message. All Growl does is add a convenient but untrustworty notification. And what if there is a problem with Growl, or with the mechanism that SD uses to talk to Growl? How will I know what has happened?

I use the software. I paid for the software. I recommend the software. I just don't fully trust it, for the above UI reasons. Call me crazy. But we back up stuff to be absolutely sure, right?

Respectfully,

Michael


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