Time Machine (Mac OS X feature)

E303474

backup software feature data backup utility macOS feature

Time Machine is macOS’s built-in automatic backup system that regularly saves versions of your files and allows easy restoration of data from different points in time.

Try in SPARQL Jump to: Surface forms Disambiguation Statements Elicitation Referenced by

All labels observed (4)

Label	Occurrences
Time Machine	2
Time Machine (Mac OS X feature) canonical	1
Time Machine restore assistant	1
introduced Time Machine backup system	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T2836592 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Time Machine (Mac OS X feature)
Context triple: [Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2006, announcedFeature, Time Machine (Mac OS X feature)]

A. HFS Plus
HFS Plus is a proprietary journaling file system developed by Apple for use in macOS and earlier Macintosh operating systems, succeeding the original HFS to support larger files and volumes.
B. FileVault
FileVault is Apple’s built-in full-disk encryption system for macOS that protects data by encrypting the contents of a Mac’s startup disk.
C. APFS
APFS (Apple File System) is Apple's modern, high-performance file system designed for macOS and other Apple platforms, featuring strong encryption, space sharing, snapshots, and improved reliability over its predecessors.
D. Macintosh File System
Macintosh File System is the original hierarchical disk file system used by early Apple Macintosh computers, designed for simplicity and tight integration with the classic Mac OS.
E. QuickTime
QuickTime is Apple’s multimedia framework and file format standard used for handling and playing digital video, audio, and interactive content across platforms.
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Time Machine (Mac OS X feature)
Target entity description: Time Machine is macOS’s built-in automatic backup system that regularly saves versions of your files and allows easy restoration of data from different points in time.

A. HFS Plus
HFS Plus is a proprietary journaling file system developed by Apple for use in macOS and earlier Macintosh operating systems, succeeding the original HFS to support larger files and volumes.
B. FileVault
FileVault is Apple’s built-in full-disk encryption system for macOS that protects data by encrypting the contents of a Mac’s startup disk.
C. APFS
APFS (Apple File System) is Apple's modern, high-performance file system designed for macOS and other Apple platforms, featuring strong encryption, space sharing, snapshots, and improved reliability over its predecessors.
D. Macintosh File System
Macintosh File System is the original hierarchical disk file system used by early Apple Macintosh computers, designed for simplicity and tight integration with the classic Mac OS.
E. QuickTime
QuickTime is Apple’s multimedia framework and file format standard used for handling and playing digital video, audio, and interactive content across platforms.
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (50)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	backup software feature ⓘ data backup utility ⓘ macOS feature ⓘ
allows	migration to a new Mac from backup ⓘ restoring entire system ⓘ restoring folders ⓘ restoring individual files ⓘ
backupDestination	APFS-formatted volume ⓘ HFS Plus-formatted volume ⓘ Time Capsule ⓘ external hard drive ⓘ network-attached storage ⓘ
backupGranularity	block-level changes ⓘ
backupScope	applications ⓘ settings ⓘ system files ⓘ user home folders ⓘ
backupType	local backups ⓘ network backups ⓘ
category	macOS backup and restore feature ⓘ
configurationLocation	macOS System Settings ⓘ surface form: System Preferences macOS System Settings ⓘ surface form: System Settings
designedFor	end users ⓘ
developer	Apple Inc. ⓘ
encryptionMethod	FileVault-compatible encryption ⓘ
exclusionCapability	allows excluding specific files ⓘ allows excluding specific folders ⓘ
function	automatic backup of user data ⓘ system restoration from backups ⓘ versioned file backups ⓘ
integratedWith	Finder ⓘ Migration Assistant ⓘ macOS Recovery ⓘ
introducedInVersion	Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard ⓘ
introducedInYear	2007 ⓘ
operatingSystem	macOS ⓘ surface form: Mac OS X macOS ⓘ
requires	dedicated backup disk or partition ⓘ
retentionPolicy	deletes oldest backups when disk is full ⓘ keeps daily backups for the past month ⓘ keeps hourly backups for 24 hours ⓘ keeps weekly backups until disk is full ⓘ
stores	multiple versions of files ⓘ
supports	daily backups ⓘ encrypted backups ⓘ hourly backups ⓘ incremental backups ⓘ weekly backups ⓘ
userInterface	3D time-based navigation of backups ⓘ graphical timeline interface ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (5)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2006 → announcedFeature → Time Machine (Mac OS X feature) ⓘ

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard → includedFeature → Time Machine (Mac OS X feature) ⓘ

this entity surface form: Time Machine

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard → notableChange → Time Machine (Mac OS X feature) ⓘ

this entity surface form: introduced Time Machine backup system

macOS Recovery → includesTool → Time Machine (Mac OS X feature) ⓘ

this entity surface form: Time Machine restore assistant

macOS Recovery → relatedTo → Time Machine (Mac OS X feature) ⓘ