Data backup for individual hosts
Going Solo
© Lead Image © Kirsty Pargeter, Fotolia.com
Sometimes you just need to back up a few directories on a computer, not administer a distributed installation or an array of disks. Areca Backup gives you hassle-free backups of individual hard drives.
Creating a safe copy of a few directories is governed by laws different from those that apply to backing up complete data centers. The tools need to be especially easy to use, without complicated configuration files or deeply nested menus. The usual space-saving techniques, such as incremental backups, should be available. Pre-and post-backup scripts should be able to stop applications like databases during the backup. Several backup versions need to be archived, and encryption and compression would not be bad.
The backup should be capable of restoring to different hardware; but, for the sake of simplicity, it would be preferable not to store the data in a proprietary format, which would necessitate reinstalling the operating system and backup software in the case of disaster. LVM or RAID configurations should not be an obstacle. File permissions need to remain intact, and the backup should not trip over links or named pipes. Finally, you should also be able to check easily whether everything went as desired.
Treat
One open source tool that satisfies all these requirements is Areca Backup [1]. Beyond the features already listed, Areca has a few more treats to offer. For example, you can include or exclude source files in or from the backup and filter by various criteria. Constructs with AND, OR, and NOT are allowed. Backups can be simulated, so that you can estimate in advance what would reach the backup disk, and to what extent, with the given settings.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
TuxCare Announces Support for AlmaLinux 9.2
Thanks to TuxCare, AlmaLinux 9.2 (and soon version 9.6) now enjoys years of ongoing patching and compliance.
-
Go-Based Botnet Attacking IoT Devices
Using an SSH credential brute-force attack, the Go-based PumaBot is exploiting IoT devices everywhere.
-
Plasma 6.5 Promises Better Memory Optimization
With the stable Plasma 6.4 on the horizon, KDE has a few new tricks up its sleeve for Plasma 6.5.
-
KaOS 2025.05 Officially Qt5 Free
If you're a fan of independent Linux distributions, the team behind KaOS is proud to announce the latest iteration that includes kernel 6.14 and KDE's Plasma 6.3.5.
-
Linux Kernel 6.15 Now Available
The latest Linux kernel is now available with several new features/improvements and the usual bug fixes.
-
Microsoft Makes Surprising WSL Announcement
In a move that might surprise some users, Microsoft has made Windows Subsystem for Linux open source.
-
Red Hat Releases RHEL 10 Early
Red Hat quietly rolled out the official release of RHEL 10.0 a bit early.
-
openSUSE Joins End of 10
openSUSE has decided to not only join the End of 10 movement but it also will no longer support the Deepin Desktop Environment.
-
New Version of Flatpak Released
Flatpak 1.16.1 is now available as the latest, stable version with various improvements.
-
IBM Announces Powerhouse Linux Server
IBM has unleashed a seriously powerful Linux server with the LinuxONE Emperor 5.