Today's article is about the *minimum* you should do in order to have a proper backup strategy.

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KGIII

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I read a lot about people backing up here, and that's great - except it's missing a giant bunch of the picture. Proper backups aren't all that hard to implement, once you've picked a frequency and the process. Eventually, it just becomes something you do because it's time to do so.

linux-tips.us

How To: Have A Proper Backup Of Your Data • Linux Tips

In today's article, we're going to show you how to have a proper backup of your data. I've wanted to write this article for a while.
linux-tips.us linux-tips.us

It's a longer article. I do love me some feedback.
 


The last time I've dabbled with backing up anything personally was with windows system restore, back on windows XP. I remember being so disgusted by it that I never wanted to touch anything "backup" related again.

Most of the things I do on my computer right now is nothing so critical that I couldn't afford losing. Most of the gaming I do is already stored in the cloud (with only a few notable exceptions).

And a proper RAID setup IS backup. If one can't handle keeping their fingers off the "delete" key on their keyboard in regards to sensitive data, then they should have a hammer nearby and break all of their typing fingers so they never do it again. A bit harsh, but I always berate my... "customers" every time they just mash on the keyboard and hope for the best. In spite of that, the pool of which seems to be consistantly growing.
 
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@KGIII -- good info for the uninitiated! Am happy not to have to back up data each night since retirement.

I just use Clonezilla and prefer DVDs and/or external hard drives to USB sticks but sometimes use all three. Call me happily old school.

Thanks!
 
forester said:
I just use Clonezilla and prefer DVDs and/or external hard drives to USB sticks but sometimes use all three. Call me happily old school.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Hey if it ain't broke don't fix it, right?
 
KGill wrote in his article from linux-tips.us
You should have 1 backup that’s off-site.
Click to expand...
and
BigBadBeef wrote:
a proper RAID setup IS backup
Click to expand...
Whilst RAID is appropriate for its intended purpose of redundancy, it really needs to be "engineered" a bit more than that original intended purpose of redundancy for it to achieve the purpose of backups.
 
Some interesting thoughts in here and I don't think it's all that important what you use for software, just so long as you follow some pretty basic rules - at a minimum. Houses burn, floods happen, freak electrical storms happen, etc...

My biggest loss of data, or at least the most vital loss of data, was when I brought work home with me - and brought home the only copy. The house was hit by lightning and every bit of magnetic media was rendered useless or the data was corrupt. As in, hard drives failed. That lightning rod surely helped, but the loss was catastrophic and entirely my fault for being hurried.

(We were able to get the data back. That was a costly mistake.)

In my defense, I had just assumed there were backups of the data I brought home with me. I was wrong. We had a strict backup schedule and I probably missed the window by 15 minutes.

I actually backup very little data. Things like photographs and legal documents get changed seldom. My important day-to-day data is pretty minimal. As a general rule, I back up more than I need to, as I just backup my ~/ directory.
 
Timeshift.
All sorts of area/directories/files etc etc can be included

home etc.png

patters etc.png

Note just above.......^^^..."add files.....add folders"

Works for me.

Has it ever failed me?....Never.

Have I actually tested it by Restoring the backups/snapshots made ?.....oh yes !....Many, many times

Remember, a backup is worthless if it will not restore.
 
I have now

Do I conclude that you are uninterested in my approach to the statements...

quoted from : https://linux-tips.us/how-to-have-a-proper-backup-of-your-data/

""The first thing you need to do is figure out what data is important to you.""

""See, all I do is backup my /home/<user> directory""

""Somewhere between there is a ‘proper backup’. This is a backup of your data that’s reliable and inexpensive. It’s something you can do without investing a whole lot of money. It’s something you can do by just following a few simple rules.""

""stuff like my ~/Downloads being backed up needlessly, but disk space is cheap these days.""

??
 
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Condobloke said:
Do I conclude that you are uninterested in my approach to the statements...
Click to expand...

Not that, it's that it doesn't matter what software you use. That's not even a wee bit important with regards to this article. It's not important what directories you cover - that's all up to you.

It's what you then do with those backup copies that matter.

Two for the house, in case the OS dies or the drive dies. One off-site, so that you can recover your data in the event of a catastrophic event.

You can use copy/paste and accomplish the same thing. Compress it at the end as a .zip and add a password, if you're really wanting some security.

In your case, go visit Wiz once a month and exchange an external drive every time you go to visit him. He could use the company and you both could use the backup security - the redundancy that an off-site backup location gives you.
 
A Backup means different things to different people and there are those who don't backup at all.
m1516.gif


I've just done a clean install of Mint cinnamon 21.1 with software...browsers...files and folders from 19.1 and installed my printer...imported my VM too and I've created an image of the Drive...that's my minimum as I don't want to do this all over again should the Drive fail.
m1212.gif


The Image and files...videos...music etc are backed up to an External HDD from time to time (the image on a separate HDD) because you never know what could happen.
t3602.gif
 
KGIII said:
Some interesting thoughts in here and I don't think it's all that important what you use for software, just so long as you follow some pretty basic rules - at a minimum. Houses burn, floods happen, freak electrical storms happen, etc...
Click to expand...
Servers can burn, servers can flood, servers can get struck by lightning. A backup service is a redundancy service. Whatever permanency you are hoping for is an illusion that would be in violation of the laws of entropy. The act of backing up data is merely the act of forestalling the inevitable. The best you can hope for is that whatever vital information you have stored would last your lifetime.

Do it or don't do it, I'm okay with people going either way, just don't have any illusions about it and do it for the right reasons.
 
BigBadBeef said:
And a proper RAID setup IS backup.
Click to expand...
No, it's not. It's resilience for a storage device.

I have my backups in a RAID system, but my operational hard drives are not in RAID. And I backup my RAID backups, because RAID is just resilience for my backup drive, it's not a backup of them.
 
I sense a fight coming on. Such a thing is not appropriate for this forum, therefore I will back down.
 
KGIII said:
In your case, go visit Wiz once a month and exchange an external drive every time you go to visit him.
Click to expand...

Nice try, but if Brian and I saw each other too frequently, we'd become like an old married couple. Saw him and Te for an hour and a half last Monday on their way back from Brisbane, and we had a great time.

But they may move further away and then that idea is shot down.

I have read the article, hit the Whack-A-Mole for 4, and quite agreed with the principles. Only reason I did not give it a 5 is that I believe you are talking more about engineering redundancy (3 components have to fail before the system fails), rather than a

Recovery Strategy

... which I feel is much more important.

Timeshift is not a backup solution, and its author Tony George has made that quite clear. It is, rather, an integral part of a Recovery Strategy, and it is a Recovery Possibility (not a sole solution) for being able to restore your system, or even to replace your computer.

I can go on with this elsewhere, with something like "How Does Wizard Safeguard His Essential Data and Systems?" rather than derail this Thread, if there is interest, put a Like on this Post. It will only take about 3 Likes for me to start one.

That would be 3 people I can help to understand why over the last 8 years, 3 months and 2 weeks I have not lost one photograph, one important document, one bookmark, one setting and so on, that was important to me.

It will explain what happens with a lightning strike, a fire, a flood or other Act of God, hardware breakdowns, software breakdowns, and so on.

And, of course, human error.

Avagudweegend

Wizard

BTW

BigBadBeef said:
Such a thing is not appropriate for this forum,
Click to expand...

Good call, I commend you ;)
 
TLDR; RAID - This post is about my experiences with RAID and the many spectacular ways it can fail. I recommend that you ignore this post and move on to the next one.

.

I am not an "IT person", but have been forced to play one on occasion. That includes too many experiences helping others recover lost data.

Note that there are many different ways to design and configure RAID. The term "RAID" covers a broad category of multi-disk configurations, including some that are not "redundant", despite what the acronym means ("Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks").

I do not want to pick a fight with @BigBadBeef about his characterization of RAID as "backup", but I respectfully disagree. RAID (in its "redundant" form) is a tool for data availability and business continuity. Some people call it "data reliability." BigBadBeef is using it that way, but calls it a "backup". It is not a "backup" in the traditional sense. If a meteorite takes out the box with the RAID and damages nothing else, BigBadBeef has acknowledged that they will lose their local data. They explained it above. My only issue is calling it "backup".

My Not Good Experiences with RAID and Data Availability:

Every time I encountered RAID in one of those emergency data recovery situations, the data could not be recovered from the RAID devices or drives themselves. The RAID failed in many different ways. Here is a selection of some real-world RAID situations I was forced to encounter:
  • Misconfiguration- The RAID devices were not configured properly by their owners.
    • Example: A RAID was configured "striped" between three drives, and the remaining two drives were unused and empty. The person who configured it was a paid IT consultant who told the owner that a single drive failure would not impact the system. A drive failed and all the data was lost.
    • I can cite several other examples of misconfigured RAIDs that worked until they didn't. The owners did not recognize the problem until it was too late.
  • Poor management - Internal drives failed, but nobody noticed and they were not replaced. Eventually there was no redundant data left. When the next drive failed, the data was lost.
  • Specific drive requirements- The RAID device required that each drive in the device be perfectly matched. Compatible replacement drives were not available when needed.
    • Different RAID devices have different drive requirements. Pay attention.
  • Motherboard or other component failure - The RAID device fails and the search for how to recover the data from the drives begins. That is when you discover:
    • Replacement parts are not available or there is a long lead time to obtain them.
    • No current system can read the drives. You may have to resort to an expensive data recovery specialist. They lose expertise and old hardware over time, too.
    • If you use RAID for your business, consider a maintenance contract with the manufacturer of the device.
  • RAID system keeps working, but grows old and obsolete - It ain't broke ...
    • Example: A RAID device still uses IDE drives instead of modern SATA drives. Obviously the drives have long exceeded their rated MTBF.
  • Many times, a combination of the above - The owners ignore many warning signs and "road ends ahead" guideposts.
    • You walk in and the first thing you notice is a bright red "FAIL" indicator light on the front panel of the RAID device. The owner tells you, "It has always been on but the drive has worked for years, so we ignore it." :-(
    • People don't change the oil in their cars, the filters in their vacuums, or clean their coffee machines. Why should RAID be any different?
Conclusion:
RAID reminds me of the ongoing "VPN" fad. Both are great and powerful tools that gave people new capabilities. The problem is that both require learning and understanding about where they are appropriate and how they are used.

In both cases, marketing hype leads customers to believe that RAID and VPNs can be used in ways that are incorrect and inappropriate. It sells RAID and VPNs, but customers are misinformed about what they are buying. Customers use them incorrectly. They believe that their data is far more safe and secure than it actually is.
 
@dobeshow, the """stuff like my ~/Downloads being backed up needlessly, but disk space is cheap these days."".....is a quote from the article linked in post #1
 
IF I have any important docs or picts, then i back up to one of my pen-drives, if not then I am not too bothered, I always run Timeshift on the system back up and that's about it
 
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