Hi,

I would like to backup some laptop computers (for my personal needs).
For the moment, I automount the shared directories of the Windows 7 PC
on my Linux backuppc server. This works fine but the problem is that
some backups are not performed when the laptop is shut down. The backups
start because the Linux server is running but the mount point is down.
I would like to know what are the advantages/drawbacks for laptop pcs of
the following policies :

    * automount of shared directories + rsync (what I do now).
    * smb + tar
    * rsyncd
    * Other ?

Thank you.

Xuo.

Well, if the laptop's down, none of these methods will help you back it
up, obviously, but here's a brief outline of the pros and cons:

* automount of shared directories + rsync (what I do now).
Probably the least bandwidth-efficient, since rsync has to read every file
over the mount.  Can't handle open files.
* smb
Requires the least amount of software on the client.  Uses timestamp for
incrementals, so can miss copied files and renamed directories during
incrementals.  Can't handle open files.
* automount of shared directories + tar
All the disadvantages of mounting plus all the disadvantages of tar
* rsyncd/rsync
Can be bandwidth efficient and seamless, there are scripts publicly
available that can handle open files.  Within this category, the
variations of ssh/rsyncd, rsyncd, winexe/rsync have varying degrees of
speed, ease of deployment, and encryption.  I use the winexe/rsync method
since we have no need of encryption, so we prioritize speed and ease of
deployment.

• Point 1 : you say rsync has to read all files over the mount, but I think it is more or less the same for all methods.
• Point 4 : it seems to be the most widely used but it needs so executables on all clients. This is a big disadvantage.
• One point you did not mentioned and I considered as important (if I understand the way backupPC works).
  
• In case of automounts, the mount point is considered as a local directory. If the laptop PC is shutdown, then the directory is considered empty and the backup ends normally. There is no more backup till the next usual one. 
• If backups are done with smb, then, if the laptop is shutdown, the backup fails and it will be scheduled for the next time (for ex, one hour later). This is a major advantage of smb vs automount.
• With rsync/rsyncd, I don't know what the behavior is.

* Other ?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beautiful is writing same markup. Internet Explorer 9 supports
standards for HTML5, CSS3, SVG 1.1,  ECMAScript5, and DOM L2 & L3.
Spend less time writing and  rewriting code and more time creating great
experiences on the web. Be a part of the beta today.
http://p.sf.net/sfu/beautyoftheweb
_______________________________________________
BackupPC-users mailing list
BackupPC-users AT lists.sourceforge DOT net
List:    https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/backuppc-users
Wiki:    http://backuppc.wiki.sourceforge.net
Project: http://backuppc.sourceforge.net/