Re: [rdiff-backup-users] How to request from new user

[Martin Fisher]

Eric

Thank you - I have now run rdiff-backup for the first time using 

rdiff-backup /home/martin /media/ext3backup/rdiff-backup

having decided it would be best to create a mount point for the external
drive (ext3backup) and always have it mounted using its UUID, and having
created folder rdiff-backup on the drive.

The backup ran but with some errors, all of this form, for example:

ListError .evolution/tasks/local/system [Errno 13] Permission denied:
'/home/martin/.evolution/tasks/local/system'

and involving the backup of files associated with evolution or
openoffice. Did these occur because, for example, I had evolution open
at the time the backup was taking place?

I don't necessarily feel the need to backup all of the hidden folders in
my home directory, I would be content with my Documents and Pictures
folders, my evolution e-mail & settings (although in this case I am
unclear which files I need to include), tomboy notes, openoffice
dictionary to which I have added words, and the only other file would
be /etc/fstab 

I tried to include /etc/fstab originally, using

rdiff-backup --include /etc/fstab
--include /home/martin /media/ext3backup/rdiff-backup

but this wouldn't run. I think there is something wrong with how I am
using the include arguements?

With thanks, Martin


On Sun, 2007-12-16 at 21:11 -0500, Eric Jensen wrote:
> Martin,
> 
> This answer will be fairly schematic, but hopefully will be enough to  
> get you going.
> 
> To do the backup, you'll want to run something like this, assuming / 
> home/user/ is your home directory:
> 
> rdiff-backup --exclude /home/user/folder1 --exclude /home/user/ 
> folder2  /home/user  /external_drive/
> 
> Here folder1 and folder2 are directories you don't want to backup -  
> repeat as necessary.
> 
> Also, here /external_drive/ is the mount point for your external  
> drive; after you mount it, if you don't know where it is mounted in  
> the filesystem, try 'df' and look at the output to see the path to  
> your external drive.  You may want to make a subdirectory on that  
> drive for your backup; if so, specify it on the command above.
> 
> Run that command once from the command line to do the initial backup;  
> if it completes successfully, and your directory in /external_drive/  
> looks like you want it, then you can set up the hourly backup.
> 
> To do that, you'll use 'cron'.  The file cron uses is called crontab,  
> and you edit it with 'crontab -e'.  This should put you into an  
> editor, and you'll want to add the single line:
> 
> 0 * * * *  rdiff-backup --exclude /home/user/folder1 --exclude /home/ 
> user/folder2  /home/user  /external_drive/
> 
> where the rdiff-backup command is exactly the one you used to do the  
> initial backup; rdiff-backup will run a full backup the first time  
> you do that command (from the command line as noted above), and then  
> make the incremental changes subsequent times you run it.  Save the  
> file and exit the editor, and you should be set.  Cron will run your  
> backup job every hour on the hour.  (See 'man crontab' for more  
> details.)
> 
> The backup directory will keep a current mirror of your home  
> directory (minus anything you exclude), so you could easily plug it  
> into another machine to do the restore.
> 
> Hope this helps,
> 
> Eric
> 
> On Dec 16, 2007, at 8:11 AM, Martin Fisher wrote:
> 
> > Hi All
> >
> > I am a new rdiff-backup user (Ubuntu 7.10) and I wish to use it in a
> > relatively simple way: To backup/mirror most, but not all, of the
> > folders in my home directory to a folder in an external usb drive, to
> > have this run automatically on the hour every hour incrementally  
> > when my
> > computer is switched on, and to be able to move the external drive  
> > to a
> > new computer in the event of computer failure and do a restore.
> >
> > I have read around a little and obviously rdiff-backup can do this,  
> > and
> > I have installed it, but I don't have a full understanding of how  
> > to get
> > this going (my command line knowledge is very limited). As my
> > requirement is relatively simple I'm sure that somebody is doing the
> > same as me, or that this question has cropped up before. Does anybody
> > have some step-by-step instructions that would help me setup my  
> > backup?
> > I would prefer a graphical front end to manage this but if one does  
> > not
> > exist I would be content to set it running from the command line.
> >
> 
> 
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> �
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