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So I have an external HD and I want to have a backup of it on another external HD.

The thing is that I am always cleaning up, deleting, renaming, organizing and editing things on that HD.

How can I make a backup that will keep up with those changes?

When I say backup I mean an exact copy with the exact same set of files in the exact same layout not an archival copy that could, for example, consist of one big file storing all the data.

I need a reliable method, and something well documented or a step by step instruction manual.

Thanks

JMike
  • 121

3 Answers3

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The app you need is called rsync and it's in the system.

Using it with the following parameters will give you a complete backup of the source files and folders the first time and incremental backups from then on. It will check for updated, moved or added files and backup those ones only.

rsync -av --delete '/source folder/' '/backup folder/'

If you use the parameter --delete, it will be used by rsync whenever you delete files or folders inside the source folder so that rsync removes them from the backup folder too in order to make it identical to the source folder. If you ommit it, rsync will add or replace files / folders only, in the backup folder, without deleting anything.

rsync --help

will give you a complete list of the usable parameters.

Stormlord
  • 6,807
4

A GUI version of rsync is available by downloading LuckyBackup from the App Centre.

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This is much more intuitive in its use than the non GUI version rsync.

luckyBackup is an application that backs-up and/or synchronizes any directories with the power of rsync. Its main features are: backup, safety, synchronization, exclude/only include options, allows custom rsync options, remote connections, restore and dry-run operations, scheduling, profiles and command line mode.

It is simple to use, fast (transfers over only changes made and not all data), safe (keeps your data safe by checking all declared directories before proceeding in any data manipulation ), reliable and fully customizable.

It is also quite useful in being able to see what instructions are being generated by the app and to copy them or add further options if required adding to the flexibility.

A guide on how to make a backup on Linux using LuckyBackup can be found here which includes helpful screenshots explaining the whole process in easy to follow steps as requested by the OP.

graham
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0

Another solution is to use BorgBackup. BorgBackup has several advantages over rsync for backups. You can save many snapshots, which is useful if e.g. you realise that you need a file that you accidentally deleted months ago. It automatically only backs up what has changed in your selected directories since your last backup.

It is primarily a CLI application but there are some nice GUI interfaces such as Vorta and Pika Backup.

user154702
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