Imaging software

[HyperDad]

Hi,

can you recommend imaging software that i can use to back up my
ubuntu install?


Hyperdad

 

[likewhoa]

just tar it all up while skipping /dev,/sys & /proc folders.
if you doing a total clone then use 'dd', but tar will get you a backup ready to be restored anytime while saving space and time.

 

[HyperDad]

just tar it all up while skipping /dev,/sys & /proc folders.
if you doing a total clone then use 'dd', but tar will get you a backup ready to be restored anytime while saving space and time.

I have ubuntu setup the way I want it and Id like to clone the drive before i start
installing anymore software/utilities.

so I'd like to clone it. can you give me a link to 'dd'.
also what does dd stand for?

thanks in advance

Hyperdad

P.S. I only have about a week of experience with this os

 

[eeyrjmr]

dd is short for "data definition" but what it actually does is a very low-level copy

dd if=/dev/hda of=~/drive.img

would attempt to copy all of the first IDE drive to a file in yr home directory, if /home was on that drive this would fail

Also if you wanted to make an ISO of a CDROM you would do

dd if=/dev/cdrom of=~/image.iso

through the use of dd, pipe,tar,gz you can make an image of yr drive fairly easily
There are easier methods mind

There are ghost-like programs

But myself I prefer to copy (with the -a flag) the directories (ommiting /dev,/sys,/proc,...) into a tgz file and be done with. just as easy to recover.

 

[jimmyb]

I second that strategy.

I've found plain copying works quite well. Tar everything up if you want it in a nice package.

 

[c.d.e]

Anyone want to put the full tar/gzip command on here for us then? Skipping those three (and mount/mnt) folders? All of / onto /mnt/hdb1/backup. Please

 

[eeyrjmr]

tar -cpjvf /tmp/backup.tar.bz2 --exclude=/dev --exclude=/lost+found --exclude=/media --exclude=/mnt --exclude=/proc --exclude=/sys

or something along those lines. I actually have to update my server this weekend as well as changing distro so I will be needing this

 

[tamasrepus]

I recommend:

• rdiff-backup: requires remote system also running rdiff-backup, i.e. another Linux machine
• duplicity: makes encrypted tar archives that can be placed anywhere, including built-in support for Amazon S3

Writing scripts to create tar files is just too old school, IMHO.

 

[eeyrjmr]

I recommend:

• rdiff-backup: requires remote system also running rdiff-backup, i.e. another Linux machine
• duplicity: makes encrypted tar archives that can be placed anywhere, including built-in support for Amazon S3

Writing scripts to create tar files is just too old school, IMHO.

maybe but they are part of the coreutils and you can be sure those commands exist on all platforms (*NIX of all types). Hence why sh is still prefered over bash