UNRAID backup server: how to back up incrementally (xfs array, btrfs/xfs pool)

[Keichi]

Hello,

 

I'm setting up a second unraid server whose sole role is to back up my main one.

 

I recently discovered that btrfs can do snapshots and that a plugin exists (https://forums.unraid.net/topic/114600-plugin-snapshots/).

This would be perfect for my pool disks.

 

However, my array is in xfs and is not seen by the plugin.
So I came across this script that lets you make incremental rsync backups:

 

And finally, I've switched my "appdata" disk to zfs, so I figure I can host a zfs disk on the backup server and transfer the snapshots to it.

 

 

So in the end I'll have :
- array xfs => incremental script rsync
- btrfs pool : Snapshots plugin
- zfs pool: zfs snapshots on a zfs disk.

 

This seems a bit complicated to me, do you have any feedback on the best way to build an unraid incremental backup server?

 

Thanks

 

K.

 

[JorgeB]

13 hours ago, Keichi said:

This seems a bit complicated to me, do you have any feedback on the best way to build an unraid incremental backup server?

It would be a little simpler if everything was using the same filesystem with snapshot support, either btrfs or zfs, note that to do that for the array you'd need the same array layout in the backup server.