this post was submitted on 15 Nov 2024
15 points (100.0% liked)
Linux
48340 readers
554 users here now
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
Rules
- Posts must be relevant to operating systems running the Linux kernel. GNU/Linux or otherwise.
- No misinformation
- No NSFW content
- No hate speech, bigotry, etc
Related Communities
Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
So you're telling me what Pika is doing is the same I'm doing by copying my home folder into an external drive? Ha! I do use timeshift. Does timeshift take a whole system backup that includes the whole system, its apps and their data? If so, which files/folder do I need to copy of timeshift so I can put them on one of the external drives so I can use them after a reinstall. Since it backs up on the same drive it's installed on and reinstalling would delete timeshift and its backup files.
Pika is slightly different in how it stores data (since it does incremental backups, can do encryption, etc.) but as far as restoring data is concerned it's pretty much the same as copying files to a different drive.
I haven't used Timeshift for a while. On closer inspection they do say "Timeshift is designed to protect system files and settings. It is NOT a backup tool and is not meant to protect user data."
So I guess it's the opposite of Pika. Timeshift backs up your system, Pika backs up your user data.
Timeshift can do both if you want it to though, by going into Users tab and selecting Include Everything, then removing any Filters.
I haven't used Timeshift to restore data, but going by their Github page it looks like it restores everything to where it was before. So the restore process (in case your OS drive dies, for instance) might be to install your OS, install Timeshift, then select Restore. It'll restore your previous user, settings, etc. Then you reboot for the restored data to appear.
I can make it back up data, too? I do snapshots on btrfs. Not sure if that's the same as their regular backup, is it? Damn, man. Why is it hard to make a backup? Lol
I might just look into clonezilla or something then.
You can make Timeshift backup data too by selecting the Include Everything option as mentioned. The developers say that you shouldn't, because ideally OS backups should be separate from data backups, but you can if you want.
If they're separate, then it's easier to restore your OS (eg. if you edit a system config file and can't boot afterwards) without also reverting any documents and such you've been working on since then. Or to restore data from a backup (eg. a file you deleted) without also reverting your OS to that earlier state. Keeping your OS backup (for system restore purposes) separate from your data backup (for retrieving old files) makes that easier.
Still, there's no reason why you can't use Timeshift to do both in one. If your goal is to make a full backup of your computer in its current state, data and all, to restore in case your SSD dies (like Clonezilla would), then the Include Everything option will give you that.
Awesome. Thank you so much for the detailed explanation. I really appreciate it.