[Chester LUG] Creating a system backup onto tape.

[Roger Downing]

On Wednesday 28 May 2008 23:22:52 Stuart Burns wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I'm hoping someone can help here. I've setup a new linux box (Opensuse
> 10.3) and it has an AIT 3 tape drive attached to it. Now backing up home is
> easy enough, but how does one create a backup of the actual system so in a
> disk failure it can be restored?
>
> Anyone know?
>
> Stu

Hmm I would look into using dump and restore. The problem would be that they 
only operate on ext2/3 file systems so if you don't use one of them you are 
out of luck on that front. I use them very widely at work to back up about 60 
servers to tape and have found them excellent, especially with the fact that 
they have built-in abilities to perform incremental and differential backups. 
You can also apply bzip2 compression on the fly to the backups which can 
increase speed / decrease required capacity very significantly (think 8:1 in 
some cases).

I have heard reports that one ought not to run dump on a r/w mounted file 
system but I've had no trouble at all in 4 years of doing it so would 
heartily recommend.

Cheers,
-- 
Roger Downing
eScience systems administrator
STFC
Daresbury Laboratories
Keckwick Lane
Warrington
WA4 4AD

Tel: 01925 603937
Mbl: 07880 736154