mirror of
https://github.com/octoleo/restic.git
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A backup reads from the source and writes it to the backup target (repository). The name "target" is kept within the source code as it's used there excessively.
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FAQ
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===
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This is the list of Frequently Asked Questions for restic.
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Will restic resume an interrupted backup?
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-----------------------------------------
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Yes, restic will resume interrupted backups when they are re-run.
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When backing up, restic periodically writes index files to keep a record of
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the uploaded data. Even if there's no snapshot created in the end (due to the
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backup being interrupted), these indexes are stored in the repository for the
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data that has been uploaded so far. Next time restic runs, it is then able to
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find the uploaded data through these indexes, and thereby reference it again
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without having to upload it a second time. This effectively makes it continue
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from where it saved the last index, which should be up to a few minutes ago.
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It does not matter if the backup was interrupted by the user or if it was due
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to unforeseen circumstances such as connectivity issues, power loss, etc.
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Simply re-run the backup again and restic should only upload what it needs to
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in order to complete the interrupted backup and create a snapshot.
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Note however that during the initial backup run and any re-tries, until there
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has been a first snapshot created for the backup set (list of files and
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directories to be backed up), restic will need to re-scan the files on disk as
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there is no parent snapshot to compare the filesystem with to determine which
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files have changed. This process should however be far quicker than the
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uploading, and it's normal to see restic scan the files again when re-running
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the backup.
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``restic check`` reports packs that aren't referenced in any index, is my repository broken?
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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When ``restic check`` reports that there are pack files in the
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repository that are not referenced in any index, that's (in contrast to
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what restic reports at the moment) not a source for concern. The output
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looks like this:
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::
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$ restic check
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create exclusive lock for repository
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load indexes
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check all packs
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pack 819a9a52e4f51230afa89aefbf90df37fb70996337ae57e6f7a822959206a85e: not referenced in any index
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pack de299e69fb075354a3775b6b045d152387201f1cdc229c31d1caa34c3b340141: not referenced in any index
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2 additional files were found in the repo, which likely contain duplicate data.
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You can run `restic prune` to correct this.
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check snapshots, trees and blobs
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[0:00] 100.00% 16 / 16 snapshots
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no errors were found
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The message means that there is more data stored in the repository than
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strictly necessary. This is uncritical. With high probability this is duplicate data
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caused by an interrupted backup run or upload operation. In
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order to clean it up, the command ``restic prune`` can be used.
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I ran a ``restic`` command but it is not working as intended, what do I do now?
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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If you are running a restic command and it is not working as you hoped it would,
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there is an easy way of checking how your shell interpreted the command you are trying to run.
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Here is an example of a mistake in a backup command that results in the command not working as expected.
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A user wants to run the following ``restic backup`` command
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::
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$ restic backup --exclude "~/documents" ~
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.. important:: This command contains an intentional user error described in this paragraph.
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This command will result in a complete backup of the current logged in user's home directory and it won't exclude the folder ``~/documents/`` - which is not what the user wanted to achieve.
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The problem is how the path to ``~/documents`` is passed to restic.
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In order to spot an issue like this, you can make use of the following ruby command preceding your restic command.
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::
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$ ruby -e 'puts ARGV.inspect' restic backup --exclude "~/documents" ~
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["restic", "backup", "--exclude", "~/documents", "/home/john"]
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As you can see, the command outputs every argument you have passed to the shell. This is what restic sees when you run your command.
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The error here is that the tilde ``~`` in ``"~/documents"`` didn't get expanded as it is quoted.
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::
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$ echo ~/documents
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/home/john/documents
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$ echo "~/documents"
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~/document
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$ echo "$HOME/documents"
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/home/john/documents
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Restic handles globbing and expansion in the following ways:
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- Globbing is only expanded for lines read via ``--files-from``
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- Environment variables are not expanded in the file read via ``--files-from``
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- ``*`` is expanded for paths read via ``--files-from``
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- e.g. For backup sources given to restic as arguments on the shell, neither glob expansion nor shell variable replacement is done. If restic is called as ``restic backup '*' '$HOME'``, it will try to backup the literal file(s)/dir(s) ``*`` and ``$HOME``
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- Double-asterisk ``**`` only works in exclude patterns as this is a custom extension built into restic; the shell must not expand it
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How can I specify encryption passwords automatically?
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-----------------------------------------------------
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When you run ``restic backup``, you need to enter the passphrase on
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the console. This is not very convenient for automated backups, so you
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can also provide the password through the ``--password-file`` option, or one of
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the environment variables ``RESTIC_PASSWORD`` or ``RESTIC_PASSWORD_FILE``.
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A discussion is in progress over implementing unattended backups happens in
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:issue:`533`.
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.. important:: Be careful how you set the environment; using the env
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command, a `system()` call or using inline shell
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scripts (e.g. `RESTIC_PASSWORD=password restic ...`)
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might expose the credentials in the process list
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directly and they will be readable to all users on a
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system. Using export in a shell script file should be
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safe, however, as the environment of a process is
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`accessible only to that user`_. Please make sure that
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the permissions on the files where the password is
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eventually stored are safe (e.g. `0600` and owned by
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root).
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.. _accessible only to that user: https://security.stackexchange.com/questions/14000/environment-variable-accessibility-in-linux/14009#14009
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How to prioritize restic's IO and CPU time
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------------------------------------------
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If you'd like to change the **IO priority** of restic, run it in the following way
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::
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$ ionice -c2 -n0 ./restic -r /media/your/backup/ backup /home
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This runs ``restic`` in the so-called best *effort class* (``-c2``),
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with the highest possible priority (``-n0``).
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Take a look at the `ionice manpage`_ to learn about the other classes.
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.. _ionice manpage: https://linux.die.net/man/1/ionice
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To change the **CPU scheduling priority** to a higher-than-standard
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value, use would run:
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::
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$ nice --10 ./restic -r /media/your/backup/ backup /home
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Again, the `nice manpage`_ has more information.
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.. _nice manpage: https://linux.die.net/man/1/nice
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You can also **combine IO and CPU scheduling priority**:
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::
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$ ionice -c2 nice -n19 ./restic -r /media/gour/backup/ backup /home
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This example puts restic in the IO class 2 (best effort) and tells the CPU
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scheduling algorithm to give it the least favorable niceness (19).
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The above example makes sure that the system the backup runs on
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is not slowed down, which is particularly useful for servers.
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Creating new repository on a Synology NAS via sftp fails
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--------------------------------------------------------
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For using restic with a Synology NAS via sftp, please make sure that the
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specified path is absolute, it must start with a slash (``/``).
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Sometimes creating a new restic repository on a Synology NAS via sftp fails
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with an error similar to the following:
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::
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$ restic -r sftp:user@nas:/volume1/restic-repo init
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create backend at sftp:user@nas:/volume1/restic-repo/ failed:
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mkdirAll(/volume1/restic-repo/index): unable to create directories: [...]
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Although you can log into the NAS via SSH and see that the directory structure
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is there.
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The reason for this behavior is that apparently Synology NAS expose a different
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directory structure via sftp, so the path that needs to be specified is
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different than the directory structure on the device and maybe even as exposed
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via other protocols.
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Try removing the ``/volume1`` prefix in your paths. If this does not work, use
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sftp and ls to explore the SFTP file system hierarchy on your NAS.
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The following may work:
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::
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$ restic -r sftp:user@nas:/restic-repo init
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Why does restic perform so poorly on Windows?
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---------------------------------------------
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In some cases the real-time protection of antivirus software can interfere with
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restic's operations. If you are experiencing bad performance you can try to
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temporarily disable your antivirus software to find out if it is the cause for
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your performance problems. If you are certain that the antivirus software is
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the cause for this and you want to gain maximum performance, you have to add
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the restic binary to an exclusions list within the antivirus software.
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How do I choose a strong password?
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----------------------------------
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Length is the single most important component in password strength. That doesn't
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mean that other components such as complexity and entropy (or randomness) are not
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important to consider. A strong password includes Alphabetical, Numerical and
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Special characters. For example, ``nk3E9Rr26md6GGySyyWMrfakw8Jck4$&vVY6`` would
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be a very strong password, if not for being in this documentation.
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There are plenty of tools out there, such as OpenSSL, pwgen or KeePass that can
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generate a sufficiently complex, random and long password.
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Restic backup command fails to find a valid file in Windows
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-----------------------------------------------------------
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If the name of a file in Windows contains an invalid character, Restic will not be
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able to read the file. To solve this issue, consider renaming the particular file.
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