Re: rsnapshot advice
On Mittwoch, 19. Oktober 2016 14:13:00 PYST Dan Ritter wrote:
> On Wed, Oct 19, 2016 at 06:59:56PM +0200, Pol Hallen wrote:
> > Hey all :-)
> >
> > I need an advice about remote rsnapshot backup: in my scenario I've 8
> > servers and one primary (backup server) in same LAN.
> >
> > What is better: make on each server rsnapshot and automatically backup
> > data
> > (ssh+root) to primary server?
> >
> > Or on primary server make a remote backup to all other servers (ssh+root)?
> >
> > Or use nfs on each servers and mount all to primary?
> >
> > thanks for advice
> >
> > PS: if there's a "better" tool for this kind of backup-scenario I'm happy
> > to learn new ways :-)
>
> Things to consider:
>
> - can compromising one of your servers compromise the backup
> server?
>
> - can compromising your backup server compromise all of your
> other servers?
>
> - do the 8 servers have significant duplicated data?
>
> - is the purpose of your backup to recover files and file trees
> that people have accidentally deleted?
>
> - is the purpose of your backup to restore a new machine to
> complete functionality from an image of the old one?
>
> - is the purpose of your backup to archive various data sets
> going back in time?
>
> Answers to those questions will help select better backup
> solutions for you.
>
> -dsr-
I would also take into consideration:
1) in a worst case-scenario how much work of my users will be lost?
2) how much work are the users willing to do again? The last hour? The last
1/2 day? The last day? What are the management requirements? Would the users
even know which part of their work has to be redone?
If the requirement e.g is "the last hour": My backup-method will have to be
faster than 55 minutes.
3) which is the fastest method to get a failed machine up and running again?
4) backing up a database-server is totally another thing than backing up a
file-server (the latter is easier).
For file-servers the question of remote-to-primary or primary-pulls-from-remote
is mostly a matter of convenience and taste.
5) A snapshot of a database-server or a mail-server may catch the server in an
inconsistent state. If you are able to use the backup-ability of your database
and/or your mail-server (mail-storage can be seen as a database too) you most
probably want to push the backups onto the primary or backup-server.
6) Would a backup of the backup server be a good idea? Let's say: at least
once a day (or night for that matter)?
7) Consider also the type of journalling filesystem you are using.
This requires testing and testing with stopwatch in hand. Maybe you will find
that you need bigger pipes just for backups. Maybe you need to set up another
fast network just for backups. I recommend that even for small setups like
yours.
I wish you success with your planning
Cheers
Eike
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