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Install rsnapshot from Ubuntu’s package repositories with sudo apt-get install rsnapshot. Then edit /etc/rsnapshot.conf to choose a snapshot destination, retention levels, and local or remote backup points. Validate the file with sudo rsnapshot configtest, preview an interval with sudo rsnapshot -t daily, run a real snapshot only after reviewing the preview, and enable the packaged cron schedule in /etc/cron.d/rsnapshot.
rsnapshot is an rsync-based, file-level snapshot utility. It can keep multiple point-in-time directory trees while using hard links for unchanged files, so storage is approximately one complete backup plus copies of files that change. It is not a disk-image system or a managed cloud disaster-recovery service.
What rsnapshot does on Ubuntu
Canonical describes rsnapshot as an rsync-based filesystem snapshot utility for local and remote filesystems. Each run synchronizes configured source directories into a snapshot root. Older snapshots are rotated according to named retention levels such as daily, weekly, and monthly.
Snapshots look like separate full directory trees. Internally, unchanged files can be hard links to the same underlying data, while a changed file receives a new copy. This gives you historical versions without storing an entirely independent full copy for every interval.
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- Local source: directories on the Ubuntu machine, such as
/home/,/etc/, or/usr/local/. - Remote source: a directory reached through rsync over SSH, for example
root@example.com:/home/. - Snapshot root: the filesystem location that stores all retained snapshots.
- Automation: cron entries that invoke a selected retention interval at fixed times.
The Ubuntu Noble manpage identifies package version 1.4.5-2 in the current Noble package documentation. Configuration syntax and defaults should be checked against the manpage installed on your own Ubuntu release.
Before you install: decide where snapshots will live
Choose the snapshot root before editing the configuration. A separate disk is preferable because a failure of the Ubuntu system disk should not also destroy every backup. Ubuntu’s backup guidance identifies removable hard drives as physical backup media, making a dedicated external USB hard drive a practical destination for rsnapshot.
Using an external USB drive
Connect and mount the drive, then use its mounted path as snapshot_root, for example /mnt/backup/rsnapshot/. Create the directory and ensure the account that runs rsnapshot can write there. The exact mount path depends on your system; verify it with your normal disk-management tools before putting it in the configuration.
Compare drives by usable capacity, filesystem support, connection reliability, portability, and whether you can disconnect or move the device off-site when backups are complete. Select capacity from the size of the protected data, its change rate, exclusions, and the number of retained intervals; no universal disk-size figure applies.
Estimate capacity realistically
The rsnapshot manpage states that required space is roughly the size of one full backup plus a copy of each additional file that changes. A dataset with many large files that change frequently can therefore consume much more space than a mostly static dataset. Count the directories you will back up, account for files excluded by policy, and leave headroom rather than filling the device to its limit.
Install the Ubuntu package
- Refresh package metadata if your system has not been updated recently:
sudo apt-get update - Install rsnapshot:
sudo apt-get install rsnapshot - Confirm that the executable is available:
rsnapshot --version
The package installs the default configuration path /etc/rsnapshot.conf and a packaged cron file at /etc/cron.d/rsnapshot. Do not enable unattended scheduling until the configuration passes a syntax check and a dry run.
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Open the file as root, preserving a copy of the original example:
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sudo cp /etc/rsnapshot.conf /etc/rsnapshot.conf.original
sudo editor /etc/rsnapshot.confAll rsnapshot parameters must be separated by tabs according to the Ubuntu manpage. Spaces that look aligned in an editor are not a safe substitute. Keep the packaged example nearby while replacing its destination, retention policy, backup points, and exclusions.
Set the snapshot root
Set snapshot_root to the mounted filesystem that will contain the retained trees. The path must exist and be writable when rsnapshot runs.
snapshot_root /mnt/backup/rsnapshot/If the directory is on an external device, ensure that device is mounted before every scheduled run. A cron job that starts while the device is absent can write to an ordinary directory on the system disk if the mount point itself exists, defeating the intended separation. Use your system’s mount controls or a pre-run check to prevent that failure mode.
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Retention levels are declared with retain. List them from most frequent to least frequent. The first level performs the filesystem synchronization; higher levels rotate snapshots created by lower levels.
retain daily 7
retain weekly 4
retain monthly 6With this example, the policy names seven daily positions, four weekly positions, and six monthly positions. The numbers are policy choices, not requirements. Match them to how far back you need to recover and how much storage your change rate allows.
Add local backup points
A backup point names a source path and the directory name under the snapshot root where it will be stored. Canonical’s examples include:
backup /home/ localhost/
backup /etc/ localhost/
backup /usr/local/ localhost/After a run, these sources are represented below the appropriate interval directory under snapshot_root. Add only the paths you actually need; broad selections increase transfer time and capacity requirements.
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Add exclusions and rsync options deliberately
The packaged example contains rsync-related settings and exclusion examples. Review each one for your machine rather than copying every line unchanged. Excluding caches, temporary build output, or other reproducible data can reduce storage, but excluding application data without a restore plan creates an incomplete backup. Keep option changes conservative until a dry run shows exactly what will happen.
Back up a remote Ubuntu or Linux host
Remote sources use rsync over SSH. A configuration entry follows this pattern:
backup root@example.com:/home/ example.com/The source host, account, and destination name are examples; replace them with values appropriate to your environment. Remote operation requires SSH access without an interactive password, normally provided by an SSH key.
Prepare key-based access
- On the machine that runs rsnapshot, create a dedicated key if you do not already have one:
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 - Install the public key for the backup account on the remote host using your organization’s approved method, commonly:
ssh-copy-id backupuser@example.com - Test a non-interactive login before scheduling rsnapshot:
ssh -o BatchMode=yes backupuser@example.com true - Test the exact source path with rsync over SSH. Resolve host-key prompts, permissions, and firewall rules while logged in interactively.
Use a least-privileged remote account when it can read every required source. If root access is genuinely required for protected paths, restrict the key and its access according to your security policy. A key that works from your shell but not from cron often depends on an agent, environment variable, or home-directory permission that cron does not provide; use an explicit key path and test under the same account that will run the job.
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Run checks in this order after saving the configuration:
- Check syntax and required parameters:
sudo rsnapshot configtestA successful result indicates that rsnapshot can parse the configuration. Correct syntax does not prove that a disk is mounted, a source is readable, or SSH authentication will succeed.
- Preview the commands for an interval without changing data:
sudo rsnapshot -t dailyThe dry run prints the commands rsnapshot would execute. Inspect source paths, destination paths, exclusions, rotation operations, and rsync options before proceeding.
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- Run the interval only after the preview is correct:
sudo rsnapshot daily
For a first run, watch the command output and inspect the resulting directory tree below snapshot_root. Verify that expected files are present, excluded files are absent by design, and the destination filesystem has sufficient free space. Repeat the preview and correct the configuration if any path is wrong; do not rely on a later cron run to reveal a typo.
Schedule daily, weekly, and monthly rotations with cron
Ubuntu documents /etc/cron.d/rsnapshot as the default cron file. Open it after a successful manual test:
sudo editor /etc/cron.d/rsnapshotCanonical’s example entries are:
| Entry | Run time | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
0 4 * * * root /usr/bin/rsnapshot daily |
04:00 every day | Creates the frequent snapshot and rotates daily positions. |
0 3 * * 1 root /usr/bin/rsnapshot weekly |
03:00 every Monday | Rotates the weekly level. |
0 2 1 * * root /usr/bin/rsnapshot monthly |
02:00 on the first day of each month | Rotates the monthly level. |
These times are Ubuntu’s example, not a universal schedule. Choose times that avoid heavy source activity, fit the retention levels you declared, and allow a lower-level run to finish before a higher-level rotation starts. The five cron fields represent minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week; the additional root field identifies the account that runs the command.
Use absolute paths in cron entries, as Ubuntu does. Keep the external destination mounted and available at each scheduled time. Check system cron logs and rsnapshot output after the first automated run instead of assuming that a saved file guarantees execution.
Understand hard links and retention behavior
rsnapshot makes extensive use of hard links. If a file is unchanged between snapshots, the newer directory entry can point to the same inode as the older one. A changed file receives a separate copy. This is why several snapshots can appear to be full backups while consuming approximately one original dataset plus changed-file copies.
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Hard links exist within the same filesystem. Do not expect this space-saving behavior if parts of a snapshot tree are copied to a different filesystem as ordinary files. Keep the complete snapshot root on the filesystem whose capacity you measured.
Retention levels rotate names and data according to their order. Increasing a retention count preserves more historical positions; decreasing it eventually removes older positions during rotation. Removing a backup line from the configuration does not automatically remove files that were archived by earlier runs. The rsnapshot manpage warns that old snapshot data remains until it is manually removed, so review and delete obsolete trees deliberately after confirming that no recovery requirement depends on them.
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Local versus remote designs
| Decision point | Local source | Remote source |
|---|---|---|
| Network dependency | No network is required for the source copy. | The network and SSH service must be available for each run. |
| Authentication | Local filesystem permissions control access. | Passwordless SSH, normally key-based, is required. |
| Failure domain | System and source may share the same physical machine unless the snapshot root is external. | Source and snapshot host can be separated, but both hosts and the network can fail. |
| Storage location | Use a separate mounted disk when possible. | Snapshots reside on the machine running rsnapshot unless you configure its snapshot root elsewhere. |
| Restore access | Usually limited by local disk and USB throughput. | Requires access to the snapshot host; restoring across a network adds transfer time. |
Choose local protection when simplicity and fast on-site access matter. Choose a remote source when centralizing backups or separating the source from the backup host reduces risk. In either design, an additional off-site copy protects against theft, fire, and other events that can affect both machines in the same location; rsnapshot itself does not provide that service automatically.
Troubleshoot common installation and scheduling failures
configtest reports a syntax error
- Check that every setting uses tabs, not spaces, between fields.
- Compare spelling and capitalization with the packaged example and the installed manpage.
- Verify that
snapshot_rootand everybackupline has a value. - Run
sudo rsnapshot configtestagain after each correction rather than debugging several edits at once.
The dry run shows the wrong destination
Inspect the exact spelling and trailing slash of snapshot_root, the destination name on each backup line, and the interval you passed to -t. Confirm the external disk is mounted at the path in the configuration before running a real snapshot.
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Test SSH as the cron account with batch mode enabled. Install or correct the public key, verify the remote account can read the source, and avoid relying on an interactive SSH agent that cron cannot access. Confirm host-key verification has already been completed for the account that runs rsnapshot.
The backup fills the disk
Measure the source dataset and identify high-change directories. Reduce unnecessary sources with carefully reviewed exclusions, shorten retention counts, or use a larger snapshot filesystem. Do not delete individual files from a snapshot tree casually: hard-linked names can represent data still needed by another retained snapshot. Remove obsolete snapshot positions through a deliberate retention or housekeeping decision.
Cron runs but no new snapshot appears
- Confirm the cron file is named exactly
/etc/cron.d/rsnapshotand uses the required root field. - Use absolute paths such as
/usr/bin/rsnapshot. - Check that the destination drive was mounted at the scheduled time.
- Review cron and system logs for permission, lock, or command errors.
- Run the same interval manually as root to distinguish a configuration problem from an environment or scheduling problem.
Operational checklist
- Install with
sudo apt-get install rsnapshot. - Choose a snapshot root on a filesystem with enough measured capacity and preferably on a separate external disk.
- Edit
/etc/rsnapshot.confusing tabs. - Set
snapshot_root, orderedretainlevels, local or remotebackuppoints, and justified exclusions. - For remote sources, verify key-based SSH access without an interactive password.
- Run
sudo rsnapshot configtest. - Review
sudo rsnapshot -t dailyor the interval you intend to run. - Perform one controlled real run with
sudo rsnapshot daily. - Inspect files and free space below the snapshot root.
- Only then enable or adjust
/etc/cron.d/rsnapshot. - Periodically test that a representative file can be located and copied from a retained snapshot.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is rsnapshot’s configuration file on Ubuntu?
The default configuration path is /etc/rsnapshot.conf. Ubuntu also installs the example cron schedule at /etc/cron.d/rsnapshot.
How much disk space does rsnapshot need?
The manpage’s rule of thumb is approximately one full backup plus a copy of every additional file that changes. Actual capacity depends on source size, change rate, exclusions, and retained intervals, so measure your dataset and leave headroom.
Can rsnapshot back up a remote host?
Yes. Use an rsync-over-SSH source such as root@example.com:/home/ and configure passwordless SSH, normally with a key, for the account that runs rsnapshot.
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