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Forum Discussion
KenTanker0us1
Mar 22, 2018Tutor
RN42600 - EXT4 vs. NTFS for OS6 usb backup
Hello friends, the title says it all. I read that EXT4 is faster and more efficient than NTFS. On the other hand, it would be difficult to use with the PC unless I added a driver that isn't guarante...
- Mar 22, 2018
It's been a while since I tested this, but back in OS 6.5.0 firmware they switched to different NTFS drives in the NAS. That increased performance to ~95 MB/s.
My advice is to use NTFS - a backup that is hard to read on your other devices isn't worth much.
Note that you can use rsync to get incremental backups to your USB drive. The trick is to set the source up as "remote", and use 127.0.0.1 for the IP address.
StephenB
Mar 22, 2018Guru - Experienced User
It's been a while since I tested this, but back in OS 6.5.0 firmware they switched to different NTFS drives in the NAS. That increased performance to ~95 MB/s.
My advice is to use NTFS - a backup that is hard to read on your other devices isn't worth much.
Note that you can use rsync to get incremental backups to your USB drive. The trick is to set the source up as "remote", and use 127.0.0.1 for the IP address.
- KenTanker0us1Mar 22, 2018Tutor
Hey StephenB, good to see you here.
Thanks for the advice. I will stick to NTFS.
This idea of using rsync for incremental backups sounds best. Ithink I might need some more detailed steps in this. If I understand you correctly, I would do this:
_New Backup Job:
From remote system
Host: 127.0.0.1
Protocol: remote:Rsync Server
Port: 873 ??
To ReadyNAS folder, USB port, or eSATA port
Location: /media/USB_HDD_1/
Does this look correct?
Also: what about snapshots, etc. do they take up much room on the usb drive?
Always good to have your expert help.
best
Ken
- KenTanker0us1Mar 23, 2018Tutor
Well, I've done some testing over the last couple of days. The rsync option took 26 minutes longer than the local option.
The local protocol went like this:
Backup Job Name: MANUAL_Library_to_Passport_2TB_01
Backup Job Type: Full
Protocol: local
Backup Source: [library]/
Backup Destination: [USB Front]/
Backup Start Time: Wed Mar 21 2018 19:04:21
Backup Finish Time: Wed Mar 21 2018 22:14:07
Backup Status: Success*Time elapsed: 3h 9m 46 s
The rsync job went like this:
Backup Job Name: 2TB01_library
Backup Job Type: Incremental
Protocol: rsync
Backup Source: [remote:rsync]/127.0.0.1::library
Backup Destination: [USB_HDD_1]/library
Backup Start Time: Fri Mar 23 2018 1:32:49
Backup Finish Time: Fri Mar 23 2018 5:08:22
Backup Status: Success*Time elapsed: 3h 35m 33s
The idea that the rsync will do incremental should make things faster from here on, I would think.
I'm posting this in case anybody else is looking for info. Thanks all.
- StephenBMar 23, 2018Guru - Experienced User
The port is 873.
You don't want to back up the snapshots, as each one will take the full space of the share on the USB disk.
In my own systems I use custom snapshot settings, with "allow snapshot access" unchecked. With those settings, the snapshots aren't transferred.
If you are using smart snapshots, then you might want to test with a small share first, and then confirm that the snapshot isn't backed up.
- KenTanker0us1Mar 23, 2018Tutor
Thanks, StephenB, I got the port set at 873 and have been doing backups to the WD drives successfully.
Re: snapshots
I don't fully understand the procedure but I suspect I'm not using snapshots because I don't see any mention of them in my backup jobs.
How would I know if I'm using snapshots?
As always, thanks very much.
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