I just want to do a simple sync - no snapshots, no nothing - just duplicating the changes (adds/changes/deletes) on the NAS to a USB drive attached to the NAS. I want to do this automatically, preferably on a schedule nightly.
Backup in the NAS does not do it this way correct? Makes snapshots etc that I do not want. What can I install on the NAS to run a simple nightly sync?
Reason: These USB drives are so cheap and so large, why not? I have a huge USB drive I used for my photography hobby, but it is just sitting staring at me so I thought I would put it to work as a synced USB drive on my ReadyNas 104.
I just want to do a simple sync - no snapshots, no nothing - just duplicating the changes (adds/changes/deletes) on the NAS to a USB drive attached to the NAS. I want to do this automatically, preferably on a schedule nightly.
Backup in the NAS does not do it this way correct? Makes snapshots etc that I do not want. What can I install on the NAS to run a simple nightly sync?
You can create an rsync backup job for each share, and run those on a schedule. That will update the USB drive so it matches what is in those shares (without copying the snapshots).
FWIW, I do this on my own NAS, though I am backing up to other NAS, not a USB drive.
We can provide more details on the settings if you need that.
Snapshots don't actually take any space unless you've had a lot of churn, so I',m unsure what your issue is with the snapshots. They occur on some backup jobs to insure nothing is changed while it's being backed up (it backs up from the snapshot).
But if you instist on doing it, you can set up the source as remote and use the IP address 127.1.1.1 (called LocalHost). This will make the backup a "pull" from what it thinks is an external source, where is cannot perform a snapshot. Using rsync is the best for a sync, as it has an option to delete files on the destination that were deleted on the source.
So I "turn on" the Rsync service under System / Settings. Ok, then what? How do I set up the service? I have the USB drive plugged into the NAS and it is recognized and I have access via the amin page and such.
If I select the USB as Local, then it wants to run a regular backup job. If remote, I can select Rsync Server or Rsync over Remote SSH... I key in 127.1.1.1 and Discover and it does not find an Rsync server... not surprised, my USB drive is just a set of folders and can't run anything.
Sorry for the ignorance... I want to do this partly because I use Sync services (freefilesync) to backup my machines in my home and home office... and I would like to just unplug my USB drive from the NAS and have it look like the NAS with no extra folders and such.
If I select the USB as Local, then it wants to run a regular backup job. If remote, I can select Rsync Server or Rsync over Remote SSH... I key in 127.1.1.1 and Discover and it does not find an Rsync server... not surprised, my USB drive is just a set of folders and can't run anything.
Rsync is fine, since there is no traffic on your actual network when you are using local host.
Try making the source "remote" instead of the destination. You will need one backup job per share if you do that - though I recommend doing that anyway. It's more flexible (for instance, allowing you to back up shares to different USB drives later on if you need to).
BTW, make sure you go into the advanced tab of the backup job settings, and make sure "remove deleted files from target" is checked.
So I tried Remote as the source and selected both Rsync protocols and used 127.1.1.1 as the host and no server found. Can't go further. I must be doing something really wrong. Again, appologies.
Then there will be the issue of login..... Are you sure this will work?
So I tried Remote as the source and selected both Rsync protocols and used 127.1.1.1 as the host and no server found. Can't go further. I must be doing something really wrong. Again, appologies.
Then there will be the issue of login..... Are you sure this will work?
Peace
Bruce in Philly
It does work, though I think most use 127.0.0.1 as the host. Rsync needs to be enabled for the source share. Generally I enter the admin for the username (and use the NAS admin password) - but I don't think that matters.
I use rsync for NAS->NAS backup, so my settings are slightly different.
