Backup for VM guests
Recommend using the built in Veeam VM backup solutions.
Backup for standalone eg a raspberry pi
Recommend using RonR-Rpi-image-util scripts to do a complete image backup. Can either backup to USB or to UNC network share. There is a module called cifscloak which stores the credentials to sign into the share in an obfuscated state, and also manages mounting of the share to /mnt/bellsbackup-veeam directory.
#install pip
sudo apt-update
sudo apt-get -y pip
#install cifscloak
sudo pip3 install git+https://github.com/sudoofus/cifscloak.git <- it will error on sqlite - ignore this as it comes included with python3
sudo pip install cifscloak
#set up mount point
sudo mkdir /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam
sudo cifscloak addmount -n mylinuxbackup -veeam -i [Insert BACKUP Server Name] -s [Insert Share Name] -m /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam -u [Insert usernamer name to access share] <- will prompt for password
#test the mounting
sudo cifscloak mount -a <- mount
ls -al /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam <- make sure we can see files over the network
sudo cifscloak mount -a -u <- dismount
#set up automount service
sudo cifscloak systemdfile -a > ~/cifscloak.service
sudo cp ./cifscloak.service /etc/systemd/system
sudo systemctl enable cifscloak
sudo systemctl start cifscloak <- start the service
ls -al /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam <- make sure we can see files over the network from the automounted mount point.
#set up cron job (job scheduler)
sudo crontab -e <- if prompted, select nano as the editor (usually option 1)
enter in the cron job as follows - runs at 2pm every week day
0 14 * * 1-5 /home/pi/bin/image-util/image-backup -i /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam/"MyLinuxComputerName_$(date +\%Y-\%m-\%d_\%H\%M).img"
Restoring raspberry from standalone backup.
If you just want to restore a file or two, or even a directory, the best way is to mount the .img file. Do this from the pi.
If you wish to restore the entire backup image to a new SD card you need to do this from a PC.
#Restore file/folder on the pi by mounting the .img file.
sudo mkdir /tmp/imgmount <- create a temporary mount point
ls -al /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam <- list the backups in the backup location
sudo /home/pi/bin/image-util/image-mount imagefile mountpoint <- mount the image specified to the mountpoint.
#eg sudo /home/pi/bin/image-util/image-mount /mnt/mylinuxbackup-veeam/MyLinuxComputerName_2024-05-01_1400.img /tmp/imgmount/
#copy the files/directories you need from/tmp/imgmount/blahblah to whereever you need to copy.
#Eg if you need to restore a web file, sudo cp /tmp/imgmount/var/www/html/assets/json/Templates.json /var/www/html/assets/json/Templates.json
#when finished, unmount using the following
sudo umount /tmp/imgmount/
sudo losetup -d /dev/loop0
#Restoring entire backup needs to be done from another computer.
Copy/paste the .img file from the backup server to your local computer: RDP to Veeam, browse to the backup folder, copy the .img file, minimise RDP, browse to a folder on your local computer, paste.
Insert an SD card into your local computer. 16GB or greater is best - the restore process will expand the volume to consume the entire storage available.
Use Raspberry Pi Imager (downloadable from https://www.raspberrypi.com/software/) -> Click Choose OS -> Use Custom -> select the .img file you pasted to your local folder above -> Click choose storage and select the SD card.