Following up from my article on backing up USB drives, this recipe backs up the critical files on my desktop to remote storage (a NAS device on my network). Note that PC2 is the desktop to be backed up, SLUG1 (192.168.1.2) is the NAS device and USER1 is the user id doing the backup.

#!/bin/bash

# Backup Key PC2 files to Slug1

# Sync 2007 picture folders
##rsync -rl /home/user1/pictures/2007/  user1@192.168.1.2:/public/pictures/2007/

# Ensure that /mnt/slug1-root/ is mounted
#if [ ! -e /mnt/slug1-root/user1/backups/PC2/bin/ ]; then
#    mount-slug-root.sh
#fi
# Ensure that /media/slug1-public/ is mounted
#if [ ! -e /media/slug1-public/DISK1.txt ]; then
#    mount-slug-public.sh
#fi

# NOTE that to configure the rsync sessions on SLUG1, edit the file /opt/etc/rsyncd.conf
TOPUB='user1@192.168.1.2::public'
# Use this form if not using sessions
#TOPUB='user1@192.168.1.2:/public'
# Or use this form if the remote folder is mounted locally
#TOPUB='/media/slug1-public'
TOJK='user1@192.168.1.2::pc2'
#TOJK='user1@192.168.1.2:/user1/backups/PC2'
#TOJK='/mnt/slug1-root/user1/backups/PC2'

JKDT=`date --rfc-3339=date`
JKLOG="/home/user1/Backups/pc2backup_$JKDT.log"

echo "Starting PC2 backup at `date`" >$JKLOG
echo "=================================================================="
echo "Starting PC2 backup at `date`"
echo "The log file is at $JKLOG, all backups are to SLUG1/pc2 or SLUG1/public"
echo " "

#--out-format=FORMAT     output updates using the specified FORMAT
#--log-file=FILE         log what we're doing to the specified FILE
#--chmod=CHMOD
#--exclude=PATTERN       exclude files matching PATTERN
#     --exclude-from=FILE     read exclude patterns from FILE
#     --include=PATTERN       don't exclude files matching PATTERN
#     --include-from=FILE
#--dry-run
#OPTS='--verbose --archive --recursive --links --perms --executability --owner --group --devices --specials --times --human-readable --delete --delete-after --stats --ipv4 --progress --password-file=/home/user1/bin/tmppw.tmp --dry-run'
OPTS='--verbose --archive --recursive --links --executability --devices --specials --times --human-readable --delete --delete-after --stats --ipv4 --progress'
echo "Back up various bits - WARNING: DELETES files from destination" >>$JKLOG

RSYNC_PASSWORD=`kdialog --password "Password for jk@slug1 please:"`
#kdialog --password "Password for jk@slug1 please:" >~/tmppw.tmp

echo "Backups to SLUG1/pc2"
echo " "
# ** JK BACKUPS **
echo "user1/bin"
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/bin/ $TOJK/bin/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/bin/ $TOJK/bin/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG
echo "user1/backups"
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Backups/ $TOJK/Backups/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Backups/ $TOJK/Backups/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG
#echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Downloads/ $TOJK/Downloads/" >>$JKLOG
#rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Downloads/ $TOJK/Downloads/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
#echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG

echo "Backups to SLUG1/public"
echo " "
# ** Backups to public **

echo "user1/ebooks"
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/eBooks/ $TOPUB/ebooks/sorting/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/eBooks/ $TOPUB/ebooks/sorting/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG

echo "user1/pictures/Lnnnn"
echo "Back up picture files - WARNING: Does NOT delete files from destination" >>$JKLOG
OPTS='--verbose --archive --recursive --links --times --human-readable --stats --ipv4'
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Pictures/L2007/ $TOPUB/pictures/2007/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Pictures/L2007/ $TOPUB/pictures/2007/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Pictures/L2008/ $TOPUB/pictures/2008/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Pictures/L2008/ $TOPUB/pictures/2008/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG

echo "user1/backups/usbpen1 & usbpen2"
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Backups/USBPEN1/ $TOJK/Backups/USBPEN1/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Backups/USBPEN1/ $TOJK/Backups/USBPEN1/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG
echo "rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Backups/USBPEN2/ $TOJK/Backups/USBPEN2/" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/Backups/USBPEN2/ $TOJK/Backups/USBPEN2/ >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG

echo "Google Earth places"
echo "Back up Google Earth myplaces.kml" >>$JKLOG
rsync $OPTS /home/user1/.googleearth/myplaces.kml $TOPUB/maps+walks/pc2-myplaces.kml >>$JKLOG 2>&1
echo "=========================================" >>$JKLOG

#echo '' >~/tmppw.tmp
#rm ~/tmppw.tmp

echo " "
echo "ENDING PC2 backup at `date`" >>$JKLOG
echo "ENDING PC2 backup at `date`"
echo "=================================================================="

# To run under schedule
#    Log
#    Replace password

I have a similar script that runs on the NAS device which backs key files on that to a remote hosting service on a different continent! That way, I don’t have to worry about the house burning down or being burgled.