Back In Time

cron vs anacron

Asked by JohnL

Your program is good, well thought out. However, it is 2014 and the question of it depending on Cron and not Anacron (this question goes back to 2009) surprises me. Am I missing something, can I set BIT to run daily based on whenever I turn my computer on that day? I have always thought of cron being used on systems running 24 hours a day, like a server. Today, most users either turn thier computers off or place them in suspend and cron doesn not fit this pardine like anacron does. I have been using script files placed in the cron-daily with 100% success because my backup script. Unless I missed it, why is this great tool NOT providing this otion in it's schedule function. This app is targetting everyday home users right?

I really like the GUI font end to BIT but the 'old school' scheduler does not work for me. I suspose I could create a script that calls BIT from anacron but reading questions/answers on this subject, BIT keeps changing such that what worked in one release, stops working in the next.

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Germar (germar) said : 		#1

Anacron schedules are included since 1.0.26. You just need to install current version (1.0.36) from ppa:bit-team/stable.

I wouldn't call cron old-school. They both are designed for different use cases. But I do agree that cron doesn't suit well for most people running BIT. I also added a new udev scheduler which will start a new snapshot as soon as the backup drive is connected. Just give it a try.

If this still doesn't fit your needs you can always create your own schedules. Just use the line '/usr/bin/nice -n 19 /usr/bin/ionice -c2 -n7 /usr/bin/backintime --profile-id 1 --backup-job >/dev/null 2>&1' to start a new snapshot for profile 1. This didn't and will not change in future version, I promise ;-)

BTW current version will also address your old request for encryption in BIT.

Revision history for this message
JohnL (jwillar) said : 		#2

I am pleased to lean this. Where was this posted, it did not reveal searching with the term 'anacron'. You are
correct, cron has it's purpose but not really for home computer users. I'll give your recommendations a try, thank you
for the feedback. I really hated not being able to use this app.

On 04/06/2014 11:31 AM, Germar wrote:
> Your question #246579 on Back In Time changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/backintime/+question/246579
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Germar proposed the following answer:
> Anacron schedules are included since 1.0.26. You just need to install
> current version (1.0.36) from ppa:bit-team/stable.
>
> I wouldn't call cron old-school. They both are designed for different
> use cases. But I do agree that cron doesn't suit well for most people
> running BIT. I also added a new udev scheduler which will start a new
> snapshot as soon as the backup drive is connected. Just give it a try.
>
> If this still doesn't fit your needs you can always create your own
> schedules. Just use the line '/usr/bin/nice -n 19 /usr/bin/ionice -c2
> -n7 /usr/bin/backintime --profile-id 1 --backup-job >/dev/null 2>&1' to
> start a new snapshot for profile 1. This didn't and will not change in
> future version, I promise ;-)
>
> BTW current version will also address your old request for encryption in
> BIT.
>

Revision history for this message
JohnL (jwillar) said : 		#3

I see the cron(anacron) option. I have it set up for daily for now. Once confirmed, I'll tone it back to every three
days or so. This looks good, please consider this closed. Thank you.

On 04/06/2014 08:07 PM, JohnL wrote:
> Your question #246579 on Back In Time changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/backintime/+question/246579
>
> Status: Answered => Open
>
> You are still having a problem:
> I am pleased to lean this. Where was this posted, it did not reveal searching with the term 'anacron'. You are
> correct, cron has it's purpose but not really for home computer users. I'll give your recommendations a try, thank you
> for the feedback. I really hated not being able to use this app.
>
>
> On 04/06/2014 11:31 AM, Germar wrote:
>> Your question #246579 on Back In Time changed:
>> https://answers.launchpad.net/backintime/+question/246579
>>
>> Status: Open => Answered
>>
>> Germar proposed the following answer:
>> Anacron schedules are included since 1.0.26. You just need to install
>> current version (1.0.36) from ppa:bit-team/stable.
>>
>> I wouldn't call cron old-school. They both are designed for different
>> use cases. But I do agree that cron doesn't suit well for most people
>> running BIT. I also added a new udev scheduler which will start a new
>> snapshot as soon as the backup drive is connected. Just give it a try.
>>
>> If this still doesn't fit your needs you can always create your own
>> schedules. Just use the line '/usr/bin/nice -n 19 /usr/bin/ionice -c2
>> -n7 /usr/bin/backintime --profile-id 1 --backup-job >/dev/null 2>&1' to
>> start a new snapshot for profile 1. This didn't and will not change in
>> future version, I promise ;-)
>>
>> BTW current version will also address your old request for encryption in
>> BIT.
>>
>

Revision history for this message
Germar (germar) said : 		#4

Glad to see it's working for you.