Ubuntu

How to create a backup image of Ububto PC

Asked by steveb001

Can anyone provide me with a suitable program to allow me to backup my Ubuntu PC to an image (in case I need to perform a restore in the future)?

I have a 230GB HDD which has been partitioned for Ubuntu, with the remaining space as NTFS (a throwback to when I was using Vista). I am looking for a program which can backup my Ubuntu PC into an image which ultimately needs to sit on a bootable DVD to allow image restores.

I have successfully created a disk with an old version of Ghost and now have a bootable DVD which contains the backup. However, I have had to backup the relevant partitions separately (i.e. Ubuntu boot partition, swap partition, etc). So if I need to do a restore in the future it is possible, but I will have to do multiple restores (for each partition). This isn't a very elegant approach really.

That's why I am looking for an alternative program. I have come across one called Image for Linux which seems to do what I want (including creating a bootable disk) - however, this is a commercial product and I am looking for a free alternative.

Any ideas anyone?

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marcobra (Marco Braida)
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gnuskool (gnuskool) said : 		#1

Check out Ghost 4 Linux. There is a discussion about the same questions you're asking here ------> http://sourceforge.net/forum/forum.php?thread_id=1343051&forum_id=408762

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marcobra (Marco Braida) (marcobra) said : 		#2

You can try mondo:

mondo - powerful disaster recovery suite
mondo-doc - manual for Mondo, a powerful disaster recovery

Open a terminal from Applications->Accessories->Terminal and type:
sudo apt-get update; sudo apt-get install mondo mondo-doc

Then the man is your friend:
man mondoarchive
man mondorestore

http://www.mondorescue.org/docs/docs.html

HTH

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Best marcobra (Marco Braida) (marcobra) said : 		#3

Sorry the http://www.mondorescue.org/docs/docs.html give me a 404 error,
then simply try http://www.mondorescue.org/

And don't forget to read the man page of Mindi the "wife" of Mondo they works together.
man mindi

HTH

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steveb001 (stevebond001) said : 		#4

Both

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steveb001 (stevebond001) said : 		#5

Both
Thank you very much for the assistance. I have decided to go with mondo (I have already tried G4L but it had trouble writing the image, and the above URL didn't load for me unfortunately).

I am currently creating an image with mondo and it seems really easy I must say - it's creating a boot disk and image with minimal intervention from me. I'll have to try a restore to see if it's worked correctly but I can do this into a VM without affecting my PC.

Thanks once again

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steveb001 (stevebond001) said : 		#6

Thanks elart.it, that solved my question.

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Iyed (iyed-bennour) said : 		#7

Hello guys,
Don't you think that Ubuntu needs its own backup and restoration system. I have been searching for such a software and most of the them doesn't seem to be satifying.
Is the purpose of launchpad is to launch projects. I think it's a very interesting project to create. Of course if there is good alternative please let me know

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m_mpepp2 (m-mpepp2) said : 		#8

Im not sure but I was making a backup image of my whole hard drive and was using a program.. not free mind you but seems to work when copying and exact image including all partitions including linux and its called acronis..Its written with a linux kernel so you would think that it would be free lol. but I think it could work very well for you provided that you have a windows dual boot.I really havent tried it with wine nor looked into whether its suitable for linux but it might just be. Maybe if you go to acronis website and check it out..its a lot better than norton ghost and I would even do a commercial for them.Its a system that you can alot a protected zone on your hard drive if you have a single boot system or have a rescue boot with an external drive holding a hard drive image. Ill check it out and try making a complete harddrive image to an external drive and see if it will do what I am speculating it will here. i kind of did it by accident already so I think it will work.

Ill post the results here later when I find out for sure..Michael

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kaphar (captain-harry) said : 		#9

I have to admit that I can't understand some of the answers to the backup and restore question. The writing is difficult to follow and the subject/object of the sentence is a moving critter. Anyway, is there a consensus or major opinion on backing up a Linux System? I have a dual boot drive that contains Vista on one partition and Linux on the other. I no longer care about the Vista one because I have tried restoring it from the original source - but that is another long, long, long story without a happy ending. I can buy a package if that is what it takes but I appreciate the opinions of this august group. Thanks
KapHar

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Rod Carty (rod-x) said : 		#10

I have some experience with Acronis Backup's Windows version called True Image. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting a full-function product for Windows. However, the Linux product is $999. (That's why I'm here on the forums looking for something else.)