Open-Source Backups Using Amanda (Linux Journal) [LWN.net]

Phil Moses has written a HOWTO article on the Amanda backup software. "Data probably is the most important element in computing, but in too many cases I see data backups overlooked or approached in such a carefree manner that I shiver. To this end, this article discusses the University of Maryland's Amanda (advanced Maryland automatic disk archiver) backup software, a relatively easy-to-use disk archiver built upon native dump and/or GNU tar tools. I often feel Amanda does not get the respect it deserves in a Linux/UNIX cross-platform environment. I confidently can say, however, that Amanda is a reliable platform for many Linux and UNIX users who are comfortable with a command-line interface."

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amanda's biggest flaw is...

Posted Aug 20, 2004 14:36 UTC (Fri) by tjw.org (guest, #20716) [Link]

yahoo groups.

I really like amanda and I've been using it extensively for several years, but searching mailing list archives is painful to say the least.

Other than that, amanda has served me quite well.

One feature that I hope gets added is the ability to span a single dump on multiple tapes. Currently you can't put a filesystem (if doing an fs dump) on the backup if it is bigger that the tape media you are using. Same goes for a single directory that is bigger the tape media (if doing a tar dump).

amanda's biggest flaw is...

Posted Aug 26, 2004 12:18 UTC (Thu) by fjf33 (subscriber, #5768) [Link]

I used Amanda about 6 years ago when I was responsible for *nix systems in the Engineering department at the university.

If I reemember correctly the feature you ask for ("One feature that I hope gets added is the ability to span a single dump on multiple tapes.") was talked about then as an imporatant priority. I wouldn't hold high hopes. :) On the other hand I was quite happy with it. I found it easier to use than what my fellow Novell/Windows admistrator used (some monster running an NLM in the Novell server controlled with a Windows client).

Open-Source Backups Using Amanda (Linux Journal)

Posted Aug 20, 2004 22:40 UTC (Fri) by JohnBell (guest, #12625) [Link]

Amanda is great, and I have used it in production in the past.

Bacula is better, though.

http://www.bacula.org

If you're an Amanda user, you really should give Bacula a try. Multi-volume saves and support for bare metal recovery - 'nuff said.