[kman42]

I now have an iMac on my desk at work and I would like to back up my Home directory to my home iMac. I can log into my work iMac using ssh so I think I need to use something based on rsync or similar to do the backup. I've read in a few other threads that rsync doesn't do resource forks and that rsync in 10.4 crashes on incremental backups. Is this still the case? How do other people go about backing up remote computers?

thanks,
kman

[besson3c]

I've never had rsync crash on incremental backups for inexplicable reasons, nor have I heard of this problem. As far as resource forks go, this may be the case, I never really bothered to look into this. Is this a concern for you? Do you have some OS 9 files or files without extensions you are concerned with?

My advice is to stop thinking about rsync being tied to OS X, and think about it is a platform agnostic tool that is not maintained or kept functioning by Apple. If there was a bug with an older version of rsync bundled into OS X, it should affect all rsync users on any platform and updating to the latest version should put you in the same status as every other rsync user.

The exception to this is of course the resource forks, but to me this is a non-issue since I don't have any OS 9 files around anymore.

[kman42]

Here's just one link I found to problems with rsync and OSX:
Mini-HOWTO: Fixing rsync on Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4.x)

I just haven't found anything about recent version of tiger and these issues. Obviously, if they are fixed then I don't want to start patching things.

[wataru]

Originally Posted by besson3c

I've never had rsync crash on incremental backups for inexplicable reasons, nor have I heard of this problem. As far as resource forks go, this may be the case, I never really bothered to look into this. Is this a concern for you? Do you have some OS 9 files or files without extensions you are concerned with?

My advice is to stop thinking about rsync being tied to OS X, and think about it is a platform agnostic tool that is not maintained or kept functioning by Apple. If there was a bug with an older version of rsync bundled into OS X, it should affect all rsync users on any platform and updating to the latest version should put you in the same status as every other rsync user.

The exception to this is of course the resource forks, but to me this is a non-issue since I don't have any OS 9 files around anymore.

If you're not enabling copying of resource forks, then you're losing Spotlight metadata as well as OS 9-style resources. It is not an option for the general public to ignore this.

I haven't tested it in 10.4.8, but rsync is horribly broken in OS X. This is not an issue to dismiss offhand by brushing off resource forks.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by wataru

If you're not enabling copying of resource forks, then you're losing Spotlight metadata as well as OS 9-style resources. It is not an option for the general public to ignore this.

I haven't tested it in 10.4.8, but rsync is horribly broken in OS X. This is not an issue to dismiss offhand by brushing off resource forks.

How is rsync horribly broken?

Spotlight data is attached to individual files? I thought that there was simply a master index that is built and maintained by the OS. Even if Spotlight data was attached to files, wouldn't it simply be rebuilt the next time the files are copied back to the HD? Are you referring to Spotlight comments? Would these be what would be attached to the individual files?

If you are right, I wish Apple would get their act together so that people can use common tools such as rsync. It shouldn't be a hassle to copy files to or from the Mac from other operating systems without doing backflips.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by kman42

Here's just one link I found to problems with rsync and OSX:
Mini-HOWTO: Fixing rsync on Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4.x)

I just haven't found anything about recent version of tiger and these issues. Obviously, if they are fixed then I don't want to start patching things.

Just read this page, and with the exception of the buffer overrun (which I haven't personally experienced), looks like a lot can be avoided by not using Apple's -E flag, providing these tradeoffs are worth it to you.

[kman42]

So I guess the more pertinent question is "How does everyone else perform secure remote backups?"

rsync seems like the logical solution, but I don't want to install patches and then have apple come along and fix it, although I suppose it would just replace my patch.

kman

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by kman42

So I guess the more pertinent question is "How does everyone else perform secure remote backups?"

rsync seems like the logical solution, but I don't want to install patches and then have apple come along and fix it, although I suppose it would just replace my patch.

kman

If you install the copy of rsync included in Macports or Fink and put the paths to these binaries in your path, it will be used instead of Apple's provided rsync.

I don't use Spotlight comments (or Spotlight in general, for the most part), nor do I care about resource forks, so rsync is a good solution for me regardless of the state of Apple's rsync implementation and any of the Mac specific issues.

[Gavin]

Why not just try a couple of folders and see what you get?

[turtle777]

There is a patched rsync version that copies resource forks as well.

rsync+hfsmode

-t

[rehoot]

Originally Posted by kman42 

I now have an iMac on my desk at work and I would like to back up my Home directory to my home iMac. I can log into my work iMac using ssh so I think I need to use something based on rsync or similar to do the backup.

I tested many versions of rsync on OS 10.4 a couple months ago and had many, random but severe errors when trying to use it for creating an mirrored archive. The errors were not simply related to resource forks. The program was unreliable. If you decide to try it, be sure to do extensive testing.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by rehoot 

I tested many versions of rsync on OS 10.4 a couple months ago and had many, random but severe errors when trying to use it for creating an mirrored archive. The errors were not simply related to resource forks. The program was unreliable. If you decide to try it, be sure to do extensive testing.

I use the stock (non-Apple) version of rsync daily with absolutely no problems. What versions are you trying?

[rehoot]

Originally Posted by besson3c 

I use the stock (non-Apple) version of rsync daily with absolutely no problems. What versions are you trying?

I did this a several months ago (perhaps as early as September), but I used whatever came with 10.4, then I found two other versions online. Everything had some type of problem that lead to bad syncs.

The version that I can find on my computer now are:
1) rsync version 2.6.3 protocol version 28 -- Copyright (C) 1996-2004 by Andrew Tridgell and others

2) rsync version 2.6.6 protocol version 29 (perhaps from http://www.onthenet.com.au/~q/rsync/)

... and at least one other rsync modification. I will test this again in March when I have some time.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by rehoot 

I did this a several months ago (perhaps as early as September), but I used whatever came with 10.4, then I found two other versions online. Everything had some type of problem that lead to bad syncs.

The version that I can find on my computer now are:
1) rsync version 2.6.3 protocol version 28 -- Copyright (C) 1996-2004 by Andrew Tridgell and others

2) rsync version 2.6.6 protocol version 29 (perhaps from Fixing rsync on MacOS X 10.4 (Tiger))

... and at least one other rsync modification. I will test this again in March when I have some time.

Just grab the one from the Macports distribution, it will automatically install the stock rsync straight from the vendor. You don't get all of the resource fork attention that all of the little patched up versions attempt to address, but it will at least work just fine. For me, I don't care at all about preserving resource forks anyway.