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This example shows how to create a backup snapshot of files and directories. A snapshot is a point-in-time backup that captures the state of your data with deduplication and encryption.

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Complete Example

use rustic_backend::BackendOptions;
use rustic_core::{
    BackupOptions, Credentials, PathList, Repository, RepositoryOptions, SnapshotOptions,
};
use simplelog::{Config, LevelFilter, SimpleLogger};
use std::error::Error;

fn main() -> Result<(), Box<dyn Error>> {
    // Display info logs
    let _ = SimpleLogger::init(LevelFilter::Info, Config::default());

    // Initialize Backends
    let backends = BackendOptions::default()
        .repository("/tmp/repo")
        .repo_hot("/tmp/repo2")
        .to_backends()?;

    // Open repository
    let repo_opts = RepositoryOptions::default();
    let credentials = Credentials::password("test");
    let repo = Repository::new(&repo_opts, &backends)?
        .open(&credentials)?
        .to_indexed_ids()?;

    let backup_opts = BackupOptions::default();
    let source = PathList::from_string(".")?.sanitize()?;
    let snap = SnapshotOptions::default()
        .add_tags("tag1,tag2")?
        .to_snapshot()?;

    // Create snapshot
    let snap = repo.backup(&backup_opts, &source, snap)?;

    println!("successfully created snapshot:\n{snap:#?}");
    Ok(())
}

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Step-by-Step Explanation

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1. Set up logging

let _ = SimpleLogger::init(LevelFilter::Info, Config::default());
Enable logging to track backup progress, including files processed, data transferred, and deduplication statistics.

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2. Configure backends with hot storage

let backends = BackendOptions::default()
    .repository("/tmp/repo")
    .repo_hot("/tmp/repo2")
    .to_backends()?;
Set up the main repository and an optional hot storage location. Hot storage provides faster access for recent data:
  • repository: Main backend for all data
  • repo_hot: Optional fast storage for recent snapshots and metadata

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3. Open the repository

let repo_opts = RepositoryOptions::default();
let credentials = Credentials::password("test");
let repo = Repository::new(&repo_opts, &backends)?
    .open(&credentials)?
    .to_indexed_ids()?;
Open an existing repository using password authentication and build an index of existing data. The to_indexed_ids() call is crucial for efficient deduplication during backup.

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4. Configure backup options

let backup_opts = BackupOptions::default();
let source = PathList::from_string(".")?.sanitize()?;
Set up backup configuration:
  • backup_opts: Controls behavior like compression, parallelism, and excludes
  • source: Paths to backup (in this case, current directory)
  • sanitize(): Normalizes and validates paths

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5. Set snapshot metadata

let snap = SnapshotOptions::default()
    .add_tags("tag1,tag2")?
    .to_snapshot()?;
Define snapshot metadata including:
  • Tags: Labels for organizing and filtering snapshots
  • Hostname: Automatically detected or can be set manually
  • Time: Defaults to current time

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6. Create the backup

let snap = repo.backup(&backup_opts, &source, snap)?;
Perform the actual backup operation. This will:
  • Scan the source files and directories
  • Detect changes since the last snapshot
  • Deduplicate data by splitting into chunks
  • Encrypt and compress chunks
  • Upload new data to the backend
  • Create the snapshot metadata

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7. Display results

println!("successfully created snapshot:\n{snap:#?}");
Show the created snapshot details including ID, timestamp, statistics, and metadata.

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Expected Output

During backup, you’ll see progress information: 
INFO - starting backup of .
INFO - scanning files...
INFO - processed 1,234 files, 45.2 MB
INFO - new data: 12.3 MB (after deduplication and compression)
INFO - snapshot created successfully

successfully created snapshot:
Snapshot {
    id: "a1b2c3d4",
    time: "2024-03-15T10:30:00Z",
    hostname: "mycomputer",
    paths: ["."],
    tags: ["tag1", "tag2"],
    summary: SnapshotSummary {
        files_new: 100,
        files_changed: 50,
        files_unmodified: 1084,
        data_added: 12345678,
        ...
    }
}
The summary shows:
  • Files categorized as new, changed, or unmodified
  • Amount of new data added to the repository
  • Total files and directories processed
  • Deduplication ratio and compression statistics

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Advanced Configuration

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Exclude patterns

let backup_opts = BackupOptions::default()
    .glob("!*.tmp")?
    .glob("!node_modules/")?
    .glob("!target/")?;

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Custom parent snapshot

let snap = SnapshotOptions::default()
    .add_tags("tag1,tag2")?
    .set_parent("previous_snapshot_id")
    .to_snapshot()?;

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Next Steps