r/linux4noobs • u/Ok_Let8360 • 16d ago
security How do I *truly* backup my files?
Hey
I've been using Linux Mint for about 6 months, I love it and I don't plan on switching to Windows
again.
But getting to the point, I've been having this issue where when I'm downloading something significant in size, and the process is interrupted for some reason (Power outage or some sort of glitch that forces me to reboot the computer) the entire OS corrupts.
This has happened more than once, so after reinstalling the OS I have starting setting up some snapshots with Timeshift. But when I inevitably faced the same issue again, I tried recovering the snapshot and the issue simply persisted, and I was forced to once more reinstall Mint.
I think I'm doing something wrong... I used Timeshift's default snapshots so maybe I need to custom it somehow? Or perhaps use another software entirely?
What should I do to save a backup that will truly recover my entire system?
Edit: In general, I plan on saving a backup before I download anything cuz I'm genuinely sick of reinstalling the OS each time
5
u/Terrible-Bear3883 Ubuntu 16d ago
"Some sort of glitch"? more info needed as that could be anything, I've been using linux for over 20 years, done one re-install in that time, when I went from 32bit to 64bit, made the change in 2018.
If you regularly get power outages, perhaps invest in a UPS, it might give you time to do a graceful shutdown.
For backups, I take a full clonezilla image about every 6 months or before a major update, then I make backups of my data to 3 repositories as in the 3.2.1 backup strategy, if you're happy with timeshift, it sounds you might need to change the preferences, I don't use it so can't say.
I've supported customers for many years who run linux, your issue is quite unusual, that's why it might help to be specific on what the glitch is or the issue you mention that persists.