borg

Deduplicating archiver with compression and authenticated encryption.

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Cross-platform backup tool for Windows, macOS & Linux with fast, incremental backups, client-side end-to-end encryption, compression and data deduplication. CLI and GUI included.

Very efficient backup system based on the git packfile format, providing fast incremental saves and global deduplication (among and within files, including virtual machine images). Please post problems or patches to the mailing list for discussion (see the end of the README below).

Quick Overview

Borg is a deduplicating backup program that supports compression and encryption. It's designed to be efficient and secure, allowing users to create space-efficient backups with optional encryption. Borg is particularly useful for backing up large amounts of data, as it only stores changes between backups.

Pros

Efficient deduplication and compression, saving storage space
Strong encryption options for secure backups
Fast performance, especially for incremental backups
Cross-platform support (Linux, macOS, BSD)

Cons

Steeper learning curve compared to some simpler backup solutions
Requires command-line usage, which may be intimidating for some users
Limited GUI options available (mostly third-party)
Potential for data loss if repository keys are lost or forgotten

Code Examples

Creating a new repository:

borg init --encryption=repokey /path/to/repo

Creating a backup:

borg create /path/to/repo::archive_name ~/Documents ~/Pictures

Listing archives in a repository:

borg list /path/to/repo

Extracting files from a backup:

borg extract /path/to/repo::archive_name

Getting Started

Install Borg:
- On Ubuntu/Debian: sudo apt-get install borgbackup
- On macOS with Homebrew: brew install borgbackup

Create a new repository:

borg init --encryption=repokey /path/to/repo

Create your first backup:

borg create /path/to/repo::first_backup ~/important_files

Verify the backup:
```
borg list /path/to/repo
```

To restore files:

borg extract /path/to/repo::first_backup

Remember to securely store your repository encryption key and passphrase. For more detailed information and advanced usage, consult the official Borg documentation.

Competitor Comparisons

restic

27,349

Fast, secure, efficient backup program

Pros of restic

Cross-platform support (Windows, macOS, Linux)
Built-in cloud storage support (S3, Azure, Google Cloud, etc.)
Faster initial backup due to not requiring a full scan of the source

Cons of restic

Generally slower than Borg for subsequent backups
Higher memory usage, especially for large repositories
Less space-efficient for storing multiple backup snapshots

Code comparison

restic:

func (be *Local) Save(ctx context.Context, h restic.Handle, rd restic.RewindReader) error {
    filename := be.Filename(h)
    return be.saveFile(ctx, filename, rd)
}

Borg:

def save_file(self, filename, fd, hardlink_masters=None):
    fd = self.preprocess_file(filename, fd)
    return self.chunker.chunkify(fd, self.cache, stats=self.stats)

Both projects use similar approaches for saving files, but restic's implementation is in Go, while Borg uses Python. Borg's implementation includes additional preprocessing and chunking steps, which contribute to its generally better compression and deduplication capabilities.

duplicati

11,382

Store securely encrypted backups in the cloud!

Pros of Duplicati

User-friendly web-based interface for easy configuration and management
Built-in support for various cloud storage providers (e.g., Google Drive, Dropbox)
Cross-platform compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux)

Cons of Duplicati

Generally slower backup and restore performance
Less efficient storage utilization due to lack of deduplication at block level
Higher resource consumption, especially for large backups

Code Comparison

Duplicati (C#):

using (var backend = DynamicLoader.BackendLoader.GetBackend(options))
{
    backend.Put(remotename, localfile);
}

Borg (Python):

with Repository(location, exclusive=True, create=True) as repository:
    with repository.lock:
        archive = Archive(repository, name)
        archive.save(cache=cache)

Summary

Duplicati offers a more user-friendly experience with its web interface and broad cloud storage support, making it accessible for less technical users. However, Borg excels in performance, efficiency, and resource utilization, making it a better choice for advanced users and larger-scale backups. Borg's command-line interface and focus on local and SSH-based backups contrast with Duplicati's emphasis on cloud storage integration.

kopia

8,293

Cross-platform backup tool for Windows, macOS & Linux with fast, incremental backups, client-side end-to-end encryption, compression and data deduplication. CLI and GUI included.

Pros of Kopia

Cross-platform support (Windows, macOS, Linux)
Built-in encryption and compression
Supports multiple cloud storage providers

Cons of Kopia

Relatively newer project with a smaller community
Less mature and battle-tested compared to Borg
Fewer advanced features for deduplication

Code Comparison

Kopia:

repo, err := repo.Open(ctx, configFile, password, &repo.Options{})
if err != nil {
    log.Fatalf("Unable to open repository: %v", err)
}

Borg:

repo = Repository(repo_path)
with repo:
    manifest, key = Manifest.load(repo)
    archives = manifest.list_archive_infos()

Both Kopia and Borg are open-source backup solutions, but they differ in their approach and features. Kopia is written in Go and offers cross-platform support, making it more accessible for Windows users. It also provides built-in encryption and compression, along with support for various cloud storage providers.

On the other hand, Borg, written in Python, has a longer history and a more established community. It excels in deduplication and offers advanced features for power users. However, it primarily targets Unix-like systems and has limited Windows support.

The code snippets demonstrate the different approaches to opening a repository in each project. Kopia uses a more Go-like error handling approach, while Borg utilizes Python's context manager for resource management.

bup

7,154

Pros of bup

Efficient storage of large files with rolling checksums
Git-compatible backup format, allowing easy browsing and restoration
Supports on-the-fly compression and deduplication

Cons of bup

Less active development compared to Borg
Limited support for encryption and access control
Lacks some advanced features like pruning and mounting backups

Code Comparison

bup:

def hashsplit(file, fsize):
    bits = min(17, max(12, int(math.log(fsize, 2)) - 19))
    for blob in rolling_checksum(file, bits):
        yield blob

Borg:

def chunker_params(file_size):
    return {
        'min_size': 512,
        'max_size': 8 * 1024 * 1024,
        'mask': 0xfff,
        'hash_mask': 0xffff,
    }

Both projects use rolling checksums for efficient file chunking, but Borg's implementation is more configurable and adaptable to different file sizes.

Borg offers a more comprehensive backup solution with features like encryption, compression, and deduplication built-in. It also provides better performance for large repositories and frequent backups.

bup's Git-compatible format is unique and allows for easy integration with existing Git workflows, but it may be less efficient for certain backup scenarios compared to Borg's custom format.

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README

This is borg2!

Please note that this is the README for borg2 / master branch.

For the stable version's docs, please see there:

https://borgbackup.readthedocs.io/en/stable/

Borg2 is currently in beta testing and might get major and/or breaking changes between beta releases (and there is no beta to next-beta upgrade code, so you will have to delete and re-create repos).

Thus, DO NOT USE BORG2 FOR YOUR PRODUCTION BACKUPS! Please help with testing it, but set it up additionally to your production backups.

TODO: the screencasts need a remake using borg2, see there:

https://github.com/borgbackup/borg/issues/6303

What is BorgBackup?

BorgBackup (short: Borg) is a deduplicating backup program. Optionally, it supports compression and authenticated encryption.

The main goal of Borg is to provide an efficient and secure way to back up data. The data deduplication technique used makes Borg suitable for daily backups since only changes are stored. The authenticated encryption technique makes it suitable for backups to targets not fully trusted.

See the installation manual_ or, if you have already downloaded Borg, docs/installation.rst to get started with Borg. There is also an offline documentation_ available, in multiple formats.

.. _installation manual: https://borgbackup.readthedocs.org/en/stable/installation.html .. _offline documentation: https://readthedocs.org/projects/borgbackup/downloads

Main features


**Space efficient storage**
  Deduplication based on content-defined chunking is used to reduce the number
  of bytes stored: each file is split into a number of variable length chunks
  and only chunks that have never been seen before are added to the repository.

  A chunk is considered duplicate if its id_hash value is identical.
  A cryptographically strong hash or MAC function is used as id_hash, e.g.
  (hmac-)sha256.

  To deduplicate, all the chunks in the same repository are considered, no
  matter whether they come from different machines, from previous backups,
  from the same backup or even from the same single file.

  Compared to other deduplication approaches, this method does NOT depend on:

  * file/directory names staying the same: So you can move your stuff around
    without killing the deduplication, even between machines sharing a repo.

  * complete files or time stamps staying the same: If a big file changes a
    little, only a few new chunks need to be stored - this is great for VMs or
    raw disks.

  * The absolute position of a data chunk inside a file: Stuff may get shifted
    and will still be found by the deduplication algorithm.

**Speed**
  * performance-critical code (chunking, compression, encryption) is
    implemented in C/Cython
  * local caching
  * quick detection of unmodified files

**Data encryption**
    All data can be protected client-side using 256-bit authenticated encryption
    (AES-OCB or chacha20-poly1305), ensuring data confidentiality, integrity and
    authenticity.

**Obfuscation**
    Optionally, borg can actively obfuscate e.g. the size of files / chunks to
    make fingerprinting attacks more difficult.

**Compression**
    All data can be optionally compressed:

    * lz4 (super fast, low compression)
    * zstd (wide range from high speed and low compression to high compression
      and lower speed)
    * zlib (medium speed and compression)
    * lzma (low speed, high compression)

**Off-site backups**
    Borg can store data on any remote host accessible over SSH.  If Borg is
    installed on the remote host, big performance gains can be achieved
    compared to using a network filesystem (sshfs, nfs, ...).

**Backups mountable as filesystems**
    Backup archives are mountable as userspace filesystems for easy interactive
    backup examination and restores (e.g. by using a regular file manager).

**Easy installation on multiple platforms**
    We offer single-file binaries that do not require installing anything -
    you can just run them on these platforms:

    * Linux
    * macOS
    * FreeBSD
    * OpenBSD and NetBSD (no xattrs/ACLs support or binaries yet)
    * Cygwin (experimental, no binaries yet)
    * Linux Subsystem of Windows 10 (experimental)

**Free and Open Source Software**
  * security and functionality can be audited independently
  * licensed under the BSD (3-clause) license, see `License`_ for the
    complete license

Easy to use
~~~~~~~~~~~

For ease of use, set the BORG_REPO environment variable::

    $ export BORG_REPO=/path/to/repo

Create a new backup repository (see ``borg repo-create --help`` for encryption options)::

    $ borg repo-create -e repokey-aes-ocb

Create a new backup archive::

    $ borg create Monday1 ~/Documents

Now doing another backup, just to show off the great deduplication::

    $ borg create -v --stats Monday2 ~/Documents
    Repository: /path/to/repo
    Archive name: Monday2
    Archive fingerprint: 7714aef97c1a24539cc3dc73f79b060f14af04e2541da33d54c7ee8e81a00089
    Time (start): Mon, 2022-10-03 19:57:35 +0200
    Time (end):   Mon, 2022-10-03 19:57:35 +0200
    Duration: 0.01 seconds
    Number of files: 24
    Original size: 29.73 MB
    Deduplicated size: 520 B


Helping, Donations and Bounties, becoming a Patron
--------------------------------------------------

Your help is always welcome!

Spread the word, give feedback, help with documentation, testing or development.

You can also give monetary support to the project, see there for details:

https://www.borgbackup.org/support/fund.html

Links
-----

* `Main Web Site <https://borgbackup.readthedocs.org/>`_
* `Releases <https://github.com/borgbackup/borg/releases>`_,
  `PyPI packages <https://pypi.python.org/pypi/borgbackup>`_ and
  `ChangeLog <https://github.com/borgbackup/borg/blob/master/docs/changes.rst>`_
* `Offline Documentation <https://readthedocs.org/projects/borgbackup/downloads>`_
* `GitHub <https://github.com/borgbackup/borg>`_ and
  `Issue Tracker <https://github.com/borgbackup/borg/issues>`_.
* `Web-Chat (IRC) <https://web.libera.chat/#borgbackup>`_ and
  `Mailing List <https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/borgbackup>`_
* `License <https://borgbackup.readthedocs.org/en/stable/authors.html#license>`_
* `Security contact <https://borgbackup.readthedocs.io/en/latest/support.html#security-contact>`_

Compatibility notes
-------------------

EXPECT THAT WE WILL BREAK COMPATIBILITY REPEATEDLY WHEN MAJOR RELEASE NUMBER
CHANGES (like when going from 0.x.y to 1.0.0 or from 1.x.y to 2.0.0).

NOT RELEASED DEVELOPMENT VERSIONS HAVE UNKNOWN COMPATIBILITY PROPERTIES.

THIS IS SOFTWARE IN DEVELOPMENT, DECIDE YOURSELF WHETHER IT FITS YOUR NEEDS.

Security issues should be reported to the `Security contact`_ (or
see ``docs/support.rst`` in the source distribution).

.. start-badges

|doc| |build| |coverage| |bestpractices|

.. |doc| image:: https://readthedocs.org/projects/borgbackup/badge/?version=stable
        :alt: Documentation
        :target: https://borgbackup.readthedocs.org/en/stable/

.. |build| image:: https://github.com/borgbackup/borg/workflows/CI/badge.svg?branch=master
        :alt: Build Status (master)
        :target: https://github.com/borgbackup/borg/actions

.. |coverage| image:: https://codecov.io/github/borgbackup/borg/coverage.svg?branch=master
        :alt: Test Coverage
        :target: https://codecov.io/github/borgbackup/borg?branch=master

.. |screencast_basic| image:: https://asciinema.org/a/133292.png
        :alt: BorgBackup Basic Usage
        :target: https://asciinema.org/a/133292?autoplay=1&speed=1
        :width: 100%

.. _installation: https://asciinema.org/a/133291?autoplay=1&speed=1

.. _advanced usage: https://asciinema.org/a/133293?autoplay=1&speed=1

.. |bestpractices| image:: https://bestpractices.coreinfrastructure.org/projects/271/badge
        :alt: Best Practices Score
        :target: https://bestpractices.coreinfrastructure.org/projects/271

.. end-badges

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