On Sat, Dec 03, 2022 at 11:02:54PM +0000, GDS wrote: > Hello all! After reading some of the past threads on backups, I was > wondering if I could get a sanity check... I run a Maildir > configuration for a small (10 mailboxes) mail server. Using "doveadm > backup", for each mailbox I do: > > - Weekly full backups and then copy the files to a network-based > filesystem. > > - Daily incremental backups and then copy the files to a > network-based filesystem. > > My recovery assumption is that in case of hardware failure, I would > re-set up the mail service and for each mailbox I will recover at the > right directory the latest full mailbox backup and on top of it, each > incremental backup to the latest day. Does this sound like a sound > strategy?
Assumptions are dangerous things. Have you tested your assumptions - i.e. simulated recovering from a hardware failure - in order to be sure your backups and procedures are adequate? Are your server, and your network-based filesystem protected against bit-rot? > Also, I was thinking of setting up a second dovecot server on another > server and replicating my primary on an hourly basis to decrease > recovery time. But I looked at mbsync and it seems to require mailbox > login/password for each mailbox (which I don't have). Is there an > alternative? You might want to consider using ZFS. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZFS https://openzfs.org Jim Salter has written some fairly accessible tutorials. For instance: https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2014/02/ars-walkthrough-using-the-zfs-next-gen-filesystem-on-linux/3/ https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/12/rsync-net-zfs-replication-to-the-cloud-is-finally-here-and-its-fast/ https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2020/05/zfs-101-understanding-zfs-storage-and-performance/ https://jrs-s.net/category/open-source/zfs/ Sam
