Backups

Updated 7 February 2026

There are two backup utilities included with Linux Mint, "Backup Tool" and "Timeshift". I use a once daily schedule for "Timeshift" backups.

Rescuezilla or Foxclone

When I want to create a full-system backup, I'll use either "Rescuezilla" or "Foxclone". Both will copy a full disk, sector-by-sector, to one or more backup files.

I only create full-system backups when I'm getting ready to explore other Linux distributions.

Rclone

When I want to back up directories and files to cloud storage (like Google Drive), I'll use Rclone. It doesn't take long to figure it out, plus there are instructions for most cloud storage services on the website. I use it to synchronize one-way backups to the cloud, removing files at the destination that have been removed at the source.

Install rclone:

    curl https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash

Use rclone config to add remotes. Then use crontab to back up directories (replace "username" with your username, and "remotename" with your desired remote name). Remember to follow the remote name with a full colon.:

    @hourly rclone sync --delete-excluded /home/username/Documents/ remotename:
    @hourly rclone sync --delete-excluded /home/username/Pictures/ remotename:

The drawback is cloud space available. An external drive allows for more, sometimes much more.

Rsync

I sometimes prefer to synchronize one-way directory and file backups to a portable solid-state drive using cron jobs (replace "username" with your username), again removing target files that have been removed at the source:

    @hourly rsync -avzh /home/username/Documents/ /mnt/drive/Documents --delete
    @hourly rsync -avzh /home/username/Music/ /mnt/drive/Music --delete
    @hourly rsync -avzh /home/username/Pictures/ /mnt/drive/Pictures --delete

While most cloud services provide 15 gigabytes or less with their free tiers, an external drive can be anything above that. The last time I bought a solid-state drive, I couldn't find anything smaller than 120 gigabytes.

Reinstallation

I always keep backups of my important files so that reinstalling the operating system is simple, preferring to install each version and point release of Linux Mint when they're released as stable. When I'm done, I copy those files back to the system drive. Doing it this way gets rid of all the cruft I've built up when experimenting.