Backup feature?

[Clark Jones]

Robert Graham Merkel wrote:
> 
> Timothy Reaves writes:
>  >     I backup feature, ala Quicken, that encourages backing up data files
>  > to a drive other than the local.  This way if there is a HD failure, the
>  > data is safe on floppy - for off site storage - or an mounted drive.
> 
> The trouble with this is that on Linux, you may have to explicitly
> mount the drive, and trying to deal with all the possibilities in a
> Grandma-proof way is, well, trying.  Then there are the possibilities
> of systems with non-standard storage devices like superfloppies.
> Gnucash doesn't have a seperate "data backup" format either, so simply
> copying the .xac file to a floppy is all you need to do.
> If you have a good solution that meets the Grandma test, please
> outline it, and I'll have a look (or better still, if you've got some
> spare time, you could have a go).

You probably should take a look at "mtools" -- mdir, mcd, mdel, mcopy, etc.
These are tools that have been around for years, and allow manipulating
MS-DOS/Windows floppies from Un*x, and does not require a mount/umount
cycle.  (They do refer to the files on the floppy using MS-DOS/Windows
syntax.)  They could probably be included in a script, if nothing else.

The only time I've seen problems with mtools is under OS's like Solaris
where there's a powerful "automounter".  (You have to briefly turn off
the automounter to use mtools, but this could be detected and handled by
a script.)

> What I will do, right now, is add a tip of the day that reminds users
> that backing up is a good idea.

My impression is that Quicken invokes some separate "backup" utility, not
just a direct copying of files.  However, like the proverbial maid, "I
don't do Windows"... or at least not very much.

						Clark
-- 
Disclaimer:  The opinions expressed herein are mine and not necessarily
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