Daily Operations

Quick Health Check

# Check all service statuses
sudo systemctl status backup-*
 
# Check disk space
df -h /var/lib/backup/repo
 
# View recent snapshots
xreplicator snapshots --server localhost:50051

Monitor these daily:

• Service status for all components
• Logs for errors or warnings
• Disk space on the backup server
• Confirmation that backups are completing

Backup Strategies

Full Backup Frequency

Incremental Backup Frequency

Retention Policy Guidelines

• Full backups: Keep 4–12 (1–3 months of history)
• Incremental backups: Keep 24–168 (1–7 days of hourly snapshots)
• Adjust based on storage capacity and recovery time objectives

Maintenance Schedule

Weekly

• Review backup logs for errors
• Check repository disk space
• Verify cloud sync status (if configured)
• Test a restore from a recent snapshot

Monthly

• Review and adjust retention policies
• Run compaction (if not automated)
• Verify license expiry date
• Review and update configurations

Quarterly

• Perform a full disaster recovery test
• Review and update backup strategies
• Audit access and permissions
• Update software packages

Key Metrics to Monitor

Best Practices

Configuration

• Use a consistent fixed_block_size_mb across all agents and the server
• Keep chunk_size_avg_kb consistent to preserve deduplication
• Enable TLS for all production gRPC connections
• Store cloud credentials securely — avoid hardcoding in config files

Security

• Restrict network access to the backup server (port 50051)
• Use TLS encryption for gRPC communication
• Use strong, unique credentials for cloud storage
• Rotate credentials on a regular schedule

Performance

• Match pipeline settings (workers, batch_size, max_pipeline_memory_mb) to available resources
• Use compression for network-backed storage
• Enable eBPF change tracking for faster incremental backups
• Monitor and tune batch sizes based on actual network throughput

Reliability

• Test restores regularly — a backup you haven’t restored is an untested backup
• Maintain multiple full backups
• Use cloud sync for offsite/disaster recovery backups
• Document your recovery procedures and keep them up to date

Documentation

• Maintain a list of all backed-up systems and their schedules
• Document the restore procedure for each system type
• Keep copies of configuration files in version control
• Record any configuration changes with the reason and date