• 16 Posts
  • 208 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
cake
Cake day: December 12th, 2023

help-circle


  • I created my own script/tool using rsync to handle backups and transferring data.

    My needs are quite smaller with just a computer and two Raspberry Pi’s but I found rsync to be really useful overall.

    My backup strategy is to make a complete backup on the local device (Computer / RPi4 / RPi5) then copy all those backups to a Storage partition on my computer, then make a whole backup from the partition to an externally attached SSD.

    The RPi’s both use docker/podman containers so I make sure any persistent data is in mounted directories. I usually stop all containers before performing a backup, especially things with databases.

    Everything in the docker containers is either hit or miss when it comes to restoring. The simple docker images restore as it they were untouched and will launch like nothing happened. I have a PieFed instance that must be rebuilt after restoring a backup. Since PieFed’s persistent data is in mount points, everything works perfectly after a fresh build.

    I can send a link to my rsync tool if that’s any interest to anyone. I’ve found it super useful for backups and minimizes so much headache for myself when it comes to transferring files between different network connected devices.


  • Aah, I just noticed that they were eating all the beans sprouting in my garden. I had some beans from last year that went moldy on the bottom of the container because I didn’t let them dry properly. I just threw a bunch of good ones into the garden and lawn randomly.

    Also, I don’t remember buying 4 kilograms of clover seeds but I found them in a bin in my closet. I’ve randomly tossed those out into the lawn and garden to attract more pollinators in general.

    I’ve also done the same with some native chickweed seeds too. I’m secretly at war with everyone’s silly, plain, green lawns.

    I made a garden with a bunch of seeds I picked from a nearby hiking trail and the bunnies seem to really enjoy whatever is growing in there too. They at least have some variety.



  • Maybe it’s something sightly outside no js/ccs/html but I am curious if there are any super minimal social media sites.

    I want to do something locally within my town and it would be nice to host something simple and tiny with my raspberry pi as the server.

    I’m assuming bulletin boards are quite minimal in comparison to other types of social media but I’ve never been a fan of how they handle previous replies with those boxed quotes.

    I’ve also been nostalgic for irc lately. Everything on the internet these days has become overwhelming. Over the past 1.5 years I’ve been turning to simplicity and it’s a craving I that’s hard to ignore.





  • I have a computer and 3 devices I wanted to transfer files between but every available solution was either too awkward which made things annoying, or too bulky with more than what I needed.

    I ended up writing a long script (around 1000 lines but I’m generous with spacing so I can read my own code easily) using rsync to deal with transferring files and whole directories with a single command. I can even chain together multiple rsync commands back to back so that I can quickly transfer multiple files or directories in one command. Instead of trying to refer to a wall of text full of rsync commands, I can make something like this:

    alias rtPHONEmedia="doas rtransfer /home/dell-pc/.sync/phone/.sync-phone_02_playlists /home/dell-pc/.sync/phone/.sync-phone_03_arbeit /home/dell-pc/.sync/phone/.sync-phone_04_albums /home/dell-pc/.sync/phone/.sync-phone_05_soulseek /home/dell-pc/.sync/phone/.sync-phone_06_youtube"

    This will copy everything from a specific folders on my phone, and store them neatly organized into my storage partition on my computer SSD. This also includes all the necessary information including SSH username, address and ID keys.

    I can then run alias rtARCHIVEfull="doas rtransfer /home/dell-pc/.sync/computer/.sync-computer_01_archive-full" to quickly copy that storage partition on my computer to my external backup SSD.

    I use it so often. It’s especially nice because I can work on a file on my computer and quickly update the file to the remote address location, putting it directly where I need it to be immediately.




  • I started self-hosting as a hobby and while I enjoy it, I was getting frustrated with file transfers between my computer, phone and two raspberry pi’s. Since I was already using rsync, I created a tool for myself to help sort rsync commands into sortable files.

    I can now lump together those files into a single command and run several rsync commands in one go.

    It’s definitely saved me some sanity by not having to refer to a wall of text full of rsync aliases.

    I posted it on codeberg.

    It is random code on the internet and it involves file transfers so if anyone uses it, those are the risks unless you care to read the code itself.


  • I took sudo out of the examples and disabled it by default within the script. I still have a personal use for it.

    I keep a local backup on each device then transfer that backup to my desktop. Rsync requires root access to transfer files or directories with certain attributes over ssh. Otherwise the backup copy to my desktop is incomplete.

    Fortunately I already coded in a toggle for requesting root since Termux on Android has no root by default. I just won’t note that in the readme file. That can be left for anyone who cares to read the code itself.


  • I use a lot of commands that either use the --delete option or require remote root access in order to preserve hard links and other attributes.

    I didn’t know that was an issue. I was going from my own limited experience with linux.

    I already set an option to disable the root requirement at the beginning of the script. Simply changing the value to 0 will disable it and will let rsync display it’s own errors.

    What exactly makes it suspect so I know what I’m doing?




  • I had an interaction once where I thought I used double quotes around a word to imply something obvious related to the posted article. A random person got mad at me and claimed I knew nothing about solidarity.

    I felt insulted, they didn’t know my life experiences up to that point. I chose to ignore my feelings and pressed them to teach my why I was so wrong. They eventually disappeared from replies because they had nothing behind that image of righteousness. Rare win but I’ll take it.

    If someone put themselves in harms way to punch an authoritarian follower in the face in my defence and also uses slurs I could find offensive to myself, that’s not my enemy. That’s someone awesome who could use a little more education. Later. When the current situation isn’t so wild.

    Words are just words. That’s not as effective as punching a fascist in face.


  • I think I’ve worked in automation long enough to feel super uncomfortable with the idea of a tattoo print machine being anywhere near my body.

    Even if I had a kill switch in hand, it still makes me uncomfortable. In general machines don’t care about fleshy bits at all. If something happens, for example a sensor ages and becomes defective, the printer has the potential to cause serious harm.

    I probably also hold a bit of bias, I prefer the imperfections of human, hand made art over digitized perfection from machines.


  • I’m the same here. I don’t know enough or care to know enough about systemd. I simply enjoy the minimalism of Alpine.

    The downside is that I have to learn a bit more to make it work how I want but as a hobby I enjoy it.

    When I first started with linux, Mint with systemd just worked for my laptop. For the people who are less computer literate, that should be good enough. They don’t want to worry about how to make their computer work, they just wanna do basic computer things without hassle.



  • My perspectives come from the indigenous histories I have learned about through my life. It took many years, multiple countries and surprisingly some YouTube videos for me to get to this point.

    Understanding how recent history has affected indigenous populations through colonialism and exploitation has been… Depressing.

    I also tend to want to look outside of European history. As a not “white” person who grew up in a “white” country, I’ve had European history shoved into my life in every way possible. There’s a broader world to learn from and appreciate.

    I don’t think clashes between different peoples can be avoided entirely, but the scale of environmental damage would never be as destructive as what we are witnessing today.