BackupPC can be a very daunting task when first starting out, but as many people who have installed it multiple times will say, it's not that bad, but it does take some time to figure out.  One of my sayings (as I may have said before), "It's easy, if you know how to do it," meaning it's not easy, if you don't. :)  BackupPC is one of them, but don't fear, if you work through the issues, you'll make it. Additionally, my plan is to write my notes how I install it in a future post.

For those that get it running, the first thing they'll notice is that it doesn't copy open files.  So, for those computers where the backup begins and people are working on stuff, open files are not backed up, i.e., Outlook Files or open Office documents.  This bugged me because I was and I am a BackupPC fan.  I scoured the internet in search of an easy way (emphasis on easy) to have BackupPC copy open files on Windows Computers.  Well, in my search, I didn't find an easy one, so I went on a development spree to try and figure out a way to do it.  It took a few weeks of trial and error, but I can now say, there is an easy way to do it.

Over the years, what I did grew into a hodge podge of files in a folder and a few batch files.  These past few weeks, I decided to try and put them together into one interface.  I wanted to use AutoIt, but the compressed executable, although doesn't have viruses, is flagged by many Antivirus programs as having one just because it was compressed by AutoIt.  I didn't want to keep answering the question, "Does it contain viruses," so I opted to use Visual Basic, instead.  So, below is what has been developed.  From my experience, this solution runs on anything after Windows 7.  I've, successfully, run this solution on Windows 7/8/10 without problems.

Additionally, I uploaded the exe's to VirusTotal.com.  They have passed all virus checks.  I would encourage you to do the same, if you decide to use these files.  I can, personally, attest that I did not write any backdoors nor viruses in these files.  These are clean and feel free to use them, if you like.

 VSS BackupPC

VSSBackupPC is designed to be used with the BackupPC server software.  This app uses Volume Shadow Copy Services so the server can backup open files on the C:\ drive.  To accomplish this, it uses Cygwin and Rsync for the data transfer. I tried to make this as easy as possible.  I know it's a lot of writing below, but, in reality, there are only a few settings. This app is written in Visual Basic and the .Net Framwork version 4.6.1 is needed to run it. If you run into any trouble, I've created a help forum to keep up with issues. https://www.underthereign.com/utrhelp/
The Welcome window Select the resource zip file that is included in the download. The contents of the resource file is below. When the app is started, it creates a folder called: C:\rsyncd.   This is a hard coded folder and cannot be changed. All files related to this app will be created and placed in this folder.
Rsyncd.secrets Enter the rsync user name and password.  It should be the same as used on the BackupPC server in these fields: RsyncdUserName, RsyncdPassword As you hover over the window, if a secret file is found, it will display: Secrets File Exists.  If not, it displays: No Secrets File Click the Add button to create the file and/or add credentials to an existing one To find more information about the secrets file, check the client setup on the BackupPC website.
Rsyncd.Conf See samba.org website for more information about this file. 1.  RsyncShareName = [Module Name] Should be the same as the one added in BackupPC. Case matters, so UserFolder and userfolder are different. 2.  Choose the Local Backup Path. Do Not Use VSS: Checking this box will force BackupPC to use the actual folder and will not copy open files.  At this point, drives other than C: are not included in the Shadow folder. 3.  Comment:  A short comment, like "User Folder" 4.  BackupPC Server IP Address: The ‘Allowed host(s)’ to access the PC and run rsync remotely Strict Modes, Read Only, and List: Consult the samba website above for more information As you hover over the window, if a rsync.conf file is found, it will display: Conf File Exists.  If not, it displays: No Conf File 5.  ‘Load Defaults’ will place default values in the fields and check boxes.  Edit the RsyncShareName, Host IP Address, and/or Path.  Then, you're set.
Manually Edit Rsyncd.Conf You can manually edit the rsyncd.conf file.  This is not necessary nor encouraged, but is built-in to help with advanced configurations.
Task Settings 1.  Renew VSS Folder every 'x' hours Default = 6 hours.   Set the time (in hours) that the script looks at the Time Stamp on the Shadow folder. When the time has exceeded, the Shadow Folder is removed and recreated. 2.  Only Allow VSS Backup Tasks to Run on AC Power? Default = Yes.   To allow the VSSBackupPC scheduled tasks to run if the laptop is running on batteries, uncheck the box.  If checked, the Scheduled Tasks will only run while the computer is plugged in.  (Thanks to agu for finding this setting)
Install Services 1.  Type the Host IP Network.  Only type the first three octets of the network.  There are a few drop down examples, but you can type any IP address that is needed.1  For example: 192.168.1 172.16.0 10.0.0 2.  Select the Subnet Mask of the Network.  The default is 24 (255.255.255.0). 3. ‘Install Services.  This will open two command windows and install the services needed to run VSSBackupPC. 4.  If needed, the ‘Remove Services’ button will remove the services so the C:\rsyncd folder can be deleted. When VSSBackupPC starts, it checks for a running process of rsync on startup.  If it finds one, it will display a message asking to remove the service if it needs to be installed again.  You do not have to remove the service if you only need to change the secrets or conf file. 1This network is added to the Private firewall profile to allow port 873 and pings through it. The script does not change the public profile in any way so make sure the computer is in the private firewall profile.
The resource zip file contains 8 files as seen to the right.  The Cygwin files can be found on the internet as well as the vshadow,exe file.  removevss.exe and vss-backuppc.exe were written in Visual Basic to handle the logic. All files have been uploaded and checked at VirusTotal.com.  Feel free to upload them to check yourself.  There are no Viruses or Backdoors written in the code.
There is one, additional, thing you have to do on the BackupPC server, but it's not difficult. 1.  Add a DumpPreUserCmd script to the BackupPC server. Create a folder that is accessible by the backuppc user, for example, choose to create a 'scripts' subfolder where backuppc resides In the folder, create two files: preshare.sh pass 2. preshare.sh:    Replace <Enter_Secrets_File_UserName> with the user name used above in the secrets file. 3.  pass  (used in preshare.sh):  Enter the secrets password used in the secrets file. Nothing else, no brackets, etc. 4.  In the DumpPreUserCmd field, type: sh + the path to the preshare.sh + space + $host Ex: sh /media/backup/scripts/preshare.sh $host	1.  preshare.sh: --------------------- #!/bin/bash echo "I am the dumppresharecmd for BackupPC..." echo "======================================="   rsync --dry-run --password-file=/media/backup/scripts/pass rsync://<Secrets_File_UserName>@$1/cDrive #Ex. rsync --dry-run --password-file=/media/backup/scripts/pass rsync://SUser@$1/cDrive echo "Waiting 60 seconds.  Giving time to create shadow copy" sleep 60 echo "all Done." echo "======================================"   2.  pass --------------------- # ======================= Secrets_File_Password #Ex.   mysecretpass # =======================
Some notes: A VSS folder called c:\shadow is created.  This is where BackupPC is directed.  Additionally, the script creates a logfile called: vsslog.log and is found in the C:\rsyncd folder.  When the logfile reaches 2MB, it is deleted and recreated. Post any feature requests, bugs, or issues in the help forum. https://www.underthereign.com/utrhelp/ I hope this makes sense and may even help someone down the road. As always, enjoy!
VSSBackupPC.exe and the resource.zip file can be downloaded here: VSSBackupPC.zip

Installing BackupPC on CentOS

The definitive guide to installing...

or close enough.

Part 2 of 3

This is part 2 of a 3-part article.  If you haven't seen the other parts, you can find them here:  Part 1 and Part 3. 

Part 2 goes through configuring the BackupPC Server.  If something doesn't make sense, please leave a comment.

• If you are interested in accessing BackupPC from another computer on the network, edit the Firewall with your tool of choice and allow port 80 through it
  
• Additionally, you will need to edit the apache BackupPC configuration file
  
  • Edit: /etc/httpd/conf.d/BackupPC.conf
  • Add the two lines below containing the IP address of the local network that needs access.  Add identical lines below them, as needed, for any other network that needs web access to the server.
    

    	<IfModule mod_authz_core.c>
    	  # Apache 2.4
    	  <RequireAll>
    	    Require valid-user
    	    <RequireAny>
    	      Require local
                  Require ip 192.168.1  # Add this line
    	    </RequireAny>
    	  </RequireAll>
    	</IfModule>
    	<IfModule !mod_authz_core.c>
    	  # Apache 2.2
    	allow from 127.0.0.1
            allow from 192.168.1  # Add this line
    	require valid-user
    	</IfModule>
    

• Sometimes, I have run into trouble where the temporary folder doesn't exist, gets deleted, or otherwise, disappears, so I wrote a startup script to check it and create it, if not found.  This is optional, but is something I do, just in case.
  
  • First, create a file.  I'll put this one in the root folder and call it backuppccheck.sh:

    #  vi /root/backuppccheck.sh
    

  • Paste the following in the file:
    

    #!/bin/sh
    # backuppccheck
    # description: Makes sure the backuppc Temp Folder Exist on startup
    
            if [ -d /var/run/BackupPC ]; then
                    logger "BackupPC temp folder exists"
            else
                    mkdir -p /var/run/BackupPC
                    chown backuppc:backuppc /var/run/BackupPC
                    logger "BackupPC temp folder created"
            fi

  • This will check if the folder exists and create it, if needed.  Either way, it will write a note to the logfile what it does.
    
  • Make the file executable:

    #  chmod u=rwx /root/backuppccheck.sh

  • Make the service file that will execute this file on startup:

    #  vi /etc/systemd/system/backuppccheck.service

  • Paste the following in the file, changing the file name and location as needed:

    [Unit]
    Description=Check if BackupPC Temp Folder Exists on startup
    After=network.target
    
    [Service]
    Type=simple
    ExecStart=/root/backuppccheck.sh
    TimeoutStartSec=0
    
    [Install]
    WantedBy=default.target

  • Start and Enable the service:

    #  systemctl start backuppccheck.service
    #  systemctl enable backuppccheck.service

To have the BackupPC server find and ping other computers, you'll need to configure the Router and/or the BackupPC Server

• Depending on how you're network is configured, you may have to tell the router AND the backuppc server where to find computers on the network that you want to back up.  To do this, you need to assign static IP addresses in the router configuration.  For example, I want to back up the following workstations and I'm assigning the corresponding IP addresses.  Each router is different, but search the internet how to do this for your specific router, if needed.
  • MY EXAMPLE:
    • MyPCLaptop is assigned 192.168.1.50
    • MyLinuxLaptop is assigned 192.168.1.55
    • MyMacLaptop is assigned 192.168.1.60
    • MyDesktop is assigned 192.168.1.70
• Once you have these IP addresses entered in the router, go to the BackupPC server and find the hosts file.
  
• In CentOS, it is located in the following file: /etc/hosts
• Edit the Hosts file and add the same IP addresses and Hostnames as you did in the Router
  

  #  vi /etc/hosts

• Add the same hostnames and IP addresses
  

  127.0.0.1     localhost
  ::1           localhost
  192.168.1.50  MyPCLaptop
  192.168.1.55  MyLinuxLaptop
  192.168.1.60  MyMacLaptop
  192.168.1.70  MyDesktop

• After adding these to the BackupPC server, you should be able to PING these computers.  For fun, you can ping as the backuppc user.
• As root, type:

  #  sudo -u backuppc ping MyPCLaptop

• Sending test Email
  • As root, type:
    

  • #  sudo -u backuppc /usr/share/BackupPC/bin/BackupPC_sendEmail -u This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  • If the email doesn't send, you should be able to see the errors and/or troubleshoot the problem.  There are many resources on the internet to help with sendmail.

One, last, optional, thing you can do on the Server:

Encrypt the BackupPC Data

This is a little advanced and I won't go into great detail on how to encrypt a drive as there is plenty of CentOS information to be found, but once the drive is formatted and encrypted, mount the drive where you want BackupPC to store the data and configure the drive as shown in Part 1.  So, for example, if I have an encrypted drive mounted at /media/encBackup, I run through all the parts and get BackupPC working.  Since the whole point of the encryption is to keep it secure, the encrypted drive is not automatically mounted at startup so, if the computer is restarted, you will have to manually mount the drive and start the backuppc services. 

With the script below, the only thing you'll do when the computer is restarted is (1) login as root, (2) run the script, (3) type the password to unlock the drive. 

I put the script in the /root folder so when I login as root, all I have to do is run the script, but you can put it anywhere. It's really easy.  First, we need to get the encrypted drive information.

• Unlock the Encrypted Drive and, from root, type:

  blkid

• Locate the Encrypted Drive's:
  • Device Name (ex. /dev/sdb)
  • UUID (ex. fc3333f1-1bf3-3333-af33-333a333f33af)
  • Device Name after being unlocked (ex. /dev/mapper/fc3333f1-1bf3-3333-af33-333a333f33af)
    

    [root@localhost ~]# blkid
    ...
    /dev/sdb: UUID="fc3333f1-1bf3-3333-af33-333a333f33af" TYPE="crypto_LUKS" 
    ...
    /dev/mapper/fc3333f1-1bf3-3333-af33-333a333f33af: LABEL="Backups" UUID="fc8888f1-1bf8-8888-af88-888a888f88af" TYPE="ext4" 

• Once the above information has been determined, create a file...I'll call mine: start_backuppc.sh

  #  vi /root/start_backuppc.sh

• Paste the following information in the file and replace the Device and UUID information with your Encrypted drive information.

  #!/bin/bash
  
  # Device Name of locked drive and UUID
  cryptsetup luksOpen /dev/sdb "fc3333f1-1bf3-3333-af33-333a333f33af"
  
  # Mount encrypted drive after unlocking it
  # mount /dev/mapper/UUID  /mount/point
  mount /dev/mapper/fc3333f1-1bf3-3333-af33-333a333f33af /media/encBackup
  
  #Restart BackupPC service
  systemctl restart backuppc.service
  

• Save the file and make it executable

  #  chmod -u=rwx /root/start_backuppc.sh

• Now, once the computer has been restarted, login as root and type:

  #  sh start_backuppc.sh

• Type the Encrypted Drive's Password and logout.  If there were no errors, BackupPC starts.

Congrats! You should have a working BackupPC server...whether it is encrypted or not.  To add different hosts, jump to Part 3