Perform Client-Server Cross-Platform Backups with Bacula (Part 2)

Database Setup
Now that you've modified the configuration files to suit your needs, use Bacula's scripts to create and define the database tables that it will use.
To set up for MySQL:
# cd /usr/ports/sysutils/bacula/work/bacula-1.32c/src/cats

# ./grant_mysql_privileges

# ./create_mysql_database

# ./make_mysql_tables

If you have a password set for the MySQL root account, add -p to these commands and you will be prompted for the password. You now have a working database suitable for use by Bacula.
Testing Your Tape Drive
Some tape drives are not standard. They require their own proprietary software and can be temperamental when used with other software. Regardless of what software it uses, each drive model can have its own little quirks that need to be catered to. Fortunately, Bacula comes with btape, a handy little utility for testing your drive.
My tape drive is at /dev/sa1. Bacula prefers to use the non-rewind variant of the device, but it can handle the raw variant as well. If you use the rewinding device, then only one backup job per tape is possible. This command will test the non-rewind device /dev/nrsa1:
# /usr/local/sbin/btape -c /usr/local/etc/bacula-sd.conf /dev/nrsa1

Running Without Root
It is a good idea to run daemons with the lowest possible privileges. The Storage Daemon and the Director Daemon do not need root permissions. However, the File Daemon does, because it needs to access all files on your system.
In order to run daemons with nonroot accounts, you need to create a user and a group. Here, I used vipw to create the user. I selected a user ID and group ID of 1002, as they were unused on my system.
bacula:*:1002:1002::0:0:Bacula Daemon:/var/db/bacula:/sbin/nologin

I also added this line to /etc/group:
bacula:*:1002:

The bacula user (as opposed to the Bacula daemon) will have a home directory of /var/db/bacula, which is the default location for the Bacula database.
Now that you have both a bacula user and a bacula group, you can secure the bacula home directory by issuing this command:
# chown -R bacula:bacula /var/db/bacula/

Starting the Bacula Daemons
To start the Bacula daemons on a FreeBSD system, issue the following command:
# /usr/local/etc/rc.d/bacula.sh start

To confirm they are all running:
# ps auwx | grep bacula



root 63416 0.0 0.3 2040 1172 ?? Ss 4:09PM 0:00.01

/usr/local/sbin/bacula-sd -v -c /usr/local/etc/bacula-sd.conf

root 63418 0.0 0.3 1856 1036 ?? Ss 4:09PM 0:00.00

/usr/local/sbin/bacula-fd -v -c /usr/local/etc/bacula-fd.conf

root 63422 0.0 0.4 2360 1440 ?? Ss 4:09PM 0:00.00

/usr/local/sbin/bacula-dir -v -c /usr/local/etc/bacula-dir.conf

Using the Bacula Console
The console is the main interface through which you run jobs, query system status, and examine the Catalog contents, as well as label, mount, and unmount tapes. There are two consoles available: one runs from the command line, and the other is a GNOME GUI. I will concentrate on the command-line console.
To start the console, I use this command:
# /usr/local/sbin/console -c /usr/local/etc/console.conf

Connecting to Director laptop:9101

1000 OK: laptop-dir Version: 1.32c (30 Oct 2003)

*

You can obtain a list of the available commands with the help command. The status all command is a quick and easy way to verify that all components are up and running. To label a Volume, use the label command.
Bacula comes with a preset backup job to get you started. It will back up the directory from which Bacula was installed. Once you get going and have created your own jobs, you can safely remove this job from the Director configuration file.
Not surprisingly, you use the run command to run a job. Once the job runs, the results will be sent to you via email, according to the Messages resource settings within your Director configuration file.
To restore a job, use the restore command. You should choose the restore location carefully and ensure there is sufficient disk space available.
It is easy to verify that the restored files match the original:
# diff -ruN \

/tmp/bacula-restores/usr/ports/sysutils/bacula/work/bacula-1.32c \

/usr/ports/sysutils/bacula/work/bacula-1.32c

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Creating Backup Schedules
For my testing, I wanted to back up files on my Windows XP machine every hour. I created this schedule:
Schedule {

Name = "HourlyCycle"

Run = Full 1st sun at 1:05

Run = Differential 2nd-5th sun at 1:05

Run = Incremental Hourly

}

Any Job that uses this schedule will be run at the following times:
• A full backup will be done on the first Sunday of every month at 1:05 AM.
• A differential backup will be run on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Sundays of every month at 1:05 AM.
• Every hour, on the hour, an incremental backup will be done.
Creating a Client-only Install
So far we have been testing Bacula on the server. With the FreeBSD port, installing a client-only version of Bacula is easy:
# cd /usr/ports/sysutils/bacula

# make -DWITH_CLIENT_ONLY install

You will also need to tell the Director about this client by adding a new Client resource to the Director configuration file. You will also want to create a Job and FileSet resource.
When you change the Bacula configuration files, remember to restart the daemons:
# /usr/local/etc/rc.d/bacula.sh restart

Stopping the Storage daemon

Stopping the File daemon

Stopping the Director daemon

Starting the Storage daemon

Starting the File daemon

Starting the Director daemon

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