ZFS auto-shapshotting tools

What auto-snapshot tool(s) do you use?

  • zfstools

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • zfsnap

    Votes: 1 14.3%

  • zrepl

    Votes: 1 14.3%

  • sanoid

    Votes: 1 14.3%

  • pyznap

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • zxfer

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • zfs-autosnapshot

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • zelta

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • zrep

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Other?

    Votes: 4 57.1%
  • Total voters
    7
V

VulcanRidr

Hey all,

When I first started using FreeBSD, say, about 10 or 11 years ago, basically the only ZFS snapshot tool that I was aware of was was zfstools, which has been very reliable. I like the fact that I can create snapshots (and I apologize, I'm not sure what the term is...cascading? fall-off?) where the snapshots will drop off of the map and become more granular as time goes by. So the way my systems are set up, I have the following scheme:
  • frequent snapshot every 15 minutes (save 4)
  • hourly (save 24)
  • daily (save 7)
  • weekly (save 4)
  • monthly (save 12)
So I would like to keep this capability, and possibly enhance it. I would also like to use something on my FreeBSD appliances (e.g. TrueNAS Core, XigmaNAS, pfSense), though this is optional. I would also like to have sending capability built in, though I use the TrueNAS' replication mechanism to sync snapshots to the NAS.

So I was wondering what others are using, and if one or another stands head and shoulders above the rest, or if people just basically land on a solution and stay there.

Thanks,
--vr
 
It is fine to ask questions - this is one of the purposes of the forum. But please - stop with the polls already.
IMNSHO, polls do not add value to the conversations / questions in this forum - nobody is here in the role of marketing.
 
tingo said:
It is fine to ask questions - this is one of the purposes of the forum. But please - stop with the polls already.
IMNSHO, polls do not add value to the conversations / questions in this forum - nobody is here in the role of marketing.
Click to expand...
The only reason I posted a poll is that once I realized the number of tools that were out there, I figured I would do a poll, not for marketing purposes, but to "thin the herd" for tools to research. I am sorry you were offended, and have never seen a "do not post polls" warning in the forum docs. Plus this is the first poll I have ever created on any forum...

In this case, for me, it could have added value. If the most people are using project X and project Y, those are good places to start looking. Which still seems a valid reason for the poll.
 
I don't use a known tool, but a periodic script of mine that simply creates a boot environment each day. It deletes the older one if the max number of BEs is reached (a setting).

So, it's just to ensure a working system in case of problem you can have with pkg management or with update/upgrade.

I try to use the less third-party tools possible for the management of this server. This is for two reasons: stay the more simple with the requirements I need and avoid breakage due to unlucky updates of these advanced tools. Not to speak about the lack of maintainer which lead sometimes to be obliged to quickly change the tool with all the problems you can imagine.
 
That sounds like a very nice script.

I am right there with you about trying to keep my server as simple as possible. I try to minimize third party tools too.
 
I think I have to roll my own. I want sub-5-minute snapshots for a day in case I fatfinger a git tree or something. That would lead to a serious flood if the script loses track. There might be trust issues about something this important.
 
Eric A. Borisch said:
sysutils/zfstools takes as arguments the label you want and how many to keep. So something like
Code: 
*/4 * * * * /usr/local/bin/zfs-auto-snapshot extra 360
would take snapshots every four minutes and save them for a day.

In my experience, every 15 minutes is a reasonable “lost work” risk level.
Click to expand...
True. 15 minutes works perfectly for that, hough I can see cracauer@'s use case as well. And the vast majority of my recoveries from snapshots fall into this category.

However, I have, on rare occasion, had a situation where i need a file which I deleted 3 months ago, thinking it was unneeded. that is why I keep a 4 weeklys and 11 monthlys for a long period, as there may be a chance that if it turns out I suddenly need it, there is a one-in-something chance it is still on a snapshot, without filling my filesystem with every snapshot I have ever taken. :)
 
I don't have any complex systems at the moment, so I take pictures manually. Not often. Only before updates and once every 15 days on the main machine. I think I'll think about an automatic one soon. Thanks for the impressive list of tools. Impressive.
 
VulcanRidr said:
However, I have, on rare occasion, had a situation where i need a file which I deleted 3 months ago, thinking it was unneeded.
Click to expand...
Oh, absolutely. I run the zfstools default settings (inherited from Sun’s defaults, I think) of every 15 minutes/saved for an hour; hourly/day; daily/week; weekly/month; monthly/year.

That and my (shameless plug) own zfs_versions.py script and I’m good to go.
 
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