fwbackups

So, when you're on the hunt for modern backup utilities for Linux, you might not stumble upon fwbackups. And there's a solid reason for that—it's not exactly what you'd call a modern backup app.

What's the Deal with fwbackups?

The last big update for fwbackups was way back in 2017. Now, it's in this thing called "maintenance mode," which means they only push out updates for major bugs. It's so outdated that it still runs on Python 2 and PyGTK 2! That's something most of us don't see much in today's distros.

Getting Started with fwbackups

If you're using Ubuntu, Linux Mint, or any Debian-based systems, you might have to build the app from source or grab it from Flathub. It sounds like a bit of work, right?

Why Use fwbackups?

You may wonder why anyone would want to use fwbackups when there are tons of other backup apps available. The simple truth is that fwbackups used to be and still is a pretty solid backup tool. What made it great years ago still holds up today!

User-Friendly Features

This app is free and open-source! It comes with an easy-to-use GUI and works well with the command-line too. Plus, you can create those awesome custom backup plans.

Want to back up your files just once? Or maybe set up scheduled recurring backups? fwbackups has got you covered! Need to exclude some files or folders? No problem! You can also send backups to remote hosts using SFTP/SSH.

A Quick Note on Compatibility

It used to be cross-platform ages ago, but let's be real—most people have moved on from Windows XP. Newer versions of Windows don't include features like pycrypto and paramiko anymore.

How to Launch fwbackups

If you're ready to start using this app via the CLI, just open up your Terminal and type "fwbackups." To run an existing backup set manually, you'd use: "fwbackups-run SetName1 SetName2 [...]" Easy peasy!

The Bottom Line

Even though many think it should be forgotten by now, fwbackups shows how a well-designed app can stick around. While it might not appeal to everyone out there, if you're looking for an old-school backup solution that still gets the job done on some modern distros—give fwbackups a shot! Surprisingly enough, we've had smooth sailing using it on Ubuntu 22.10.