add_argument ( '-s', '-src', dest = 'source', default = None, help = 'Specify an alternative source to backup as a string.', action = 'store', ) parser. add_argument ( '-c', '-clear', help = 'Delete all log files for current source in DATA_SOURCES.', action = 'store_true', ) parser. ''' import argparse import datetime import glob import json import os import pathlib import subprocess def run_backup (): '''This is where all the action happens!''' settings = get_settings () # initiate the parser parser = argparse. No other Python third-party libraries required. ''' Script that uses `rsync` to make a simple and convenient backup. Right off the bat, you will most probably want to update the array of strings for the data_sources key as well as the string for the key data_destination in the following JSON file.

You will need a settings.json file as well as the Python script that will run the necessary commands. To get the source code for this particular tool, you can either clone the whole repository, get the content of the files separately or simply copy and paste the current version from below. This script is being made available on GitHub within a set of other small tools. PrerequisitesĪs briefly mentioned above, this tool uses Python 3.6+ and rsync. I’ve literally left this script alone for years some time after the release of Python 3.6 which was released back in December 2016 and it has been going strong since then mostly due to the fact it does not do much more than backing files up and leveraging rsync. This script is barely a Python wrapper calling rsync but still, I felt like sharing it for those who like uncomplicated setups. It’s one of those pieces of code that perform some really basic tasks that can be scheduled with cron in the background, that one forgets about until a real need to access a backup comes up. Despite the plethora of great options out there that have more bells and whistles, I have yet to find a single complaint about this solution as it hinges on the minimalist side, requiring only a working Python 3 installation along with the powerful rsync command-line tool. Coming into its fourth year of existence and usage in production environments, this simple script has proven to be a fantastic ally.

Rsync backup script