Skip to main content

System Backup and Restore

System Backup and System Restore are configured and ran in the CLI as root. There is a Backup script located at /opt/hermes/scripts/system_backup.sh and a Restore script located at /opt/hermes/scripts/system_restore.sh. These scripts should not be moved/copied to other locations. System Backups should be scheduled via Cron or other mechanism to point to  /opt/hermes/scripts/system_backup.sh.

Before scheduling system_backup.sh, it's highly recommended that you run it manually to ensure proper operation before scheduling it. The backups can be stored to any mount that you have previously configured in your system such as local, SMB, NFS etc...

System Backup

The /opt/hermes/scripts/system_backup.sh script accepts several flags with corresponding values enclosed in single quotes in order to configure its behavior.

  • The -D flag sets the number of days of backups to retain. For example, -D '7' would configure it to delete any backups older than 7 days.
  • The -P flag sets the path to store the backups WITHOUT the trailing slash. For example -P '/mnt/backups' configures the backup to store all backups in the /mnt/backups path. Please note that backup logs are also automatically stored in that path.
  • The -E flag sets the recipient to send backup success/failure notifications. For example, -E 'to@domain.tld' configures the backup to send notifications to to@domain.tld.
  • The -F flag sets the sender where the backup success/failure notifications would come from. For example, -F ' 'from@domain.tld' configures the backup to send notications from from@domain.tld.
  • The -B flag sets the backup mode. The backup mode can be either system (backs up all Hermes related files and databases EXCLUDING the e-mail archive), archive (backs up ONLY the e-mail archive) or all (backups all Hermes related files including the databases as well as the e-mail archive). For example, -B 'system' sets the backup mode to back up all Hermes related files and databases. 
  • The -R flag sets the MySQL root password that the backup will need in order to back up all the Hermes databases. For example, - R 'supersercretpass' sets the MySQL root password to supersercretpass.

Putting it all together, if you wanted to run an all backup, you can run a command similar to below:

/opt/hermes/scripts/system_backup.sh -D '7' -P '/mnt/backups' -E 'to@domain.tld' -F 'from@domain.tld' -B 'all' -R 'supersercretpass'

Please note that depending on what Backup Mode you use, the system will store an appropriately named backup file in the backup location. For example, hermes-system-220410-08-16-2024-0920.tar.gz backup file is system backup as noted by the word system in its name. In case of an all Backup Mode, the system will generate two backup files, one backup file will contain the system backup and the other backup file will contain the e-mail archive backup. In addition to the type of backup, the backup file also includes the build number (in this case 220410) as well as the date/time the backup was created. The build number becomes very important when you attempt to perform a System Restore. 

System Restore

System Restore WILL NOT install any programs therefore, it requires that you have a plain "vanilla" installation of Hermes SEG of the same build number as the backup file you are attempting to restore already running.

In order to ensure that you install Hermes SEG with the same build number as the restore file, follow one of the methods below:

Method 1:

From the CLI as root, git clone the desired build using the following command where build-220410 is the desired build:

git clone --depth 1 --branch build-220410 https://github.com/deeztek/Hermes-Secure-Email-Gateway

This will clone the repository into directory Hermes-Secure-Email-Gateway. 

 

 

https://github.com/deeztek/Hermes-Secure-Email-Gateway/releases

Back to top