How to Set Up Automatic Backups on Ubuntu Using Deja Dup

Without backups, you risk losing everything from important documents to irreplaceable family pictures. Deja Dup makes it easy to automatically back up your entire Ubuntu system. Let me show you how to set it up in just a few minutes.

What Is Deja Dup?

Deja Dup is Ubuntu’s built-in backup solution. It’s an intuitive, user-friendly, complete backup system that is installed by default with most Ubuntu systems. With features like encryption, incremental backups, and support for cloud storage, it’s a robust tool for users of all experience levels.

Why Use Deja Dup?

Deja Dup’s simple interface makes it a fantastic choice for beginners while offering enough functionality to satisfy experienced users. Whether you’re backing up to an external drive or syncing to the cloud, Deja Dup provides an intuitive way to protect your data.

Key Features of Deja Dup:

• Pre-installed: Many Ubuntu installations come with Deja Dup already available under the name “Backup” in the app launcher.
• Security: Encrypting your backups is as simple as selecting a password.
• Flexibility: Local drives, network locations, or cloud storage solutions like Google Drive can all be used for your backup destination.
• Efficiency: Incremental backups ensure that only changed files are saved after the initial backup, saving time and space.

Installing or Accessing Deja Dup

Deja Dup is usually pre-installed on Ubuntu. You can check its availability by searching for “Backups” in the application menu. If it’s there, it’s normally under the “Utilities” submenu.

If it’s not installed, you can add it with the following simple command in a terminal:

sudo apt install deja-dup
 

Setting Up Your First Deja Dup Backup

Before running your first backup, you’ll need to make a few decisions about what, exactly, you want included in your backup, as well as where you want it stored. The easiest thing to do is accept the defaults for “Folders to Back Up” and “Folders to Ignore” that come up when you click on the “Create Your First Backup” button.

Folders to Back Up

By default, Deja Dup will back up your entire home directory. If you’re unsure of what you want to backup, you should leave this setting as it is. If you have files in other directories that you want to include, you can add them by clicking on the “+” button.

Folders to Ignore

The folders to ignore will be subfolders of your backup folders that you don’t want Deja Dup to back up. The default settings will not back up anything in the Trash or Downloads folders. These settings will work fine for most users but you might want to remove the Downloads folder from the list if you want to make sure downloaded files get backed up with everything else.

When you’ve made your selections, click the “Forward” button in the top right corner.

Setting Your Backup Location

Setting your backup location for Deja Dup is very straightforward. You’ll first select the location, which can be an online cloud service, a shared folder on your local network, or a local folder on a device connected directly to your computer (such as an external hard drive).

You will also have the option to set a specific folder for your backup. The default name will be the hostname of your computer but you can choose any name you like. Depending on the amount of data, the backup archive can be made up of hundreds of individual files, so it is a good idea to put it in a subfolder of its own wherever you choose to store it.

At this point, you may get a warning saying that one or more packages need to be installed. This is normal on the first run, and you can go ahead and confirm the installation.

If you’re using a cloud account for your backup destination, you may also see a prompt asking you to grant Deja Dup access to your account. If this is the case, go ahead and click on the “Grant Access” button and follow the instructions from there.

This should open your web browser to a page where you can grant the required access. Once you’ve verified that you want to let Deja Dub access your account, you can close (or minimize) the browser and go back to the app.

Next, you will be asked if you want to use a password to encrypt your backup archive. Without an encryption password set, anyone who manages to access your backup archive will be able to open it and access all of the data it contains.

If you want to switch encryption off, you can do so by clicking the toggle switch on the top right of the dialog (this is not recommended). Otherwise, go ahead and set the password of your choice. You will need the password to make future incremental backups as well as to restore files from the backups. Make sure it is something you can remember or that you have it saved somewhere safe.

To have your data backed up automatically, you’ll also need to click on the toggle switch at the bottom right to have Deja Dup remember the password. If this setting is not turned on, whenever a backup is attempted, you will need to enter the password manually. When you’re satisfied with the settings, click the “Forward” button at the top right of the dialog and the first backup should begin.

Creating the First Backup

The first backup needs to copy everything in the folders you selected from zero. Depending on the amount of data, it could take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours for the initial backup to complete. Subsequent backups should be quite fast in comparison because they will only backup new files or files that have changed since the last backup was run. You can continue to use your computer normally while the backup runs.

Setting Deja Dup to Make Automatic Backups

After the initial backup completes, you will be presented with a dialog where you can turn on automatic backups.

Simply click on the toggle switch to turn automatic backups on. When enabled, Deja Dup will automatically make incremental backups of your system every 7 days by default. If that sounds good to you, you’re all set. You’ve successfully set up automatic backups for your Ubuntu system.

Setting Automatic Backup Frequency With Deja Dup

If you’d like to change anything, you can modify both the frequency of backups and how long they are stored from the preferences menu.

Automatic backups can be set to run every day, every two days, every three days, or weekly (the default). The “Keep Backups” option will let you set how long backups are stored before Deja Dup starts removing the oldest copies. Your options are three months, six months, one year, or forever (the default). If you leave this setting on “Forever”, Deja Dup will keep all backups as long as possible and only start removing the oldest to free up space when the device becomes full.

Don’t Forget to Test Your Backups

Remember, it’s just as important to periodically test your backups as it is to create them in the first place. Deja Dup will try to verify each backup it makes, but you should also try to restore a few files from your backups regularly just to be sure they actually work. Not testing is one of the most common backup mistakes and can lead to catastrophic losses.

And with that, we’re done! Give yourself a pat on the back for taking the time to back up the important data on your Ubuntu system by setting up automatic backups with Deja Dup!