v5.2.0 - Backup Overhaul, Outage Export, verify.sh Fixes & More

v5.2.0 - Backup Overhaul, Outage Export, verify.sh Fixes & More

Backup Script Improvements

• InfluxDB consistent snapshots — the backup script now archives the InfluxDB snapshot (via influxd backup -portable) instead of tarring the live influxdb/ directory while InfluxDB is actively writing. This eliminates the file changed as we read it warnings and eliminates the risk of archive corruption from concurrent writes. The -portable flag produces a version-independent snapshot that can be restored reliably on any InfluxDB 1.x instance.
• Grafana database backup — grafana.db is now backed up using sqlite3 .backup (SQLite's online backup API) for a consistent copy. Falls back to cp -a if sqlite3 is not installed on the host, with a hint to sudo apt install sqlite3.
• Configuration files backup — all .env, .conf, and .yml/.yaml files at the dashboard root are now included in the archive, making disaster recovery straightforward. A fixed CONFIG_FILES array guarantees essentials (compose.env, pypowerwall.env, telegraf.local, etc.) are always captured; globs catch anything additional.
• Staging directory with trap cleanup — the script uses mktemp -d for staging with a trap to clean up on exit.
• Proper quoting — all variable references are properly quoted throughout the script.

New Features

• Outage export script — tools/export_outages/export_outages.py by @ondrejch exports grid outage data from InfluxDB as CSV. Reads grid_status from powerwall.grid.http, merges consecutive readings into outage intervals, and outputs columns: StartTime, EndTime, DurationMinutes, StatusValue. Supports all, today, yesterday, or custom date ranges. (PR #833)

Bug Fixes

• verify.sh --debug mode and bc fix — adds --debug flag that disables set -e and enables set -x tracing so users can see exactly where the script fails. Makes the bc call non-fatal — if bc is not installed, falls back to the raw battery level with a visible warning instead of silently killing the script. Fixes #827 reported by @hatchjdecho. (PR #834)

Documentation

• Debian Docker installation instructions — adds a Debian section to tools/DOCKER.md with steps tested on Debian Trixie (v13), including the correct Docker GPG key and apt repository paths. Based on testing by @JonMurphy. (#831, PR #832)

Backup Archive Structure

influxdb/     # InfluxDB portable snapshot (metadata + shard data)
grafana/      # grafana.db (consistent copy) + provisions/
config/       # .env, .conf, .yml/.yaml configuration files

Files Changed

• backups/backup.sh.sample — rewritten with three-part backup approach
• backups/README.md — updated backup format description, restore instructions, and automation guide
• tools/export_outages/export_outages.py — new outage export tool
• tools/export_outages/README.md — usage documentation
• tools/DOCKER.md — Debian installation instructions
• verify.sh — --debug mode and non-fatal bc
• VERSION — 5.1.7 → 5.2.0
• upgrade.sh — version consistency

Contributors

Thanks to the community members who made this release possible:

• @JonMurphy — reported the backup corruption issue (#825), tested every iteration of the backup script, suggested the -portable flag, reviewed config backup scope, tested Debian Docker instructions (#831), and confirmed the final build A-OK
• @hulkster — verified weather data backup coverage and asked about historical weather import options
• @ondrejch — contributed the outage export script export_outages.py (PR #833)
• @hatchjdecho — reported the verify.sh silent exit bug (#827) with detailed troubleshooting

Links

• Backup issue: #825
• Backup PR: #826
• Outage export: PR #833
• verify.sh fix: #827 / PR #834
• Debian Docker docs: #831 / PR #832