backup-rs

A Rust utility to compress folders into ZIP archives with support for file and folder exclusions, and optional Dropbox upload functionality.

Features

• Recursive folder compression: Compress entire directory trees into ZIP archives
• Flexible exclusion system: Exclude specific files and folders using patterns
• Wildcard support: Use patterns like *.tmp, temp*, or *cache* to exclude files
• Automatic timestamping: Generated archives include timestamp in filename
• Cross-platform compatibility: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Dropbox integration: Optional upload to Dropbox (requires configuration)

Installation

Prerequisites

• Rust 1.70 or later
• Cargo package manager

Building from source

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/lucabertani/backup-rs.git
cd backup-rs

2. Build the project:

cargo build --release

3. The executable will be available in target/release/backup-rs (or backup-rs.exe on Windows)

Configuration

The application uses a YAML configuration file to define folders to backup and exclusion rules.

Configuration file structure

Create a config.yaml file in the configs/ directory:

folders:
  - path: "/path/to/your/folder"
    exclude_folders:
      - "node_modules"
      - ".git"
      - "target"
      - "dist"
    exclude_files:
      - "*.tmp"
      - "*.log"
      - ".DS_Store"
      - "Thumbs.db"
      - "*.exe"

dropbox:
  api_key: "your_dropbox_app_key"
  token: "your_dropbox_access_token"

Configuration options

Folder configuration

• path: The absolute or relative path to the folder you want to backup
• exclude_folders: List of folder names/paths to exclude (relative to the main path)
• exclude_files: List of file patterns to exclude (supports wildcards)

Dropbox configuration (optional)

• api_key: Your Dropbox application key
• token: Your Dropbox access token

Usage

Basic usage

Run the application with default configuration:

./backup-rs

This will:

1. Read the configuration from configs/config.yaml
2. Create ZIP archives for each configured folder
3. Save archives in the archive/ directory
4. Upload to Dropbox if configured

Archive naming

Archives are automatically named using the format:

<folder_name>_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.zip

For example: my_project_20250726_143022.zip

Exclusion patterns

The exclusion system supports various patterns:

Folder exclusions

• node_modules - Excludes any folder named "node_modules"
• .git - Excludes Git repository folders
• target - Excludes Rust build artifacts

File exclusions

• *.tmp - Excludes all files ending with .tmp
• temp* - Excludes all files starting with "temp"
• *cache* - Excludes all files containing "cache"
• .DS_Store - Excludes macOS system files
• Thumbs.db - Excludes Windows thumbnail files

Examples

Example 1: Backup a project folder

folders:
  - path: "/home/user/my_project"
    exclude_folders:
      - "node_modules"
      - ".git"
      - "dist"
      - "build"
    exclude_files:
      - "*.log"
      - "*.tmp"
      - ".env"

This configuration will:

• Backup the entire /home/user/my_project folder
• Skip node_modules, .git, dist, and build folders
• Skip log files, temporary files, and environment files

Example 2: Multiple folders with different exclusions

folders:
  - path: "/home/user/documents"
    exclude_files:
      - "*.tmp"
      - ".DS_Store"

  - path: "/home/user/photos"
    exclude_folders:
      - ".thumbnails"
    exclude_files:
      - "*.raw"
      - "Thumbs.db"

Example 3: With Dropbox upload

folders:
  - path: "/important/data"
    exclude_folders:
      - "cache"
    exclude_files:
      - "*.log"

dropbox:
  api_key: "your_app_key_here"
  token: "your_access_token_here"

Dropbox Setup

To enable Dropbox uploads:

1. Go to Dropbox App Console
2. Create a new app or use an existing one
3. Get your App Key and generate an access token
4. Add the credentials to your config.yaml file

Note: The current implementation uses long-lived access tokens. For production use, consider implementing OAuth2 flow for better security.

Output

The application will:

• Create an archive/ directory if it doesn't exist
• Generate ZIP files with timestamps
• Display progress information during compression
• Show file sizes and compression results
• Upload to Dropbox if configured

Error Handling

The application provides detailed error messages for common issues:

• Invalid configuration files
• Missing directories
• Permission errors
• Dropbox upload failures
• Insufficient disk space

Performance Considerations

• Large folders may take significant time to compress
• Memory usage scales with the largest individual file size
• Compression level is optimized for balance between speed and size
• Excluded folders are skipped entirely, improving performance

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Add tests if applicable
5. Submit a pull request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE file for details.

Changelog

Version 0.1.0

• Initial release
• Basic ZIP compression functionality
• File and folder exclusion support
• Dropbox upload integration
• Cross-platform support