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Eh, I disagree. I want to be able to eventually actually delete deleted files (to save on resources) more than I want to be able to retrieve files that I delete

Eh, I disagree. I want to be able to eventually actually delete deleted files (to save on resources) more than I want to be able to retrieve files that I deleted a year back and didn't realize until now.

alkonaut 6y ago
That can be handled by explicitly deleting it in the backup data or manually shifting out some old generation of backups. What you want to avoid is the single most common error: you accidentally delete or corrupt something, then several years later you notice. This might sound unlikely but it is I assume more likely than theft, fire, and other reasons we keep our backups off site. Whether "retain all copies of everything, forever" is actually viable can vary with budget and the size of ones library of course. But storage is pretty cheap these days.
- StavrosK 6y ago
  Hmm, I don't actually know of a way to delete a specific file from all backups in restic/borg, and it wouldn't be very convenient to do that for every single file I delete just to free storage. Instead, I just set the retention policy to a year. Since most of my backups are photos and archival stuff like that, I rarely delete those without confirmation, so it's not a problem. For other things like documents, I have Nextcloud, which does keep the last N versions, so it guards against the scenario you describe, true.
  - alkonaut 6y ago
    I moved a whole directory of photos once (a year basically) which accidentally landed it outside the tree that was backed up. This looked to the backup as if it was deleted and it was eventually shifted away. Since it was an old directory I never really noticed until it was too late. That’s why I now just pay to keep everything retained. I fit every photo I ever took with ease in a pretty cheap 2TB space.
    - StavrosK 6y ago
      Yeah, in that case it makes sense. I manage them using Capture One Pro, which only manages them inside their directory, so it's really unlikely that they'll get imported or moved out. That said, I too have a few TB of online storage, but my problem is the reverse: I will sometimes capture a few GB of photos, import them for safety, the nightly backup will run and back them all up, and the next day I'll delete most of them as rejects. Those rejects, I don't really care to keep, so I wouldn't want blurry or otherwise useless photos taking up space for ever.
    - dsego 6y ago
      I am afraid of this as well. It's easy to make mistakes and current software doesn't really offer assurances. Right now I sometimes visually compare source & destination directories. Like literally, make the windows the same size and scroll through them so I can notice if anything has visually shifted, which tells me files are missing. That's how I found some missing RAW files, but turns out those were taken on the fuji's auto settings which desn't store RAW even though I have it set up to take JPEG+RAW (many such idiosyncrasies with these cameras). I then almost had a heart attack when I realized that my camera filenames did a roll over from 9999 to 0001 and I wasn't paying attention. Luckily there was no overlap in that directory, but I could've easily clicked confirm to replace my earlier photos with new ones (DCIM better be replaced with something better soon).

alkonaut 6y ago

That can be handled by explicitly deleting it in the backup data or manually shifting out some old generation of backups. What you want to avoid is the single most common error: you accidentally delete or corrupt something, then several years later you notice. This might sound unlikely but it is I assume more likely than theft, fire, and other reasons we keep our backups off site. Whether "retain all copies of everything, forever" is actually viable can vary with budget and the size of ones library of course. But storage is pretty cheap these days.

StavrosK 6y ago
Hmm, I don't actually know of a way to delete a specific file from all backups in restic/borg, and it wouldn't be very convenient to do that for every single file I delete just to free storage. Instead, I just set the retention policy to a year. Since most of my backups are photos and archival stuff like that, I rarely delete those without confirmation, so it's not a problem. For other things like documents, I have Nextcloud, which does keep the last N versions, so it guards against the scenario you describe, true.
- alkonaut 6y ago
  I moved a whole directory of photos once (a year basically) which accidentally landed it outside the tree that was backed up. This looked to the backup as if it was deleted and it was eventually shifted away. Since it was an old directory I never really noticed until it was too late. That’s why I now just pay to keep everything retained. I fit every photo I ever took with ease in a pretty cheap 2TB space.
  - StavrosK 6y ago
    Yeah, in that case it makes sense. I manage them using Capture One Pro, which only manages them inside their directory, so it's really unlikely that they'll get imported or moved out. That said, I too have a few TB of online storage, but my problem is the reverse: I will sometimes capture a few GB of photos, import them for safety, the nightly backup will run and back them all up, and the next day I'll delete most of them as rejects. Those rejects, I don't really care to keep, so I wouldn't want blurry or otherwise useless photos taking up space for ever.
  - dsego 6y ago
    I am afraid of this as well. It's easy to make mistakes and current software doesn't really offer assurances. Right now I sometimes visually compare source & destination directories. Like literally, make the windows the same size and scroll through them so I can notice if anything has visually shifted, which tells me files are missing. That's how I found some missing RAW files, but turns out those were taken on the fuji's auto settings which desn't store RAW even though I have it set up to take JPEG+RAW (many such idiosyncrasies with these cameras). I then almost had a heart attack when I realized that my camera filenames did a roll over from 9999 to 0001 and I wasn't paying attention. Luckily there was no overlap in that directory, but I could've easily clicked confirm to replace my earlier photos with new ones (DCIM better be replaced with something better soon).