Skip to main content

System Backup

This guide introduces two methods for system backup: online script backup and offline backup (using the dd command), allowing users to choose the backup method that suits their needs.

The final backup file will be in img format.

caution

Before proceeding, ensure you have backed up all important data. The script backup has only been tested on official Radxa systems and does not support Android.

Online System Backup​

Online system backup refers to backing up the currently running system directly on the motherboard.

tip

The script backup only supports Linux systems and is the recommended method for backing up Debian and Ubuntu systems.

Download the Script​

Use the curl command to download the script on your device.

radxa@device$
curl -sL https://rock.sh/rockpi-backup -o rockpi-backup.sh

Make the Script Executable​

Add execute permissions to the script.

radxa@device$
chmod +x rockpi-backup.sh

You can view the script's help information using the -h parameter.

radxa@device$
sudo ./rockpi-backup.sh -h

Example terminal output:

Usage:
sudo ./rockpi-backup.sh [-o path|-e pattern|-u|-m path]
-o Specify output position, default is $PWD.
-e Exclude files matching pattern for rsync.
-u Unattended, no need to confirm in the backup process.
-m Back up the root mount point, and support backups from other disks as well.

Backup the System​

Run the script with root privileges. You'll need to manually confirm dependency installation and proceed with the backup.

radxa@device$
sudo ./rockpi-backup.sh
tip

The script will perform the following operations:

  1. Check for root privileges
  2. Check and install dependencies
  3. Read the running system kernel name and set the filename accordingly
  4. Check partition details
  5. Set the root mount point to /
  6. Find other partitions on the same disk as the root path
  7. Install the auto-resize script to the root partition
  8. Create a disk image file based on the filename
  9. Clone non-root partitions
  10. Use rsync to synchronize root partition contents, excluding specified files
  11. Clean up and complete

After the backup is complete, the script will display the path to the backup file!

Example terminal output:

Backup done, the file is /home/radxa/**_-backup-_**.img

Offline System Backup​

Offline system backup involves connecting the system boot media as a removable device to a Linux system for backup.

tip

For offline backup, you need to convert the system boot drive to a removable medium and connect it to a Linux system for backup.

Converting different boot media to removable media:

  • MicroSD Card Use a card reader to convert the MicroSD card to a removable medium.

  • Non-onboard eMMC Module Use an eMMC reader to convert the eMMC module to a removable medium.

  • Non-onboard UFS Module Use a UFS reader to convert the UFS module to a removable medium.

  • M.2 NVMe SSD Use an M.2 SSD enclosure to convert the M.2 NVMe SSD to a removable medium.

Connect to PC​

After converting the system boot drive to a removable medium, connect it to a Linux PC for backup.

Identify the Disk​

Use the lsblk command to identify the removable disk information.

Linux$
lsblk

Example terminal output (where sda is the system disk of the motherboard in this example). You can identify the correct device by safely removing and reconnecting the removable medium.

sda 8:0 1 58G 0 disk
├─sda1 8:1 1 16M 0 part /media/wml/config
├─sda2 8:2 1 300M 0 part
└─sda3 8:3 1 57.6G 0 part
nvme0n1 259:0 0 953.9G 0 disk
├─nvme0n1p1 259:1 0 952.8G 0 part /var/snap/firefox/common/host-hunspell
│ /
└─nvme0n1p2 259:2 0 1G 0 part /boot/efi

Backup the System​

Open a terminal on your Linux system and use the dd command to back up the system. Modify the parameters as needed.

Linux$
sudo dd if=/dev/sda of=system-backup.img bs=4M status=progress
  • /dev/sda: The disk corresponding to the motherboard
  • system-backup.img: Specifies the output filename
  • bs=4M: Block size
  • status=progress: Shows backup progress and speed

The backup process will display progress and speed. Upon completion, it will show the path to the backup file.

Example terminal output:

62205722624 bytes (62 GB, 58 GiB) copied, 1609 s, 38.7 MB/s
14839+0 records in
14839+0 records out
62239277056 bytes (62 GB, 58 GiB) copied, 1609.85 s, 38.7 MB/s