# Repository backups

2 messages from 2007-09-19 to 2007-09-19. Participants: Jason Sewall, Johannes Schindelin.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/9943

## Jason Sewall, 2007-09-19 15:14

Subject: Repository backups
Message-ID: <31e9dd080709190814t6ef8b725w8a8320685e70578b@mail.gmail.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/31e9dd080709190814t6ef8b725w8a8320685e70578b%40mail.gmail.com

```
I'd like to build a modest safety net for my various git repositories
in case of catastrophic failure. Currently, everything is backed up on
machines in the same building. I'm not expecting the Computer Science
building to get hit by terrorists and we're in a seismically stable
place, but there *is* construction nearby...

Anyway, my university offers a "mass storage" tape-based service that
is supposedly very safe. We are encouraged to give them single big
files for backups.

The temptation to just make bundles of all branch heads is great but
probably not what I really want - things like reflogs don't get handed
off with those, if I understand correctly.

Is there any argument against just making a tar of a bare clone of the
repo? Any other ideas? I'm reluctant to actually clone into the tape
(SAM-FS, which I know nothing about) because of the number of files it
would create and the lack of git tools on the machines with access to
this machine.

Thanks,
Jason

```

## Johannes Schindelin, 2007-09-19 15:27

Subject: Re: Repository backups
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.64.0709191627040.28395@racer.site>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/Pine.LNX.4.64.0709191627040.28395%40racer.site
In-Reply-To: <31e9dd080709190814t6ef8b725w8a8320685e70578b@mail.gmail.com>

```
Hi,

On Wed, 19 Sep 2007, Jason Sewall wrote:

> I'd like to build a modest safety net for my various git repositories
> in case of catastrophic failure. Currently, everything is backed up on
> machines in the same building. I'm not expecting the Computer Science
> building to get hit by terrorists and we're in a seismically stable
> place, but there *is* construction nearby...
> 
> Anyway, my university offers a "mass storage" tape-based service that
> is supposedly very safe. We are encouraged to give them single big
> files for backups.
> 
> The temptation to just make bundles of all branch heads is great but
> probably not what I really want - things like reflogs don't get handed
> off with those, if I understand correctly.
> 
> Is there any argument against just making a tar of a bare clone of the
> repo?

If you make a bare clone, you lose reflogs, too.

So I would backup the complete .git/ directory instead.

Hth,
Dscho

```