restic_backup

⚠️ Status: Pre-Release (Development Version)

This module is in active development. While functional and safe for testing in development environments, it is NOT recommended for production use until the first stable (1.0) release. The stable release will include security audits and official support commitments.

For production use: Please check back on this project page for the stable 1.0 release.

Intelligent, incremental file backups for Drupal using the free, open-source Restic tool.

About Restic (Free, Open Source)

This module leverages Restic, a completely free and open-source backup tool:

Completely Free: No subscription fees, no vendor lock-in, BSD 2-Clause License
Self-Hosted: Run backups on your own servers or cloud accounts you control
Powerful Features: Incremental backups, deduplication, encryption, multiple storage backends

Key Features

Automatically discovers files using .gitignore rules and Drupal-specific patterns
Focuses on files outside version control (code in Git is already protected)
Excludes unnecessary files like dependencies and regenerable assets
Enforces AES-256 encryption for sensitive files
Supports multiple storage backends: local, SFTP, S3, B2, Azure, Google Cloud Storage
Integrates with Drupal cron for scheduled backups
Provides Drush commands for manual operations and automation
Incremental backups with deduplication and compression

Use Cases

Best for:

Backing up user uploads and private files
Multi-destination backup strategies (multiple cloud providers)
Cost-efficient backups via incremental updates and deduplication
Sites with large file directories requiring efficient storage
Teams using Git for code (avoiding duplicate backups of version-controlled code)

Complete Backup Strategy (Recommended)

For comprehensive site protection, use these three components together:

Component Purpose What's Protected Git Version control Code, modules, themes, configs Retention Database Backup Database backups Database with 4-tier retention Restic Backup File protection User uploads, private files

Together, these three provide complete coverage for disaster recovery.

Installation

Prerequisites

Restic binary (download from https://restic.readthedocs.io/en/latest/020_installation.html)
Drupal 10.3+ or Drupal 11.x
PHP 8.1+

Enable Module

drush pm:enable restic_backup

Configuration

Go to Admin > Configuration > System > Restic Backup
Enter Restic binary path (e.g., /usr/bin/restic)
Choose repository type (Local directory, SFTP, or S3)
Enter repository path
Save configuration

Similar Projects: Comparison with Backup & Migrate

While both modules handle backups, they serve different purposes and use different approaches. See the comparison below to understand which is best suited to your needs.

Feature Restic Backup Backup & Migrate File Backups ✓ Yes (primary) ⚠ Limited Database Backups ✓ Yes ✓ Yes (primary) Multiple Storage Backends ✓ Yes (S3, B2, Azure, SFTP) ⚠ Limited Incremental Backups ✓ Native ✗ Full backups only Deduplication ✓ Automatic ✗ No Cost Optimization ✓ Dedup + compression ✓ Compression only Focuses on Non-Git Files ✓ Yes (smart exclusion) ✗ No (backs up everything)

When to Use Restic Backup

Choose Restic Backup if you:

Use Git for code (code is already protected)
Need incremental, efficient backups
Want multiple storage backend options
Prefer self-hosted, no-subscription solutions
Need to back up large file directories cost-effectively

For the most comprehensive coverage: Use Git (code) + Retention Database Backup (database) + Restic Backup (files) together for complete site protection.

Documentation & Support

For detailed configuration, Drush commands, troubleshooting, and API usage examples, refer to the README.

AI Disclosure

This module was generated using AI assistance (Claude AI). The code, documentation, tests, architecture, and all features were created through an AI-driven development process. While thoroughly reviewed and tested, this disclosure provides transparency about the development methodology.