5 \label{NewFeaturesChapter}
6 \index[general]{New Features}
8 This chapter presents the new features added to the development 2.5.x
9 versions to be released as Bacula version 3.0.0 near the end of 2008.
11 \section{Accurate Backup}
12 \index[general]{Accurate Backup}
14 As with most other backup programs, by default Bacula decides what files to backup for
15 Incremental and Differental backup by comparing the change (st\_ctime) and
16 modification (st\_mtime) times of the file to the time the last backup
17 completed. If one of those two times is later than the last backup time,
18 then the file will be backed up. This does not, however, permit tracking what
19 files have been deleted and will miss any file with an old time that may have
20 been restored to or moved onto the client filesystem.
22 \subsection{Accurate = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
23 If the {\bf Accurate = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}} directive is enabled (default no) in
24 the Job resource, the job will be run as an Accurate Job. For a {\bf Full}
25 backup, there is no difference, but for {\bf Differential} and {\bf
26 Incremental} backups, the Director will send a list of all previous files
27 backed up, and the File daemon will use that list to determine if any new files
28 have been added or or moved and if any files have been deleted. This allows
29 Bacula to make an accurate backup of your system to that point in time so that
30 if you do a restore, it will restore your system exactly. One note of caution
31 about using Accurate backup is that it requires more resources (CPU and memory)
32 on both the Director and the Client machines to create the list of previous
33 files backed up, to send that list to the File daemon, for the File daemon to
34 keep the list (possibly very big) in memory, and for the File daemon to do
35 comparisons between every file in the FileSet and the list.
39 \index[general]{Copy Jobs}
40 A new {\bf Copy} job type has been implemented. It is essentially
41 identical to the existing Migration feature with the exception that
42 the Job that is copied is left unchanged. This essentially creates
43 two identical copies of the same backup. The Copy Job runs without
44 using the File daemon by copying the data from the old backup Volume to
45 a different Volume in a different Pool. See the Migration documentation
46 for additional details.
48 \section{Shared objects}
49 A default build of Bacula will now create the libraries as shared objects
50 (.so) rather than static libraries as was previously the case.
51 The shared libraries are built using {\bf libtool} so it should be quite
54 An important advantage of using shared objects is that on a machine with the
55 Directory, File daemon, the Storage daemon, and a console, you will have only one copy
56 of the code in memory rather than four copies. Also the total size of the
57 binary release is smaller since the library code appears only once rather than
58 once for every program that uses it; this results in significant reduction in
59 the size of the binaries particularly for the utility tools.
61 In order for the system loader to find the shared objects when loading
62 the Bacula binaries, the Bacula shared objects must either be in a shared object
63 directory known to the loader (typically /usr/lib) or they must be in the directory
64 that may be specified on the {\bf ./configure} line using the
65 {\bf {-}{-}libdir} option as:
68 ./configure --libdir=/full-path/dir
71 the default is /usr/lib. If {-}{-}libdir is specified, there should be
72 no need to modify your loader configuration provided that
73 the shared objects are installed in that directory (Bacula
74 does this with the make install command). The shared objects
75 that Bacula references are:
84 These files are symbolically linked to the real shared object file,
85 which has a version number to permit running multiple versions of
86 the libraries if desired (not normally the case).
88 If you have problems with libtool or you wish to use the old
89 way of building static libraries, you can do so by disabling
90 libtool on the configure command line with:
93 ./configure --disable-libtool
97 \section{Virtual Backup (Vbackup)}
98 \index[general]{Virtual Backup}
99 \index[general]{Vbackup}
101 Bacula's virtual backup feature is often called Synthetic Backup or
102 Consolidation in other backup products. It permits you to consolidate
103 the previous Full backup plus the most recent Differential backup and any
104 subsequent Incremental backups into a new Full backup. This is accomplished
105 without contacting the client by reading the previous backup data and
106 writing it to a volume in a different pool.
108 In some respects the Vbackup feature works similar to a Migration job, in
109 that Bacula normally reads the data from the pool specified in the
110 Job resource, and writes it to the {\bf Next Pool} specified in the
111 Job resource. The input Storage resource and the Output Storage resource
114 The Vbackup is enabled on a Job by Job in the Job resource by specifying
115 a level of {\bf VirtualFull}.
117 A typical Job resource definition might look like the following:
131 # Default pool definition
135 Recycle = yes # Automatically recycle Volumes
136 AutoPrune = yes # Prune expired volumes
137 Volume Retention = 365d # one year
145 Recycle = yes # Automatically recycle Volumes
146 AutoPrune = yes # Prune expired volumes
147 Volume Retention = 365d # one year
148 Storage = DiskChanger
151 # Definition of file storage device
158 Maximum Concurrent Jobs = 5
161 # Definition of DDS Virtual tape disk storage device
164 Address = localhost # N.B. Use a fully qualified name here
167 Media Type = DiskChangerMedia
168 Maximum Concurrent Jobs = 4
173 Then in bconsole or via a Run schedule, you would run the job as:
176 run job=MyBackup level=Full
177 run job=MyBackup level=Incremental
178 run job=MyBackup level=Differential
179 run job=MyBackup level=Incremental
180 run job=MyBackup level=Incremental
183 So providing there were changes between each of those jobs, you would end up
184 with a Full backup, a Differential, which includes the first Incremental
185 backup, then two Incremental backups. All the above jobs would be written to
186 the {\bf Default} pool.
188 To consolidate those backups into a new Full backup, you would run the
192 run job=MyBackup level=VirtualFull
195 And it would produce a new Full backup without using the client, and the output
196 would be written to the {\bf Full} Pool which uses the Diskchanger Storage.
198 If the Virtual Full is run, and there are no prior Jobs, the Virtual Full will
201 \section{Duplicate Job Control}
202 \index[general]{Duplicate Jobs}
203 The new version of Bacula provides four new directives that
204 give additional control over what Bacula does if duplicate jobs
205 are started. A duplicate job in the sense we use it here means
206 a second or subsequent job with the same name starts. This
207 happens most frequently when the first job runs longer than expected because no
210 The four directives each take as an argument a {\bf yes} or {\bf no} value and
211 are specified in the Job resource.
215 \subsection{Allow Duplicate Jobs = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
216 If this directive is enabled duplicate jobs will be run. If
217 the directive is set to {\bf no} (default) then only one job of a given name
218 may run at one time, and the action that Bacula takes to ensure only
219 one job runs is determined by the other directives (see below).
221 \subsection{Allow Higher Duplicates = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
222 If this directive is set to {\bf yes} (default) the job with a higher
223 priority (lower priority number) will be permitted to run. If the
224 priorities of the two jobs are the same, the outcome is determined by
225 other directives (see below).
227 \subsection{Cancel Queued Duplicates = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
228 If this directive is set to {\bf yes} (default) any job that is
229 already queued to run but not yet running will be canceled.
231 \subsection{Cancel Running Duplicates = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
232 If this directive is set to {\bf yes} any job that is already running
233 will be canceled. The default is {\bf no}.
236 \section{TLS Authentication}
237 \index[general]{TLS Authentication}
238 In Bacula version 2.5.x and later, in addition to the normal Bacula
239 CRAM-MD5 authentication that is used to authenticate each Bacula
240 connection, you can specify that you want TLS Authentication as well,
241 which will provide more secure authentication.
243 This new feature uses Bacula's existing TLS code (normally used for
244 communications encryption) to do authentication. To use it, you must
245 specify all the TLS directives normally used to enable communications
246 encryption (TLS Enable, TLS Verify Peer, TLS Certificate, ...) and
249 \subsection{TLS Authenticate = yes}
251 TLS Authenticate = yes
254 in the main daemon configuration resource (Director for the Director,
255 Client for the File daemon, and Storage for the Storage daemon).
257 When {\bf TLS Authenticate} is enabled, after doing the CRAM-MD5
258 authentication, Bacula will do the normal TLS authentication, then TLS
259 encryption will be turned off.
261 If you want to encrypt communications data, do not turn on {\bf TLS
264 \section{bextract non-portable Win32 data}
265 \index[general]{bextract handles Win32 non-portable data}
266 {\bf bextract} has been enhanced to be able to restore
267 non-portable Win32 data to any OS. Previous versions were
268 unable to restore non-portable Win32 data to machines that
269 did not have the Win32 BackupRead and BackupWrite API calls.
271 \section{State File updated at Job Termination}
272 \index[general]{State File}
273 In previous versions of Bacula, the state file, which provides a
274 summary of previous jobs run in the {\bf status} command output was
275 updated only when Bacula terminated, thus if the daemon crashed, the
276 state file might not contain all the run data. This version of
277 the Bacula daemons updates the state file on each job termination.
279 \section{MaxFullInterval = \lt{}time-interval\gt{}}
280 \index[general]{MaxFullInterval}
281 The new Job resource directive {\bf Max Full Interval = \lt{}time-interval\gt{}}
282 can be used to specify the maximum time interval between {\bf Full} backup
283 jobs. When a job starts, if the time since the last Full backup is
284 greater than the specified interval, and the job would normally be an
285 {\bf Incremental} or {\bf Differential}, it will be automatically
286 upgraded to a {\bf Full} backup.
288 \section{MaxDiffInterval = \lt{}time-interval\gt{}}
289 \index[general]{MaxDiffInterval}
290 The new Job resource directive {\bf Max Diff Interval = \lt{}time-interval\gt{}}
291 can be used to specify the maximum time interval between {\bf Differential} backup
292 jobs. When a job starts, if the time since the last Differential backup is
293 greater than the specified interval, and the job would normally be an
294 {\bf Incremental}, it will be automatically
295 upgraded to a {\bf Differential} backup.
297 \section{Honor No Dump Flag = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
298 \index[general]{MaxDiffInterval}
299 On FreeBSD systems, each file has a {\bf no dump flag} that can be set
300 by the user, and when it is set it is an indication to backup programs
301 to not backup that particular file. This version of Bacula contains a
302 new Options directive within a FileSet resource, which instructs Bacula to
303 obey this flag. The new directive is:
306 Honor No Dump Flag = yes|no
309 The default value is {\bf no}.
312 \section{Exclude Dirs Containing = \lt{}filename-string\gt{}}
313 \index[general]{IgnoreDir}
314 The {\bf ExcludeDirsContaining = \lt{}filename\gt{}} is a new directive that can be added to the Include
315 section of the FileSet resource. If the specified
316 filename is found on the Client in any directory to be backed up,
317 the whole directory will be ignored (not backed up).
321 # List of files to be backed up
329 Exclude Dirs Containing = .excludeme
334 But in /home, there may be hundreds of directories of users and some
335 people want to indicate that they don't want to have certain
336 directories backed up. For example, with the above FileSet, if
337 the user or sysadmin creates a file named {\bf .excludeme} in
338 specific directories, such as
341 /home/user/www/cache/.excludeme
342 /home/user/temp/.excludeme
345 then Bacula will not backup the two directories named:
352 NOTE: subdirectories will not be backed up. That is, the directive
353 applies to the two directories in question and any children (be they
354 files, directories, etc).
358 \section{Bacula Plugins}
359 \index[general]{Plugin}
360 Support for shared object plugins has been implemented in the Linux
361 (and Unix) File daemon. The API will be documented separately in
362 the Developer's Guide or in a new document. For the moment, there is
363 a single plugin named {\bf bpipe} that allows an external program to
364 get control to backup and restore a file.
366 Plugins are also planned (partially implemented) in the Director and the
367 Storage daemon. The code is also implemented to work on Win32 machines,
368 but it has not yet been tested.
370 \subsection{Plugin Directory}
371 Each daemon (DIR, FD, SD) has a new {\bf Plugin Directory} directive that may
372 be added to the daemon definition resource. The directory takes a quoted
373 string argument, which is the name of the directory in which the daemon can
374 find the Bacula plugins. If this directive is not specified, Bacula will not
375 load any plugins. Since each plugin has a distinctive name, all the daemons
376 can share the same plugin directory.
380 \subsection{Plugin Options}
381 The {\bf Plugin Options} directive takes a quoted string
382 arguement (after the equal sign) and may be specified in the
383 Job resource. The options specified will be passed to the plugin
384 when it is run. The value defined in the Job resource can be modified
385 by the user when he runs a Job via the {\bf bconsole} command line
388 Note: this directive may be specified, but it is not yet passed to
389 the plugin (i.e. not fully implemented).
391 \subsection{Plugin Options ACL}
392 The {\bf Plugin Options ACL} directive may be specified in the
393 Director's Console resource. It functions as all the other ACL commands
394 do by permitting users running restricted consoles to specify a
395 {\bf Plugin Options} that overrides the one specified in the Job
396 definition. Without this directive restricted consoles may not modify
399 \subsection{Plugin = \lt{}plugin-command-string\gt{}}
400 The {\bf Plugin} directive is specified in the Include section of
401 a FileSet resource where you put your {\bf File = xxx} directives.
417 In the above example, when the File daemon is processing the directives
418 in the Include section, it will first backup all the files in {\bf /home}
419 then it will load the plugin named {\bf bpipe} (actually bpipe-dir.so) from
420 the Plugin Directory. The syntax and semantics of the Plugin directive
421 require the first part of the string up to the colon (:) to be the name
422 of the plugin. Everything after the first colon is ignored by the File daemon but
423 is passed to the plugin. Thus the plugin writer may define the meaning of the
424 rest of the string as he wishes.
426 Please see the next section for information about the {\bf bpipe} Bacula
429 \section{The bpipe Plugin}
430 The {\bf bpipe} plugin is provided in the directory src/plugins/fd/bpipe-fd.c of
431 the Bacula source distribution. When the plugin is compiled and linking into
432 the resulting dynamic shared object (DSO), it will have the name {\bf bpipe-fd.so}.
434 The purpose of the plugin is to provide an interface to any system program for
435 backup and restore. As specified above the {\bf bpipe} plugin is specified in
436 the Include section of your Job's FileSet resource. The full syntax of the
437 plugin directive as interpreted by the {\bf bpipe} plugin (each plugin is free
438 to specify the sytax as it wishes) is:
441 Plugin = "<field1>:<field2>:<field3>:<field4>"
446 \item {\bf field1} is the name of the plugin with the trailing {\bf -fd.so}
447 stripped off, so in this case, we would put {\bf bpipe} in this field.
449 \item {\bf field2} specifies the namespace, which for {\bf bpipe} is the
450 pseudo path and filename under which the backup will be saved. This pseudo
451 path and filename will be seen by the user in the restore file tree.
452 For example, if the value is {\bf /MYSQL/regress.sql}, the data
453 backed up by the plugin will be put under that "pseudo" path and filename.
454 You must be careful to choose a naming convention that is unique to avoid
455 a conflict with a path and filename that actually exists on your system.
457 \item {\bf field3} for the {\bf bpipe} plugin
458 specifies the "reader" program that is called by the plugin during
459 backup to read the data. {\bf bpipe} will call this program by doing a
462 \item {\bf field4} for the {\bf bpipe} plugin
463 specifies the "writer" program that is called by the plugin during
464 restore to write the data back to the filesystem.
467 Putting it all together, the full plugin directive line might look
471 Plugin = "bpipe:/MYSQL/regress.sql:mysqldump -f
472 --opt --databases bacula:mysql"
475 The directive has been split into two lines, but within the {\bf bacula-dir.conf} file
476 would be written on a single line.
478 This causes the File daemon to call the {\bf bpipe} plugin, which will write
479 its data into the "pseudo" file {\bf /MYSQL/regress.sql} by calling the
480 program {\bf mysqldump -f --opt --database bacula} to read the data during
481 backup. The mysqldump command outputs all the data for the database named
482 {\bf bacula}, which will be read by the plugin and stored in the backup.
483 During restore, the data that was backed up will be sent to the program
484 specified in the last field, which in this case is {\bf mysql}. When
485 {\bf mysql} is called, it will read the data sent to it by the plugn
486 then write it back to the same database from which it came ({\bf bacula}
489 The {\bf bpipe} plugin is a generic pipe program, that simply transmits
490 the data from a specified program to Bacula for backup, and then from Bacula to
491 a specified program for restore.
493 By using different command lines to {\bf bpipe},
494 you can backup any kind of data (ASCII or binary) depending
495 on the program called.
497 \section{Microsoft Exchange Server 2003/2007 Plugin}
499 \subsection{Concepts}
501 Although it is possible to backup Exchange using Bacula VSS the Exchange
502 plugin adds a good deal of functionality, because while Bacula VSS
503 completes a full backup (snapshot) of Exchange, it does
504 not support Incremental or Differential backups, restoring is more
505 complicated, and a single database restore is not possible.
507 Microsoft Exchange organises its storage into Storage Groups with
508 Databases inside them. A default installation of Exchange will have a
509 single Storage Group called 'First Storage Group', with two Databases
510 inside it, "Mailbox Store (SERVER NAME)" and
511 "Public Folder Store (SERVER NAME)",
512 which hold user email and public folders respectively.
514 In the default configuration, Exchange logs everything that happens to
515 log files, such that if you have a backup, and all the log files since,
516 you can restore to the present time. Each Storage Group has its own set
517 of log files and operates independently of any other Storage Groups. At
518 the Storage Group level, the logging can be turned off by enabling a
519 function called "Enable circular logging". At this time the Exchange
520 plugin will not function if this option is enabled.
522 The plugin allows backing up of entire storage groups, and the restoring
523 of entire storage groups or individual databases. Backing up and
524 restoring at the individual mailbox or email item is not supported but
525 can be simulated by use of the "Recovery" Storage Group (see below).
527 \subsection{Installing}
529 The Exchange plugin requires a DLL that is shipped with Microsoft
530 Exchanger Server called {\bf esebcli2.dll}. Assuming Exchange is installed
531 correctly the Exchange plugin should find this automatically and run
532 without any additional installation.
534 If the DLL can not be found automatically it will need to be copied into
535 the Bacula installation
536 directory (eg C:\verb+\+Program Files\verb+\+Bacula\verb+\+bin). The Exchange API DLL is
537 named esebcli2.dll and is found in C:\verb+\+Program Files\verb+\+Exchsrvr\verb+\+bin on a
538 default Exchange installation.
540 \subsection{Backup up}
542 To back up an Exchange server the Fileset definition must contain at
543 least {\bf Plugin = "exchange:/@EXCHANGE/Microsoft Information Store"} for
544 the backup to work correctly. The 'exchange:' bit tells Bacula to look
545 for the exchange plugin, the '@EXCHANGE' bit makes sure all the backed
546 up files are prefixed with something that isn't going to share a name
547 with something outside the plugin, and the 'Microsoft Information Store'
548 bit is required also. It is also possible to add the name of a storage
549 group to the "Plugin =" line, eg \\
550 {\bf Plugin = "exchange:/@EXCHANGE/Microsoft Information Store/First Storage Group"} \\
551 if you want only a single storage group backed up.
553 Additionally, you can suffix the 'Plugin =' directive with
554 ":notrunconfull" which will tell the plugin not to truncate the Exchange
555 database at the end of a full backup.
557 An Incremental or Differential backup will backup only the database logs
558 for each Storage Group by inspecting the "modified date" on each
559 physical log file. Because of the way the Exchange API works, the last
560 logfile backed up on each backup will always be backed up by the next
561 Incremental or Differential backup too. This adds 5MB to each
562 Incremental or Differential backup size but otherwise does not cause any
565 By default, a normal VSS fileset containing all the drive letters will
566 also back up the Exchange databases using VSS. This will interfere with
567 the plugin and Exchange's shared ideas of when the last full backup was
568 done, and may also truncate log files incorrectly. It is important,
569 therefore, that the Exchange database files be excluded from the backup,
570 although the folders the files are in should be included, or they will
571 have to be recreated manually if a baremetal restore is done.
576 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata
577 Plugin = "exchange:..."
580 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/E00.chk
581 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/E00.log
582 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/E000000F.log
583 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/E0000010.log
584 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/E0000011.log
585 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/E00tmp.log
586 File = C:/Program Files/Exchsrvr/mdbdata/priv1.edb
591 The advantage of excluding the above files is that you can significantly
592 reduce the size of your backup since all the important Exchange files
593 will be properly saved by the Plugin.
596 \subsection{Restoring}
598 The restore operation is much the same as a normal Bacula restore, with
599 the following provisos:
602 \item The {\bf Where} restore option must not be specified
603 \item Each Database directory must be marked as a whole. You cannot just
604 select (say) the .edb file and not the others.
605 \item If a Storage Group is restored, the directory of the Storage Group
607 \item It is possible to restore only a subset of the available log files,
608 but they {\bf must} be contiguous. Exchange will fail to restore correctly
609 if a log file is missing from the sequence of log files
610 \item Each database to be restored must be dismounted and marked as "Can be
611 overwritten by restore"
612 \item If an entire Storage Group is to be restored (eg all databases and
613 logs in the Storage Group), then it is best to manually delete the
614 database files from the server (eg C:\verb+\+Program Files\verb+\+Exchsrvr\verb+\+mdbdata\verb+\+*)
615 as Exchange can get confused by stray log files lying around.
618 \subsection{Restoring to the Recovery Storage Group}
620 The concept of the Recovery Storage Group is well documented by
622 \elink{http://support.microsoft.com/kb/824126}{http://support.microsoft.com/kb/824126},
623 but to briefly summarize...
625 Microsoft Exchange allows the creation of an additional Storage Group
626 called the Recovery Storage Group, which is used to restore an older
627 copy of a database (e.g. before a mailbox was deleted) into without
628 messing with the current live data. This is required as the Standard and
629 Small Business Server versions of Exchange can not ordinarily have more
630 than one Storage Group.
632 To create the Recovery Storage Group, drill down to the Server in
633 Exchange System Manager, right click, and select
634 {\bf "New -> Recovery Storage Group..."}. Accept or change the file locations and click OK. On
635 the Recovery Storage Group, right click and select
636 {\bf "Add Database to Recover..."} and select the database you will be restoring.
638 In Bacula, select the Database and the log files, making sure to mark
639 the Storage Group directory itself too. Once you have selected the files
640 to back up, use the RegexWhere clause to remove the prefix of
641 "/@EXCHANGE/Microsoft Information Store/\lt{}storage group name\gt{}/" and
642 replace it with "/@EXCHANGE/Microsoft Information Store/Recovery Storage Group/".
643 Then run the restore.
647 This plugin is still being developed, so you should consider it
648 currently in BETA test, and thus use in a production environment
649 should be done only after very careful testing.
651 The "Enable Circular Logging" option cannot be enabled or the plugin
654 Exchange insists that a successful Full backup must have taken place if
655 an Incremental or Differential backup is desired, and the plugin will
656 fail if this is not the case. If a restore is done, Exchange will
657 require that a Full backup be done before an Incremental or Differential
660 The plugin will most likely not work well if another backup application
661 (eg NTBACKUP) is backing up the Exchange database, especially if the
662 other backup application is truncating the log files.
664 The Exchange plugin has not been tested with the {\bf Accurate} option, so
665 we recommend either carefully testing or that you avoid this option for
668 The Exchange plugin is not called during processing the bconsole {\bf estimate} command,
669 and so anything that would be backed up by the plugin will not be added
670 to the estimate total that is displayed.
673 \section{libdbi Framework}
674 As a general guideline, Bacula has support for a few catalog database drivers
675 (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite)
676 coded natively by the Bacula team. With the libdbi implementation, which is a
677 Bacula driver that uses libdbi to access the catalog, we have an open field to
678 use many different kinds database engines following the needs of users.
680 The according to libdbi (http://libdbi.sourceforge.net/) project: libdbi
681 implements a database-independent abstraction layer in C, similar to the
682 DBI/DBD layer in Perl. Writing one generic set of code, programmers can
683 leverage the power of multiple databases and multiple simultaneous database
684 connections by using this framework.
686 Currently the libdbi driver in Bacula project only supports the same drivers
687 natively coded in Bacula. However the libdbi project has support for many
688 others database engines. You can view the list at
689 http://libdbi-drivers.sourceforge.net/. In the future all those drivers can be
690 supported by Bacula, however, they must be tested properly by the Bacula team.
692 Some of benefits of using libdbi are:
694 \item The possibility to use proprietary databases engines in which your
695 proprietary licenses prevent the Bacula team from developing the driver.
696 \item The possibility to use the drivers written for the libdbi project.
697 \item The possibility to use other database engines without recompiling Bacula
698 to use them. Just change one line in bacula-dir.conf
699 \item Abstract Database access, this is, unique point to code and profiling
700 catalog database access.
703 The following drivers have been tested:
705 \item PostgreSQL, with and without batch insert
706 \item Mysql, with and without batch insert
711 In the future, we will test and approve to use others databases engines
712 (proprietary or not) like DB2, Oracle, Microsoft SQL.
714 To compile Bacula to support libdbi we need to configure the code with the
715 --with-dbi and --with-dbi-driver=[database] ./configure options, where
716 [database] is the database engine to be used with Bacula (of course we can
717 change the driver in file bacula-dir.conf, see below). We must configure the
718 access port of the database engine with the option --with-db-port, because the
719 libdbi framework doesn't know the default access port of each database.
721 The next phase is checking (or configuring) the bacula-dir.conf, example:
725 dbdriver = dbi:mysql; dbaddress = 127.0.0.1; dbport = 3306
726 dbname = regress; user = regress; password = ""
730 The parameter {\bf dbdriver} indicates that we will use the driver dbi with a
731 mysql database. Currently the drivers supported by Bacula are: postgresql,
732 mysql, sqlite, sqlite3; these are the names that may be added to string "dbi:".
734 The following limitations apply when Bacula is set to use the libdbi framework:
735 - Not tested on the Win32 platform
736 - A little performance is lost if comparing with native database driver.
737 The reason is bound with the database driver provided by libdbi and the
738 simple fact that one more layer of code was added.
740 It is important to remember, when compiling Bacula with libdbi, the
741 following packages are needed:
743 \item libdbi version 1.0.0, http://libdbi.sourceforge.net/
744 \item libdbi-drivers 1.0.0, http://libdbi-drivers.sourceforge.net/
747 You can download them and compile them on your system or install the packages
748 from your OS distribution.
751 \section{Display Autochanger Content}
752 \index[general]{StatusSlots}
754 The {\bf status slots storage=\lt{}storage-name\gt{}} command displays
759 Slot | Volume Name | Status | Media Type | Pool |
760 ------+---------------+----------+-------------------+------------|
761 1 | 00001 | Append | DiskChangerMedia | Default |
762 2 | 00002 | Append | DiskChangerMedia | Default |
763 3*| 00003 | Append | DiskChangerMedia | Scratch |
768 If you an asterisk ({\bf *}) appears after the slot number, you must run an
769 {\bf update slots} command to synchronize autochanger content with your
772 \section{Miscellaneous}
773 \index[general]{Misc New Features}
775 \subsection{Allow Mixed Priority = \lt{}yes|no\gt{}}
776 This directive is only implemented in version 2.5 and later. When
777 set to {\bf yes} (default {\bf no}), this job may run even if lower
778 priority jobs are already running. This means a high priority job
779 will not have to wait for other jobs to finish before starting.
780 The scheduler will only mix priorities when all running jobs have
783 Note that only higher priority jobs will start early. Suppose the
784 director will allow two concurrent jobs, and that two jobs with
785 priority 10 are running, with two more in the queue. If a job with
786 priority 5 is added to the queue, it will be run as soon as one of
787 the running jobs finishes. However, new priority 10 jobs will not
788 be run until the priority 5 job has finished.
790 \subsection{Bootstrap File Directive -- FileRegex}
791 {\bf FileRegex} is a new command that can be added to the bootstrap
792 (.bsr) file. The value is a regular expression. When specified, only
793 matching filenames will be restored.
795 During a restore, if all File records are pruned from the catalog
796 for a Job, normally Bacula can restore only all files saved. That
797 is there is no way using the catalog to select individual files.
798 With this new command, Bacula will ask if you want to specify a Regex
799 expression for extracting only a part of the full backup.
801 \subsection{Solaris ZFS/NFSv4 ACLs}
802 This is an upgrade of the previous Solaris ACL backup code
803 to the new library format, which will backup both the old
804 POSIX(UFS) ACLs as well as the ZFS ACLs.
806 The new code can also restore POSIX(UFS) ACLs to a ZFS filesystem
807 (it will translate the POSIX(UFS)) ACL into a ZFS/NFSv4 one) it can also
808 be used to transfer from UFS to ZFS filesystems.
811 \subsection{Virtual Tape Emulation}
812 We now have a Virtual Tape emulator that allows us to run though 99.9\% of
813 the tape code but actually reading and writing to a disk file. Used with the
814 \textbf{disk-changer} script, you can now emulate an autochanger with 10 drives
815 and 700 slots. This feature is most useful in testing. It is enabled
816 by using {\bf Device Type = vtape} in the Storage daemon's Device
817 directive. This feature is only implemented on Linux machines.
819 \subsection{Bat Enhancements}
820 Bat (the Bacula Administration Tool) GUI program has been significantly
821 enhanced and stabilized. In particular, there are new table based status
822 commands; it can now be easily localized using Qt4 Linguist.
824 The Bat communications protocol has been significantly enhanced to improve
827 \subsection{RunScript Enhancements}
828 The {\bf RunScript} resource has been enhanced to permit multiple
829 commands per RunScript. Simply specify multiple {\bf Command} directives
836 Command = "/bin/echo test"
837 Command = "/bin/echo an other test"
838 Command = "/bin/echo 3 commands in the same runscript"
845 A new Client RunScript {\bf RunsWhen} keyword of {\bf AfterVSS} has been
846 implemented, which runs the command after the Volume Shadow Copy has been made.
848 Console commands can be specified within a RunScript by using:
849 {\bf Console = \lt{}command\gt{}}, however, this command has not been
850 carefully tested and debugged and is known to easily crash the Director.
851 We would appreciate feedback. Due to the recursive nature of this command, we
852 may remove it before the final release.
854 \subsection{Status Enhancements}
855 The bconsole {\bf status dir} output has been enhanced to indicate
856 Storage daemon job spooling and despooling activity.
858 \subsection{Connect Timeout}
859 The default connect timeout to the File
860 daemon has been set to 3 minutes. Previously it was 30 minutes.
862 \subsection{ftruncate for NFS Volumes}
863 If you write to a Volume mounted by NFS (say on a local file server),
864 in previous Bacula versions, when the Volume was recycled, it was not
865 properly truncated because NFS does not implement ftruncate (file
866 truncate). This is now corrected in the new version because we have
867 written code (actually a kind user) that deletes and recreates the Volume,
868 thus accomplishing the same thing as a truncate.
870 \subsection{Support for Ubuntu}
871 The new version of Bacula now recognizes the Ubuntu (and Kubuntu)
872 version of Linux, and thus now provides correct autostart routines.
873 Since Ubuntu officially supports Bacula, you can also obtain any
874 recent release of Bacula from the Ubuntu repositories.
876 \subsection{Recycle Pool = \lt{}pool-name\gt{}}
877 The new \textbf{RecyclePool} directive defines to which pool the Volume will
878 be placed (moved) when it is recycled. Without this directive, a Volume will
879 remain in the same pool when it is recycled. With this directive, it can be
880 moved automatically to any existing pool during a recycle. This directive is
881 probably most useful when defined in the Scratch pool, so that volumes will
882 be recycled back into the Scratch pool.
884 \subsection{FD Version}
885 The File daemon to Director protocol now includes a version
886 number, which although there is no visible change for users,
887 will help us in future versions automatically determine
888 if a File daemon is not compatible.
890 \subsection{Max Run Sched Time = \lt{}time-period-in-seconds\gt{}}
891 The time specifies the maximum allowed time that a job may run, counted from
892 when the job was scheduled. This can be useful to prevent jobs from running
893 during working hours. We can see it like \texttt{Max Start Delay + Max Run
896 \subsection{Max Wait Time = \lt{}time-period-in-seconds\gt{}}
898 Previous \textbf{MaxWaitTime} directives aren't working as expected, instead
899 of checking the maximum allowed time that a job may block for a resource,
900 those directives worked like \textbf{MaxRunTime}. Some users are reporting to
901 use \textbf{Incr/Diff/Full Max Wait Time} to control the maximum run time of
902 their job depending on the level. Now, they have to use
903 \textbf{Incr/Diff/Full Max Run Time}. \textbf{Incr/Diff/Full Max Wait Time}
904 directives are now deprecated.
906 \subsection{Incremental|Differential Max Wait Time = \lt{}time-period-in-seconds\gt{}}
907 Theses directives have been deprecated in favor of
908 \texttt{Incremental|Differential Max Run Time}.
910 \subsection{Max Run Time directives}
911 Using \textbf{Full/Diff/Incr Max Run Time}, it's now possible to specify the
912 maximum allowed time that a job can run depending on the level.
914 \addcontentsline{lof}{figure}{Job time control directives}
915 \includegraphics{\idir different_time.eps}
917 \subsection{Statistics Enhancements}
918 If you (or probably your boss) want to have statistics on your backups to
919 provide some \textit{Service Level Agreement} indicators, you could use a few
920 SQL queries on the Job table to report how many:
924 \item jobs have been successful
925 \item files have been backed up
929 However, these statistics are accurate only if your job retention is greater
930 than your statistics period. Ie, if jobs are purged from the catalog, you won't
933 Now, you can use the \textbf{update stats [days=num]} console command to fill
934 the JobHistory table with new Job records. If you want to be sure to take in
935 account only \textbf{good jobs}, ie if one of your important job has failed but
936 you have fixed the problem and restarted it on time, you probably want to
937 delete the first \textit{bad} job record and keep only the successful one. For
938 that simply let your staff do the job, and update JobHistory table after two or
939 three days depending on your organization using the \textbf{[days=num]} option.
941 These statistics records aren't used for restoring, but mainly for
942 capacity planning, billings, etc.
944 The Bweb interface provides a statistics module that can use this feature. You
945 can also use tools like Talend or extract information by yourself.
947 The {\textbf Statistics Retention = \lt{}time\gt{}} director directive defines
948 the length of time that Bacula will keep statistics job records in the Catalog
949 database after the Job End time. (In \texttt{JobHistory} table) When this time
950 period expires, and if user runs \texttt{prune stats} command, Bacula will
951 prune (remove) Job records that are older than the specified period.
953 You can use the following Job resource in your nightly \textbf{BackupCatalog}
954 job to maintain statistics.
960 Console = "update stats days=3"
961 Console = "prune stats yes"
968 \subsection{SpoolSize = \lt{}size-specification-in-bytes\gt{}}
969 A new job directive permits to specify the spool size per job. This is used
970 in advanced job tunning. {\bf SpoolSize={\it bytes}}
973 \section{Building Bacula Plugins}
974 There is currently one sample program {\bf example-plugin-fd.c} and
975 one working plugin {\bf bpipe-fd.c} that can be found in the Bacula
976 {\bf src/plugins/fd} directory. Both are built with the following:
980 ./configure <your-options>
988 After building Bacula and changing into the src/plugins/fd directory,
989 the {\bf make} command will build the {\bf bpipe-fd.so} plugin, which
990 is a very useful and working program.
992 The {\bf make test} command will build the {\bf example-plugin-fd.so}
993 plugin and a binary named {\bf main}, which is build from the source
994 code located in {\bf src/filed/fd\_plugins.c}.
996 If you execute {\bf ./main}, it will load and run the example-plugin-fd
997 plugin simulating a small number of the calling sequences that Bacula uses
998 in calling a real plugin. This allows you to do initial testing of
999 your plugin prior to trying it with Bacula.
1001 You can get a good idea of how to write your own plugin by first
1002 studying the example-plugin-fd, and actually running it. Then
1003 it can also be instructive to read the bpipe-fd.c code as it is
1004 a real plugin, which is still rather simple and small.
1006 When actually writing your own plugin, you may use the example-plugin-fd.c
1007 code as a template for your code.
1013 \chapter{Bacula FD Plugin API}
1014 To write a Bacula plugin, you create a dynamic shared object
1015 program (or dll on Win32) with a particular name and two
1016 exported entry points, place it in the {\bf Plugins Directory}, which is defined in the
1017 {\bf bacula-fd.conf} file in the {\bf Client} resource, and when the FD
1018 starts, it will load all the plugins that end with {\bf -fd.so} (or {\bf -fd.dll}
1019 on Win32) found in that directory.
1021 \section{Normal vs Command Plugins}
1022 In general, there are two ways that plugins are called. The first way,
1023 is when a particular event is detected in Bacula, it will transfer control
1024 to each plugin that is loaded in turn informing the plugin of the event.
1025 This is very similar to how a {\bf RunScript} works, and the events are very similar.
1026 Once the plugin gets control, it can interact with Bacula by getting and
1027 setting Bacula variables. In this way, it behaves much like a RunScript.
1028 Currently very few Bacula variables are defined, but they will be implemented
1029 as the need arrises, and it is very extensible.
1031 We plan to have plugins register to receive events that they normally would
1032 not receive, such as an event for each file examined for backup or restore.
1033 This feature is not yet implemented.
1035 The second type of plugin, which is more useful and fully implemented
1036 in the current version is what we call a command plugin. As with all
1037 plugins, it gets notified of important events as noted above (details described below),
1038 but in addition, this kind of plugin can accept a command line, which
1042 Plugin = <command-string>
1045 directive that is placed in the Include section of a FileSet and is very
1046 similar to the "File = " directive. When this Plugin directive is encountered
1047 by Bacula during backup, it passes the "command" part of the Plugin directive
1048 only to the plugin that is explicitly named in the first field of that command string.
1049 This allows that plugin to backup any file or files on the system that it wants. It can
1050 even create "virtual files" in the catalog that contain data to be restored but do
1051 not necessarily correspond to actual files on the filesystem.
1053 The important features of the command plugin entry points are:
1055 \item It is triggered by a "Plugin =" directive in the FileSet
1056 \item Only a single plugin is called that is named on the "Plugin =" directive.
1057 \item The full command string after the "Plugin =" is passed to the plugin
1058 so that it can be told what to backup/restore.
1062 \section{Loading Plugins}
1063 Once the File daemon loads the plugins, it asks the OS for the
1064 two entry points (loadPlugin and unloadPlugin) then calls the
1065 {\bf loadPlugin} entry point (see below).
1067 Bacula passes information to the plugin through this call and it gets
1068 back information that it needs to use the plugin. Later, Bacula
1069 will call particular functions that are defined by the
1070 {\bf loadPlugin} interface.
1072 When Bacula is finished with the plugin
1073 (when Bacula is going to exit), it will call the {\bf unloadPlugin}
1076 The two entry points are:
1079 bRC loadPlugin(bInfo *lbinfo, bFuncs *lbfuncs, pInfo **pinfo, pFuncs **pfuncs)
1086 both these external entry points to the shared object are defined as C entry points
1087 to avoid name mangling complications with C++. However, the shared object
1088 can actually be written in any language (preferrably C or C++) providing that it
1089 follows C language calling conventions.
1091 The definitions for {\bf bRC} and the arguments are {\bf
1092 src/filed/fd-plugins.h} and so this header file needs to be included in
1093 your plugin. It along with {\bf src/lib/plugins.h} define basically the whole
1094 plugin interface. Within this header file, it includes the following
1098 #include <sys/types.h>
1100 #include "bc_types.h"
1101 #include "lib/plugins.h"
1102 #include <sys/stat.h>
1105 Aside from the {\bf bc\_types.h} and {\bf confit.h} headers, the plugin definition uses the
1106 minimum code from Bacula. The bc\_types.h file is required to ensure that
1107 the data type defintions in arguments correspond to the Bacula core code.
1109 The return codes are defined as:
1112 bRC_OK = 0, /* OK */
1113 bRC_Stop = 1, /* Stop calling other plugins */
1114 bRC_Error = 2, /* Some kind of error */
1115 bRC_More = 3, /* More files to backup */
1120 At a future point in time, we hope to make the Bacula libbac.a into a
1121 shared object so that the plugin can use much more of Bacula's
1122 infrastructure, but for this first cut, we have tried to minimize the
1123 dependence on Bacula.
1125 \section{loadPlugin}
1126 As previously mentioned, the {\bf loadPlugin} entry point in the plugin
1127 is called immediately after Bacula loads the plugin when the File daemon
1128 itself is first starting. This entry point is only called once during the
1129 execution of the File daemon. In calling the
1130 plugin, the first two arguments are information from Bacula that
1131 is passed to the plugin, and the last two arguments are information
1132 about the plugin that the plugin must return to Bacula. The call is:
1135 bRC loadPlugin(bInfo *lbinfo, bFuncs *lbfuncs, pInfo **pinfo, pFuncs **pfuncs)
1138 and the arguments are:
1142 This is information about Bacula in general. Currently, the only value
1143 defined in the bInfo structure is the version, which is the Bacula plugin
1144 interface version, currently defined as 1. The {\bf size} is set to the
1145 byte size of the structure. The exact definition of the bInfo structure
1146 as of this writing is:
1149 typedef struct s_baculaInfo {
1156 The bFuncs structure defines the callback entry points within Bacula
1157 that the plugin can use register events, get Bacula values, set
1158 Bacula values, and send messages to the Job output or debug output.
1160 The exact definition as of this writing is:
1162 typedef struct s_baculaFuncs {
1165 bRC (*registerBaculaEvents)(bpContext *ctx, ...);
1166 bRC (*getBaculaValue)(bpContext *ctx, bVariable var, void *value);
1167 bRC (*setBaculaValue)(bpContext *ctx, bVariable var, void *value);
1168 bRC (*JobMessage)(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line,
1169 int type, time_t mtime, const char *fmt, ...);
1170 bRC (*DebugMessage)(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line,
1171 int level, const char *fmt, ...);
1172 void *(*baculaMalloc)(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line,
1174 void (*baculaFree)(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line, void *mem);
1178 We will discuss these entry points and how to use them a bit later when
1179 describing the plugin code.
1183 When the loadPlugin entry point is called, the plugin must initialize
1184 an information structure about the plugin and return a pointer to
1185 this structure to Bacula.
1187 The exact definition as of this writing is:
1190 typedef struct s_pluginInfo {
1193 const char *plugin_magic;
1194 const char *plugin_license;
1195 const char *plugin_author;
1196 const char *plugin_date;
1197 const char *plugin_version;
1198 const char *plugin_description;
1204 \item [version] is the current Bacula defined plugin interface version, currently
1205 set to 1. If the interface version differs from the current version of
1206 Bacula, the plugin will not be run (not yet implemented).
1207 \item [plugin\_magic] is a pointer to the text string "*FDPluginData*", a
1208 sort of sanity check. If this value is not specified, the plugin
1209 will not be run (not yet implemented).
1210 \item [plugin\_license] is a pointer to a text string that describes the
1211 plugin license. Bacula will only accept compatible licenses (not yet
1213 \item [plugin\_author] is a pointer to the text name of the author of the program.
1214 This string can be anything but is generally the author's name.
1215 \item [plugin\_date] is the pointer text string containing the date of the plugin.
1216 This string can be anything but is generally some human readable form of
1218 \item [plugin\_version] is a pointer to a text string containing the version of
1219 the plugin. The contents are determined by the plugin writer.
1220 \item [plugin\_description] is a pointer to a string describing what the
1221 plugin does. The contents are determined by the plugin writer.
1224 The pInfo structure must be defined in static memory because Bacula does not
1225 copy it and may refer to the values at any time while the plugin is
1226 loaded. All values must be supplied or the plugin will not run (not yet
1227 implemented). All text strings must be either ASCII or UTF-8 strings that
1228 are terminated with a zero byte.
1231 When the loadPlugin entry point is called, the plugin must initialize
1232 an entry point structure about the plugin and return a pointer to
1233 this structure to Bacula. This structure contains pointer to each
1234 of the entry points that the plugin must provide for Bacula. When
1235 Bacula is actually running the plugin, it will call the defined
1236 entry points at particular times. All entry points must be defined.
1238 The pFuncs structure must be defined in static memory because Bacula does not
1239 copy it and may refer to the values at any time while the plugin is
1242 The exact definition as of this writing is:
1245 typedef struct s_pluginFuncs {
1248 bRC (*newPlugin)(bpContext *ctx);
1249 bRC (*freePlugin)(bpContext *ctx);
1250 bRC (*getPluginValue)(bpContext *ctx, pVariable var, void *value);
1251 bRC (*setPluginValue)(bpContext *ctx, pVariable var, void *value);
1252 bRC (*handlePluginEvent)(bpContext *ctx, bEvent *event, void *value);
1253 bRC (*startBackupFile)(bpContext *ctx, struct save_pkt *sp);
1254 bRC (*endBackupFile)(bpContext *ctx);
1255 bRC (*startRestoreFile)(bpContext *ctx, const char *cmd);
1256 bRC (*endRestoreFile)(bpContext *ctx);
1257 bRC (*pluginIO)(bpContext *ctx, struct io_pkt *io);
1258 bRC (*createFile)(bpContext *ctx, struct restore_pkt *rp);
1259 bRC (*setFileAttributes)(bpContext *ctx, struct restore_pkt *rp);
1263 The details of the entry points will be presented in
1264 separate sections below.
1268 \item [size] is the byte size of the structure.
1269 \item [version] is the plugin interface version currently set to 1.
1272 Sample code for loadPlugin:
1274 bfuncs = lbfuncs; /* set Bacula funct pointers */
1276 *pinfo = &pluginInfo; /* return pointer to our info */
1277 *pfuncs = &pluginFuncs; /* return pointer to our functions */
1282 where pluginInfo and pluginFuncs are statically defined structures.
1283 See bpipe-fd.c for details.
1289 \section{Plugin Entry Points}
1290 This section will describe each of the entry points (subroutines) within
1291 the plugin that the plugin must provide for Bacula, when they are called
1292 and their arguments. As noted above, pointers to these subroutines are
1293 passed back to Bacula in the pFuncs structure when Bacula calls the
1294 loadPlugin() externally defined entry point.
1296 \subsection{newPlugin(bpContext *ctx)}
1297 This is the entry point that Bacula will call
1298 when a new "instance" of the plugin is created. This typically
1299 happens at the beginning of a Job. If 10 Jobs are running
1300 simultaneously, there will be at least 10 instances of the
1303 The bpContext structure will be passed to the plugin, and
1304 during this call, if the plugin needs to have its private
1305 working storage that is associated with the particular
1306 instance of the plugin, it should create it from the heap
1307 (malloc the memory) and store a pointer to
1308 its private working storage in the {\bf pContext} variable.
1309 Note: since Bacula is a multi-threaded program, you must not
1310 keep any variable data in your plugin unless it is truely meant
1311 to apply globally to the whole plugin. In addition, you must
1312 be aware that except the first and last call to the plugin
1313 (loadPlugin and unloadPlugin) all the other calls will be
1314 made by threads that correspond to a Bacula job. The
1315 bpContext that will be passed for each thread will remain the
1316 same throughout the Job thus you can keep your privat Job specific
1317 data in it ({\bf bContext}).
1320 typedef struct s_bpContext {
1321 void *pContext; /* Plugin private context */
1322 void *bContext; /* Bacula private context */
1327 This context pointer will be passed as the first argument to all
1328 the entry points that Bacula calls within the plugin. Needless
1329 to say, the plugin should not change the bContext variable, which
1330 is Bacula's private context pointer for this instance (Job) of this
1333 \subsection{freePlugin(bpContext *ctx)}
1334 This entry point is called when the
1335 this instance of the plugin is no longer needed (the Job is
1336 ending), and the plugin should release all memory it may
1337 have allocated for this particular instance (Job) i.e. the pContext.
1338 This is not the final termination
1339 of the plugin signaled by a call to {\bf unloadPlugin}.
1340 Any other instances (Job) will
1341 continue to run, and the entry point {\bf newPlugin} may be called
1342 again if other jobs start.
1344 \subsection{getPluginValue(bpContext *ctx, pVariable var, void *value)}
1345 Bacula will call this entry point to get
1346 a value from the plugin. This entry point is currently not called.
1348 \subsection{setPluginValue(bpContext *ctx, pVariable var, void *value)}
1349 Bacula will call this entry point to set
1350 a value in the plugin. This entry point is currently not called.
1352 \subsection{handlePluginEvent(bpContext *ctx, bEvent *event, void *value)}
1353 This entry point is called when Bacula
1354 encounters certain events (discussed below). This is, in fact, the
1355 main way that most plugins get control when a Job runs and how
1356 they know what is happening in the job. It can be likened to the
1357 {\bf RunScript} feature that calls external programs and scripts,
1358 and is very similar to the Bacula Python interface.
1359 When the plugin is called, Bacula passes it the pointer to an event
1360 structure (bEvent), which currently has one item, the eventType:
1363 typedef struct s_bEvent {
1368 which defines what event has been triggered, and for each event,
1369 Bacula will pass a pointer to a value associated with that event.
1370 If no value is associated with a particular event, Bacula will
1371 pass a NULL pointer, so the plugin must be careful to always check
1372 value pointer prior to dereferencing it.
1374 The current list of events are:
1380 bEventStartBackupJob = 3,
1381 bEventEndBackupJob = 4,
1382 bEventStartRestoreJob = 5,
1383 bEventEndRestoreJob = 6,
1384 bEventStartVerifyJob = 7,
1385 bEventEndVerifyJob = 8,
1386 bEventBackupCommand = 9,
1387 bEventRestoreCommand = 10,
1394 Most of the above are self-explanatory.
1397 \item [bEventJobStart] is called whenever a Job starts. The value
1398 passed is a pointer to a string that contains: "Jobid=nnn
1399 Job=job-name". Where nnn will be replaced by the JobId and job-name
1400 will be replaced by the Job name. The variable is temporary so if you
1401 need the values, you must copy them.
1403 \item [bEventJobEnd] is called whenever a Job ends. No value is passed.
1405 \item [bEventStartBackupJob] is called when a Backup Job begins. No value
1408 \item [bEventEndBackupJob] is called when a Backup Job ends. No value is
1411 \item [bEventStartRestoreJob] is called when a Restore Job starts. No value
1414 \item [bEventEndRestoreJob] is called when a Restore Job ends. No value is
1417 \item [bEventStartVerifyJob] is called when a Verify Job starts. No value
1420 \item [bEventEndVerifyJob] is called when a Verify Job ends. No value
1423 \item [bEventBackupCommand] is called prior to the bEventStartBackupJob and
1424 the plugin is passed the command string (everything after the equal sign
1425 in "Plugin =" as the value.
1427 Note, if you intend to backup a file, this is an important first point to
1428 write code that copies the command string passed into your pContext area
1429 so that you will know that a backup is being performed and you will know
1430 the full contents of the "Plugin =" command (i.e. what to backup and
1431 what virtual filename the user wants to call it.
1433 \item [bEventRestoreCommand] is called prior to the bEventStartRestoreJob and
1434 the plugin is passed the command string (everything after the equal sign
1435 in "Plugin =" as the value.
1437 See the notes above concerning backup and the command string. This is the
1438 point at which Bacula passes you the original command string that was
1439 specified during the backup, so you will want to save it in your pContext
1440 area for later use when Bacula calls the plugin again.
1442 \item [bEventLevel] is called when the level is set for a new Job. The value
1443 is a 32 bit integer stored in the void*, which represents the Job Level code.
1445 \item [bEventSince] is called when the since time is set for a new Job. The
1446 value is a time\_t time at which the last job was run.
1449 During each of the above calls, the plugin receives either no specific value or
1450 only one value, which in some cases may not be sufficient. However, knowing the
1451 context of the event, the plugin can call back to the Bacula entry points it
1452 was passed during the {\bf loadPlugin} call and get to a number of Bacula variables.
1453 (at the current time few Bacula variables are implemented, but it easily extended
1454 at a future time and as needs require).
1456 \subsection{startBackupFile(bpContext *ctx, struct save\_pkt *sp)}
1457 This entry point is called only if your plugin is a command plugin, and
1458 it is called when Bacula encounters the "Plugin = " directive in
1459 the Include section of the FileSet.
1460 Called when beginning the backup of a file. Here Bacula provides you
1461 with a pointer to the {\bf save\_pkt} structure and you must fill in
1462 this packet with the "attribute" data of the file.
1466 int32_t pkt_size; /* size of this packet */
1467 char *fname; /* Full path and filename */
1468 char *link; /* Link name if any */
1469 struct stat statp; /* System stat() packet for file */
1470 int32_t type; /* FT_xx for this file */
1471 uint32_t flags; /* Bacula internal flags */
1472 bool portable; /* set if data format is portable */
1473 char *cmd; /* command */
1474 int32_t pkt_end; /* end packet sentinel */
1478 The second argument is a pointer to the {\bf save\_pkt} structure for the file
1479 to be backed up. The plugin is responsible for filling in all the fields
1480 of the {\bf save\_pkt}. If you are backing up
1481 a real file, then generally, the statp structure can be filled in by doing
1482 a {\bf stat} system call on the file.
1484 If you are backing up a database or
1485 something that is more complex, you might want to create a virtual file.
1486 That is a file that does not actually exist on the filesystem, but represents
1487 say an object that you are backing up. In that case, you need to ensure
1488 that the {\bf fname} string that you pass back is unique so that it
1489 does not conflict with a real file on the system, and you need to
1490 artifically create values in the statp packet.
1492 Example programs such as {\bf bpipe-fd.c} show how to set these fields.
1493 You must take care not to store pointers the stack in the pointer fields such
1494 as fname and link, because when you return from your function, your stack entries
1495 will be destroyed. The solution in that case is to malloc() and return the pointer
1496 to it. In order to not have memory leaks, you should store a pointer to all memory
1497 allocated in your pContext structure so that in subsequent calls or at termination,
1498 you can release it back to the system.
1500 Once the backup has begun, Bacula will call your plugin at the {\bf pluginIO}
1501 entry point to "read" the data to be backed up. Please see the {\bf bpipe-fd.c}
1502 plugin for how to do I/O.
1504 Example of filling in the save\_pkt as used in bpipe-fd.c:
1507 struct plugin_ctx *p_ctx = (struct plugin_ctx *)ctx->pContext;
1508 time_t now = time(NULL);
1509 sp->fname = p_ctx->fname;
1510 sp->statp.st_mode = 0700 | S_IFREG;
1511 sp->statp.st_ctime = now;
1512 sp->statp.st_mtime = now;
1513 sp->statp.st_atime = now;
1514 sp->statp.st_size = -1;
1515 sp->statp.st_blksize = 4096;
1516 sp->statp.st_blocks = 1;
1517 p_ctx->backup = true;
1521 Note: the filename to be created has already been created from the
1522 command string previously sent to the plugin and is in the plugin
1523 context (p\_ctx->fname) and is a malloc()ed string. This example
1524 creates a regular file (S\_IFREG), with various fields being created.
1526 In general, the sequence of commands issued from Bacula to the plugin
1527 to do a backup while processing the "Plugin = " directive are:
1530 \item generate a bEventBackupCommand event to the specified plugin
1531 and pass it the command string.
1532 \item make a startPluginBackup call to the plugin, which
1533 fills in the data needed in save\_pkt to save as the file
1534 attributes and to put on the Volume and in the catalog.
1535 \item call Bacula's internal save\_file() subroutine to save the specified
1536 file. The plugin will then be called at pluginIO() to "open"
1537 the file, and then to read the file data.
1538 Note, if you are dealing with a virtual file, the "open" operation
1539 is something the plugin does internally and it doesn't necessarily
1540 mean opening a file on the filesystem. For example in the case of
1541 the bpipe-fd.c program, it initiates a pipe to the requested program.
1542 Finally when the plugin signals to Bacula that all the data was read,
1543 Bacula will call the plugin with the "close" pluginIO() function.
1547 \subsection{endBackupFile(bpContext *ctx)}
1548 Called at the end of backing up a file for a command plugin. If the plugin's work
1549 is done, it should return bRC\_OK. If the plugin wishes to create another
1550 file and back it up, then it must return bRC\_More (not yet implemented).
1551 This is probably a good time to release any malloc()ed memory you used to
1552 pass back filenames.
1554 \subsection{startRestoreFile(bpContext *ctx, const char *cmd)}
1555 Called when the first record is read from the Volume that was
1556 previously written by the command plugin.
1558 \subsection{createFile(bpContext *ctx, struct restore\_pkt *rp)}
1559 Called for a command plugin to create a file during a Restore job before
1561 This entry point is called before any I/O is done on the file. After
1562 this call, Bacula will call pluginIO() to open the file for write.
1565 restore\_pkt is passed to the plugin and is based on the data that was
1566 originally given by the plugin during the backup and the current user
1567 restore settings (e.g. where, RegexWhere, replace). This allows the
1568 plugin to first create a file (if necessary) so that the data can
1569 be transmitted to it. The next call to the plugin will be a
1570 pluginIO command with a request to open the file write-only.
1572 This call must return one of the following values:
1576 CF_SKIP = 1, /* skip file (not newer or something) */
1577 CF_ERROR, /* error creating file */
1578 CF_EXTRACT, /* file created, data to extract */
1579 CF_CREATED /* file created, no data to extract */
1583 in the restore\_pkt value {\bf create\_status}. For a normal file,
1584 unless there is an error, you must return {\bf CF\_EXTRACT}.
1588 struct restore_pkt {
1589 int32_t pkt_size; /* size of this packet */
1590 int32_t stream; /* attribute stream id */
1591 int32_t data_stream; /* id of data stream to follow */
1592 int32_t type; /* file type FT */
1593 int32_t file_index; /* file index */
1594 int32_t LinkFI; /* file index to data if hard link */
1595 uid_t uid; /* userid */
1596 struct stat statp; /* decoded stat packet */
1597 const char *attrEx; /* extended attributes if any */
1598 const char *ofname; /* output filename */
1599 const char *olname; /* output link name */
1600 const char *where; /* where */
1601 const char *RegexWhere; /* regex where */
1602 int replace; /* replace flag */
1603 int create_status; /* status from createFile() */
1604 int32_t pkt_end; /* end packet sentinel */
1609 Typical code to create a regular file would be the following:
1612 struct plugin_ctx *p_ctx = (struct plugin_ctx *)ctx->pContext;
1613 time_t now = time(NULL);
1614 sp->fname = p_ctx->fname; /* set the full path/filename I want to create */
1616 sp->statp.st_mode = 0700 | S_IFREG;
1617 sp->statp.st_ctime = now;
1618 sp->statp.st_mtime = now;
1619 sp->statp.st_atime = now;
1620 sp->statp.st_size = -1;
1621 sp->statp.st_blksize = 4096;
1622 sp->statp.st_blocks = 1;
1626 This will create a virtual file. If you are creating a file that actually
1627 exists, you will most likely want to fill the statp packet using the
1630 Creating a directory is similar, but requires a few extra steps:
1633 struct plugin_ctx *p_ctx = (struct plugin_ctx *)ctx->pContext;
1634 time_t now = time(NULL);
1635 sp->fname = p_ctx->fname; /* set the full path I want to create */
1636 sp->link = xxx; where xxx is p_ctx->fname with a trailing forward slash
1637 sp->type = FT_DIREND
1638 sp->statp.st_mode = 0700 | S_IFDIR;
1639 sp->statp.st_ctime = now;
1640 sp->statp.st_mtime = now;
1641 sp->statp.st_atime = now;
1642 sp->statp.st_size = -1;
1643 sp->statp.st_blksize = 4096;
1644 sp->statp.st_blocks = 1;
1648 The link field must be set with the full cononical path name, which always
1649 ends with a forward slash. If you do not terminate it with a forward slash,
1650 you will surely have problems later.
1652 As with the example that creates a file, if you are backing up a real
1653 directory, you will want to do an stat() on the directory.
1655 Note, if you want the directory permissions and times to be correctly
1656 restored, you must create the directory {\bf after} all the file directories
1657 have been sent to Bacula. That allows the restore process to restore all the
1658 files in a directory using default directory options, then at the end, restore
1659 the directory permissions. If you do it the other way around, each time you
1660 restore a file, the OS will modify the time values for the directory entry.
1662 \subsection{setFileAttributes(bpContext *ctx, struct restore\_pkt *rp)}
1663 This is call not yet implemented. Called for a command plugin.
1665 See the definition of {\bf restre\_pkt} in the above section.
1667 \subsection{endRestoreFile(bpContext *ctx)}
1668 Called when a command plugin is done restoring a file.
1670 \subsection{pluginIO(bpContext *ctx, struct io\_pkt *io)}
1671 Called to do the input (backup) or output (restore) of data from or to a
1672 file for a command plugin. These routines simulate the Unix read(), write(), open(), close(),
1673 and lseek() I/O calls, and the arguments are passed in the packet and
1674 the return values are also placed in the packet. In addition for Win32
1675 systems the plugin must return two additional values (described below).
1687 int32_t pkt_size; /* Size of this packet */
1688 int32_t func; /* Function code */
1689 int32_t count; /* read/write count */
1690 mode_t mode; /* permissions for created files */
1691 int32_t flags; /* Open flags */
1692 char *buf; /* read/write buffer */
1693 const char *fname; /* open filename */
1694 int32_t status; /* return status */
1695 int32_t io_errno; /* errno code */
1696 int32_t lerror; /* Win32 error code */
1697 int32_t whence; /* lseek argument */
1698 boffset_t offset; /* lseek argument */
1699 bool win32; /* Win32 GetLastError returned */
1700 int32_t pkt_end; /* end packet sentinel */
1704 The particular Unix function being simulated is indicated by the {\bf func},
1705 which will have one of the IO\_OPEN, IO\_READ, ... codes listed above.
1706 The status code that would be returned from a Unix call is returned in
1707 {\bf status} for IO\_OPEN, IO\_CLOSE, IO\_READ, and IO\_WRITE. The return value for
1708 IO\_SEEK is returned in {\bf offset} which in general is a 64 bit value.
1710 When there is an error on Unix systems, you must always set io\_error, and
1711 on a Win32 system, you must always set win32, and the returned value from
1712 the OS call GetLastError() in lerror.
1714 For all except IO\_SEEK, {\bf status} is the return result. In general it is
1715 a positive integer unless there is an error in which case it is -1.
1717 The following describes each call and what you get and what you
1722 You will be passed fname, mode, and flags.
1723 You must set on return: status, and if there is a Unix error
1724 io\_errno must be set to the errno value, and if there is a
1725 Win32 error win32 and lerror.
1728 You will be passed: count, and buf (buffer of size count).
1729 You must set on return: status to the number of bytes
1730 read into the buffer (buf) or -1 on an error,
1731 and if there is a Unix error
1732 io\_errno must be set to the errno value, and if there is a
1733 Win32 error, win32 and lerror must be set.
1736 You will be passed: count, and buf (buffer of size count).
1737 You must set on return: status to the number of bytes
1738 written from the buffer (buf) or -1 on an error,
1739 and if there is a Unix error
1740 io\_errno must be set to the errno value, and if there is a
1741 Win32 error, win32 and lerror must be set.
1744 Nothing will be passed to you. On return you must set
1745 status to 0 on success and -1 on failure. If there is a Unix error
1746 io\_errno must be set to the errno value, and if there is a
1747 Win32 error, win32 and lerror must be set.
1750 You will be passed: offset, and whence. offset is a 64 bit value
1751 and is the position to seek to relative to whence. whence is one
1752 of the following SEEK\_SET, SEEK\_CUR, or SEEK\_END indicating to
1753 either to seek to an absolute possition, relative to the current
1754 position or relative to the end of the file.
1755 You must pass back in offset the absolute location to which you
1756 seeked. If there is an error, offset should be set to -1.
1757 If there is a Unix error
1758 io\_errno must be set to the errno value, and if there is a
1759 Win32 error, win32 and lerror must be set.
1761 Note: Bacula will call IO\_SEEK only when writing a sparse file.
1765 \section{Bacula Plugin Entrypoints}
1766 When Bacula calls one of your plugin entrypoints, you can call back to
1767 the entrypoints in Bacula that were supplied during the xxx plugin call
1768 to get or set information within Bacula.
1770 \subsection{bRC registerBaculaEvents(bpContext *ctx, ...)}
1771 This Bacula entrypoint will allow you to register to receive events
1772 that are not autmatically passed to your plugin by default. This
1773 entrypoint currently is unimplemented.
1775 \subsection{bRC getBaculaValue(bpContext *ctx, bVariable var, void *value)}
1776 Calling this entrypoint, you can obtain specific values that are available
1779 \subsection{bRC setBaculaValue(bpContext *ctx, bVariable var, void *value)}
1780 Calling this entrypoint allows you to set particular values in
1783 \subsection{bRC JobMessage(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line,
1784 int type, time\_t mtime, const char *fmt, ...)}
1785 This call permits you to put a message in the Job Report.
1788 \subsection{bRC DebugMessage(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line,
1789 int level, const char *fmt, ...)}
1790 This call permits you to print a debug message.
1793 \subsection{void baculaMalloc(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line,
1795 This call permits you to obtain memory from Bacula's memory allocator.
1798 \subsection{void baculaFree(bpContext *ctx, const char *file, int line, void *mem)}
1799 This call permits you to free memory obtained from Bacula's memory allocator.