rdiff-backup — Incremental Backups with History

rdiff-backup merges two backup approaches into a single tool: the target holds a complete mirror of your latest state, while older versions sit alongside it as space-efficient reverse diffs. That means you can browse the most recent backup like an ordinary file copy and still roll back to any earlier point in time whenever you need to. Backups run locally or over SSH to a remote server – this guide walks you through the key commands, from your first backup to restoring a single file.

Create Backups

rdiff-backup <source> <target> — Backup a directory (mirror + incremental diffs).

rdiff-backup /home/user /backup/home

rdiff-backup <source> <user>@<host>::<path> — Backup to a remote server via SSH.

rdiff-backup /var/www admin@backup-server::/backup/www

rdiff-backup <user>@<host>::<path> <local> — Backup from a remote server to local.

rdiff-backup admin@server::/var/www /backup/www

rdiff-backup --include '<pattern>' --exclude '**' <source> <target> — Backup only specific directories/files.

rdiff-backup --include '/home/user/Documents' --include '/home/user/.config' --exclude '**' /home/user /backup/selective

rdiff-backup --exclude '<pattern>' <source> <target> — Exclude files or directories from backup.

rdiff-backup --exclude '**/node_modules' --exclude '**/.cache' /home/user /backup/home

Restore

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of now <backup> <dest> — Restore the latest version.

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of now /backup/home /tmp/restore

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of <time> <backup> <dest> — Restore from a specific point in time.

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of 3D /backup/home /tmp/restore

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of <time> <backup>/<file> <dest> — Restore a specific file or directory.

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of 2D /backup/home/Documents/report.pdf /tmp/report.pdf

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of '2026-03-15' <backup> <dest> — Restore from a specific date.

rdiff-backup --restore-as-of '2026-03-15' /backup/www /tmp/www-restore

Time Formats

now — Current time (latest backup).

--restore-as-of now

<n>s / <n>m / <n>h / <n>D / <n>W / <n>M / <n>Y — Relative time: seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years ago.

--restore-as-of 3D (3 days ago)

YYYY-MM-DD — Absolute date.

--restore-as-of 2026-01-15

YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS — Absolute date and time.

--restore-as-of 2026-01-15T14:30:00

Info & Status

rdiff-backup --list-increments <backup> — List all available backup increments (restore points).

rdiff-backup --list-increments /backup/home

rdiff-backup --list-increment-sizes <backup> — List increments with their sizes.

rdiff-backup --list-increment-sizes /backup/home

rdiff-backup --list-at-time <time> <backup> — List files as they were at a specific time.

rdiff-backup --list-at-time 7D /backup/home

rdiff-backup --list-changed-since <time> <backup> — List files changed since a specific time.

rdiff-backup --list-changed-since 1D /backup/home

rdiff-backup --compare <source> <backup> — Compare source with backup and show differences.

rdiff-backup --compare /home/user /backup/home

rdiff-backup --compare-at-time <time> <source> <backup> — Compare source with backup at a specific time.

rdiff-backup --compare-at-time 1D /home/user /backup/home

Cleanup & Maintenance

rdiff-backup --remove-older-than <time> <backup> — Remove increments older than the specified time. Destructive – removed older states cannot be recovered.

rdiff-backup --remove-older-than 90D /backup/home

rdiff-backup --remove-older-than <n>B <backup> — Keep only the last N backups (this also deletes older states permanently).

rdiff-backup --remove-older-than 5B /backup/home

rdiff-backup --verify <backup> — Verify the integrity of the backup repository.

rdiff-backup --verify /backup/home

rdiff-backup --force --remove-older-than <time> <backup> — Force removal even if it means removing all increments – use with care.

rdiff-backup --force --remove-older-than 30D /backup/home

Common Patterns

rdiff-backup --exclude-globbing-filelist <file> <source> <target> — Use a file with include/exclude patterns.

rdiff-backup --exclude-globbing-filelist patterns.txt /home/user /backup/home

rdiff-backup --print-statistics <source> <target> — Show detailed transfer statistics after backup.

rdiff-backup --print-statistics /home/user /backup/home

rdiff-backup -v5 <source> <target> — Run with verbose output (level 0-9).

rdiff-backup -v5 /home/user /backup/home

rdiff-backup --remote-schema 'ssh -p <port> %s rdiff-backup --server' <source> <user>@<host>::<path> — Use a custom SSH port for remote backup.

rdiff-backup --remote-schema 'ssh -p 2222 %s rdiff-backup --server' /data admin@server::/backup/data

Conclusion

rdiff-backup is ideal when you want the instant access of a mirror combined with the safety of version history, without setting up a full-blown backup system. Schedule regular cleanup with --remove-older-than so increments don't grow without bound – and remember that this step deletes older states permanently. Verify your backups with --verify before you have to rely on them in an emergency.