# laurent22/rsync-time-backup

Time Machine style backup with rsync.

Repository: https://github.com/laurent22/rsync-time-backup
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/rsync-time-backup
Language: Shell
License Family: other
Topics: backup, shell, rsync, time-machine, bash
Last push: 2025-05-27T12:30:01+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 43/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 23, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4693, "days_push": 463, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases, no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 3607, forks 474 (observed 2026-08-28T04:08:11.536909+00:00)

## What it is
A shell script providing Time Machine-style incremental backups using rsync, with timestamped backup folders and hard-linking to save space. It supports local and remote (SSH) backups across Linux, macOS, and Windows via WSL/Cygwin.

## Use cases
- create time machine style backups on linux
- incremental rsync backups with hard links
- backup files to remote server over ssh
- restore files from any point in time backup
- automate expiration of old backups
- backup to external drive without proprietary software

## When to choose
- you want Time Machine-like backups without macOS or proprietary tools
- you need cross-platform command-line backups to any filesystem
- you want backups restorable with any file explorer, no special tool
- you need remote backups over SSH

## When to avoid
- you need a GUI for backup and restore
- you want automatic backup on drive plug-in without extra setup
- you need block-level or encrypted backups
- you prefer a point-and-click backup suite

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: backup, cli, file-system
- domain: developer-tools, cross-platform
- platform: windows, cli
- tags: rsync, time-machine, shell-script, incremental-backup, hard-links, ssh, backup, command-line, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- laurent22/rsync-time-backup (main) score 43

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:11.536909+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T18:33:41.709702+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/laurent22/rsync-time-backup (fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:11.536909+00:00, sha 3eabece3492a)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.