Introduction
============
-This documentation is written in :term:`reStructuredText` and formatted with :term:`Sphinx`.
+This documentation is written in :term:`reStructuredText` and formatted with
+:term:`Sphinx`.
-What is Proxmox Backup
-----------------------
+What is Proxmox Backup Server
+-----------------------------
-Proxmox Backup is an enterprise class client-server backup software,
-specially optimized for the `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ to backup
-:term:`virtual machine`\ s and :term:`container`\ s. It is also
-possible to backup physical hosts.
+Proxmox Backup Server is an enterprise-class client-server backup software that
+backups :term:`virtual machine`\ s, :term:`container`\ s, and physical hosts.
+It is specially optimized for the `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ platform and
+allows you to backup your data securely, even between remote sites, providing
+easy management with a web-based user interface.
-It supports deduplication, compression and authenticated encryption
-(AE_). Using :term:`Rust` as implementation language guarantees high
+Proxmox Backup Server supports deduplication, compression, and authenticated
+encryption (AE_). Using :term:`Rust` as implementation language guarantees high
performance, low resource usage, and a safe, high quality code base.
-Encryption is done at the client side. This makes backups to not fully
-trusted targets possible.
+It features strong encryption done on the client side. Thus, it's possible to
+backup data to not fully trusted targets.
Architecture
------------
-Proxmox Backup uses a `Client-server model`_. The server is
-responsible to store the backup data and provides an API to create
-backups and restore data. It is possible to manage disks and
-other server side resources using this API.
+Proxmox Backup Server uses a `client-server model`_. The server stores the
+backup data and provides an API to create backups and restore data. With the
+API it's also possible to manage disks and other server side resources.
-A backup client uses this API to access the backed up data,
-i.e. ``proxmox-backup-client`` is a command line tool to create
-backups and restore data. We deliver an integrated client for
-QEMU_ with `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_.
+The backup client uses this API to access the backed up data. With the command
+line tool ``proxmox-backup-client`` you can create backups and restore data.
+For QEMU_ with `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ we deliver an integrated client.
-A single backup is allowed to contain several archives. For example,
-when you backup a :term:`virtual machine`, each disk is stored as a
-separate archive inside that backup. The VM configuration also gets an
-extra file. This way, it is easy to access and restore important parts
-of the backup without having to scan the whole backup.
+A single backup is allowed to contain several archives. For example, when you
+backup a :term:`virtual machine`, each disk is stored as a separate archive
+inside that backup. The VM configuration itself is stored as an extra file.
+This way, it is easy to access and restore only important parts of the backup
+without the need to scan the whole backup.
Main Features
-------------
-:Proxmox VE: The `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ is fully
- supported. You can backup :term:`virtual machine`\ s and
+:Support for Proxmox VE: The `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ is fully
+ supported and you can easily backup :term:`virtual machine`\ s and
:term:`container`\ s.
-:GUI: We provide a graphical, web based user interface.
+:Performance: The whole software stack is written in :term:`Rust`,
+ to provide high speed and memory efficiency.
-:Deduplication: Incremental backups produce large amounts of duplicate
- data. The deduplication layer removes that redundancy and makes
- incremental backups small and space efficient.
+:Deduplication: Periodic backups produce large amounts of duplicate
+ data. The deduplication layer avoids redundancy and minimizes the used
+ storage space.
+
+:Incremental backups: Changes between backups are typically low. Reading and
+ sending only the delta reduces storage and network impact of backups.
:Data Integrity: The built in `SHA-256`_ checksum algorithm assures the
accuracy and consistency of your backups.
:Remote Sync: It is possible to efficiently synchronize data to remote
sites. Only deltas containing new data are transferred.
-:Performance: The whole software stack is written in :term:`Rust`,
- to provide high speed and memory efficiency.
-
-:Compression: Ultra fast Zstandard_ compression is able to compress
+:Compression: The ultra fast Zstandard_ compression is able to compress
several gigabytes of data per second.
-:Encryption: Backups can be encrypted client-side using AES-256 in
+:Encryption: Backups can be encrypted on the client-side using AES-256 in
GCM_ mode. This authenticated encryption mode (AE_) provides very
high performance on modern hardware.
-:Open Source: No secrets. You have access to all the source code.
+:Web interface: Manage Proxmox backups with the integrated web-based user
+ interface.
+
+:Open Source: No secrets. Proxmox Backup Server is free and open-source
+ software. The source code is licensed under AGPL, v3.
-:Support: Commercial support options are available from `Proxmox`_.
+:Support: Enterprise support is available from `Proxmox`_.
-Why Backup?
------------
+Reasons for Data Backup?
+------------------------
-The primary purpose of a backup is to protect against data loss. Data
-loss can be caused by faulty hardware, but also by human error.
+The main purpose of a backup is to protect against data loss. Data loss can be
+caused by faulty hardware but also by human error.
-A common mistake is to delete a file or folder which is still
-required. Virtualization can amplify this problem. It is now
-easy to delete a whole virtual machine by pressing a single button.
+A common mistake is to accidentally delete a file or folder which is still
+required. Virtualization can even amplify this problem; it easily happens that
+a whole virtual machine is deleted by just pressing a single button.
-Backups can serve as a toolkit for administrators to temporarily
-store data. For example, it is common practice to perform full backups
-before installing major software updates. If something goes wrong, you
-can restore the previous state.
+For administrators, backups can serve as a useful toolkit for temporarily
+storing data. For example, it is common practice to perform full backups before
+installing major software updates. If something goes wrong, you can easily
+restore the previous state.
-Another reason for backups are legal requirements. Some data must be
-kept in a safe place for several years by law, so that it can be accessed if
-required.
+Another reason for backups are legal requirements. Some data, especially
+business records, must be kept in a safe place for several years by law, so
+that they can be accessed if required.
-Data loss can be very costly as it can severely restrict your
-business. Therefore, make sure that you perform a backup regularly
-and run restore tests.
+In general, data loss is very costly as it can severely damage your business.
+Therefore, ensure that you perform regular backups and run restore tests.
Software Stack
License
-------
-Copyright (C) 2019 Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH
+Copyright (C) 2020 Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH
This software is written by Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH <support@proxmox.com>
-Proxmox Backup is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
-it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
-published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
-License, or (at your option) any later version.
+Proxmox Backup Server is free and open source software: you can use it,
+redistribute it, and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU Affero General
+Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3
+of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
``WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY``; without even the implied warranty of
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