docs/introduction.rst

   1 Introduction
   2 ============
   3
   4 What is Proxmox Backup Server?
   5 ------------------------------
   6
   7 `Proxmox Backup`_ Server is an enterprise-class, client-server backup solution
   8 that is capable of backing up :term:`virtual machine<Virtual machine>`\ s,
   9 :term:`container<Container>`\ s, and physical hosts. It is specially optimized
  10 for the `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ platform and allows you to back up your
  11 data securely, even between remote sites, providing easy management through a
  12 web-based user interface.
  13
  14 It supports deduplication, compression, and authenticated
  15 encryption (AE_). Using :term:`Rust` as the implementation language guarantees
  16 high performance, low resource usage, and a safe, high-quality codebase.
  17
  18 Proxmox Backup uses state of the art cryptography for both client-server
  19 communication and backup content :ref:`encryption <client_encryption>`. All
  20 client-server communication uses `TLS
  21 <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport_Layer_Security>`_, and backup data can
  22 be encrypted on the client-side before sending, making it safer to back up data
  23 to targets that are not fully trusted.
  24
  25 Architecture
  26 ------------
  27
  28 Proxmox Backup Server uses a `client-server model`_. The server stores the
  29 backup data and provides an API to create and manage datastores. With the
  30 API, it's also possible to manage disks and other server-side resources.
  31
  32 The backup client uses this API to access the backed up data. You can use the
  33 ``proxmox-backup-client`` command-line tool to create and restore file backups.
  34 For QEMU_ and LXC_ within `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_, we deliver an
  35 integrated client.
  36
  37 A single backup is allowed to contain several archives. For example, when you
  38 backup a :term:`virtual machine<Virtual machine>`, each disk is stored as a
  39 separate archive inside that backup. The VM configuration itself is stored as
  40 an extra file. This way, it's easy to access and restore only the important
  41 parts of the backup, without the need to scan the whole backup.
  42
  43
  44 Main Features
  45 -------------
  46
  47 :Support for Proxmox VE: The `Proxmox Virtual Environment`_ is fully supported,
  48    and you can easily backup :term:`virtual machine<Virtual machine>`\ s and
  49    :term:`container<Container>`\ s.
  50
  51 :Performance: The whole software stack is written in :term:`Rust`,
  52    in order to provide high speed and memory efficiency.
  53
  54 :Deduplication: Periodic backups produce large amounts of duplicate
  55    data. The deduplication layer avoids redundancy and minimizes the storage
  56    space used.
  57
  58 :Incremental backups: Changes between backups are typically low. Reading and
  59    sending only the delta reduces the storage and network impact of backups.
  60
  61 :Data integrity: The built-in `SHA-256`_ checksum algorithm ensures accuracy
  62    and consistency in your backups.
  63
  64 :Remote sync: It is possible to efficiently synchronize data to remote
  65    sites. Only deltas containing new data are transferred.
  66
  67 :Compression: The ultra-fast Zstandard_ compression is able to compress
  68    several gigabytes of data per second.
  69
  70 :Encryption: Backups can be encrypted on the client-side, using AES-256 GCM_.
  71    This authenticated encryption (AE_) mode provides very high performance on
  72    modern hardware. In addition to client-side encryption, all data is
  73    transferred via a secure TLS connection.
  74
  75 :Tape backup: For long-term archiving of data, Proxmox Backup Server also
  76    provides extensive support for backing up to tape and managing tape
  77    libraries.
  78
  79 :Ransomware protection: :ref:`Protect your critical data from ransomware attacks
  80    <ransomware_protection>` with Proxmox Backup Server's fine-grained access
  81    control, data integrity verification, and off-site backup through remote sync
  82    and tape backup.
  83
  84 :Web interface: Manage the Proxmox Backup Server with the integrated, web-based
  85    user interface.
  86
  87 :Open source: No secrets. Proxmox Backup Server is free and open-source
  88    software. The source code is licensed under AGPL, v3.
  89
  90 :No limits: Proxmox Backup Server has no artificial limits for backup storage or
  91    backup-clients.
  92
  93 :Enterprise support: Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH offers enterprise support in
  94    the form of `Proxmox Backup Server Subscription Plans
  95    <https://www.proxmox.com/en/proxmox-backup-server/pricing>`_. Users at every
  96    subscription level get access to the Proxmox Backup :ref:`Enterprise
  97    Repository <sysadmin_package_repos_enterprise>`. In addition, with a Basic,
  98    Standard or Premium subscription, users have access to the :ref:`Proxmox
  99    Customer Portal <get_help_enterprise_support>`.
 100
 101
 102 Reasons for Data Backup?
 103 ------------------------
 104
 105 The main purpose of a backup is to protect against data loss. Data loss can be
 106 caused by both faulty hardware and human error.
 107
 108 A common mistake is to accidentally delete a file or folder which is still
 109 required. Virtualization can even amplify this problem, as deleting a whole
 110 virtual machine can be as easy as pressing a single button.
 111
 112 For administrators, backups can serve as a useful toolkit for temporarily
 113 storing data. For example, it is common practice to perform full backups before
 114 installing major software updates. If something goes wrong, you can easily
 115 restore the previous state.
 116
 117 Another reason for backups are legal requirements. Some data, especially
 118 business records, must be kept in a safe place for several years by law, so
 119 that they can be accessed if required.
 120
 121 In general, data loss is very costly as it can severely damage your business.
 122 Therefore, ensure that you perform regular backups and run restore tests.
 123
 124
 125 Software Stack
 126 --------------
 127
 128 Proxmox Backup Server consists of multiple components:
 129
 130 * A server-daemon providing, among other things, a RESTful API, super-fast
 131   asynchronous tasks, lightweight usage statistic collection, scheduling
 132   events, strict separation of privileged and unprivileged execution
 133   environments
 134 * A JavaScript management web interface
 135 * A management CLI tool for the server (`proxmox-backup-manager`)
 136 * A client CLI tool (`proxmox-backup-client`) to access the server easily from
 137   any `Linux amd64` environment
 138
 139 Aside from the web interface, most parts of Proxmox Backup Server are written in
 140 the Rust programming language.
 141
 142  "The Rust programming language helps you write faster, more reliable software.
 143  High-level ergonomics and low-level control are often at odds in programming
 144  language design; Rust challenges that conflict. Through balancing powerful
 145  technical capacity and a great developer experience, Rust gives you the option
 146  to control low-level details (such as memory usage) without all the hassle
 147  traditionally associated with such control."
 148
 149  -- `The Rust Programming Language <https://doc.rust-lang.org/book/ch00-00-introduction.html>`_
 150
 151 .. _get_help:
 152
 153 Getting Help
 154 ------------
 155
 156 .. _get_help_enterprise_support:
 157
 158 Enterprise Support
 159 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 160
 161 Users with a `Proxmox Backup Server Basic, Standard or Premium Subscription Plan
 162 <https://www.proxmox.com/en/proxmox-backup-server/pricing>`_ have access to the
 163 `Proxmox Customer Portal <https://my.proxmox.com>`_. The customer portal
 164 provides support with guaranteed response times from the Proxmox developers.
 165 For more information or for volume discounts, please contact sales@proxmox.com.
 166
 167 Community Support Forum
 168 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 169
 170 We always encourage our users to discuss and share their knowledge using the
 171 `Proxmox Community Forum`_. The forum is moderated by the Proxmox support team.
 172 The large user base is spread out all over the world. Needless to say that such
 173 a large forum is a great place to get information.
 174
 175 Mailing Lists
 176 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 177
 178 Proxmox Backup Server is fully open-source and contributions are welcome! Here
 179 is the primary communication channel for developers:
 180
 181 :Mailing list for developers: `Proxmox Backup Server Development List`_
 182
 183 Bug Tracker
 184 ~~~~~~~~~~~
 185
 186 Proxmox runs a public bug tracker at `<https://bugzilla.proxmox.com>`_. If an
 187 issue appears, file your report there. An issue can be a bug, as well as a
 188 request for a new feature or enhancement. The bug tracker helps to keep track
 189 of the issue and will send a notification once it has been solved.
 190
 191 License
 192 -------
 193
 194 |pbs-copyright|
 195
 196 This software is written by Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH <support@proxmox.com>
 197
 198 Proxmox Backup Server is free and open source software: you can use it,
 199 redistribute it, and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU Affero General
 200 Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3
 201 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
 202
 203 This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
 204 ``WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY``; without even the implied warranty of
 205 ``MERCHANTABILITY`` or ``FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE``.  See the GNU
 206 Affero General Public License for more details.
 207
 208 You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
 209 along with this program.  If not, see AGPL3_.
 210
 211
 212 History
 213 -------
 214
 215 Backup is, and always has been, a central aspect of IT administration.
 216 The need to recover from data loss is fundamental and only increases with
 217 virtualization.
 218
 219 For this reason, we've been shipping a backup tool with Proxmox VE, from the
 220 beginning. This tool is called ``vzdump`` and is able to make
 221 consistent snapshots of running LXC containers and KVM virtual
 222 machines.
 223
 224 However, ``vzdump`` only allows for full backups. While this is fine
 225 for small backups, it becomes a burden for users with large VMs. Both
 226 backup duration and storage usage are too high for this case, especially
 227 for users who want to keep many backups of the same VMs. To solve these
 228 problems, we needed to offer deduplication and incremental backups.
 229
 230 Back in October 2018, development started. We investigated
 231 several technologies and frameworks and finally decided to use
 232 :term:`Rust` as the implementation language, in order to provide high speed and
 233 memory efficiency. The 2018-edition of Rust seemed promising for our
 234 requirements.
 235
 236 In July 2020, we released the first beta version of Proxmox Backup
 237 Server, followed by the first stable version in November 2020. With support for
 238 encryption and incremental, fully deduplicated backups, Proxmox Backup offers a
 239 secure environment, which significantly reduces network load and saves valuable
 240 storage space.