Backups Strategies

For my backup site, I am using Proxmox Backup Server (PBS) as a solution for storing backups and restoring VMs that I had created on my main Proxmox Virtual Environment.

Although it is not ideal to run PBS as a VM within my Proxmox VE server because if my server is down, i am also unable to access to my PBS.

However, for a small homelab environment, I think running PBS as a VM is practical and have some advantage as well.

• Isolation: PBS being a VM ensures that it is isolated from the VMs it backs up. This can help in managing and troubleshooting backups separately from the VMs being backed up.

• Resource Management: It allows me to allocate resources like CPU, RAM, and disk space specifically for the PBS VM, which can be managed and scaled according to the needs of my backup operations.

• Snapshots: Running PBS as a VM allows me to use Proxmox's snapshot feature to protect the PBS VM itself. This can be useful in case of configuration or corruption issues.

Backup Strategies

Scheduled Backups: I set a backup job on Proxmox that will automatic backup all VMs every at 2:30 and 22:30.

Secondary Backup Strategy :Since my PBS VM relies on the PVE host, I also consider maintaining a secondary backup strategy.I periodically copying the backup data from PBS to an external storage device.

Testing Backups: Regularly test my backup and restore procedures to ensure that my data can be reliably restored in the event of an issue. This is crucial for verifying the integrity and usability of my backups.