Hi

I need to do a backup of several systems (all Mandrake 9.x) to a backup server (which will most likely be running of one of the systems that needs to be backed up).
The backup should be complete, and include not just data files, but also OS files.

I've been liking the look of Amanda but so far everything i've read about it states that it backs up to a tape drive.

Is it possible to use Amanda to back up to a removable Hard drive instead?

I've looked at a few HOWTO's and there are other titles out there that do similar stuff, but i can't seem to find one that is clearly suited to archive to removable hard drives, everything seems focused on removable tapes. Any other titles that come to mind?

I would reccomend suign rsync over ssh since it will only copy the files that have changed since the last backup.

I really think amanda could do it. However, I recommend using www.mondorescue.org

It is easy to use, and save your backup as an .iso image, so it is easy to burn It allows complete, bare-metal recovery.

HTH

Mondo rescue looks very good, nice website and good range of documentation. Plus that iso feature seems like a good one to have.

Amanda seems to be out to us, because it seems to be everything plus the kitchen sink. Not a bad thing, but probably too intense for what we want to use it for.