Mounting a remote volume via Terminal

Teknyr · 09-12-2003, 12:48 AM

I am want to set up a daily back up of my machine. I plan to do this back up while I am asleep, 2 or 3 in the morning. The problem is the volume I want to back up to is my server.

The question is how do I mount a remote volume via command line. I know how to 'open' the volume using the command line, but it requests my password. Is it even possible to automate a login and logout of a remote volume?

The reason I want to know how to do this in command line is because I am using Cron to do the back up.

I would appreciate any help that can be given on this subject.

gatorparrots · 09-12-2003, 11:25 AM

There are many possibilities. What's your preferred route: AFP, FTP, NFS, or WebDAV?

breen · 09-12-2003, 11:56 AM

You don't really even need to mount the volume if you use rsync over ssh.

The basic command is

Code:

rsync -ae ssh /path/to/backup/  server:/path/to/backup/directory/

Just as I've written it you'll need to enter your password. You should set up ssh public keys to automate the login. If your workstation is secure you can set up a public key without a password to do the login, or see the keychain utility at

http://www.gentoo.org/proj/en/keychain.xml

which runs perfectly on OS X.

Breen

acme.mail.order · 09-15-2003, 08:51 AM

Plenty of unix file utilities like ftp, rsync and curl can read the .netrc file for machine names and passwords. If you don't need encrypted transport it's much easier than fussing with secure keys.

Read http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/aix/fil...iles/netrc.htm for a reasonably friendly description.
I use this for cron-scheduled copies with curl (type "man curl" in the terminal for details. Super-handy program for any unattended file movements between machines.)

Couple of points:
1. .netrc (starts with a period) must be at the top level of your home directory.
2. must be readable by you and you only (chmod 600)
3. it is invisible to the finder, which can be good or bad depending on your situation. If you like to use graphical tools to edit it, you can still type the full filename in the open dialog. Ignore the warnings when you save it, but make sure that your program doesn't add an extension.
4. Passwords are stored in clear text, you need to decide if that is acceptable or not
5. cron jobs must run as your user, not as system, or the right .netrc will not be found.
6. Each user may have a different file.

09-12-2003, 12:48 AM	#1
Teknyr Prospect Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Utah Posts: 9	Mounting a remote volume via Terminal I am want to set up a daily back up of my machine. I plan to do this back up while I am asleep, 2 or 3 in the morning. The problem is the volume I want to back up to is my server. The question is how do I mount a remote volume via command line. I know how to 'open' the volume using the command line, but it requests my password. Is it even possible to automate a login and logout of a remote volume? The reason I want to know how to do this in command line is because I am using Cron to do the back up. I would appreciate any help that can be given on this subject.

09-12-2003, 11:56 AM	#3
breen Major Leaguer Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Bay Area Posts: 327	You don't really even need to mount the volume if you use rsync over ssh. The basic command is Code: rsync -ae ssh /path/to/backup/ server:/path/to/backup/directory/ Just as I've written it you'll need to enter your password. You should set up ssh public keys to automate the login. If your workstation is secure you can set up a public key without a password to do the login, or see the keychain utility at http://www.gentoo.org/proj/en/keychain.xml which runs perfectly on OS X. Breen

09-12-2003, 11:25 AM	#2
gatorparrots Major Leaguer Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 441	There are many possibilities. What's your preferred route: AFP, FTP, NFS, or WebDAV?

09-15-2003, 08:51 AM	#4
acme.mail.order League Commissioner Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Tokyo Posts: 6,334	Plenty of unix file utilities like ftp, rsync and curl can read the .netrc file for machine names and passwords. If you don't need encrypted transport it's much easier than fussing with secure keys. Read http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/aix/fil...iles/netrc.htm for a reasonably friendly description. I use this for cron-scheduled copies with curl (type "man curl" in the terminal for details. Super-handy program for any unattended file movements between machines.) Couple of points: 1. .netrc (starts with a period) must be at the top level of your home directory. 2. must be readable by you and you only (chmod 600) 3. it is invisible to the finder, which can be good or bad depending on your situation. If you like to use graphical tools to edit it, you can still type the full filename in the open dialog. Ignore the warnings when you save it, but make sure that your program doesn't add an extension. 4. Passwords are stored in clear text, you need to decide if that is acceptable or not 5. cron jobs must run as your user, not as system, or the right .netrc will not be found. 6. Each user may have a different file.