Data Backup

# Data Backup

This article details the procedures and configurations for data backup on our MediaWiki 1.40 server. Regular backups are crucial for disaster recovery, preventing data loss due to hardware failure, software bugs, or malicious attacks. This guide is intended for system administrators and those responsible for maintaining the integrity of the wiki.

Understanding Backup Requirements

Before diving into specific methods, it's important to understand *what* needs to be backed up. Our MediaWiki installation consists of several key components:

• Wiki Code: The core MediaWiki software files. Relatively static and updated infrequently.
• Wiki Data: This includes the wiki’s pages, revisions, user data, and configuration files stored in the `mw-config` directory. This is the most critical component.
• Uploaded Files: Images, documents, and other media files stored in the `images` directory.
• Database: The MySQL/MariaDB database containing all wiki content and metadata. This is the largest and most important part of the backup process.

Failing to back up any of these components can lead to significant data loss. We aim for a Recovery Point Objective (RPO) of 24 hours and a Recovery Time Objective (RTO) of 4 hours. This means we want to be able to recover data lost within the last 24 hours, and restore full functionality within 4 hours. See Disaster Recovery Plan for more details.

Backup Methods

We employ a multi-layered backup strategy to ensure data redundancy and reliability.

1. Full Backups: Complete copies of all data are created weekly. 2. Incremental Backups: Backups of only the changes made since the last full backup are performed daily. 3. Database Dumps: Regular database dumps are created for faster restoration of wiki content.

Database Backup Procedure

The database is the most crucial component and requires a dedicated backup process. We use `mysqldump` for this purpose.

Database Backup Script

The following script, located at `/opt/mediawiki/backup/db_backup.sh`, automates the database backup process:

```bash #/bin/bash DATE=$(date +%Y-%m-%d_%H-%M-%S) DB_USER="wikiuser" DB_PASS="wikipassword" DB_NAME="wikidb" BACKUP_DIR="/opt/mediawiki/backup/db"

mysqldump -u $DB_USER -p$DB_PASS $DB_NAME > $BACKUP_DIR/wikidb_$DATE.sql gzip $BACKUP_DIR/wikidb_$DATE.sql ```

• Note:* Replace `"wikiuser"`, `"wikipassword"`, and `"wikidb"` with your actual database credentials. See Database Configuration for more information.

Database Backup Schedule

The script is executed daily at 02:00 using `cron`. The crontab entry is located at `/etc/crontab` or in the system user's crontab (using `crontab -e`).

File System Backup Procedure

We back up the wiki code, data, and uploaded files using `rsync`.

File System Backup Script

The following script, located at `/opt/mediawiki/backup/fs_backup.sh`, handles file system backups:

```bash #/bin/bash DATE=$(date +%Y-%m-%d_%H-%M-%S) SOURCE_DIR="/var/www/mediawiki" BACKUP_DIR="/opt/mediawiki/backup/fs"

rsync -avz $SOURCE_DIR/ $BACKUP_DIR/mediawiki_$DATE/ ```

File System Backup Schedule

The script is executed weekly on Sunday at 03:00 using `cron`.

Backup Storage and Retention

Backups are stored on a dedicated network-attached storage (NAS) device with a total capacity of 4TB. The following retention policy is enforced:

Backup Type	Retention Period
Full Backups	4 Weeks
Incremental Backups	1 Week
Database Dumps	2 Weeks

Old backups are automatically deleted using a separate script, `cleanup_backups.sh`, executed weekly. See Backup Cleanup Procedures for more details.

Restoration Procedure

Restoration involves restoring both the database and the file system.

Database Restoration

1. Stop the web server (e.g., Apache or Nginx) – see Web Server Configuration. 2. Restore the database from the latest dump: `mysql -u wikiuser -p wikidb < /opt/mediawiki/backup/db/wikidb_YYYY-MM-DD_HH-MM-SS.sql.gz` (unzip first if necessary). 3. Restart the web server.

File System Restoration

1. Stop the web server. 2. Restore the file system from the latest backup. Ensure proper permissions are set. 3. Restart the web server.

Testing Restorations

Restoration procedures are tested quarterly to ensure their effectiveness. Results are documented in Backup Test Results.

Technical Specifications

Component	Specification
NAS Device	Synology DiskStation DS1821+
NAS Capacity	4TB (RAID 5)
Backup Software	rsync, mysqldump
Backup Server OS	Ubuntu Server 20.04 LTS

Script	Location	Purpose
db_backup.sh	/opt/mediawiki/backup/	Daily Database Backup
fs_backup.sh	/opt/mediawiki/backup/	Weekly File System Backup
cleanup_backups.sh	/opt/mediawiki/backup/	Automated Backup Cleanup

Security Considerations

Backups are encrypted both in transit and at rest. Access to the backup storage is restricted to authorized personnel only. Regular security audits are conducted to ensure the integrity of the backup system. See Security Policy for more information.

Related Pages

• Disaster Recovery Plan
• Database Configuration
• Web Server Configuration
• Backup Cleanup Procedures
• Backup Test Results
• Security Policy
• Cron Job Management
• MySQL/MariaDB Documentation
• Rsync Documentation
• NAS Device Configuration
• File Permissions
• Wiki Maintenance
• Troubleshooting Backups
• Database Optimization
• Server Monitoring
• MediaWiki Installation

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