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Working with Backups and Compression on a Linux Host

When administering a server, it is important to keep backups of important data. In this hands-on lab, you will learn how to use the `tar` command to create compressed archives of files and directories, which will be copied to a backup server using the `rsync` utility.

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Lab Info
Level
Intermediate
Last updated
Sep 23, 2025
Duration
15m

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Table of Contents
  1. Challenge

    Create Backups of Files and Directories on Server01
    • Use the tar command to create a backup of /etc and /var/log using xz compression.
    • Use the tar command to create a backup of /opt/dev using bzip2 compression.
    • List the contents of dev.tbz and capture it in a file called dev_list.txt.
  2. Challenge

    Synchronize Files and Backups to Server02
    • Use rsync to copy dev.tbz, server01.txz, and dev_list.txt on server01 to /home/cloud_user on server02 (use the private IP address provided).
    • Use rsync to synchronize the files in /opt/prod on server01 with /home/cloud_user/prod on server02 (use the private IP address provided).
    • Validate that files were successfully copied to server02.
    • Extract dev.tbz to /home/cloud_user/dev on server02.
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