[Box Backup] Can Win32 client backup files from another machine?

[Stuart Hickinbottom]

Yes, I think that is pretty much the same thing as I was trying to describe.

I'm not too sure what you're asking about the "run as" trick. If you
mean whether one client could draw files from many other machines rather
than just one then yes it can if you connect to multiple shares from
your "backup" user then add those connected drives as separate roots to
the bbackupd.conf file.

If your "backup" user is a full admin user then you might be able to get
away without having to set up any shares at all by using the normal
"hidden drive" shares, eg:
\\somemachine\c$
Or
\\somemachine\c$\somefolder

These are present on every Windows machine so you'll not need to set up
anything at all on the client as long as the "backup" user is an
administrator (domain or otherwise, I think).

Again, not too sure if that's what you're asking. Also, as you say, not
recommended because bbackupd might think you've deleted all those files
and mark them as deleted on the server (I've encountered similar things
for mounted drives in Linux, and it's not too entertaining when your
500GB archive is at the other end of a DSL link!).

Stuart


E.W. Peter Jalajas wrote:
> Hi Stuart,
>
> Thanks for your thoughts.  I just got off the phone with my partner and
> he had the idea to setup a new admin-group user called "backup" on all
> windows machines in the workgroup/domain, and setup all the services
> and shares as that admin user; we're going to try that early next week.
>  
>
> That may be essentially what you're suggesting, Stuart.  But I wonder
> if your "run as" trick could be extendible to reach out to several
> different machines in the workgroup/domain?   Your thoughts on that?  
>
> I guess, twisting this idea back on itself, could we set up the
> "central box backup client machine admin user" as an admin with Full
> Access rights on the other machines in the workgroup/domain (kinda like
> a Domain Admin having Full Access rights on the local machines).
>
> (I just want to remind any newer Box Backup readers out there that this
> configuration is explicitly NOT recommended.  I believe this
> dis-recommendation is primarily because it will most assuredly be
> extremely wasteful due to repetitive "mark as deleted" and re-uploads
> of entire backup stores as the workgroup computers disappear and
> re-appear from the view of the central Box Backup client.)
>
> Thanks again, Stuart,
> Pete
> --- Stuart Hickinbottom <stuart@hickinbottom.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> <snip>
>   
>> A workaround is to configure the service to "run as" the account
>> where
>> you set the share up, then when the service starts it logs on as that
>> user and thus has access to his shares.
>>     
>
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