The only sensible way to backup linux data 

usage:

/usr/bin/rsync [switches] [source] [destination]

(path to rsync may vary) Generally just using switch -av will maintain all ownerships and attributes and copy in verbose mode.

Example:

/usr/bin/rsync -av admin@192.168.20.130:/home/sites /home/

This example assumes I'm logged into the target machine, so I'll be copying from the remote source.

The command copies the directory 'sites' from the source box into the target directory on the destination. You do NOT need to specify the full destination directory, just 'where' to put the source. (otherwise you'll end up with sites/sites/) if that makes sense.

adding the switch --delete will delete files on the destination side that are not present on the source side.

--progress will give you a progress bar, if you like that sort of thing!

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Further Reading: