Please update backuppc to 4.x release (now 4.2.1) - major improvements and lots of bugfixes

[Mantas Kriaučiūnas]

Please update backuppc to 4.x version, it fixes numerous bugs (including ipv6 handling) and contains lots of improvements comparing to outdated 3.3.1 version (released from Ubuntu 17.10 (Artful):

BackupPC 4.0 is a significant improvement over 3.x in terms of performance and storage efficiency. It is backward compatible with 3.x pool storage, so it can be used to upgrade an existing installation as well as for brand new installs.

BackupPC 4.0 requires the perl module BackupPC::XS (>= 0.50) and rsync-bpc (>= 3.0.9.5). Those releases are here:

 https://github.com/backuppc/backuppc-xs/releases
 https://github.com/backuppc/rsync-bpc/releases

libbackuppc-xs-perl is already packaged in Debian and Ubuntu 17.10 and backuppc-rsync (rsync-bpc) is in preparation, see
https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=864079

See http://backuppc.github.io/backuppc/BackupPC.html#BackupPC-4.0 and https://github.com/backuppc/backuppc/releases for info about latest BackupPC releases.

[Christian Ehrhardt  (paelzer)]

Surely reasonable for 18.04, but too late for 17.10.
I'll subscribe the Team to take a look after 18.04 opens up.
Especially if Debian would pick it up, but so far no movement on the referenced bug yet.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Jens Peter (3s-jp)]

Another important bug that is fixed in backuppc 4.1.5:
https://github.com/backuppc/backuppc/issues/176 - File names get truncated after approx. 100 characters.

This results in defective files and PaxHeaders folders in the backup, rendering it broken.

[Mantas Kriaučiūnas (mantas)]

There is Debian BackupPC packaging team now and packaging latest backuppc 4.3.x and backuppc-rsync (rsync-bpc) is on the way, see:
https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=864079

[Jeff K (kosowsky)]

Any ETA when a version will be ready to play with?

[Ian (ifyffe)]

It's important to me that this lands by 20.04, is there anything to be done to ensure this happens?

[Christian Ehrhardt  (paelzer)]

Hi Ian,
I agree that 20.04 is the right target.
I have added myself a note to revisit this bug on the earliest point changes can be taken for 20.04 (November).

If he Debian Team (thanks for all the work) happens to complete 4.3.x before August 22nd it will even be in Ubuntu 19.10 already. But people are often busy with other things, at least so far I have not seen any 4.x on [2]-

@Ian - if you really want to do something you might ping for an update on [1] now that buster is done and bullseye is open.

[1]: https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=873075
[2]: https://salsa.debian.org/debian/backuppc

[Christian Ehrhardt  (paelzer)]

FYI: I pinged on the Debian ITP to get an idea if/who worked on this already and to which amount.

[Ian (ifyffe)]

Hi Christian,

Sorry I missed the previous correspondence here.

It looks like the Debian folk haven't responded to your query.

Should we ping them again, or start from scratch?

Open to any suggestions on ways to contribute. I don't have experience with packaging for Ubuntu yet, but my business uses BackupPC, so I'm willing to invest some time in learning/helping over the next couple months.

[chielchiel (chiel)]

Hi, any chance if version 4.2 or 4.3 is going to get into Ubuntu 20.04? Version 3.3.1 is way old!

[Mantas Kriaučiūnas (mantas)]

Debian/Ubuntu packaging is available here (see Debian branch):
 https://github.com/raoulbhatia/rsync-bpc
 https://github.com/raoulbhatia/libbackuppc-xs-perl
 https://github.com/raoulbhatia/backuppc

[Axel Beckert (xtaran)]

4.4.0-2 is in hirsute-proposed (and in Debian Testing).

[Christian Ehrhardt  (paelzer)]

Indeed @Axel.
But this will onl really resolve after Hirsute as in the fight for Priorities the security reviews of the related packages lost to other more urgent issues.

Due to that 4.x can not migrate into hirsute release this cycle, but will as soon as the related MIR (https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/libbackuppc-xs-perl/+bug/1910262) is complete.

Thereby setting "fix Committed" might be more applicable than "Released" ?

[chielchiel (chiel)]

So it would be available in 21.10 at the earliest?

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

> So it would be available in 21.10 at the earliest?

4.0 has been uploaded to impish. There are some test issues to resolve before it is actually available but yes it is on the path to inclusion in 21.10.

 backuppc | 3.3.2-3 | hirsute | source
 backuppc | 3.3.2-3 | impish | source
 backuppc | 4.4.0-3 | impish-proposed | source

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

MIRs will also be needed for libbackuppc-xs-perl and backuppc-rsync

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/backuppc-rsync/+bug/1910262