Rsync Implementation for File Synchronization: Coursework Exercise 4

This coursework exercise sheet focuses on Rsync, a powerful file synchronization tool, demonstrating its use for both local and remote file transfers. The assignment details the installation and configuration of Rsync, including the use of SSH for secure remote backups. It explains the delta transfer algorithm, command examples (local and network backup), and the --dry-run and --delete options. The assignment includes step-by-step instructions for setting up remote file transfer, involving the installation of an OpenSSH server and the generation of key pairs. The student provides screenshots to document the process, including the creation of a sample file on a client machine and its transfer to a remote server using the rsync command. The assignment concludes with a bibliography of relevant sources.

Running head: COURSEWORK EXERCISE SHEET 4
Coursework Exercise Sheet 4
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note

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COURSEWORK EXERCISE SHEET 4
Finding an appropriate synchronization tool for performing file
synchronization
Rsysnc is by default installed in ubuntu and it is an efficient file copying tool for
copying files locally and or over the remote host. There are large options available for
controlling the behaviour and permitting flexibility for the set of files that are needed to be
copied. It operated on delta transfer algorithm for reducing the data sent over the network by
analysing the difference between the source and the existing files in the destination address. It
finds its application in mirroring and performing backup using the copy command. It is used
as an command line utility tool and by default installed in the latest version of ubuntu. For
performing backup over a network rsync is used via SSH but in case of local backup the
read/write information is synchronized. The examples of the command used for backup are
given below:
Local Backup
sudo rsync -azvv /home/path/folder1/ /home/path/folder2
Backup over network
sudo rsync --dry-run --delete -azvv -e ssh /home/path/folder1/
[e-mail]:/home/path/folder2
The command –dry run is used for telling rsync to do nothing and only a log is written
and it is used for testing the command for checking that everything works according
to the requirement. The - - del command is removed for performing the actual backup
of the system.

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COURSEWORK EXERCISE SHEET 4
Configuration of remote file transfer between source and destination
machine
For the configuration of the remote file transfer between the source and the
destination machine the rsync command is used and openssh server is needed to be installed
in the destination machine. For performing the configuration two virtual machine are used
and configured according to the requirement. The command “sudo apt-get install openssh-
server” is used for the installation and a keypair needed to set up and it is created using the
command “ssh-keygen”. The public key is copied in the authorized_key files present on the
server. The command ssh-copy-id user@192.168.1.150 is used for copying.
Documentation of the steps with Screenshot
A file is created in desktop of the client machine and sent over the remote client using the
command “rsync -vh hello.txt /home/user/Desktop”.

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COURSEWORK EXERCISE SHEET 4
On the server end openshh server is installed using the command “sudo apt-get install
openssh-server” for allowing ssh communication between the client and the server.
A keypair is generated using the command “ssh-keypair” and saved in a file named with
key.txt and the content of the key file is given in the following screenshot.

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Bibliography
Balute, A.A.N., Gonzales, D.B. and Aga-ab, C.J., 2016. Linux based Diskless System using
RSYNC Algorithm. International Journal of Computer Applications, 155(3).
Jain, S., Gupta, M., Baunthiyal, A. and Agarwal, V., 2017, February. IHMU: Remote
installation of OS/system software/application software/patch installation/version anomaly
detection and system health monitoring in distributed system. In Computational Intelligence
& Communication Technology (CICT), 2017 3rd International Conference on (pp. 1-3).
IEEE.
Joy, A.M., 2015, March. Performance comparison between linux containers and virtual
machines. In Computer Engineering and Applications (ICACEA), 2015 International
Conference on Advances in (pp. 342-346). IEEE.
Purnama, F., Usagawa, T. and Ijtihadie, R.M., 2016, May. Rsync and Rdiff implementation
on Moodle's backup and restore feature for course synchronization over the network.
In Region 10 Symposium (TENSYMP), 2016 IEEE (pp. 24-29). IEEE.
Tanpure, A., Patil, A., Bansod, A. and Kulkarni, A., 2015. Rsync over https for Linux and
windows with seamless data transfer. International journal of scientific and research
publications (IJSRP), pp.582-285.
Verma, R., Mendez, A.A., Park, S., Mannarswamy, S.S., Kelly, T. and Morrey III, C.B.,
2015, February. Failure-Atomic Updates of Application Data in a Linux File System.
In FAST(pp. 203-211).

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