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Gluu Server Backup#

The Gluu Server should be backed up frequently--we recommend at least one daily and one weekly backup of Gluu's data and/or VM.

There are multiple methods for backing up the Gluu Server. A few recommended strategies are provided below.

VM Snapshot Backup#

In the event of a production outage, a proper snapshot of the last working condition will help rapidly restore service.

Most platform virtualization software and cloud vendors have snapshot backup features. For instance, Digital Ocean has Live Snapshot and Droplet Snapshot; VMWare has Snapshot Manager, etc.

Snaphots should be taken for all Gluu environments (e.g. Prod, Dev, QA, etc.) and tested periodically to confirm consistency and integrity.

Tarball Method#

Tarball the entire Gluu Server CE chroot folder using the tar command:

  1. Stop the server: # service gluu-server-3.1.2 stop

  2. Use tar to take a backup: # tar cvf gluu301-backup.tar /opt/gluu-server-3.1.2/

  3. Start the server again: # service gluu-server-3.1.2 start

LDIF Data Backup#

From time to time (daily or weekly) you will want to export the LDAP database to a standard LDIF format. If you have the data in plain text, it gives you some options for recovery that are not possible with a binary backup.

In Gluu OpenDJ, you could stop the LDAP server and issue the following command (specifying the proper directory and file):

/opt/opendj/bin/export-ldif -n userRoot -l /path/to/back/directory/<backup_file>.ldif

In Gluu OpenLDAP, you would do the following:

/opt/symas/bin/slapcat -b "o=gluu"

At runtime (if you don't want to stop the LDAP server), you can always use the ldapsearch command:

$ /opt/opendj/bin/export-ldif -n userRoot -l backup.ldif