What I did today

Posted byMatthew CTT

Worked Clonezilla and was successful in getting it to the Image Student Storage/Clonezilla folder.

Components:

  • Clonezilla: Disk cloning software for creating backups or migrating data.
  • VirtualBox: Virtualization software that allows you to run virtual machines on your laptop.
  • Tunnel: A secure connection between your laptop and the server. This is often achieved using SSH tunneling.
  • Server: A remote machine that will host the virtual machine with Clonezilla.

Advice:

  1. Setting up the Server:
    • Ensure your server is configured to allow SSH connections.
    • You might need to install VirtualBox on the server if it’s not already available.
  2. Creating an SSH Tunnel:
    • There are two ways to achieve this:
      • Using command line: Use the ssh command with the -L flag to create a local port forwarding tunnel. You’ll find tutorials online by searching “https://www.ssh.com/academy/ssh/tunneling-example“.
      • Using GUI tools: Some SSH clients have built-in GUI functionalities for creating tunnels.
  3. Clonezilla in VirtualBox:
    • Download the Clonezilla ISO file from the official website https://clonezilla.org/downloads.php.
    • Create a new virtual machine in VirtualBox on your laptop.
    • During virtual machine creation, point the CD/DVD drive to the downloaded Clonezilla ISO file.
    • Configure the virtual machine’s network settings to use the bridged adapter mode if it will be directly connected to the server’s network. Otherwise, use the network adapter set to the private network created by the SSH tunnel.
  4. Using Clonezilla:
    • Start the virtual machine with Clonezilla.
    • Clonezilla will boot up in a live environment, allowing you to clone disks.
    • The specific steps for cloning disks will depend on your desired outcome (cloning to the server, from the server, etc.). Refer to the Clonezilla documentation https://clonezilla.org/clonezilla-live-doc.php for detailed instructions.

Additional Considerations:

  • Security: Ensure proper SSH key-based authentication is set up for the SSH tunnel to avoid password exposure.
  • Network Connectivity: Make sure your laptop and server have a stable network connection throughout the process.
  • Resource Requirements: Running a virtual machine with Clonezilla will require sufficient RAM and processing power on the server.

Alternatives:

  • If the goal is to backup data to the server, consider using file-level backup tools like rsync instead of disk cloning with Clonezilla.
  • Some cloud storage providers offer built-in backup functionalities that might be simpler to set up.