TARSNAP.CONF(5)

📦
version 1.0.41 · 2 versions
, in arch rolling

💖 NAME 💖

ok so this is tarsnap.conf(5) — the manual page (section 5, file formats, we love a file-format girlie) all about the tarsnap.conf config file for tarsnap(1) ✨

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

bestie listen. The tarsnap.conf file gets read by the tarsnap(1) utility, and it's where you stash default options 🫶 — the ones that get ignored if you also specify those same options on the command line. (Command line stays main character, always.)

You can put options in /etc/tarsnap/tarsnap.conf and/or ~/.tarsnaprc — and if those two files beef with each other, the user's local config wins. Periodt. 👑

The tarsnap.conf file(s) contain lines made of a case-sensitive option name plus zero or one parameters, depending on which option it is. Empty lines? Ignored. Lines starting with a # character? Also ignored. (Comments, we stan.) 💅

Tiny detail that matters: if a parameter begins with a ~ character, it gets replaced by the home directory of the effective user ID. ~ said "home" and it meant it 🏠✨

The following options may be specified:

  • aggressive-networking — same energy as the matching --option, boo 💫
  • cachedir cache-dir — takes the cache-dir parameter, just like the --option twin
  • checkpoint-bytes bytespercheckpoint — takes the bytespercheckpoint parameter ✨
  • disk-pause X — takes the X parameter, slay
  • exclude pattern — takes the pattern parameter 🎀
  • force-resources — the --option behaviour, no notes 🔥
  • humanize-numbers — makes it all friendly numbers, same as the --option
  • include pattern — takes the pattern parameter 🦋
  • insane-filesystems — yes that's really the name, iconic 💀
  • iso-dates — same as the --option, ISO girlies rise
  • keyfile key-file — takes the key-file parameter 🔑
  • lowmem — the --option treatment
  • maxbw — handled exactly like the --option
  • maxbw-rate — handled exactly like the --option
  • maxbw-rate-down — handled exactly like the --option
  • maxbw-rate-up — handled exactly like the --option
  • nodump — handled exactly like the --option
  • normalmem — handled exactly like the --option
  • no-aggressive-networking — the "nope" version of aggressive-networking
  • no-config-exclude — the "nope" version of config-exclude
  • no-config-include — the "nope" version of config-include
  • no-disk-pause — the "nope" version of disk-pause
  • no-force-resources — the "nope" version of force-resources
  • no-humanize-numbers — the "nope" version of humanize-numbers
  • no-insane-filesystems — the "nope" version of insane-filesystems
  • no-iso-dates — the "nope" version of iso-dates
  • no-maxbw — the "nope" version of maxbw
  • no-maxbw-rate-down — the "nope" version of maxbw-rate-down
  • no-maxbw-rate-up — the "nope" version of maxbw-rate-up
  • no-nodump — the "nope" version of nodump
  • no-print-stats — the "nope" version of print-stats
  • no-quiet — the "nope" version of quiet
  • no-retry-forever — the "nope" version of retry-forever
  • no-snaptime — the "nope" version of snaptime
  • no-store-atime — the "nope" version of store-atime
  • no-totals — the "nope" version of totals
  • print-stats — same as the --option, go off 📊
  • quiet — same as the --option, shhh 🤫
  • retry-forever — same as the --option
  • snaptime file — takes the file parameter ⏰
  • store-atime — same as the --option
  • totals — same as the --option
  • verylowmem — same as the --option

Every single one of these is handled the same way as the corresponding --option, okay? If you want the full tea, go read tarsnap(1). iykyk 💅

⚠️ real talk though: normalmem and the no-* options are only useful in the user-specific ~/.tarsnaprc configuration file. That's the point where they act to override options set in the global /etc/tarsnap/tarsnap.conf. So don't come for them in the global file, they're not doing their thing there 🙈

🎀 FILES 🎀

  • /etc/tarsnap/tarsnap.conf — the system global tarsnap.conf configuration file 🌍 Parameters put here only take effect if they're not specified via the current user's local configuration file or via the command line. Global is the backup dancer, local is the lead ✨
  • ~/.tarsnaprc — the tarsnap.conf configuration file for the current user 👑 Parameters here take effect unless they're specified via the command line. Local supremacy, no cap.

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

tarsnap(1) — go read it, bestie, it's the whole vibe 💜

and that's the page!! 🫶 this one came from Debian, dated March 20, 2025 — so if you're citing your sources, that's the version and date to credit, mwah 💋 🎀

📦 where this page comes from