Option to create /daily symlink to newest changing zzzz-yy-xx backup directory when new backup runs

North Captiva shared this idea ago

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As a server administrator I would like cPanel to provide a symlink (named /daily or /latest, for example) in the /backup directory that would take me to the most recent backup, to allow me to more quickly and consistently identify the most recent backup, rather than manually parsing the folders and files in the directory tree.

This would be especially helpful in situations where I would like to programmatically sync my backups to another location.

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Jonathan Chun ●

I wrote a quick PHP hook that accomplishes this:

Instructions:

Save the following to /root/custom_scripts/backup_hook.php

#!/usr/local/cpanel/3rdparty/bin/php -q
<?php
// file - /root/custom_scripts/backup_hook.php
// Backup Directory with Trailing Slash
define("BACKUP_DIR", "/backup/");
// Any switches passed to this script
$switches = (count($argv) > 1) ? $argv : array();
// Argument evaluation.
if (in_array('--describe', $switches)) {
echo json_encode( describe() );
exit;
} elseif (in_array('--run', $switches)) {
create_symlink();
echo "$status $msg";
exit;
} else {
echo 'backup_hook.php needs a valid switch';
exit(1);
}
// Embed hook attribute information.
function describe() {
$post_backup = array(
'category' => 'System',
'event' => 'Backup',
'stage' => 'post',
'hook' => '/root/custom_scripts/backup_hook.php --run',
'exectype' => 'script',
);
return $post_backup;
}
function create_symlink() {
$current_backup = bdir(date("Y-m-d"));
$latest = bdir("latest");
if (is_link($latest)) {
unlink($latest);
}
symlink($current_backup, $latest);
}
function bdir($path) {
return BACKUP_DIR.$path;
}

Set executable:

chmod +x /root/custom_scripts/backup_hook.php

Add the hook:

/usr/local/cpanel/bin/manage_hooks add script /root/custom_scripts/backup_hook.php

If you choose to save the script in a different directory, you will have to edit the file. Also, make sure to edit the BACKUP_DIR up at the top of the script. The default is /backup/ (trailing slash needed). Once the backup completes, it will create a latest symlink to the most recent directory.

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