Raspberry Pi Backup Server

So I recently reached the limits on my free 2GB Basic Dropbox (it’s not much, I know) and I’ve always wanted to find my own way of syncing and backing up my data securely. I’ve tried services like OwnCloud and NextCloud before, which work okay but are not perfect. These services require a little more technical ability to set up (encryption, web server, e.t.c) and cost money if you choose to use a cloud-based solution such as DigitalOcean or Vultr rather than self-hosting.

I left myself wondering how I can store my data securely. That was until I found the perfect solution. Syncthing!

Conveniently, this problem came up just as the brand new Raspberry Pi 4 was released, boasting a massive 4GB of RAM with a 1.5GHz quad-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A72 CPU!

If you’re anything like me and you use far too much data to complete your projects – this is especially true for researchers (like myself) collecting and processing a lot of data. This could indeed be the solution for you!

What are the benefits of using Syncthing?

  • Peer-to-peer: Completely decentralised without the need of having a centralised server between devices.
  • Unlimited data: You’re only bound by what storage devices you have. External hard drives are extremely useful especially if they use USB 3.0 (which the Pi4 supports) .
  • Secure: Files can be encrypted as they are stored or transferred between devices.
  • Control: Ultimately you are in control of your data as it exists between devices you own.
My Raspberry Pi 4 with a CPU fan. The Pi4 gets fairly hot under pressure.