Bacula rev 03

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The Bacula extension adds a self-contained Bacula Enterprise backup environment to the storage server. It runs as an isolated container providing a Bacula Director, Storage Daemon, and File Daemon, together with the Bacularis web GUI for managing backup jobs, clients, schedules, and storage devices.

Note: Bacula is delivered as an optional Small Update (the xc-bacula2 module). This article describes revision 03. If your system was updated to a newer revision, refer to the matching Extension:Bacula_rev_NN article.

Requirements

Before the container can complete its setup, a dedicated ZFS dataset must exist on the storage server:

  • Dataset name: _bacula_sys (exact name required)
  • Location: any pool on the storage server

The dataset stores the Bacula catalog database, configuration secrets, and working files. It is detected automatically — no further manual configuration is needed.

Note: Actual backup data is stored on storage devices you configure later through Bacularis, not on the _bacula_sys dataset.

Getting started

Step 1: Install the Small Update

  1. Navigate to System Settings → Update tab.
  2. Click Upload update, then use the Browse button to select the previously obtained Bacula Small Update file (.upd).
  3. Upload and wait for the installation to complete.

Step 2: Create the ZFS dataset

Create the dataset using either method:

Option A — LXC Admin tool (recommended):

  1. Navigate to https://<server-ip>:4250/containers.
  2. Select the bacula2 container.
  3. Follow the prompts to create the required _bacula_sys dataset on the pool of your choice.

Option B — Storage GUI:

  1. Navigate to Pools, select the pool where you want to store the Bacula catalog, then open Datasets.
  2. Click Add dataset and enter the name _bacula_sys.
  3. Click Confirm. Leave all other settings at their defaults.

Once the dataset exists, the container detects it automatically and finishes its initial configuration. This takes approximately one minute.

Step 3: Open the Bacula GUI

After setup completes, access Bacularis in either of two ways:

  • Click Bacula GUI in the Launchpad (main dashboard).
  • Navigate directly to https://<server-ip>:9097/ in a browser.

Log in with the same administrator username and password used for the main storage server GUI.

Using Bacularis

Dashboard

The Bacularis dashboard shows an overview of recent backup job status, registered clients, storage pools, and volumes. Use it to confirm that scheduled jobs are completing successfully and to spot any failures.

The dashboard includes a global search (press Ctrl+K) for quickly locating jobs, clients, and resources by name, a tabbed job view for filtering jobs by status, and an Add-ons menu for accessing optional Bacularis components.

Configuring storage

No storage devices are pre-configured. After initial setup you must define at least one storage device before backup jobs can run.

To add a storage device:

  1. In Bacularis, navigate to the Storage page.
  2. Use the storage wizard to define a new device. Select the device type (file-based or tape), enter a name, and follow the wizard steps to create the storage resource.
  3. Save the configuration. The new device becomes available for use in backup jobs.

To use tape hardware, connect the tape drives or tape libraries to the storage server — they appear automatically inside the container. Then define them as storage resources through the Storage page as described above.

Adding backup clients

Install the Bacula File Daemon on each client you want to back up, then register the client through the Clients page in Bacularis. Refer to the Bacularis documentation for detailed client setup instructions.

Schedules and jobs

No backup jobs are pre-configured. After defining at least one storage device and at least one client, create your first backup job:

  1. Navigate to the Jobs page in Bacularis.
  2. Click Add job and fill in the job name, client, fileset, schedule, and storage device.
  3. Save the job definition.

Manage retention policies and schedules on the Schedules page.

Email notifications

Bacula sends job completion and failure notifications through the storage server's built-in email gateway. To configure the destination address and SMTP settings:

  1. In the main storage server GUI, navigate to System Settings → Administration → Email notifications.
  2. Enter your SMTP server and recipient address, then save.

No additional email configuration is required inside Bacularis. Bacula log messages from the container are also included in the standard log download available under System Settings → Support.

Settings preservation across upgrades

Bacula configuration is automatically saved before a JovianDSS version upgrade and restored afterwards. This includes all Bacula daemon configuration files and Bacularis settings (storage devices, jobs, clients, schedules). No manual backup of the Bacularis configuration is required before upgrading the storage server software.

Factory reset

The container can be reset to its initial state using the LXC Admin tool. During a factory reset:

  • The _bacula_sys dataset is preserved — all catalog data and configuration secrets remain intact.
  • The container re-initialises itself automatically on next boot using the existing dataset.

Use this procedure to recover from a misconfigured container without losing backup history.

Known issues and limitations

  • Dataset name is fixed. The dataset must be named exactly _bacula_sys. A dataset with a different name is not detected and setup will not proceed.
  • Setup delay. Initial configuration takes up to one minute after the dataset becomes available. The Bacularis GUI is not accessible until setup completes.
  • Self-signed certificate. The HTTPS endpoint at port 9097 uses a self-signed TLS certificate. Browsers will show a certificate warning on first access; this is expected. Add a permanent exception or install a trusted certificate if required by your security policy.

Changelog

rev 03

  • Bacularis upgraded from 6.1.0 to 6.2.1 (includes AWS Cloud backup support, reverse proxy fix, and upstream bug fixes).
  • Settings preservation across JovianDSS version upgrades — Bacula and Bacularis configuration files are saved before an upgrade and restored afterwards.
  • Bacula container logs are now included in the log package downloaded from System Settings → Support.
  • Log rotation added for Bacula, Apache, and PostgreSQL logs inside the container.
  • PostgreSQL timezone is now synchronised automatically with the system timezone (resolves a Bacula 15.x startup warning).
  • Fixed: Bacularis New Resource page crash caused by a null value passed to natural case sort.
  • Fixed: undefined array key error when restarting a daemon via Bacularis.
  • Fixed: container setup could proceed incorrectly when no ZFS pool was available at firstboot time.
  • Fixed: configuration templates were not re-rendered when secrets had just been generated in the same firstboot run.

rev 02

  • Bacula 15.0.3, Bacularis 6.1.0.
  • Automated Bacularis configuration — no manual setup wizard required after dataset creation.
  • Email notifications routed through the storage server's email gateway.
  • Factory-reset support with catalog data preserved on the ZFS dataset.
  • Dashboard: global search (Ctrl+K), tabbed job view, and Add-ons menu.
  • Storage wizard fully functional — JSON tools and configuration editor enabled.
  • No sample storage devices or backup jobs pre-configured; create through the Bacularis GUI.

rev 01

  • Initial release. Bacula Director, Storage Daemon, File Daemon, and Bacularis web GUI running as a self-contained LXC container.

For further customization or troubleshooting, refer to the upstream Bacularis documentation or contact Open-E support.

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