Amanda vs Minarca Backup
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Amanda | Minarca Backup |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 8 · At risk | 31 · At risk |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 272 | ★ 263 |
| First released | 1991 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Veeam, CommVault | CrashPlan, Veeam |
What are Amanda and Minarca Backup?
Amanda
Amanda is a mature backup solution that allows an administrator to set up a single backup server to back up multiple hosts to tape, disk, or cloud storage. It is widely used in enterprise environments.
- Centralized network backups
- Tape, disk, and cloud targets
- Mature enterprise tooling
Minarca Backup
Minarca is a centralized backup solution built on rdiff-backup that lets users back up multiple machines and restore their own files through a web interface. It is designed for organizations protecting many endpoints.
- Centralized endpoint backup
- Self-service restore
- rdiff-backup engine
- Web management
Amanda vs Minarca Backup: key differences
Amanda is written in C, while Minarca Backup is built with Python. Licensing differs — BSD-3-Clause for Amanda versus AGPL-3.0 for Minarca Backup. Amanda is the more established project (first released 1991), while Minarca Backup arrived in 2016. Minarca Backup lists first-class Docker deployment; Amanda does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Amanda if…
- Released under the BSD-3-Clause license
- Written in C
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose Minarca Backup if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Python
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Amanda or Minarca Backup better?
Neither is universally better. Amanda has the larger community, while Minarca Backup is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Amanda and Minarca Backup free and open-source?
Yes. Amanda is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and Minarca Backup under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Amanda and Minarca Backup with Docker?
Amanda: check the project docs for container support. Minarca Backup: yes.