Backrest vs Knoxite
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Backrest
Web UI and orchestrator for Restic backups
VS
Knoxite
Data storage and backup with deduplication and encryption
| Feature | Backrest | Knoxite |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 91 · Excellent | 13 · At risk |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7,394 | ★ 493 |
| First released | 2024 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Backblaze | Backblaze |
What are Backrest and Knoxite?
Backrest
Backrest is a web-based backup orchestrator built on top of Restic, adding scheduling, monitoring, and a friendly interface. It targets users who want Restic's power with a GUI. It is deployed via Docker or a binary.
- Web UI for Restic
- Scheduling and retention policies
- Backup health monitoring
- Notifications
Knoxite
Knoxite is a flexible data storage and backup tool that supports deduplication, encryption, and many storage backends. It can back up to local disk, SFTP, and S3-compatible targets.
- Deduplicated backups
- Encryption
- Multiple storage backends
- Cross-platform
Backrest vs Knoxite: key differences
Backrest is written in TypeScript, while Knoxite is built with Go. Knoxite is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Backrest. Knoxite is the more established project (first released 2016), while Backrest arrived in 2024. Backrest has the considerably larger community, at 7,394 GitHub stars versus 493. Backrest lists first-class Docker deployment; Knoxite does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Backrest if…
- Makes Restic approachable
- Good scheduling
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Young project
- Depends on Restic underneath
Choose Knoxite if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Backrest or Knoxite better?
Backrest is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Knoxite if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Backrest and Knoxite free and open-source?
Yes. Backrest is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Knoxite under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Backrest and Knoxite with Docker?
Backrest: yes. Knoxite: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Backrest or Knoxite?
Knoxite has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Backrest. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.