BackupPC vs Rustic
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
BackupPC
High-performance backup system for PCs and servers
VS
Rustic
Fast encrypted deduplicated backup compatible with Restic
| Feature | BackupPC | Rustic |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 57 · Fair | 88 · Excellent |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Perl | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, docker | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,626 | ★ 3,273 |
| First released | 2001 | 2022 |
| Replaces | CrashPlan, Time Machine | Backblaze, CrashPlan |
What are BackupPC and Rustic?
BackupPC
BackupPC is a high-performance system for backing up Linux, Windows, and macOS PCs to a server's disk. It uses pooling and compression to minimize disk usage, with a full web interface.
- File pooling deduplication
- Web management interface
- No client software required
Rustic
Rustic is a backup tool written in Rust that creates fast, encrypted, and deduplicated backups. It is fully compatible with Restic repositories while offering lower memory usage.
- Restic-compatible repositories
- Low memory footprint
- Cold storage support
BackupPC vs Rustic: key differences
BackupPC is written in Perl, while Rustic is built with Rust. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for BackupPC versus Apache-2.0 for Rustic. Rustic is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for BackupPC. BackupPC is the more established project (first released 2001), while Rustic arrived in 2022. Rustic has the considerably larger community, at 3,273 GitHub stars versus 1,626. BackupPC lists first-class Docker deployment; Rustic does not.
Why pick each one
Choose BackupPC if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.6k GitHub stars)
- Written in Perl
Choose Rustic if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (3.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is BackupPC or Rustic better?
Rustic is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider BackupPC if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are BackupPC and Rustic free and open-source?
Yes. BackupPC is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Rustic under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run BackupPC and Rustic with Docker?
BackupPC: yes. Rustic: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, BackupPC or Rustic?
Rustic has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for BackupPC. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.