Bareos vs nxs-backup
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Bareos | nxs-backup |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 83 · Excellent | 74 · Good |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C++ | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,256 | ★ 276 |
| First released | 2010 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Veeam, CommVault | Veeam |
What are Bareos and nxs-backup?
Bareos
Bareos is a cross-network open-source backup solution forked from Bacula. It preserves and recovers data from disk, tape, and other media, with a web-based management interface.
- Network-wide backup management
- Web UI for administration
- Tape and disk support
nxs-backup
Nxs-backup is an open-source backup solution that simplifies the backup of files and databases such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MongoDB. It supports incremental backups and remote storage.
- File and database backups
- Incremental support
- Remote storage targets
Bareos vs nxs-backup: key differences
Bareos is written in C++, while nxs-backup is built with Go. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Bareos versus GPL-3.0 for nxs-backup. Nxs-backup is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Bareos. Bareos is the more established project (first released 2010), while nxs-backup arrived in 2022. Bareos has the considerably larger community, at 1,256 GitHub stars versus 276.
Why pick each one
Choose Bareos if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in C++
Choose nxs-backup if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Bareos or nxs-backup better?
Neither is universally better. Bareos has the larger community, while nxs-backup is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Bareos and nxs-backup free and open-source?
Yes. Bareos is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and nxs-backup under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bareos and nxs-backup with Docker?
Bareos: yes. nxs-backup: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Bareos or nxs-backup?
nxs-backup has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Bareos. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.