Conserve Backup vs Deja Dup
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Conserve Backup | Deja Dup |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Rust | Vala |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, bare-metal | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 278 | ★ 600 |
| First released | 2015 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Backblaze | Time Machine, Backblaze |
What are Conserve Backup and Deja Dup?
Conserve Backup
Conserve is a robust backup program written in Rust that creates deduplicated, versioned archives to local or remote storage. It emphasizes data safety and resumable operations.
- Deduplicated archives
- Versioned backups
- Resumable operations
- Data-safety focus
Deja Dup
Deja Dup is a simple backup tool that hides the complexity of doing backups properly. It supports local, network, and cloud storage with encryption and incremental backups powered by Restic.
- Beginner-friendly GUI
- Encrypted incremental backups
- Local and cloud targets
Conserve Backup vs Deja Dup: key differences
Conserve Backup is written in Rust, while Deja Dup is built with Vala. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for Conserve Backup versus GPL-3.0 for Deja Dup. Conserve Backup is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Deja Dup. Deja Dup is the more established project (first released 2008), while Conserve Backup arrived in 2015. Deja Dup has the considerably larger community, at 600 GitHub stars versus 278.
Why pick each one
Choose Conserve Backup if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Deja Dup if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in Vala
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Conserve Backup or Deja Dup better?
Deja Dup is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Conserve Backup if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Conserve Backup and Deja Dup free and open-source?
Yes. Conserve Backup is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Deja Dup under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Conserve Backup and Deja Dup with Docker?
Conserve Backup: check the project docs for container support. Deja Dup: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Conserve Backup or Deja Dup?
Conserve Backup has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Deja Dup. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.