Kopia vs Obnam2
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Kopia
Fast, encrypted backup with a clean interface
VS
Obnam2
Simple, secure chunk-based backup program
| Feature | Kopia | Obnam2 |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, docker | binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 14,188 | ★ 200 |
| First released | 2019 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Backblaze, Carbonite | Backblaze |
What are Kopia and Obnam2?
Kopia
Kopia is a fast and secure backup tool that creates encrypted, deduplicated snapshots and offers both a CLI and a desktop GUI. It targets users who want modern backups with a clean interface. It is deployed as a binary or via Docker.
- Encrypted deduplicated snapshots
- Both CLI and desktop GUI
- Many storage backends
- Compression and policies
Obnam2
Obnam2 is a backup program that splits files into chunks for deduplicated, encrypted storage to a backup server. It is built with a focus on simplicity and verifiable correctness.
- Chunk-based deduplication
- Encrypted storage
- Backup server model
- Simplicity focused
Kopia vs Obnam2: key differences
Kopia is written in Go, while Obnam2 is built with Rust. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for Kopia versus AGPL-3.0 for Obnam2. Obnam2 is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Kopia. Kopia has the considerably larger community, at 14,188 GitHub stars versus 200. Kopia lists first-class Docker deployment; Obnam2 does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Kopia if…
- GUI and CLI both available
- Fast and efficient
- Modern design
Watch out for
- Younger than Restic
- Advanced options can confuse
Choose Obnam2 if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Kopia or Obnam2 better?
Kopia is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Obnam2 if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Kopia and Obnam2 free and open-source?
Yes. Kopia is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Obnam2 under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kopia and Obnam2 with Docker?
Kopia: yes. Obnam2: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Kopia or Obnam2?
Obnam2 has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Kopia. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.