Restic Cron 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 | Restic Cron | Deja Dup |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Shell | Vala |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 715 | ★ 600 |
| First released | 2019 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Backblaze | Time Machine, Backblaze |
What are Restic Cron and Deja Dup?
Restic Cron
A containerized scheduler that runs restic backups on a cron schedule and prunes old snapshots. It is designed to be a drop-in backup sidecar for self-hosted stacks.
- Cron-scheduled backups
- Automatic pruning
- restic backend
- Sidecar container
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
Restic Cron vs Deja Dup: key differences
Restic Cron is written in Shell, while Deja Dup is built with Vala. Licensing differs — BSD-2-Clause for Restic Cron versus GPL-3.0 for Deja Dup. Restic Cron is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Deja Dup. Deja Dup is the more established project (first released 2008), while Restic Cron arrived in 2019. Restic Cron lists first-class Docker deployment; Deja Dup does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Restic Cron if…
- Released under the BSD-2-Clause license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Shell
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 Restic Cron or Deja Dup better?
Neither is universally better. Restic Cron has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Restic Cron and Deja Dup free and open-source?
Yes. Restic Cron is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and Deja Dup under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Restic Cron and Deja Dup with Docker?
Restic Cron: yes. Deja Dup: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Restic Cron or Deja Dup?
Restic Cron has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Deja Dup. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.