snapper vs ZnapZend
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | snapper | ZnapZend |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 83 · Excellent | 76 · Good |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C++ | Perl |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,171 | ★ 669 |
| First released | 2011 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Time Machine | Time Machine |
What are snapper and ZnapZend?
snapper
Snapper is a tool for managing filesystem snapshots on Btrfs and LVM thin volumes. It can create automatic timeline snapshots and roll back the system to a previous state.
- Automatic timeline snapshots
- Btrfs and LVM support
- System rollback
ZnapZend
ZnapZend is a ZFS backup tool that automates the creation, retention, and replication of ZFS snapshots. It runs as a daemon and supports compressed transfers over SSH.
- Automated ZFS snapshot retention
- SSH replication
- Runs as a background daemon
snapper vs ZnapZend: key differences
Snapper is written in C++, while ZnapZend is built with Perl. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for snapper versus GPL-3.0 for ZnapZend. Snapper is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for ZnapZend. Snapper is the more established project (first released 2011), while ZnapZend arrived in 2014.
Why pick each one
Choose snapper if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in C++
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose ZnapZend if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Written in Perl
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is snapper or ZnapZend better?
snapper is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider ZnapZend if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are snapper and ZnapZend free and open-source?
Yes. snapper is licensed under GPL-2.0 and ZnapZend under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run snapper and ZnapZend with Docker?
snapper: check the project docs for container support. ZnapZend: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, snapper or ZnapZend?
snapper has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for ZnapZend. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.