Hermes Backup Scripts

Simple Bash scripts for backing up and restoring a local Hermes deployment using rsync over SSH.

The goal is disaster recovery: preserving the Hermes state and deployment configuration so a system can be rebuilt after hardware failure, OS reinstallation, or migration to a new machine.

---

Features

• Incremental backups using rsync
• Timestamped snapshots
• latest symlink automatically updated after successful backups
• Restore the latest snapshot or any previous snapshot
• Stores normal files and directories (no archive files)
• Uses SSH for transport
• Configuration kept separate from the scripts
• Safe for public repositories

---

Requirements

The following programs must be available:

• Bash
• rsync
• ssh
• Docker
• Docker Compose

The backup destination must be reachable over SSH.

---

Repository Layout

.
├── backup-hermes.sh
├── restore-hermes.sh
├── backup.conf.example
├── .gitignore
└── README.md

Your deployment directory will normally also contain:

.
├── .env
├── docker-compose.two-container.yml
├── backup-hermes.sh
├── restore-hermes.sh
├── backup.conf
└── README.md

---

Configuration

Copy the example configuration:

cp backup.conf.example backup.conf
chmod 600 backup.conf

Edit backup.conf:

REMOTE_HOST="<backup-host>"
REMOTE_ROOT="<backup-root>"

# Optional
HERMES_HOME="${HOME}/.hermes"

# Optional
COMPOSE_FILENAME="docker-compose.two-container.yml"

Variable	Description
REMOTE_HOST	SSH hostname or SSH alias
REMOTE_ROOT	Remote directory where backups are stored
HERMES_HOME	Hermes persistent state directory
COMPOSE_FILENAME	Docker Compose file name

The scripts automatically determine the deployment directory from their own location.

---

First-Time Setup

Make the scripts executable.

chmod 700 backup-hermes.sh
chmod 700 restore-hermes.sh

Validate the scripts:

bash -n backup-hermes.sh
bash -n restore-hermes.sh

If ShellCheck is installed:

shellcheck backup-hermes.sh restore-hermes.sh

---

Creating a Backup

Run:

./backup-hermes.sh

The script backs up:

• .env
• docker-compose.two-container.yml
• ${HERMES_HOME}

A timestamped snapshot is created on the remote host.

Example:

<backup-root>/
├── latest
└── snapshots/
    ├── 2026-07-24_14-12-05/
    ├── 2026-07-25_18-31-40/
    └── ...

Each snapshot contains:

deployment/
├── .env
└── docker-compose.two-container.yml

hermes-home/

backup-info.txt
BACKUP_COMPLETE

---

Restoring

Restore the latest backup:

./restore-hermes.sh

Restore a specific snapshot:

./restore-hermes.sh 2026-07-24_14-12-05

The script restores:

• Hermes state
• .env
• Docker Compose configuration

The restore requires confirmation before overwriting existing files.

---

Starting Hermes

After restoring:

docker compose \
    -f docker-compose.two-container.yml \
    up -d

---

Recommended Backup Workflow

Before making major system changes:

Stop the containers:

docker compose \
    -f docker-compose.two-container.yml \
    stop

Create a backup:

./backup-hermes.sh

Restart Hermes:

docker compose \
    -f docker-compose.two-container.yml \
    start

---

Migrating to a New Machine

1. Install Docker.
2. Install Docker Compose.
3. Clone this repository.
4. Create backup.conf.
5. Run:

./restore-hermes.sh

6. Start Hermes:

docker compose \
    -f docker-compose.two-container.yml \
    up -d

---

Inspecting Remote Backups

List snapshots:

ssh <backup-host> \
    "find <backup-root>/snapshots -maxdepth 1 -type d | sort"

Show the latest snapshot:

ssh <backup-host> \
    "readlink -f <backup-root>/latest"

Show snapshot sizes:

ssh <backup-host> \
    "du -sh <backup-root>/snapshots/*"

---

Testing Without Copying Data

Preview a backup:

rsync -avzn \
    "${HOME}/.hermes/" \
    <backup-host>:<backup-root>/test/

Preview deployment files:

rsync -avzn \
    .env \
    docker-compose.two-container.yml \
    <backup-host>:<backup-root>/test/

No files are transferred when using -n.

---

Security

The following files should never be committed:

• .env
• backup.conf
• SSH keys
• API keys
• Passwords
• Tokens

A recommended .gitignore:

.env
.env.*
!.env.example

backup.conf

*.pem
*.key
id_rsa
id_ed25519

snapshots/
latest

Before committing, review staged changes:

git diff --cached

---

Notes

• The scripts use rsync.
• -z compresses data during transfer only.
• Backups are stored as regular files and directories rather than archive files.
• Docker images and containers are not backed up.
• Docker recreates containers from the Compose file.
• The Hermes state is restored from the backed-up data.

---

License

Apache-2.0 License.