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Backup Agent

Backup Agent

Learn how to restore a backup.

The SimpleBackups Agent is a lightweight, locally installed service that allows you to run backups from your server without needing SSH access. It's the ideal solution when SSH is not an option—whether due to compliance restrictions, isolated (air-gapped) environments, or containerized infrastructure like Kubernetes sidecars.

 

Why use the Agent?

While most users connect their servers to SimpleBackups using SSH, there are cases where that's not possible or convenient. The Agent provides an alternative that:

  • Requires no SSH access
  • Works without opening firewall ports
  • Can run in restricted environments (Kubernetes, local dev machines, private networks)
  • Is installed via a single command line

It's self-hosted, secure, and still gives you full access to the SimpleBackups dashboard for managing and monitoring your backups.

How it works

  1. You install the agent on your machine (Linux, macOS, or inside a container)
  1. It connects to SimpleBackups using secure HTTPS (no SSH needed)
  1. When triggered by SimpleBackups (e.g. on schedule or via webhook), it runs the configured backup jobs
🔒 Your data stays local. The Agent only sends logs and metadata to SimpleBackups — the actual backup process (e.g., dumping a database, copying files) happens directly on your machine.

Requirements

  • The server must have internet access (HTTPS traffic to simplebackups.io)
  • Docker is optional, but supported
  • Minimal resources — the agent is lightweight and runs in the background

Installation

Installing the Agent is simple. You'll receive a one-line installation command from the Server connection page that:

  • Downloads the agent
  • Authenticates it with your SimpleBackups account
  • Starts it in the background as a service
      • Notion image
 

Use cases

The Agent is especially useful for:

  • Enterprise environments with strict access policies
  • Kubernetes sidecars where running SSH is not ideal
  • Air-gapped servers with outbound access only
  • Local development machines where backups are needed but SSH is overkill

Limitations

  • The agent requires outbound internet access
  • It currently doesn’t support Storage Backup
  • Some advanced SSH-only features may not be available (e.g. automated restore - manual restore works fine though)
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Last updated on May 5, 2025

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