up vote 0 down vote favorite
share [g+] share [fb]

I need to find a program which;

  • Works on linux.
  • Can be used to backup an entire website (these backups should include everything, so I can browse the website offline and encounter no missing files at all, if I need to)
  • Its offline version does not have to be dynamic
  • Has scheduling options that allows the program to work automatically every day (If I can combine it with cron, that's fine, also.)
  • Can be free or commercial

This is an internship assignment and my project manager is not available for a couple of days so I have some questions still unanswered.

Things I don't know about:

  • Whether or not I have privileges on the website (username-password etc.)
  • Whether or not I have to use the backup files to update-restore the website (the backup files have to be browsable, that's the only thing I know)

Previously, I tried to ask another question here in Superuser, while I was thinking a website downloader might suit my needs. Someone suggested wget and I was trying to find a solution for my problem with wget. Now, I think what I need is closer to a backup software, so I'm asking for your opinion again.

link|improve this question
2  
Related? How can I download an entire website? – slhck Jul 6 '11 at 11:33
1  
what's the problem with using cron and wget again? – cularis Jul 6 '11 at 11:47
A software with update/restore capabilities might be better than wget, as I still don't know whether or not the files are going to be used on such operations. If the files are for browsing purposes only, wget is fine, but this is a government website and I doubt they want daily backups only to browse offline. I might be wrong, though. – aRHpositive Jul 6 '11 at 12:02
You're mixing up two functions. Do you want a backup (which means you want exact copies of all the files somewhere), or do you want an offline version of the site (in which case copies of the files wouldn't necessarily work--for instance, PHP scripts execute on the server and won't work offline unless you have a web server offline to execute them). Another difference: CGI programs won't be copied and won't work with an offline browsable version. You need to get more info before starting work, in my opinion. – CarlF Jul 6 '11 at 12:21
You're right about me needing to get more info. I "think" my project manager wants an offline version, but I can't be sure without consulting him. Thanks for all the help, anyway. I think I won't be able to continue without some clarification on the offline version's purposes. – aRHpositive Jul 6 '11 at 12:50
feedback

3 Answers

up vote 0 down vote

not sure if its in the repos of $distro , but httrack should do the trick, as long as your website is static, or the restore can be (to say, you can't expect the dynamic bits of a site that's using PHP and mysql).

If you need a dynamic site to work, there is NO way other than copying the script and using a database dump.

link|improve this answer
I tried httrack before. However, it does not have scheduling abilities and I don't think it can be used together with cron. If they can be used together, then I missed an important link or two while I was google-ing. – aRHpositive Jul 6 '11 at 11:44
well, its got a command line option that could be used with cron – Journeyman Geek Jul 6 '11 at 14:58
will definitely look into this. thanks. – aRHpositive Jul 6 '11 at 15:11
feedback
up vote 0 down vote

A search for "Offline Browsers" will give you what you need.

You can use SurfOffline. It is a commercial product.

However, here are some alternatives from CNET and another few from Softpedia.

See which one suits your needs (which are still a little unspecified).

link|improve this answer
SurfOffline is not for Linux, I guess. I'll look into the other links you gave. Thanks. – aRHpositive Jul 6 '11 at 11:49
Sorry, only just noticed that. – slotishtype Jul 6 '11 at 12:35
feedback
up vote 0 down vote

If a page in question uses PHP+MySQL I'd recommend an AMP stack like XAMP and just mirror site files using for example rsync/lftp etc., download a database dump using mysqldump and install it all to AMP stack.

This should be rather easy to script. XAMP can also be run for example from memory stick. As a bonus you can easily restore this to original website in case of disaster (hack, defacement, loss of data).

Copying dynamically generated page to static often does not work very well.

link|improve this answer
feedback

Your Answer

 
or
required, but never shown
discard

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.