I know there have been many queries regarding backup, but this one is rather demanding. I should also mention that I've done a fair amount of googling, but was unable to find what I need.
I need a backup solution with the following features:
- backs up one or multiple hard disks as images to an external hard disk or NAS,
- supports block-level incremental backups,
- supports merging incremental backups into the full backup,
- automatically takes care of space on the backup medium by merging the oldest incremental backup into the full backup so as to make room for the newest incremental backup,
- operates from a preboot/live CD environment.
Rationale:
- after catastrophic events, I want to be ready to roll ASAP. Having to reinstall the OS and programs isn't conductive to that so file-based backup is out.
- Block-level saves space as opposed to file-level, and that enables me to fit more backups on the backup medium.
- This is crucial for #4.
- This seems like the best way for automatically managing the backups and free space on the backup medium considering that I just want to fit as much as possible and not worry about the details or do anything manually.
- This may seem odd, but it greatly decreases the chances of malware screwing up the backups. Consider: if you make backups from within your regular OS and it loses control to malware, said malware can screw up all of your backups if they're on a plugged-in external disk. If you use a NAS instead, it can screw up any currently-running backup by sending garbage to the NAS. Using a known-good live CD/PE on a read-only medium prevents this.
So, does this exist?
Edit: I forgot to specify that I need this for my home setup which consists of a few computers, including a laptop. Also realized that live CDs would be a better fit for #5.