Can't Get FFS to Mirror a Data Drive

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 26 Apr 2020, 01:26

I have a new laptop running Linux Mint Cinnamon 19.3 I can't get FFS to Mirror the data drive to a backup drive. The OS is installed on a NVMe SSD and the data is on a 4TB SSD mounted in /media. The data drive is named Data1. The backup drive is 4TB SSD installed in a USB 3.0 enclosure.

When I browse for the source drive, I click on Data1 in the left pane. When browsing for the destination drive, I click on Laptop BU, also in the left pane. When I click on Compare, FFS freezes and the CPU goes crazy (two cores go the 35% and the other two go to 100%).

How can I fix this fiasco?

Posts: 4056 · xCSxXenon 26 Apr 2020, 14:06

"Laptop BU" should be selected for the right side, as the destination

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 26 Apr 2020, 18:17

I am selecting Laptop BU on the right side, as the destination. The left pane I'm referring to is in the window that pops up when I click on Browse on the right side.

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 3 May 2020, 18:29

Posts: 292 · Gianni1962 3 May 2020, 21:28

Did you have this problem only with Laptop BU as the mirror destination or with whatever you use as mirror destination?
This problem arise using the Laptop BU root folder as destination or you have selected a folder?
In case try using a folder.

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 4 May 2020, 00:53

I did not understand any of that.

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 17 May 2020, 00:05

I needed to get a backup going so I reformatted the drive (ext4) and named it Laptop 1 BU 1, then just copied the contents of Data1 to Laptop 1 BU 1.

When I tried to set up FreeFileSync (FFS) to mirror Data1 with Laptop 1 BU 1, I immediately got a permission denied error. I managed to get that fixed (with help from another forum) but when I tried to run a backup with FFS, nothing happened on screen and Core 1 on the computer pegged at 100%. I had to shut down the computer to stop the runaway. I got the same problem with the other backup drive named Laptop 1 BU 2.

Here are my settings:

: 1.jpg (26.09 KiB) Viewed 1946 times

: 2.jpg (28.72 KiB) Viewed 1946 times

: 3.jpg (50.08 KiB) Viewed 1946 times

I had no trouble setting up backups on my first Linux machine but this one is driving me insane(r)!

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 20 May 2020, 17:12

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 25 May 2020, 12:46

Seriously? No one can help?

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 9 Jun 2020, 00:35

456 views and no one can help me?

Posts: 4056 · xCSxXenon 15 Jun 2020, 15:56

Your text and pictures contain inconsistent, and therefore confusing, data. Setting up a mirror is easy, and you have been able to do it already. I read another poster that had the same core usage problem, I don't recall the resolution of that though. Sounds like you have a very one-off issue at this time.

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 15 Jun 2020, 16:07

Your text and pictures contain inconsistent, and therefore confusing, data. Setting up a mirror is easy, and you have been able to do it already. I read another poster that had the same core usage problem, I don't recall the resolution of that though. Sounds like you have a very one-off issue at this time. xCSxXenon, 15 Jun 2020, 15:56

Where am I being inconsistent and therefore confusing? If setting up a mirror is easy, why am I having so much trouble?

Posts: 4056 · xCSxXenon 15 Jun 2020, 16:32

Import your configuration to another machine and see if the problem transfers as well

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 15 Jun 2020, 17:40

Import your configuration to another machine and see if the problem transfers as well xCSxXenon, 15 Jun 2020, 16:32

That's not practical. The only other machine I could use is working fine and I don't want to mess with it.

Posts: 4056 · xCSxXenon 15 Jun 2020, 18:07

Good luck with your travels then

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 20 Jun 2020, 06:59

Well gee, thanks a lot. Forgive me for not being able to afford having a bunch of computers to use.

Posts: 58 · Lady Fitzgerald 19 Nov 2020, 02:27

I FINALLY got FreeFileSync (FFS) to work after months of trying ( :D :D :D doing happy dance :D :D :D :D )! Woohoo!

I still don't know exactly what happened to get it working. I kept getting file path errors despite using FFS' file browsers to find those paths. Manually entering the file paths didn't work either. Recently, someone on the Mint forums suggested I try drag and drop. I didn't know one could do that so I found a video showing how it was done and tried it; no joy. However, I did notice that the correct file paths were showing in the left hand panes on each side instead of me having to drill down for them.

When I tried running a mirror sync again, I started getting error messages about folders with permissions issue. I already knew that one is not supposed to mess with /lost+found/ so I excluded that along with Timeshift, which I already knew currently couldn't be copied, and Versioning Folder, saved the profile, then fired 'er up. It worked a treat (one thing of many I love about Mint is how much faster files get transferred than they did on Windoze)! I'll get around to setting up profiles for everything else later.

The only conclusion I can come up with why I had so much trouble getting this set up (despite years of experience using FFS with Win 7 and using on another Linux computer) is the file path browsers in FFS have a bug that doesn't let them work if the drive or folder isn't accessed through the /home folder (which is on another drive) and dragging and dropping the folders into FFS, even though it didn't work, woke upthe browsers that they were there.