Back up and restore

pagis backup <directory> copies the whole installation on this computer, and pagis restore <directory> puts it back (ADR-0024). The client puts no pagis command on the PATH. The command is the pagis file of the Server Runtime that the client installed:

<release> is a release number, such as 0.1.0. The releases directory holds one directory for each release that the client installed, and the client starts the highest one. Use that one.

A backup needs a stopped server, and pagis backup refuses to run beside a running one. Select "Quit Pagis" in the tray menu first: quit stops the server that the client started. Then, on macOS:

releases="$HOME/Library/Application Support/Pagis/runtime/releases"
ls "$releases"
pagis="$releases/0.1.0/darwin-arm64/pagis"   # the highest release that ls shows
"$pagis" backup ~/pagis-backup

On Linux, set releases="$HOME/.config/Pagis/runtime/releases" and pagis="$releases/0.1.0/linux-x64/pagis" (or linux-arm64). The command reads the state directory ~/.pagis, or the directory that PAGIS_HOME names. Open Pagis again when the backup is complete.

The backup does not hold the Installation Key, the Client Credential or the access tokens of the Computers (computer-tokens/). The key stays in the keychain of this account on macOS or in the Secret Service on Linux, or in the Key File ~/.pagis/installation-key. Copy a Key File to a safe place yourself: the restored installation cannot open its provider keys without it. The backup does not hold the Computer volumes either; Docker keeps them.

The backup has no encryption. It holds the State Directory with pagis.db: the records, the memory repositories with their full history, the Artifacts, the recordings, the screenshots, the Plugins and the Software of every Person on this installation. Pagis seals only the secrets in it, for example secrets.enc. What Pagis encrypts names each store. Only your OS user can read the backup, but these permissions do not protect a copy on another disk or in a cloud store. Keep the backup on a disk with FileVault on macOS or LUKS on Linux, or encrypt it with your backup tool, for example restic or age. Keep a Key File apart from the backup.

pagis restore writes only into an empty state directory. To restore, quit Pagis, move the current state directory away, and restore into ~/.pagis:

mv ~/.pagis ~/.pagis-before-restore
"$pagis" restore ~/pagis-backup

With a Key File, copy it back to ~/.pagis/installation-key, mode 600. Then open Pagis. The client starts the restored installation and opens it signed in. The release of the client must be the release of the backup or a newer one.