# Plakar

> Plakar is an open-source backup tool that provides end-to-end encrypted,
> deduplicated backups. It is powered by Kloset, an immutable data store engine
> that handles chunking, deduplication, compression, and encryption, and
> represents all backed-up data internally as a virtual filesystem. Plakar's
> integration model allows any data source, storage backend, or restore
> destination to be supported through pluggable connectors, making it adaptable
> to files, databases, object storage, SaaS, and more. It is designed for a
> minimal memory footprint and scales to petabyte-scale infrastructure. Plakar
> Control Plane (PCP) is the enterprise product built on top of Plakar.

## Overview

- [Quick Start](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/quickstart/first-backup/index.md): Quick introduction to installing Plakar and running your first backup.
- [How Plakar Works](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/explanations/how-plakar-works/index.md): Architectural overview of Plakar and Kloset.
- [What is Kloset](https://www.plakar.io/posts/2025-04-29/kloset-the-immutable-data-store/index.md): Kloset's immutable storage model, chunking, encryption, and snapshot architecture.
- [What is Plakar Control Plane](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/overview/index.md): Overview of PCP, the enterprise product built on top of Plakar.

## When to Use Plakar

Reach for Plakar when the job is to create, manage, verify, or restore encrypted, deduplicated backups, either from the command line or through Plakar Control Plane. Best-fit jobs:

- Back up and restore filesystems, databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL/MariaDB), S3-compatible object storage, and SaaS data through pluggable connectors.
- Keep immutable, end-to-end encrypted, deduplicated snapshots in a Kloset store, then verify integrity ([`plakar check`](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-check/index.md)) and restore ([`plakar restore`](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-restore/index.md)) to the same or another destination.
- Synchronize Kloset stores across locations with [`plakar sync`](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-sync/index.md), using push or pull architectures for offsite or redundant copies.
- Run at minimal memory footprint and petabyte scale, on a single host or a centralized backup server.
- Manage backups centrally with Plakar Control Plane (PCP): a self-hosted web interface, centralized scheduling, SLA, and inventory management, deployed as a virtual appliance in your own infrastructure.

Plakar is not a file-sync tool, a general object-storage client, or a versioning system. Use it when you need recoverable, verifiable backups.

How an agent should use Plakar:

- Drive it through the `plakar` command-line interface. Start with [First Backup](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/quickstart/first-backup/index.md) and the [Command-Line Syntax](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/command-line-syntax/index.md) reference; the full command list is in the Commands section below.
- Every documentation page has a machine-readable Markdown version at its `.../index.md` URL, as linked throughout this file.

## Plakar Community Docs

Plakar Community version is open-source and free to use. Documentation is versioned to match releases. Replace the version segment in any `/docs/community/` URL to switch versions. Only use these four version identifiers — no others exist.

- [main (development)](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/main/index.md): Bleeding-edge branch, may be unstable.
- [v1.1.0 (latest stable)](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/index.md): Latest stable release, recommended for all users.
- [v1.0.6](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.0.6/index.md): Previous stable release.
- [v1.0.5](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.0.5/index.md): Previous stable release.

### Getting Started

- [Installation](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/quickstart/installation/index.md): How to install Plakar on your system.
- [First Backup](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/quickstart/first-backup/index.md): End-to-end walkthrough: create a Kloset store, run a backup, list snapshots, verify integrity, and restore.
- [Synchronize Kloset stores](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/quickstart/synchronize-copies/index.md): Duplicate a Kloset store to another location using `plakar sync`.
- [Backup Non-Filesystem Data](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/quickstart/backup-non-filesystem/index.md): Back up an S3 bucket using a configured source, and restore it to an S3 destination.

### Guides

- [Create a Kloset Repository](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/create-kloset-repository/index.md): Creating and configuring a Kloset store.
- [Importing Configurations](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/importing-configurations/index.md): How to import configurations for stores, sources, and destinations in Plakar.
- [Serve a Kloset Store Over the Network](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/serving-a-kloset-store-over-the-network/index.md): Expose a Kloset store over the network to allow access from other machines.
- [Exclude Files from a Backup](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/excluding-files-from-a-backup/index.md): Use exclusion patterns to skip files or directories during backup.
- [Retrieve Passphrase via External Command](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/retrieve-passphrase-kloset-store/index.md): Delegate Kloset store passphrase retrieval to an external command or secret manager.
- [Creating a Custom Connector](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/creating-a-custom-connector/index.md): Build and package your own data source connector (integration).
- [Log In to Plakar](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/logging-in-to-plakar/index.md): Log in to unlock pre-built integration packages and alerts.
- [Managing Packages](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/managing-packages/index.md): Install, build, update and remove Plakar integrations.
- [Using Plakar Prune](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/using-plakar-prune/index.md): Remove old snapshots and reclaim storage space.
- [Using Plakar UI](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/using-plakar-ui/index.md): Using the web interface to browse snapshots, restore files, install integrations, etc.
- [MySQL: Physical Backups](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/mysql/physical-backups/index.md): Back up raw MySQL data directories using physical backup method.
- [MySQL: SQL Dump](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/mysql/sqldump/index.md): Logical SQL dump backup for MySQL and MariaDB using the MySQL integration.
- [PostgreSQL: pg_basebackup](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/postgres/pg-base-backup/index.md): Full physical cluster backup for PostgreSQL using the PostgreSQL integration.
- [PostgreSQL: pg_dump](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/postgres/pgdump/index.md): Logical SQL dump backup for PostgreSQL using the PostgreSQL integration.
- [Exoscale: Backup Managed MySQL](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/exoscale/backup-exoscale-managed-mysql/index.md): Back up a MySQL database hosted on Exoscale.
- [Exoscale: Dedicated Backup Server](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/exoscale/exoscale-compute-as-a-dedicated-backup-server/index.md): Use an Exoscale compute as a centralized backup server.
- [OVHcloud: Backup Managed PostgreSQL](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/ovhcloud/backup-ovhcloud-managed-postgres/index.md): Back up a PostgreSQL database hosted on OVHcloud.
- [OVHcloud: Dedicated Backup Server](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/guides/ovhcloud/ovhcloud-as-a-dedicated-backup-server/index.md): Use an OVHcloud VPS as a centralized backup server.

### Explanations

- [Should You Pull or Push Backups](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/explanations/should-you-pull-or-push-backups/index.md): How to decide between push and pull backup architectures, and how Plakar supports both.
- [How Many Kloset Stores Should I Have](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/explanations/how-many-kloset-stores/index.md): How to decide between a single shared store or multiple stores based on deduplication boundaries, encryption scope, and operational needs.
- [Why Several Copies](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/explanations/why-several-copies/index.md): Why multiple backup copies matter and the 3-2-1 backup strategy.
- [Why Should I Back Up My SaaS](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/explanations/why-should-i-backup-my-saas/index.md): Why SaaS availability is not the same as data protection, and why independent backups are necessary under the shared responsibility model.
- [How Maintenance Works](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/explanations/how-maintenance-works/index.md): How Plakar reclaims storage after snapshot deletion: chunking, packfiles, garbage collection, and the grace period.

### Integrations

Each integration tells Plakar how to interact with a specific storage system in up to three ways: as a **source** (read data to back up), as a **store** (host a Kloset store), or as a **destination** (restore data back to that system).

- [S3](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/s3/index.md): S3-compatible object storage (store, source, destination).
- [SFTP](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/sftp/index.md): SFTP/SSH-accessible servers (store, source, destination).
- [HTTP(S)](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/https/index.md): HTTP/HTTPS endpoint for stores exposed by `plakar server` (store).
- [Notion](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/notion/index.md): Notion workspace via the Notion API (source, destination).
- [Dropbox](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/dropbox/index.md): Dropbox via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [iCloud Drive](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/icloud-drive/index.md): iCloud Drive via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [Koofr](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/koofr/index.md): Koofr via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [Google Drive](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/google-drive/index.md): Google Drive via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [OneDrive](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/onedrive/index.md): OneDrive via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [OpenDrive](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/opendrive/index.md): OpenDrive via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [Proton Drive](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/proton-drive/index.md): Proton Drive via Rclone (store, source, destination).
- [Proxmox](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/proxmox/index.md): Proxmox VMs and containers via vzdump (source, destination).
- [Kubernetes](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/kubernetes/index.md): Kubernetes cluster resources, manifests, and persistent volumes (source).
- [etcd](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/integrations/etcd/index.md): etcd cluster snapshots (source).

### References

- [Command-Line Syntax](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/command-line-syntax/index.md): Global flags, environment variables, and output formats.
- [PTAR Format Reference](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/ptar/index.md): Reference for the `.ptar` portable archive format: creation, inspection, integrity verification, and restore.
- [Go Kloset SDK](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/main/references/sdk/index.md): Reference for the Go Kloset SDK used to build custom Plakar integrations: importer, exporter, and storage connector interfaces.

### Commands

- [plakar archive](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-archive/index.md): Create an archive from a Plakar snapshot.
- [plakar backup](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-backup/index.md): Create a new snapshot in a Kloset store.
- [plakar cat](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-cat/index.md): Display file contents from a Plakar snapshot.
- [plakar check](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-check/index.md): Check data integrity in a Kloset repository.
- [plakar create](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-create/index.md): Create a new Kloset repository.
- [plakar destination](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-destination/index.md): Manage Plakar restore destination configuration.
- [plakar diag](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-diag/index.md): Display detailed information about Plakar internal structures.
- [plakar diff](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-diff/index.md): Show differences between files in a Plakar snapshots.
- [plakar digest](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-digest/index.md): Compute digests for files in a Plakar snapshot.
- [plakar dup](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-dup/index.md): Duplicates an existing snapshot with a different ID.
- [plakar info](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-info/index.md): Display detailed information about internal structures.
- [plakar locate](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-locate/index.md): Find filenames in a Plakar snapshot.
- [plakar login](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-login/index.md): Authenticate to Plakar services.
- [plakar logout](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-logout/index.md): Log out from Plakar services.
- [plakar ls](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-ls/index.md): List snapshots and their contents in a Kloset repository.
- [plakar maintenance](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-maintenance/index.md): Remove unused data from a Plakar repository.
- [plakar mount](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-mount/index.md): Mount Plakar snapshots as read-only filesystem.
- [plakar pkg add](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-add/index.md): Install Plakar plugins.
- [plakar pkg build](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-build/index.md): Build Plakar plugins from source.
- [plakar pkg create](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-create/index.md): Package a plugin.
- [plakar pkg manifest](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-manifest/index.md): Manifest for plugin assemblation.
- [plakar pkg recipe](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-recipe/index.md): Recipe to build Plakar plugins from source.
- [plakar pkg rm](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-rm/index.md): Uninstall Plakar plugins.
- [plakar pkg show](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-pkg-show/index.md): Show installed Plakar plugins.
- [plakar policy](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-policy/index.md): Manage Plakar retention policies.
- [plakar prune](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-prune/index.md): Prune snapshots according to a policy.
- [plakar ptar](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-ptar/index.md): Generate a self-contained Kloset archive (.ptar).
- [plakar query](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-query/index.md): Query flags shared among many Plakar subcommands.
- [plakar restore](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-restore/index.md): Restore files from a Plakar snapshot.
- [plakar rm](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-rm/index.md): Remove snapshots from a Plakar repository.
- [plakar server](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-server/index.md): Start a Plakar server.
- [plakar server](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-server/index.md): Manage optional Plakar-connected services.
- [plakar source](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-source/index.md): Manage Plakar backup source configuration.
- [plakar store](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-store/index.md): Manage Plakar store configurations.
- [plakar sync](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-sync/index.md): Synchronize snapshots between Plakar repositories.
- [plakar token create](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-token-create/index.md): Create a token to authenticate to Plakar services.
- [plakar ui](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-ui/index.md): Serve the Plakar web user interface.
- [plakar version](https://www.plakar.io/docs/community/v1.1.0/references/commands/plakar-version/index.md): Display the current Plakar version.

## Plakar Control Plane Docs

Plakar Control Plane is a self-hosted backup management system built on top of Plakar. It adds a web interface, centralized scheduling, SLA, inventory management to Plakar and deployed as a virtual appliance in your own infrastructure.

### Getting Started

- [Control Plane Overview](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/overview/index.md): What's the Control Plane, who is for and how it works.
- [Enrollment](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/enrollment/index.md): One-time setup that registers your PCP instance with plakar.io to retrieve your license and enable billing reporting.
- [Billing & Plans](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/billing/index.md): Available plans and pricing for Plakar Control Plane.

### Installation

- [AWS](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/installation/aws/index.md): How to install Control Plane on AWS from AWS marketplace AMI.
- [Scaleway](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/installation/scaleway/index.md): How to install Control Plane on Scaleway using a QCOW2 image.
- [VMware vSphere](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/intro/installation/virtual-machines/vsphere/index.md): How to install Control Plane on vCenter using vSphere from either an OVA or an ISO.

### Infrastructure

- [Secret Providers](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/secret-providers/index.md): How to use secret providers to feed secrets into Control Plane.
- [Secret Provider: AWS Secrets Manager](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/secret-providers/aws/index.md): How to setup AWS Secrets Manager on Control Plane and use it as a secret provider.
- [Secret Provider: HashiCorp Vault](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/secret-providers/vault/index.md): How to setup HashiCorp Vault on Control Plane and use it as a secret provider.
- [Secret Provider: Scaleway Secret Manager](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/secret-providers/scaleway/index.md): How to setup Scaleway Secret Manager on Control Plane and use it as a secret provider.
- [Inventories](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/inventories/index.md): What are inventories and how they are used in Control Plane.
- [Inventory: AWS](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/inventories/aws/index.md): How to setup AWS inventory and use it in Control Plane.
- [Inventory: Scaleway](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/inventories/scaleway/index.md): How to setup Scaleway inventory and use it in Control Plane.
- [Inventory: Self-managed](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/infrastructure/inventories/self-managed/index.md): How to setup a Self-managed inventory and use it in Control Plane.

### Connectors

- [Overview](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/connectors/index.md): What are connectors in Plakar Control Plane and how to set up a connector.
- [Source Connector](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/connectors/sources/index.md): How to configure and use a source connector.
- [Store Connector](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/connectors/stores/index.md): How to configure and use a store connector.
- [Destination Connector](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/connectors/destinations/index.md): How to configure and use a destination connector.

### Resources

- [Object Storage: S3](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/resources/object-storage/s3/index.md): Provision and manage S3-compatible object storage resources including AWS S3, Scaleway, MinIO, etc.
- [Block Storage: Scaleway](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/resources/block-storage/scaleway/index.md): Back up Scaleway block volumes.
- [Compute: Scaleway](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/resources/compute/scaleway/index.md): Back up and restore Scaleway compute instances.

### Operations

- [Policies](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/operations/policies/index.md): Define backup SLA requirements (frequency, retention, storage tier) and monitor source compliance against them.
- [Scheduling](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/operations/scheduling/index.md): Configure one-off and recurring backup, restore, sync, and check tasks using the built-in scheduler.

### Administration

- [Updating Control Plane](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/administration/updating-control-plane/index.md): How to update your Plakar Control plane from the settings page.
- [Updating Control Plane AMI on AWS](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/administration/updating-control-plane/aws/index.md): How to update the Control Plane AMI on AWS from AWS marketplace.
- [Updating Control Plane QCOW2 on Scaleway](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/administration/updating-control-plane/scaleway/index.md): How to update Control Plane installations on Scaleway to a new version of the QCWO2.

### General guides for Control Plane

- [Managing Passphrases](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/guides/managing-passphrases/index.md): How passphrases are use in Control Plane, how to update a passphrase and what happens when you forget your passphrase.
- [AWS: IAM Users, Roles & Access Keys](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/guides/aws/iam-users-roles-and-access-keys/index.md): Configure AWS IAM for the Control Plane.
- [Scaleway: IAM & API Keys](https://www.plakar.io/docs/control-plane/guides/scaleway/iam-and-api-keys/index.md): Configure Scaleway IAM for the Control Plane.