Effort
Fast, Balanced or Small - or all five levels with the advanced switch. Balanced suits most data.
Archive formats and compression
File types
Section titled “File types”| File type | Extension | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Native | .dump, .sql, .bak … (+ .gz / .zst / .xz / .bz2) | The database tool’s own output, optionally compressed. Default for databases (with zstd). |
| Tar + zstd | .tar.zst | Fast and small, keeps Unix owners and permissions. Default for files. |
| Tar + gzip | .tar.gz | Opens everywhere. |
| Tar + xz · Tar + bzip2 | .tar.xz · .tar.bz2 | Smallest files, slowest to make. |
| Tar | .tar | No compression - for data that is already compressed. |
| Zip | .zip | Opens on any desktop. Loses some Unix metadata (owners, special files). |
| 7z | .7z | Very small; needs temporary space on the platform while it is built. |
Compression
Section titled “Compression”Where
Auto (default) compresses on the server when its tool is there, otherwise on the platform. Remote, Platform or None force a place.
Order
Always package, then compress, then encrypt, then checksum. Never the other way round.
File names and grouping
Section titled “File names and grouping”- One artifact per source (default) or a single artifact per run holding every source.
- File name template, default
{plan}-{source}-{timestampUtc}{ext}. Tokens:{plan}{source}{server}{env}{engine}{db}{timestampUtc}{runId}; it must end with{ext}.
Different output now and then
Section titled “Different output now and then”A schedule can override the plan’s output - for example a monthly full backup as 7z while the nightly ones stay tar.zst. A manual run can override it too, if your role allows editing output settings and the result still meets the policies.