Quick backup system for large projects

Question

I've always backed up all my source codes into .zip files and put it in my usb drive and uploaded to my server somewhere else in the world.. however I only do this once every two weeks, because my project is a little big.

Right now my project directories (I have a few of them) contains a hierarchy of c++ files in it, and interspersed with them are .o files which would make backing up take a while if not ignored.

What tools exist out there that will let me just back things up efficiently, conveniently and lets me specify which file types to back up (lots of .png, .jpg and some text types in there), and which directories to be ignored (esp. the build dirs)?

Or is there any ingenious methods out there that people use?

Answer 1

Though not a backup solution, a version control manager on a remote server responds to most of your needs:

• only changes are saved, not the whole project
• you can filter out what you don't want to save

Moreover, you can create archives of your repository for true backup purposes.

If you want to learn about version control, take a look at Eric Sink's weblog, in particular:

• Source Control HOWTO, for the basics of source control
• Mercurial, Subversion, and Wesley Snipes for the links to articles on distributed version control systems

Answer 2

Agree with mouviciel. If you do not want that, consider rsync or unison to efficiently keep an up-to-date copy, be it on the same or a different machine.

Answer 3

I use dropbox, im a single developer developing software. In some projects I work out from my dropbox which means they synchronize every time i build. Other projects i copy the source code there my self. But most important is that i can work on all my computers with dropbox installed on them... works for my simple needs