---
title: "rsync: It's a damn brilliant thing."
date: 2003-04-22T23:00:25-04:00
url: https://blog.lmorchard.com/2003/04/22/wonders-of-rsync/
author: Les Orchard
---

# rsync: It's a damn brilliant thing.

I take rsync for granted.  It's just the best way to keep stuff <i>out there</i>
up to date with stuff <i>over here</i>, and vice versa.  And lately, I've been
using it to supplant my usage of <code>scp</code>.  And it works.  Brilliantly.  And until
recently, I hadn't stopped to realize:  Hey, you know, this thing somehow works
out differences between files <i>out there</i> and <i>over here</i> long <i>before</i>
what's <i>here</i> gets <i>there</i>.  I know, duh, but I just hadn't considered it.
<br /><br />
Well,
<a href="http://weblog.bluepenguin.us/archives/2003/04/22/rsync_one_of_the_wonders_of_the_cs_world.html" target="_top">Paul Holbrook reminded me</a>
of this tonight, with links to <a href="http://samba.anu.edu.au/~tridge/" target="_top">Andrew Tridgell</a>'s
paper on the algorithm, among other things.  Damn, things like this remind me
that I'm supposed to be getting my butt back into school...
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shortname=wonders_of_rsync

<div id="comments" class="comments archived-comments">
            <h3>Archived Comments</h3>
            
        <ul class="comments">
            
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221085318">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://kennethhunt.com/index.html"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=9b8ea315cc1b2de28e883e091e943dd2&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://kennethhunt.com/index.html">Kenneth</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221085318" class="permalink"><time datetime="2003-04-27T18:52:55">2003-04-27T18:52:55</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content">Also see the excellent The rsync Algorithm there is a mp3 of his presentation
http://archive.linuxsymposium.org/ols2000/2000-07-21_15-02-49_C_64.mp3

Very nice. Wish they would get the newer symposiums up.</div>
            
        </li>
    
        <li class="comment" id="comment-221085320">
            <div class="meta">
                <div class="author">
                    <a class="avatar image" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.ecyrd.com/ButtUgly/"><img src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar.php?gravatar_id=8f688c7919a6645352e1bb59b2f45ae4&amp;size=32&amp;default=http://mediacdn.disqus.com/1320279820/images/noavatar32.png"/></a>
                    <a class="avatar name" rel="nofollow" 
                       href="http://www.ecyrd.com/ButtUgly/">Janne Jalkanen</a>
                </div>
                <a href="#comment-221085320" class="permalink"><time datetime="2003-04-28T05:09:20">2003-04-28T05:09:20</time></a>
            </div>
            <div class="content">If I were you, I would take a serious look at Unison, which is like rsync, but it is two-way.  I use it for all my backup/sync needs.

http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~bcpierce/unison/</div>
            
        </li>
    
        </ul>
    
        </div>