Use Folder Cache

Local cache on client

Accra Backup client compare folders on the local machine with corresponding folder on the server to determine if it contain files that require backup. This is the default behavior and is done for every folder on the client machine.

When folder cache option is enabled, the Accra Backup client creates a local cache file containing this list for comparison. This cached data is stored in a sub-folder called FolderCache off of the Data Folder.

As with every option, there are pros and cons:

Benefits

Speed - Using local folder cache reduces the total time spent for backup. The amount of time reduced is directly proportional to number of folders on the client machine - therefore you will see a significant time reduction for jobs containing thousands of folders. If the client does not have many folders, the speed reduction is not significant.

During a test conducted in our labs, with a backup containing about 35,000 folders, we found the time reduced from 45 minutes to 6 minutes when local cache was used.

Scalability - Increases server scalability as less requests are sent from the client to the server. Due to this reason, it is a good idea to always turn this option on since it will lower your cost for Internet usage.

Cost

If files are modified on the server using any other channel, the client will not know about them and therefore, a backup won't happen. For example, the last modified date of a file on client machine is January 01, 2022. If the same file on the server is somehow modified on January 15, 2022, the client won't know about this change.

Forcing clients to use cache

Although every client can determine if they want to use local cache, the server administrator has ability to force clients to use it even if the client decides not to. This is the default setting for the Accra Backup Service.

IMPORTANT: Local cache is not used when:

Encryption is used

Direction is either Two-way sync or Server to client